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Jazz Arts Group Welcomes Back the "Supafunkrock" of Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue

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Jazz Arts Group's Inside Track series makes a surprise stop at the Capitol Theatre Riffe Center on Sunday, April 3 to welcome back 24-year-old New Orleans singer / songwriter / multi-instrumentalist and all-around musical powerhouse Troy “Trombone Shorty" Andrews & Orleans Avenue, with special guest Stretch Lefty.

Rare indeed is the artist with the virtuosity to draw the unqualified respect of some of the most iconic legends in jazz and the ability to deliver a high-energy funk rock show capable of mesmerizing international rock stars. A virtuoso prodigy trombonist, brilliant trumpet player, and soulful, charismatic singer, Trombone Shorty commands the stage while emanating an elegance and class gleaned from his successful studies at the prestigious New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts.

Surrounding Andrews is his band, Orleans Avenue—Mike Ballard on bass, Pete Murano on guitar, Joey Peebles on drums, Dwayne Williams on percussion and Dan Oestreicher on baritone sax delivering an explosive, homegrown combination of funk, rock, R&B, jazz and hip-hop they call “Supafunkrock."

Backatown, the band's major label debut, immediately hit #1 on Billboard's Contemporary Jazz chart, staying there for 9 weeks and now, over 9 months later, is still in the Top 5. Backatown was also nominated for this year's GRAMMY for Best Contemporary Jazz Album.

“Backatown" is a local term for an area of New Orleans that includes the historic Treme neighborhood—or 6th Ward—from which Trombone Shorty hails. Home to Congo Square, birthplace of Louis Armstrong, it has been called “the most musical neighborhood in America's most musical city."

What makes this record such a kick in the head is that the band, working with producer Ben Ellman of Galactic, has managed to bottle the 200-proof intensity of their devastating live performances, which have earned Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue a rabid and ever-growing following almost entirely by way of word of mouth. Like their shows—which have been known to run for hours at an energy level that few others could sustain—the album turns on a rare combination of virtuosity and high-energy, party-down intensity.

Shorty has attracted many such legends to his high-profile fanbase, and the diverse and notable names he has performed and soloed with include Lenny Kravitz on his world tour in 2005, Diana Krall at Madison Square Garden in 2005, U2 and Green Day in 2006 to reopen the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina, Norah Jones at Jazzfest 2007, and chart-topping rapper Juvenile at VoodooFest 2008.

Tickets are on sale now for $50 (VIP seating), $30 (main lower), and $25 (main upper/mezzanine) and available by phone at 614-469-0939 and through all Ticketmaster outlets. Showtime is 7:30 PM. Call 614-294-5200 or visit jazzartsgroup.org for more information.

The Inside Track season finale features Mark Flugge, Jim Powell and CCAD president Denny Griffith in a multi-media retrospective of the cool jazz movement titled “Birth of the Cool" (April 29 & 30, 2011) at the Lincoln Theatre.

Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue is made possible through financial support from Abercrombie & Fitch. The Inside Track music series is presented by the Jazz Arts Group with media support from The Columbus Dispatch, Columbus Alive, CD101 and WCBE 90.5 FM.

About the Jazz Arts Group

The Jazz Arts Group of Columbus (JAG) is America's oldest not-for-profit arts organization dedicated to producing, performing and promoting jazz. JAG is the third largest performing arts organization in Columbus and consists of four focus areas: the Columbus Jazz Orchestra (CJO), one of the world's finest professional jazz orchestras; the Jazz Academy, JAG's extensive instructional programs educating both students and adults about jazz and American music; Inside Track, a new jazz and blues performance series produced at the historic Lincoln Theatre; and Affiliate Musicians, a program providing employment opportunities for professional musicians.

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