Hello World!
It has been a while since I blogged, I guess I have been too busy traveling and making music!
In December I played the Philippines, Singapore, and the Kuala Lumpur Jazz Fest launch concert. I had some great shows with Asian superstars Jeremy Monteiro and Boy Katindig. In January, I just took it easy and soaked up the rain in Vancouver!
I spent February performing in Mexico, and played and recorded with my buddy, saxist Brian Savage, who has been a bit off the mainstream grid since his last few blockbuster albums. I was also booked at a few very cool jazz venues, including Encore and Garbos, and I had the opportunity to perform at the legendary El Arroyo Verde floating concert stage. I also recorded a live album for western Mexico's favorite latin chanteuse Armi Grano - she is such a pro singer!
During this whole time on the road I have been working over the 'net, going back and forth with Jeff Lorber, as he is co producing my upcoming album called Kissed By The Sun. I am back in the studio at the time of this writing and working hard on some great tunes..... this will be the best yet! Many hours of songwriting and detailing have gone into this project, and guests include Chuck Loeb, Brian Bromberg, Rock Hendricks, Walle Larsson, Rob Tardik, and more ... The CD drop date is July 1, to coincide with my CD release party at Spaghettini in Seal Beach CA that day, and along for the ride is my special guest Paul Brown, who's new album Funky Joint is roaring!
On July 7, Jeff Lorber and I are double billed as "Brass and Ivory: an evening with Jeff Lorber and Gabriel Mark Hasselbach" at Loews Ventana in Tucson AZ. We will be performing not only tunes from Jeff's latest boffo release Galaxy, but also my new tracks from Kissed By The Sun and co-compositions from two other CD projects we did together.
On August 19 I will be featured in Winnipeg at the Lyric Theatre for a great summer's eve show... and WAVE 94.7 in Ontario is likely about to rise like a phoenix, moving from Hamilton to Toronto, a much better urban fit for their great radio format ....so I may be out there doing a launch party and popping a bottle of bubbly as well!
I was fortunate to have had pretty notable chart success with the first two singles from my 2010 album Told Ya So (which won Album of the Year at the 2011 Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards), and here we are now in 2012 with my THIRD and current single Shake It Down.
It features (Paul Hardcastle's saxist) Rock Hendricks and Miles Black, and is working hard for me and making a good showing on the charts. It is currently #8 on the Jazz Week Smooth Singles chart, #10 on the Jazz Week Smooth Album chart, #45 on the SmoothJazz.com Top 50 chart, and #25 on the SmoothJazz.com Top 50 chart .... and moving up!
I have other dates this summer in Vancouver, and likely Denver, Seattle and as far east as Huntsville .... another tour of the Philippines is still in the works, too (bring 'em on promoters!)
Stay tuned for more info and get the latest full fidelity single free download here: New Single ‘Shake It Down'
ciao 4 niao,
Gabriel Mark Hasselbach