The triple threat issues a challenge to today's musicians.  Kenzie Ellisson has a bone to pick with modern musicians. Ellisson, the classically trained pianist with a fond love of jazz, rock and roll and soul, has a love of all things music. "If it was on a 78, I listened to it at some point." His bone to pick? Bands and artists giving listeners bland instead of bold.
"Seriously, if you give a kid fast food every day, that's all they'll be open too. Something cheap, quick and bland. Give them broccoli, they may night like it but they'll know it is out there and be open to it. Same thing with music. You have to expose kids to all sorts of music and give them a listen. Jazz, classical, gospel, rock... they'll be open to it if they know it's out there. If all you'll listen to is sugar pop and simple songs about... I don't know, the mall or whatever is out there today, it's nothing. Make a statement. Do something bold. The Beatles didn't write nothing but I Wanna Hold Your Hand songs." He's got plenty of credo to say something like that. With eight albums, three of them multi-platinum, two Grammy awards and a career that's survived grunge, boy band pop, the Latin explosion and wave after wave of alternative, he seems to know what he's talking about. "I grew up listening to everything from T-Red to Brahmes. All of us kids in my neighborhood did.. You can tell it had an affect on me otherwise I might all be doing taxes or programming office computers. I was able to nurture that fondness with an instrument and having that exposure to more than just the vanilla types of music, I've been pretty lucky." He's not the only one. The fruits of his 'nurturing' as he calls it, have enjoyed critical and commercial acclaim with instrumental music, jazz and funk infused tunes and new takes on classic standards. But his next album will be something a bit different. "Love songs. And I'm playing with a full orchestra. Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky to get where I am right now." Learn To Love, schedule for release on July 16th, is as he says. An album with nothing but love songs with support of a symphony orchestra. Promising a very vintage feel, let's hope that he's able to put his money where his mouth is with something that might sound a bit cornball on paper. |
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