Lake Oswego, Oregon, Sept 15, 2016 – Julie Amici will host its “Yellow Roses” Single Release and Kickstarter Launch Event on Oct 17th at Lake Theater & Cafe in Lake Oswego. Proceeds from the event will help fund the CD project and resulting tour. The night will feature the debut live performance of Yellow Roses, a viewing of the Kickstarter video, as well as a host of performances from musicians who have performed with Julie Amici along the way including Chris Carlson, Alan Hager, Mark Shark, Dan Gildea, Carlton Jackson, and Alan Jones.
“Julie Amici” is the collaboration between Julie Yanko and Dean Mueller that started in late 2014. Over the past year, the pair has performed as a duo as well as collaborated onstage with some of the Northwest’s finest musicians. Julie’s strong yet sweet voice is reminiscent of the 50’s when female singers ruled the world of music, a time when jazz and blues co-mingled at the height of popular culture. Her repertoire combines the jazz of Billie Holiday with the soul of Nina Simone and the sophisticated country of Patsy Cline. Dean’s bass playing and management skills were earned playing with some of the finest blues legends in America and managing, and touring with, the award winning international act, The Insomniacs.
“The name is derived from Julie’s first name, and “Amici” the original family name of my father,” said Mueller. “It is a melding of the two of us. And our music is the fusion of Julie’s country roots and childhood dreams of singing jazz, with my deeply rooted blues foundation.”
Evolution of Julie Amici’s Americana Style
In the spring of this year, the couple started writing original tunes inspired by simple melodies of childhood memories that Julie recorded on a trip back to her hometown in Wisconsin. After working together on the material for a couple of months, they enlisted the help of their longtime friend and mentor, Alan Jones, to further develop the songs. As their work developed Alan offered to produce the music, scheduled the studio time, and in July they started long hours of studio work.
Alan’s reputation as one of the finest Jazz drummers and music educators is known across the world. His most recent work as a producer for both of Taylor John Williams latest EP’s is solidifying his position as a talented producer as well. When asked why he decided to produce the record, Alan said: “The lyrics are great… the music is an authentic expression of a snapshot of American tradition”.
“The project has turned into an exciting adventure that has far exceeded our expectations on many levels,” said Yanko “The original plan to mix some covers typical of our past performances, but it was quickly traded in favor of a project based on original material we can put 100% of heart into. The end result is an Americana style – a blend of our typical roots in jazz, blues and country and influenced by our personalities and lifestyles.”
In this age of digital releases, Julie Amici plans to release a series of singles starting with “Yellow Roses” that will culminate in the release of a final LP.
About the Event
The Music Monday series at Lake Theater & Cafe features top jazz, blues and roots artists from throughout the region. Originally built in 1940, the recently restored Lake Theater and Café is an all-ages state-of- the art concert facility, with a beautiful lakeside view and a full-service bar and restaurant. Showtime is 7:00pm and doors open at 6:00pm. Tickets for this show are $10.00 for general admission and can be purchased online at https://laketheatercafe-com.seatengine.com/
Salem-based bassist John Pounds has long been a favorite of the Oregon music scene, so when he suffered a stroke last March, many of his friends and fans wanted to help him out as much as they could and put together a number of benefit shows down around the Salem area. Well, here’s another chance to help John, show him your love, and experience a great full day of music provided by many of his good friends. For The Love Of John: A Benefit For John Pounds will take place at Bradford’s Sports Lounge, 10346 NE Halsey Street in Portland on Sunday, October 2. Schedule to start at 2:00 pm and running until 11:00 pm, the line-up will include Sonny Hess, Lisa Mann, Wes Tjerlund, Larry London, Jarred Venti, Garry Meziere, Jason “JT” Thomas, Phil “Suburban Slim” Wagner, Robbie Laws, Doug Rowell, Ed Neumann, and many, many more
