This tribute show will feature the soulful voice of Michael Dunston. Michael is a a veteran of the club scene, a man who also recorded for the legendary soul label Atlantic Records, played Bo Diddley in the film Mr. Rock n’ Roll: The Allan Freed Story and who grew up singing in the churches of North Carolina.
Alas, due to unforeseen circumstances, Dave Young will not be able to do the gig, but the more than capable Roberto Occhipinti will be leading the band!
Grammy Award winning jazz and soul musician Donny Hathaway was born in Chicago in1945. He signed with Atlantic Records in 1969, and with his first single “The Ghetto” (1970), Rolling Stone magazine marked him as “a major new force in soul music.” His collaborations with Roberta Flack took him to the top of the charts and won him the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for the duet “Where Is The Love” in 1973. Donny struggled for years with mental illness and on January 13, 1979, his body was found outside the luxury hotel Essex House in New York City; his death was ruled a suicide and Hathaway’s funeral was conducted by the Reverend Jesse Jackson.
Born in Toronto, Bassist Roberto Occhipinti is a well established presence in the Canadian and
International Jazz scene. A five time Juno award musician, he is equally at home playing classical
music as well as jazz and world music.
In addition to leading his own groups with 6 recordings under his name, he has
performed, toured and recorded with Jane Bunnett, Hilario Duran, Jamey Haddad, Jovino
Santos Neto, Don Byron, Jeff Coffin, Uri Caine ,Bob Mintzer, Enrico Rava, Stefano Bollani,
Benny Golson and Dafnis Prieto. As a classical musician, Roberto Occhipinti has performed with virtually every classical music ensemble in Toronto and has been a member of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the
Hamilton Philharmonic, and the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra.
Personnel:
Michael Dunston-vocals
Roberto Occhipinti-bass
Kevin Turcotte-trumpet
John Johnson-saxophone
Brian Dickinson-piano
Ethan Ardelli-drums
Check out: Michael: “Do You Really Want to Love Me” “So Sensitive”
