Jazz At The Cherry is pleased to bring back to our stage one of the Monterey Peninsula’s most well-known pianists, Dick Whittington. Joining Dick will be another local favorite, drummer Leon Joyce Jr. Rounding out the trio will be the versatile and creative bassist, Dan Robbins. Sunday, August 17th, at 2pm. Doors open at 1:30pm for wine and light fare included in the ticket price. Tickets are $45, available on Eventbrite.com. Be sure to buy yours today – this year, every performance has sold out.
Dick and his trio will treat us to an array of tunes from the Great American Songbook, featuring works by composers Harold Arlen Irving Berlin, Gershwin, Cole Porter and Richard Rodgers, as well as Jazz Standards by Dizzy Gillespie and John Lewis.
Dick Whittington
Dick Whittington grew up in Los Angeles, and while earning a degree in elementary education at Cal State Northridge, he was working gigs with: Bobby Hutcherson, Sonny Criss, Barney Kessel, Charles Lloyd, Charlie Haden, Scott Lafaro, Gary Peacock, and Billy Higgins. Dick later went on to accompany vocalists Anita O’Day, Ernestine Anderson, Dinah Washington, and Mel Torme. Over the last five decades, he has performed with many jazz greats, including: Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, James Moody, Lee Konitz, Art Pepper, Eddie Harris, and Chet Baker.
Leon Joyce Jr.
A local favorite, drummer Leon Joyce, Jr has worked for a wide variety of top artists, including Ramsey Lewis, Nancy Wilson, Smokey Robinson, Teena Marie, Monty Alexander, Clark Terry, Conte Condoli, Ellis Marsalis, Larry Coryell, Gary Bartz, Billy Harper, and Pete Fountain. He has also performed at many of the top International Jazz Festivals, including Montreux and Lugano Jazz Festivals in Switzerland and the Villingen Swing/Jazz Festival in Germany. Nationally, he has appeared in the Monterey Jazz and Blues, Playboy Jazz and JVC Jazz Festivals in California, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in Louisiana, JVC Jazz Festival in Colorado, Chicago Jazz, the South Shore Jazz and the Heritage Festivals in Illinois. He has also appeared in the Dijon, Lyon and Paris Blues Festivals in France, the Luzern Blues Festival in Switzerland, the Zacatecas and Oaxaca Blues Festival in Mexico and the Rhythm & Blues cruise.
Dan Robbins
Dan has played and recorded in settings ranging from solo, duo, trio, etc. to big band and orchestra, and is known for driving, creative, harmonically and melodically rich background and lead parts on bass. He doubles on both acoustic bass, and four, five, six, and seven-string electric bass, in styles ranging from solo jazz chord-melody arrangements, to hard-swinging jazz double bass accompaniment, acoustic and electric funk, Brazilian, Afro-Cuban, Carribean, rock, R&B, blues, tango, Indian, and fusion styles, as well as arco (played with the bow) classical and contemporary interpretations of composed music. When you hear Dan perform his energetic and spellbinding solos, you will understand why he is one of the most in demand musicians on the west coast and beyond.