{"id":25826,"date":"2022-04-28T09:31:58","date_gmt":"2022-04-28T13:31:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/?p=25826"},"modified":"2022-04-28T09:32:09","modified_gmt":"2022-04-28T13:32:09","slug":"on-stage-for-segal-music-led-to-recovery-and-soothing-others-with-jazz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/?p=25826","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: For Segal, music led to recovery and soothing others with jazz"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"

Alan Segal<\/p><\/div>\n

Alan Segal had a life-changing event several years ago.<\/p>\n

Prior to the event, he had a positive effect on people financially \u2013 helping them navigate the world of personal finances.<\/p>\n

When Segal resumed activity after the event, he had a positive effect on people spiritually \u2013 not with religious topics but rather with soul-soothing music.<\/p>\n

Segal is the founder of The Jazz Sanctuary, a jazz band based in the Delaware Valley since its inception in 2011.<\/p>\n

The Jazz Sanctuary (thejazzsanctuary.com<\/a>), Philadelphia\u2019s most innovative music organization bringing live jazz music to performing arts and events spaces throughout the Greater Philadelphia region, has begun its second decade in style with more than 30 events already on the slate for its 11th anniversary year.<\/p>\n

Since its founding in 2011, The Jazz Sanctuary has brought over 625 live performances to people throughout Philadelphia and the neighboring Pennsylvania and New Jersey suburbs. In addition, the organization brings their music to healthcare facilities, including regular performances for the Council on Brain Injury and others in the region. <\/p>\n

Upcoming TJS shows featuring the Alan Segal Quintet are scheduled for April 28 at Gloria Dei Old Swede\u2019s Episcopal Church (916 South Swanson Street, Philadelphia) and May 5 at the Episcopal Church of the Incarnation (1505 Makefield Road, Morrisville).<\/p>\n

April 28 brings another evening of \u201cJazz & Joe\u201d at Gloria Dei at 7:30 p.m.\u00a0The Jazz Sanctuary\u00a0quintet of James Dell\u2019Orefice (piano), Leon Jordan Sr. (drums), Randy Sutin (vibes\/percussion), Eddie Etkins (saxophone) and Alan\u00a0Segal\u00a0(bass) will perform. The concert performance is free of charge.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, music was a matter of survival because I had a brain operation in 2006,\u201d said Segal, during a phone interview Monday afternoon from his home in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n

Prior to that, Segal worked as a Certified Public Accountant and a Financial Consultant:\u00a0Series 7 and Series 63 (Brokerage) and was involved in CSMC:\u00a0Certified Specialist Management Consulting.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brain sprang a leak,\u201d said Segal. \u201cI had a headache which sent me to the hospital for three days in May 2006.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe doctors found a leak. It wasn\u2019t until December 2011 that they brought me in for an operation. I had 13 hours of surgery and a 40 per cent chance of dying.\u201d<\/p>\n

His recovery after the surgery that corrected the arteriovenous malformation in his brain did not come easily.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t walk or talk,\u201d said Segal. \u201cI had no hand-eye coordination. I was a slab of meat.\u201d<\/p>\n

As so often happens, music was the savior.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn order to get hand-eye coordination and moving my eyes left-to-right and back, I started playing bass five to seven hours a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started in 2007 around March. It took me two years to become fully functional again. I had huge trouble with speech. I got lucky and got about 90 per cent back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Segal started playing jazz music but, at first, he wasn\u2019t really \u201cplaying jazz music.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we started The Jazz Sanctuary in 2007, I was a technical player,\u201d said Segal. \u201cThe guys in the band stuck with me and helped me become a real jazz player. It\u2019s pretty amazing. You have to stay alert and pay attention.\u201d<\/p>\n

From its humble beginning, The Jazz Sanctuary has become a Philadelphia music institution.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just finished our 642nd event,\u201d said Segal, who grew up in West Philadelphia and graduated from Philly\u2019s highly acclaimed Central High School.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur group has been together longer than any other jazz group in the Philly area. This year, we\u2019ll have played more than 60 shows. The most was in 2019 when we had 88 events.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a huge repertoire. My iPad has more than 1,500 songs. We all read music and our sax player puts together the set.<\/p>\n

\u201cJazz is an extension of the blues. Gospel to blues to jazz is a straight line \u2013 no deviations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Events by The Jazz Sanctuary are always free.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do everything pro bono,\u201d said Segal. \u201cI take no money. I\u2019m not trying to make a profit. We generate a lot of money for charitable organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Funding for The Jazz Sanctuary comes from individual donors as well as sponsors, including\u00a0CBIZ, Compass Ion Advisors, Philadelphia Federal Credit Union, The Big Event, Zled Lighting, LPL Financial, Quantum Think, C&N Bank\u00a0and\u00a0DMG Global.<\/p>\n

Charitable events in the five-county area have served organizations such as\u00a0Friendship Circle, Cradle of Hope, Ronald McDonald House, Interfaith Hospital Center of the Main Line\u00a0and\u00a0Council on Brain Injury\u00a0and\u00a0Re-Med\u00a0golf outing and therapy sessions.<\/p>\n

Donations to support the mission of The Jazz Sanctuary continue to be vital to the growth of the organization as they enter their second decade. The Jazz Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that brings jazz music free of charge to charitable organizations, community centers, and houses of worship, among others.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Jazz Sanctuary will not play for profit,\u201d said Segal.<\/p>\n

Playing high caliber jazz music and generating money for charitable causes — Segal has found two good paths to follow in his \u201csecond incarnation\u201d and the world is a better place because of it.<\/p>\n

Video link for the Jazz Sanctuary \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/zLhskbzVIQQ<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Eliza Neals<\/p><\/div>\n

When Eliza Neals performs at Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985, www.jameyshouseofmusic.com<\/a>) on April 30, the audience can expect to hear an evening of blues \u2013 and a lot more.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get categorized as a blues artist but I\u2019m more a rock\/soul\/blues artist,\u201d said Neal, during a phone interview Tuesday from her home in Jersey City, New Jersey.<\/p>\n

Neals is a dynamic powerful front woman, multi-talented musician, confident producer and outstanding live performer \u2013 and a native of Detroit, Michigan.<\/p>\n

Neals has performed at venues across the United States and United Kingdom including many high-profile festivals. She has been described as a \u201cDetroit Diva\u201d and her music has been billed as a \u201ccombination of blues-rock and psychedelic soul with a twist of jam band and southern rock.\u201d<\/p>\n

She is touring in support of her new album, \u201cBadder to the Bone,\u201d which was just released on April 23 on her own label \u2013 EH Records.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wrote the songs for \u2018Badder to the Bone\u2019 during the pandemic,\u201d said Neals. \u201cIt took two years to write. I recorded a lot of it in Detroit at Tempermill Studio. I also did some recording at two studios in Nashville — Penpazaric Studio and Univox Studio.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was my second album to make during the pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n

The title \u201cBadder to the Bone\u201d is a takeoff on the title of a song by Delaware\u2019s George Thorogood \u2013 \u201cBad to the Bone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI love George\u2019s song,\u201d said Neals. \u201cGeorge is bad to the bone. We\u2019re badder to the bone.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other recent album is \u201cEliza Neals and the Narcotics,\u201d which was released February 4, 2022 on 12 inch ultra-rare 180 gram black vinyl and includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up with music,\u201d said Neals. \u201cMy father played guitar. My sister Valerie and I started singing at a young age.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to Wayne State University in Detroit to study for a music degree. I studied opera and piano. Now, I can sing six or seven nights a week and not lose my voice because I had operatic training.<\/p>\n

\u201cI toured Europe with the Wayne State choir. Many of my teachers told me that I should get into blues and rock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another person who thought Neals should pursue a career sing rock songs and blues tunes was Barrett Strong.<\/p>\n

Music fans might not recognize Strong\u2019s name, but they definitely know his music.<\/p>\n

Strong was among the first artists signed to\u00a0Berry Gordy\u2019s fledgling label,\u00a0Tamla\u00a0Records, and was the performer on the company\u2019s first\u00a0hit, \u201cMoney (That’s What I Want),\u201d which reached No. 2 on the R&B\u00a0charts in 1960.<\/p>\n

In the mid-1960s, Strong became a Motown writer lyricist, teaming with producer\u00a0Norman Whitfield.\u00a0Together, they wrote some of the most successful and critically acclaimed soul songs ever to be released by Motown, including \u201cI Heard It Through the Grapevine,\u201d \u201cWar,\u201d \u201cSmiling Faces Sometimes\u201d and the long line of hits by\u00a0the Temptations, including \u201cCloud Nine,\u201d \u201cI Can\u2019t Get Next to You\u201d and \u201cPapa Was a Rollin\u2019 Stone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neals\u2019 meeting with Strong happened by chance was shopping in a Detroit area health food store and heard Neals singing from the back of the store. Strong signed the young singer to his independent label Blarritt Records and before long, the two were collaborating.<\/p>\n

\u201cBarrett was one of the kings of the blues,\u201d said Neals. \u201cHe wrote blues and then added a beat. He has been my mentor ever since. He showed me just about every trick in the book and you can hear some of them on my records. He\u2019s in his 80s now and we still keep in touch.<\/p>\n

\u201cI learned so much from him. We wrote almost 50 songs together. We also made an album together called \u2018Stronghold II\u2019 in 2008.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neals\u2019 discography includes \u201cI\u2019m Waiting\u201d (1999), \u201cLiquorfoot\u201d (2005), \u201cMy Style Live\u201d (2008), \u201cNo Frogs for Snakes\u201d (2008), \u201cMessin\u2019 with a Fool\u201d (2012), \u201cSugar Daddy\u201d (2012), \u201cBreaking and Entering\u201d (2015) \u201c10,000 Feet Below\u201d (2017) and the two albums released this year.<\/p>\n

Some of Neals\u2019 honors include: 2016-Detroit Music Award \u201cOutstanding Blues\/R&B Recording\u201d for Album \u201cBreaking and Entering\u201d; 2015- Detroit Music Award \u201cOutstanding Blues Songwriter\u201d; 2013- Detroit Music Award \u201cOutstanding Blues\/R&B Recording\u201d; 2012- DMA \u201cOutstanding Blues Songwriter\u201d; and 2014- Music Connection Magazine \u201cHOT 100 Live Unsigned Artists.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople should know that I\u2019m more than just a singer,\u201d said Neals. \u201cI\u2019m a female producer, arranger, songwriter, singer, keyboard player, band leader and record label owner.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Eliza Neals — https:\/\/youtu.be\/V0oyoRqa8Sw<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show on April 30 will start at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $30 in advance and $36 at the door.<\/p>\n

Other shows at Jamey\u2019s this week are Mike Guldin and Rollin\u2019 and Tumblin\u2019\u00a0with Roger Girke on April 29, \u201cTHURSDAY NIGHT JAZZ JAM\u201d\u00a0featuring the Dave Reiter Trio on April 28, and \u201cSUNDAY BLUES BRUNCH & JAM\u201d featuring the Philly Blues Kings with Maci Miller on April 24.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re familiar with Bob Dylan or Americana music, then you surely are familiar with The Band. Unfortunately, The Band lost two members who have gone to the other side and now no longer exists as a band.<\/p>\n

\"\"

The Weight Band<\/p><\/div>\n

In case you\u2019re not familiar with Bob Dylan\u2019s first foray into electric rock music and his performances with The Band, The Weight Band will help you learn this piece of American music history \u2013 actually American\/Canadian music history.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Weight\u201d is a song by The Band. The Weight Band is a band named after The Band\u2019s song \u201cThe Weight.\u201d The Weight Band is a music group put together to keep alive the music of The Band.<\/p>\n

On April 30, the Colonial Theatre (227 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, thecolonialtheatre.com<\/a>) will host The Weight Band, which just released its new album, \u201cShines Like Gold,\u201d which was just released on April 1.<\/p>\n

The Band was a Canadian-American rock group featuring Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel and Robbie Robertson. In 1965, Dylan hired them as his touring band when expanded for a solo folk artist to a folk-rock musician with a group behind him.<\/p>\n

After a while, Roberston left to pursue a solo career and then later Manuel died. The remaining three members continued to tour and record albums with a succession of musicians filling the departed members\u2019 roles. The final line-up included Richard Bell, Randy Ciarlante and Jim\u00a0Weider.<\/p>\n

Danko died of heart failure in 1999, after which the group broke up for good. Helm was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1998 and continued to perform until cancer won the battle in 2012. A passing wish of Helm was for the music and spirit of The Band to live on. The Weight was formed to do just that. The Weight came into existence to bring a live performance to fans of The Band \u2014 but not as a tribute band.<\/p>\n

Replicating the music of The Band is a tall order but interpreting the music of The Band is an art.<\/p>\n

Performing songs of The Band, The Weight Band is keeping the spirit and the music alive that helped define an era.\u00a0 Members of The Weight Band were either actual members in The Band or are directly and deeply connected to its legacy.<\/p>\n

The group features Jim\u00a0Weider\u00a0from The Band; Brian Mitchell of the Levon Helm Band; Albert Rogers, who shared the stage with Levon Helm and Garth Hudson in The Jim\u00a0Weider\u00a0Band; Michael Bram, who played with Jason Mraz; and Matt Zeiner, who was a member of the Dickey Betts Band.<\/p>\n

\u201cA few years ago, after we lost Levon, Randy Ciarlante and I put The Weight together with a couple other musicians,\u201d said\u00a0Weider, during a phone interview from his home in Woodstock. \u201cWe did songs of The Band and the shows sold out.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen, we got Marty Grebb. We did a few shows and it really started to take off. We added Brian Mitchell and Byron Isaacs. Now, Byron has left the group and we pulled in a new bass player \u2014 Albert Rogers. He had played in my band \u2014 the Jim\u00a0Weider\u00a0Band \u2014 in the \u201990s.\u201d<\/p>\n

The members all have other projects, but it is the music of The Band that binds them together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started playing with Levon in the early \u201980s in the Levon Helm Band,\u201d said\u00a0Weider. \u201cRandy was in the band too. In 1985, when Richard and Garth moved to Woodstock, we toured with Crosby, Stills and Nash. We went out as The Band. That really changed my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Weight Band has stayed busy during the pandemic and has three live albums to show for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe released \u2018Acoustic Live,\u2019 which was recorded at Big Pink\u2019 in June 2021 and \u2018Live is a Carnival,\u2019 which came out in June,\u201d said\u00a0Weider.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also have \u2018Live in Japan,\u2019 which is a Limited-Edition CD that was recorded at Billboard Live, Tokyo in August 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe main thing we did during the shutdown was to go in the studio and record a new studio album. \u201cIt\u2019s called \u2018Shines Like Gold\u2019 and features all originals and one cover. We started in December 2020 and finished the mixing and mastering in May and June 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter we released our last studio album \u2018World Gone Mad\u2019 in 2018, we wanted to slowly work on putting together a new album. The COVID pandemic gave me a lot of time to work on new music. All the songs were written during the pandemic. It definitely impacted the record. I wrote about positivity. I tried to look at it as glass half-full. Nobody needed negativity.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the group\u2019s second studio album,\u00a0The Weight Band\u00a0looks at our troubled world, ponders the passage of time, and ultimately conveys a sense of hopefulness for the future.<\/p>\n

Featuring nine original songs and a cover of a Willie Dixon gem, the band\u00a0recorded the album live at Clubhouse Studio in Rhinebeck, NY, over four days \u2013 with minimal rehearsal during the height of the pandemic in 2020 while producer Colin Linden, an award-winning musician and Weider’s longtime collaborator and co-writer on several of the album tracks, was in Nashville.<\/p>\n

According to Weider, \u201cColin had a big hand and footprint on this record. We go back, so there is a comfortableness working with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even with its original music, The Weight Band taps into that down-home style made popular by The Band.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur band has that real Americana feel,\u201d said\u00a0Weider. \u201cThe originals go right good with any Band tunes we play.\u00a0People are going to get a big show \u2013 a very diverse show.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for The Weight Band — https:\/\/youtu.be\/I8xvgpZhB74<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Colonial Theatre on April 30 will start at 8 p.m. Lilly Winwood, the daughter of British rock legend Steve Winwood, will be the opening act. Ticket prices start at $29.50.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Big Fish<\/p><\/div>\n

Candlelight\u00a0Theater (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware,\u00a0www.candlelighttheatredelaware.org<\/a>) is in the final stages of its second production run of 2022. The interesting Broadway musical \u201cBig Fish\u201d\u00a0is running now through April 24.<\/p>\n

\u201cBig Fish,\u201d which opened on Broadway in 2013 and received three 2014 Drama Desk Award nominations, is a\u00a0musical<\/a>\u00a0with music and lyrics by\u00a0Andrew Lippa<\/a>\u00a0and book by\u00a0John August<\/a>. It is based on\u00a0Daniel Wallace<\/a>\u2019s 1998 novel,\u00a0\u201cBig Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions<\/a>,\u201d and the 2003 film\u00a0\u201cBig Fish<\/a>\u201d\u00a0written by John August and directed by\u00a0Tim Burton<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cBig Fish\u201d\u00a0revolves around the relationship between Edward Bloom, a travelling salesman, and his adult son Will, who looks for what is behind his father\u2019s tall stories.<\/p>\n

The story shifts between two timelines.<\/p>\n

In the present-day real world, 60-year-old Edward Bloom faces his mortality while his son, Will, prepares to become a father himself. In the storybook past, Edward ages from a teenager, encountering a Witch, a Giant, a Mermaid, and the love of his life, Sandra.<\/p>\n

Will has grown up with the incredible, larger-than-life stories from kissing a mermaid, to encountering a witch, to befriending a giant and meeting Will\u2019s mother in a circus.<\/p>\n

Will, who is about to have a child of his own, is determined to find the truth behind his father\u2019s epic tales. The stories meet as Will discovers the secret his father never revealed.<\/p>\n

\u201cBig Fish\u201d is running now through April 24 at the Candlelight Theatre. Tickets, which include dinner, beverages and dessert, are $65.50 for adults and $33 for children (ages 4-12).<\/p>\n

Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org<\/a>) will host Dueling Pianos on April 28 and Sweet Baby James on April 30.<\/p>\n

Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295,\u00a0http:\/\/www.kennettflash.org<\/a>) will present Stick Men on April 29.<\/p>\n

The Ardmore Music Hall (23 East Lancaster Avenue, Ardmore, 610-649-8389,\u00a0www.ardmoremusic.com<\/a>) will present Yachtley Crew on April 28, Tommy Conwell on April 30 and Joeboy on May 4.<\/p>\n

118 North (118 North Wayne Avenue, Wayne, www.118northwayne.com<\/a>) will host Chris Day on April 28, DNR on April 29, Reggae Thunder on April 30, Wally Smith\u2019s Organ Trio on May 1, and Jawn of the Dead on May 1.<\/p>\n

The Keswick Theater (291 N. Keswick Avenue, Glenside, 215-572-7650,\u00a0www.keswicktheatre.com<\/a>) will host Neil de Grasse Tyson on April 28, Chazz Palminteri on May 1, and Ruben Studdard on May 3.<\/p>\n

The Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808,\u00a0www.st94.com<\/a>) will present Stick Men on April 28, Shawn Colvin on April 29, Rubix Cube on April 30, Black Sabbitch on May 1.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Alan Segal had a life-changing event several years ago. Prior to the event, he had a positive effect on people financially \u2013 helping them navigate the world of personal finances. When Segal resumed activity after the event, he had a positive effect on people spiritually \u2013 not with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25822,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4357],"tags":[10429,10400,10431,3162,10430,6483],"class_list":["post-25826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-alan-segal","tag-big-fish","tag-eliza-neals","tag-featured","tag-the-jazz-sanctuary","tag-the-weight-band"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25826"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25827,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25826\/revisions\/25827"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/25822"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}