An Evening With A.J. CROCE
DANNY LANG PROMOTIONS
Present An Evening With
A.J. CROCE
WHEN: Saturday August 2nd, 2014 - 7:30pm
WHERE: Woodlands Backyard - 668 Grandview Ave. , Grandview OH 43215
Opening Artist AJ Angelo
Open Floor Admission $25.00 (processing fees may apply)
At The Door $30.00 (while tickets last)
A.J. Croce
From his debut as a jazz influenced blues-based artist to his evolution into a popmusic iconoclast, singer-songwriter A.J. Croce has traveled a circuitous musical road. Now, with Twelve Tales, A.J. unveiled his most ambitious recording project to date: Adozen new tracks recorded by legendary producers across a variety of American cities, released one song each month in 2013. A.J. recently signed with Compass Records(Colin Haye, Victor Wooten), an independent label that has been touted byBillboard Magazine as one of the leading labels of the past decade. Twelve Tales came out everywhere on February 4, 2014 and will come out on LP this Spring.
A.J.’snotable producers on Twelve Tales are Nashville’s illustrious late "Cowboy" Jack Clement (Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis); New Orleans’ ambassador of funk Allen Toussaint (Dr. John, Paul McCartney); five-time Grammy winner Kevin Killen (Elvis Costello, Peter Gabriel) in Stamford, CT; Grammy and Golden Globe nominee Mitchell Froom (Crowded House, Los Lobos) and Tony Berg (Fiona Apple, Bob Dylan) in Los Angeles; and finally Greg Cohen (TomWaits, John Zorn) in New York City.
The son of legendary singer-songwriter JimCroce, A.J.’s career began with his first tour at age 18opening up for B.B. King. In the span of a 20+-year career, A.J. has headlined festivals, concerts and major listening venues worldwide. He has been seen and heard on shows including Jay Leno, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Austin City Limits, Good Morning America, E!, and CNN, and he has shared the stage with an innumerable list of eclectic artists from Willie Nelson to Ray Charles, Béla Fleck to James Brown, Lyle Lovett to Morphine, and Rod Stewart to Ben Harper.
A loyal and appreciative audience and glowing press from Rolling Stone tothe New York Times confirms the appeal of A.J’s genre-spanningmusic, with six of his albums positioned in various radio charts including Top40, AAA, Americana, College, and Jazz. An ivory-searing New Orleans piano styleestablished an essential juju, but his exploratory pop gems revealed a spectrumof influences from art rock to Americana and beyond. Initially signed as ajazz artist, he subsequently charted with an Americana roots release and recordedtwo well-regarded releases for BMG Records that expanded his audienceexponentially. His subsequent albums were released on variousindependent labels and his own label, Seedling Records, established in 2003 to release his own records and that of other artists.
Having spent the past three years in Nashville where a packed weekly schedule ofco-writing sharpened his writing to a keen edge, A.J. says that back home inCalifornia his song craft took an instant turn. “I began writing for myselfagain,” he confirms. He has recently begun collaborating with the great LeonRussell (“A Song for You,” “This Masquerade”). “It’s a thrill and a littlesurreal to collaborate with Leon Russell. He’s been an influence and aninspiration as long as I can remember,” says A.J.
A dedicated family man, an adventurous artist and a confident creator; in thisphase in his life and career, A.J. is focused less on expectations and more oninstincts. “I generally want to do the stuff that makes me feel good,” he says.And like the blues greats who influenced him, A.J. Croce continues to createstellar music with longevity, authenticity and truth. Twelve Tales marks the latestmilestone on his illustrious journey.
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“A.J. Croce has wisdom beyond his years. With hismusic, he represents his generation with a profound sense of honesty in hislyrics and quality in his delivery. The future of entertainment is safe in hishands!” - Willie Nelson
“One of the greatest young songwriters” – DavidWild, Rolling Stone
A.J.'s intimate performance of three of the new Twelve Tales: http://youtu.be/dcTRcmWq4Ck
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=e8SfFyUWoy4 ("Coraline" Video)
http://youtu.be/zNmxljQFFcQ?t=1m56s ("Come and Go" at Great American Music Hall) - an amazing piano medley by A.J.