THE SHOWROOM SESSIONS: Streaming LIVE from Piedmont Piano Company
Maria Muldaur
Blues & All That Jazz
Maria Muldaur & her Jazzabelle Qartet perform an evening of Vintage Jazz & Naughty Bawdy Blues, sharing fun tunes from her 2019 Grammy nominated album Don't You Feel My Leg, delightful undiscovered gems, as well as old favorites - featuring guitarist extraordinaire Danny Caron, Chris Burns on piano, groovemeister Ruth Davies on bass, and Ronnie Smith on drums.
Watch the LIVE STREAM on youtube or facebook
Donations/tips accepted via paypal.com/paypalme/mariamuldaur
Maria Muldaur is best known world-wide for her 1974 mega-hit “Midnight at the Oasis,” which received several Grammy nominations, and enshrined her forever in the hearts of Baby Boomers everywhere; but despite her considerable pop music success, her 56-plus year career could best be described as a long and adventurous odyssey through the various forms of American Roots Music.
In the 46 years since “Midnight at the Oasis,” Maria has toured extensively worldwide and has recorded 41 solo albums covering all kinds of American Roots Music, including gospel, R&B, jazz, and big band, recently settling comfortably into her favorite idiom, the blues. In 2018, Maria released her 41st album DON’T YOU FEEL MY LEG The Naughty Bawdy Blues of Blue Lu Barker, garnering her 6th Grammy nomination!
In 2019, The Americana Music Association awarded Maria “The Lifetime Achievement Americana Trailblazer Award” for her lifelong work of covering the depth and breadth of American Roots music, and for being one of the pioneers who laid the groundwork for what we’ve come to call “Americana Music.” Maria continues to record and perform worldwide.
Danny Caron began his musical career in Austin, TX playing with singer/pianist Marcia Ball on the “Crawfish circuit”, eventually moving to Lafayette, LA where he performed and recorded a Grammy award-winning album with Zydeco King Clifton Chenier. In 1981 he relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area, freelancing with many bands and artists till he helped resurrect the career of legendary blues artist Charles Brown. Danny served as Brown’s guitarist and musical director from 1987 till Brown’s death in 1999.
He has performed and recorded with numerous artists including Bonnie Raitt, Maria Muldaur, Ruth Brown, Etta Jones, Donald Fagen, Dr. John, Little Milton, John Hammond Jr., Van Morrison, John Lee Hooker, and many others. He’s also the featured guitarist on the Van Morrison/John Lee Hooker album, “Don’t Look Back”. Danny has played for numerous jazz festivals throughout the US and Europe, several tours to New Zealand, Japan, and even Borneo, with great artists like Robben Ford, Charlie Musslewhite, Duke Robillard, Bettye LaVette, and Dan Hicks. Recent projects include the release of his fourth album “Make Beauty”, and performing at Lincoln Center in “The Tribute To Cannonball Adderly”. He keeps a busy touring schedule, performing most recently with Tom Rigney, Barbara Morrison, Maria Muldaur + others, and teaches at The Jazz School in Berkeley, CA.
Chris Burns, a veteran San Francisco Bay Area piano/organist and producer who has been Maria Muldaur’s keyboardist and musical director for 28 years. His versatility, deep immersion, knowledge, and keen understanding of Blues and R&B, along with his soulful musical delivery has made him a sought after musician and producer. He has recorded, performed, and toured worldwide with many top Blues artists & R&B legends, including Elvin Bishop, Little Milton, Joe Louis Walker, Little Johnny Taylor, The Drifters, Sugar Pie De Santo, The California Honeydrops, Little Frankie Lee, Johnny Taylor, , Barbara Dane, Little Anthony, Big Harp George, Freddie Hughes, and many others.
Ruth Davies, a Bay Area native, has performed with jazz and blues greats Charles Brown, Clark Terry, John Lee Hooker, Bonnie Raitt, Jay McShann, Van Morrison, Maria Muldaur, Linda Tillery, Barbara Dane, Barbara Morrison, Etta Jones, Elvis Costello, Eric Bibb, Keb’ Mo’, Jimmy Witherspoon and Little Jimmy Scott.
Her discography (including several Platinum and Grammy-winning recordings) covers various jazz and blues styles as well as movie soundtracks. She has recorded with Charles Brown, Bonnie Raitt, John Lee Hooker, Van Morrison, Sammy Hagar, Clark Terry, Vassar Clements, Toots Thielemans, Ernie Watts, Elvin Bishop, Maria Muldaur, Jackie Ryan, and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, among others.
Ruth toured the world for ten years with the late Charles Brown, performing at major jazz and blues festivals, clubs and concerts as well as radio and television broadcasts worldwide. She has recorded and performed internationally with Maria Muldaur, Dan Hicks, Elvin Bishop, Barbara Dane, and others. Lately she has returned to the roots and traveled the last eight years with the Elvin Bishop Band.
Drummer and vocalist Ronnie Groove Smith is a native of the Oakland/East Bay area. His talents developed and were heavily influenced by growing up amid Oakland's musically rich legacy. His roots began in the Pentecostal churches of Oakland singing in choirs and playing drums for church services. Soon he was singing, drumming and recording with many gospel quartet groups like Infinity, Soulful Sons of Zion, The Jones Boys, and The Gospel Hummingbirds.
Outside of gospel music, Ronnie has been very active in the Bay area music scene over the years playing in a variety of styles from Blues, R & B, Hip-hop, Jazz, Americana and Roots music. He was a Blues Music Award winning drummer in 2010 for his work with the Tommy Castro Band and has gone on to perform, record, and tour with many nationally and internationally known blues legends. including Joe Louis Walker, Kim Wilson, Henry Gray, Matt Schofield, Debbie Davies, Kenny Neal, Rick Estrin & the Nightcats, Darrell Nulisch, Eric Bibb, Sonny Green, Alabama Mike, John Nemeth and many more Recently Ronnie has been one of the recording house drummers for Big Tone Records and for Little Village Foundation Records as well.
Some of Ronnie's other accomplishments outside of the blues world has been to perform and/or record with various notable artists/musicians as , Maria Muldaur, John Sebastian, Linda Tillery, Tony Lindsay, Jim Pugh, Jubu Smith & Legally Blynd, Levi Seacer, Lydia Pense & Coolblood, Sugar Pie DeSanto, Marc Russo, Johnny Talbot, John Turk, Jesse James, and Freddie Hughes. Currently he is a member of the notable veteran SF gospel quartet group Sons of the Soul Revivers, and still performs as drummer for Roots music Queen, Maria Muldaur!