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Arts & Entertainment

Red Bank Theater Watch: Hippiefest, The King and a Little Wild One

Check out what's happening at Count Basie and Two River Theater this week

Slap on your love beads and braid your hair—it’s time to take a ride back to the groovy 1960’s this week as Count Basie hosts Hippiefest on Tuesday, August 9th.  Billed as a concert for “peace and love,” the Hippiefest draws multiple generations to converge at the Basie.

The show will feature Dave Mason (formerly of Traffic), Mark Farner (formerly of Grand Funk), Rick Derringer, Gary Wright, and Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals. These legends will bring classic hits such as We Just Disagree, Hang on Sloopy, Dream Weaver, Groovin’ and A Girl Like You to the stage.

The time travel continues on Saturday, August 13th, with the Ultimate Elvis Gospel Tribute starring Mike Albert.

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Mike Albert hails from Memphis, Tennessee, and is known for his Ultimate Tribute Show in which he portrays the later career Elvis Presley. No stranger to Count Basie, Albert is best known for bringing down the house in 7 sold out Elvis Birthday Bash performances. 

Albert performs with a seven piece band in order to replicate the musical sounds of Elvis in his later career. He is able to seamlessly switch his vocal styles to match the rock and roll or gospel style of singing that Elvis became popular for. 

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Albert was the winner of the 1996 Images of Elvis Contest in Memphis and has been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show and A Current Affair with Maury Povich.  He has earned the respect of Elvis Presley’s musicians and backup singers and frequently performs with the Jordanaires.

On Saturday, he will let his smooth gospel voice reign supreme, as he pays tribute to Elvis Presley’s love of the Southern gospel tradition.  He will undoubtedly let his vocal chops show on hits like You’ll Never Walk Alone, In the Ghetto and Peace in the Valley.

This week also brings a special benefit performance with Joan Osborne to the Two River Theater on Friday, August 12th.  The show is presented by the Better Days Ahead Foundation and the Count Basie Theatre Foundation.

Kentucky born Joan Osborne blends blues, country, soul and funk to make her own unique style of music.  Her career began with her debut release Relish. The album included her biggest hit One of Us, and sold 5 million copies. It also scored 7 Grammy nominations.

She continued her rise as a top soul singer with a turn in the documentary film Standing in the Shadows of Motown.  This also earned Osborne a chance to tour with the legendary Motown backing band The Funk Brothers in 2002. 

In 2003, Osborne toured with the Dixie Chicks and stunned audiences when she toured around America as the lead singer for The Dead.  In 2007, she performed at the Grand Ole Opry.

Her latest album, 2008’s Little Wild One, is a return to her “soulful rock roots.”  For her concert at Two River, Osborne will be joined by Jack Petruzzelli, who is known to many as one of the Fab Faux.

To purchase tickets to any of the above shows, simply check out http://www.countbasietheatre.org/

Schedule

  • Tuesday, August 9th, 2011: Hippiefest, 8pm
  • Friday, August 12th, 2011: An Intimate Evening with Joan Osborne,  7:30 pm at Two River Theater
  • Saturday, August 13th, 2011: The Ultimate Elvis Gospel Tribute starring Mike Albert, 8pm
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