O’Landa Draper was this generation’s greatest non-vocal gospel performer, and among the finest choral directors, arrangers, and producers in the music’s history. Indeed, Draper, who died July 21 at the age of 34, was that rarest of contemporary gospel talents someone whose music blended the artistry and passion of golden-age sounds with the technical brilliance of the modern era.
Draper offstage was soft-spoken and quiet, though he was passionate about his faith. But when conducting choirs or spearheading sessions, his demeanor changed radically. He was as charismatic and spectacular as a symphony conductor, bobbing, weaving, dancing, exhorting his singers, often encouraging the audience to get in the spirit. All the while, he never let the voices in the choir lose energy or conviction.
Though he’d relocated to Nashville in recent years, Draper got his start in the early and mid-’80s in Memphis, where he began the Associates, a 12-member group, in 1986. The choir eventually became 60 voices strong, gaining a reputation as a powerhouse ensemble able to provide impressive support for any singer, regardless of style. Gospel legends such as Shirley Caesar and Albertina Walker came to Memphis to record with Draper and the Associates, and Draper later worked with such R&B and pop performers as Jennifer Holliday and Patti Austin. He also collaborated with contemporary Christian stars Russ Taff and Carman.
Though he never got the mainstream recognition accorded to Kirk Franklin, John P. Kee, or the Winans family, Draper never complained, nor did he seek out publicity. Instead, he concentrated on educating future generations about their heritage and their culture a mission he’d pursued ever since he established his first gospel choir at Overton High School in Memphis. The O’Landa Draper Ministries started a scholarship program to help deserving students go to college, quietly working behind the scenes to assist the homeless, AIDS patients, and drug addicts.
This past January, Draper and the Associates performed at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis on Martin Luther King Day. The group’s program celebrated the entire spectrum of black gospel, from jubilee to quartet to choral. Draper issued a new LP, Reflections, in April, but declining health forced him to miss a July 11 appearance with the Associates at Bobby Jones’ Gospel Explosion.
O’Landa Draper’s influence and importance cannot be measured simply by industry honors, though he did win both a Dove Award and a Stellar Award and garnered five Grammy nominations. He was also named one of the nation’s 10 top mass choir directors for 1998 by Gospel Music Industry Roundup. If his passing seems untimely, we can at least take comfort that his impact will extend well beyond his lifetime.
The Tennessee Jazz & Blues Society concert series continues through August at the Hermitage and Belle Meade Plantation, spotlighting some of the state’s finest musicians. Dan Dowling & the Metrotones are the next scheduled act, appearing Sunday at The Hermitage. Dowling’s group, a seven-piece band, mixes vintage swing-influenced blues and classic R&B, also making room for some driving jazz solos.
Pianist Pat Coil’s J Word Quintet, which features trumpeter George Tidwell, saxophonist Mark Douthit, bassist Craig Nelson, and drummer Jim White, appears at Belle Meade Aug. 9. A longtime West Coast player whose past credits include stints with Woody Herman, Carmen McRae, and Ernie Watts, Coil is currently music director for CeCe Winans’ show, CeCe’s Place, which airs on the Odyssey cable network. He has also issued three CDs on the Sheffield Lab label.
The Aug. 16 “New Faces” bill at Belle Meade offers the John Michael Zov Trio, alongside the Gypsy Hombres, a band mixing early “hot” jazz with cafe and cabaret material. The Hombres’ current lineup consists of violinist Peter Hyrka, guitarists David Sebring and Justin Thompson, and bassist Gene Libbea from the Nashville Bluegrass Band.
Finally, the swing and jump blues aggregation Hoke and the Jump Daddies complete the series on Aug. 23. The band is led by multi-instrumentalist Jim Hoke, who has worked with such top musicians as Emmylou Harris and NRBQ. Of late, former Jimi Hendrix Experience drummer Mitch Mitchell (who’s in town doing session work) has been sitting in with the group, which includes local chanteuse Kristi Rose, hotshot guitarist Jack Silverman, bassist Charlie Chadwick, and trumpeter Steve Herrman.
All Jazz & Blues Society concerts begin at 6 p.m. For additional info on the series, call 386-7500.
Tonight Show bandleader and superb guitarist Kevin Eubanks headlines this year’s Franklin Jazz Festival Saturday and Sunday. Before Eubanks succeeded Branford Marsalis on NBC, he made several acclaimed releases for GRP and Blue Note. He’s the final performer on Saturday’s bill, which opens with the Tennessee Jazz Orchestra. They’ll be followed by alternative jazz artist Mike Gallaher, vocalist April Barrows, Jeff Kirk, the Laurie Wheeler Band, a Cajun jazz ensemble, contemporary jazz guitarist Reggie Wooten, the Latin group San Rafael, and Kit McClure, a 12-piece women’s big band.
Saxophonist Dana Robbins kicks off the Sunday performances; she’ll be followed by The Cliffnotes and Tabitha, Teren Bose and the Swing Set, guitarist Bob Sabellico, and exciting trumpeter Rod McGaha. Headliners for the second night are the Nigerian All-Stars under the direction of Orlando Julius Ekemode, who seamlessy fuses African juju music with jazz, reggae, and calypso.
The festival will be held on the Public Square in downtown Franklin. There will also be continuous jam sessions in the Fourth Avenue parking lot adjacent to the Williamson County Courthouse. Scheduled performers at this location include The Dixieland Band, the Starbright Players Musical Theatre, and pianist Craig Wasner on Saturday, and the Dixieland Band and Kids on Stage on Sunday. For more information, call 790-7094.
Old-school R&B comes to Music City Sunday night, when three prime funk acts from the ’70s and ’80s appear at Riverfront Park. The headliners are the Gap Band, whose propulsive vocals, frenetic harmonies, and fiery arrangements were featured on such ’80s hits as “Early in the Morning” and “Burn Rubber.” Opening the show are Con-Funk-Shun, who battled the Bar-Kays for Memphis funk supremacy during the ’70s, and former Tower of Power lead vocalist Lenny Williams, who has also enjoyed several hits as a solo singer.
The concert is being promoted by Harvey Latimer, a Nashville dentist, and a portion of the proceeds will go to the Village Cultural Arts Center on Charlotte Avenue. The center offers courses in different facets of African, Caribbean, and Native American culture, including dance, drumming, and music. According to director Kysa Estes, proceeds from the show will cover the cost of classes for students who can’t afford tuition. Tickets are available at all Blockbuster locations.
Ron Wynn
The Grateful Dead may have officially disbanded, but their memory will be celebrated this Friday at the Exit/In. There, hundreds are expected to gather for Dead Set, a Dead tribute band whose members include Music Row session pro Byron House. Dead Set’s popularity has earned the group steady gigs at the Elliston Place nightspot, but this weekend’s edition shouldn’t be just another Friday night. The featured guest is Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, who sang with the Dead for seven years after joining the group in 1972. (Her late husband, keyboardist Keith Godchaux, joined the Dead in 1971; they both left the band in 1979, but Keith died a year later after his automobile collided with a flatbed truck.) Donna Jean has a self-titled CD available on Muscle Shoals Records, and you can contact her through her Web site http://www.donnajean.com.
Under Kim Webber’s astute booking, The Sutler has a slew of cool shows coming next month, including Amy Rigby with Duane Jarvis (Aug. 12); Josh Rouse with Lullabye for the Working Class (Aug. 13); and Mekon/Waco Brother Jon Langford with Lonesome Bob (Aug. 15). Best of all: a rare local club date by Velvet Underground drummer Mo Tucker and her band on Aug. 9; and the first Nashville appearance by famed R&B iconoclast Swamp Dogg in too many years to count. If he does his 20-minute sermon/rendition of John Prine’s “Sam Stone,” prepare for the show of the year.
The fourth annual Celebration of Music and Friendship moves from the Maxwell House Hotel to Douglas Corner this year, but Saturday’s lineup remains filled with local artists and songwriters, among them Deryl Dodd, Joie Scott, Marc-Alan Barnett, Paul Craft, Thom Bresh, Blue Miller, Tom Douglas, and more. The hosts are Avi “Spoofer” Poster, Suzanne Tinsley, and Mervin Locque. All proceeds from the $7 cover go to Outlook Nashville, which works to improve the quality of life for the developmentally disabled through vocational training, independent-living training, and a variety of outreach services.
Although staffers at Southern Way Entertainment aren’t sure that a scrawl of racist graffiti near their 18th Avenue offices last week wasn’t meant for them, the local urban label has reason to celebrate. Its first single release, “Hustler for Life,” by Nashville vocalist Shannon Sanders, is getting serious airplay on 92Q, and office manager Rayshell Davis says other Mid-South stations are picking up on it. Sanders’ first LP is due in January. Southern Way was founded by Cassandra Berns, daughter of Bang Records founder Bert Berns and Bang II founder Ilene Berns.
Jim Ridley
Elliptical dispatches: Several months ago, we reported that Cat’s Music, the Nashville retail chain that held sway here in the ’80s before selling off its local stores, was planning to reestablish its outposts in Middle Tennessee. A couple of weeks ago, a Cat’s location opened quietly in Franklin in the Fieldstone Farms complex on Hillsboro Rd., with an official grand opening scheduled for early August. We hear more stores are coming....
Thursday marks the return of Plush, the mellow groove night hosted by The Spot’s DJ cool.out. A mix of jazz, blues, funk, R&B, reggae, Latin dance, and a half-dozen other genres with an urban-lounge feel, Plush resembles a cross between Johny Jackson’s Soul Satisfaction (which cool.out has sometimes hosted) and the Velvet Lounge nights at 12th & Porter. The slow dancing starts 8 p.m. at The End....
A trio of seven-string guitarists will play 8 p.m. this Saturday at F. Scott’s Restaurant. Dan Dowling, Chuck Schlacter, and Craig Wagner each play a custom guitar with an added bass string, which enables each player to craft melody lines, choruses, and independent bass lines all at once. Schlacter and Dowling are regulars in local Nashville clubs; Wagner, a Louisville native, recently appeared at New York’s Knitting Factory with his trio, the Java Men...
Kerrville Folk Festival founder Rod Kennedy will be in town Monday to sign copies of his new autobiography, Music From the Heart, at Davis-Kidd Booksellers. Following the 6 p.m. event, he’ll join local tunesmiths Rick Beresford, Carol Elliott, Michael Johnson, Jon Ims, and Suzanne Sherwin for an in-the-round performance.
Southern rocker Greg Hall takes over 12th & Porter for “A Month of Mondays” starting well, Monday. The Texas native, now serving his fourth year in Nashville, will be playing tunes off his new CD Six One Way...Half Dozen the Other, which combines acoustic and full-band tunes from his previous indie releases. The shows’ll start about 9:15 p.m., with no special guests: “My band is special enough,” sez Hall....
