Acclaimed keyboardist, composer and bandleader Lao Tizer today shares “Shades of Love,” the second song and video released from The Lao Tizer Band’s upcoming album Amplify. “Shades of Love” was the first original vocal song the band ever performed with vocals, breaking new ground for the band’s sound and leading to Amplify, which features five original vocal tracks. The album, which sees Tizer continuing to knock down boundaries and expand musical horizons, is due out August 23. Tizer and band have already embarked on an extensive run of tour dates to support Amplify (see below).
Watch “Shades of Love”
“’Shades of Love” was the first original vocal the band ever added to our repertoire, so this song is really special,” shares Tizer. “It represents a significant milestone for me as a songwriter and bandleader, as well as encapsulating much of what the band is about; accessible songs with extensive space for improvisation, spontaneity and high-level musicianship. It’s been a perennial crowd favorite live for some time now, so it’s extra special to finally have it released commercially, and showcasing such outstanding vocals and soloists on the track is extra gratifying!”
Joining Tizer on the album is American Idol sensation, RIAA Platinum Certified singer Elliott Yamin who provides lead vocals on Amplify’s 5 original vocal tracks including today’s video/single, “Shades of Love,” and the previously-released R&B-tinged “Down.”
“Elliott has been an unbelievable fit for this project and the band,” Tizer enthuses. “He’s very much a throwback to a blue-eyed soul kind of vocalist. This project was a little different from his usual wheelhouse, but he’s such a naturally gifted singer that he ran with it, adding his amazingly soulful thing to our harmonic, rhythmic and compositional sensibilities. He sings his butt off.”
The crossover sound that Tizer and his band explored on their previous album, 2018’s Songs From The Swinghouse, are further realized on Amplify with Yamin joining Tizer’s A-list ensemble who apply their magic to an exciting mix of smartly-grooved instrumentals and original vocal songs.
But as much as the Yamin’s vocal tracks are poised to knock listeners out, their proximity to the Tizer-penned instrumentals on Amplify can’t help but highlight the keyboardist’s uncanny ability to bring an equal measure of infectiousness, excitement, and accessibility to the instrumentals on the project.
“With this record, I definitely made a conscious effort to crossover to win over more general music fans,” says Tizer. “If you have music that is melodic and grooves, you can win over a broad array of listeners.”
Without sacrificing his trademark musical sophistication, Tizer pulls this off with an almost Steely Dan-like savvy, seamlessly incorporating a host of other modern influences–from jazz to R&B to world beat to jam band–into the music on Amplify.
Invaluable to this is his band that features GRAMMY-winning saxophonist Eric Marienthal (Chick Corea), Emmy-winning guitarist Chieli Minucci (Special EFX), Senegalese bassist Cheikh N'Doye (Baaba Maal), violinist extraordinaire Karen Briggs (Stanley Clarke), GRAMMY-winning drum phenom Gene Coye (Hiromi) and legendary GRAMMY-winning percussionist Munyungo Jackson (Stevie Wonder), as well as saxophone and flute wunderkind Danny Janklow (MONKestra) and Rolling Stone 2022 “Bassist of the Year” nominee Anthony Crawford (Erykah Badu).
With Amplify, Tizer sets the stage for a wider audience with a broad, enticing, and personal musical vision–without a boundary in sight.
AMPLIFY TRACK LIST
Down
Boulevard Of Stars
Kat’s Groove
Why
Shades Of Love
The Labyrinth
New Orleans
Carousel
Lullaby
Tour Dates:
JULY
7/11 — Cumberland, MD — Levitt AMP! Cumberland Music Series
7/12 — Hawley, PA (Scranton) — Harmony In The Woods
7/19 — Ventura, CA — The Grape
7/20 — San Diego, CA — Lou Lou’s Club @ The Lafayette Hotel
7/27 — Paso Robles, CA — Libretto
7/28 — Solvang, CA — Solvang Festival Theater
AUGUST
8/1 — Orlando, FL — Judson’s Live @ Dr Phillips Center
8/2 — Boca Raton, FL — The Funky Biscuit
8/3 — Memphis, TN — Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center (Lao Tizer w/ Special EFX All-Stars)
8/9 — Richmond, VA — Richmond Jazz & Music Festival @ Hippodrome Theater
8/10 — Richmond, VA — Richmond Jazz & Music Festival @ Maymont Park
8/16 — Ypsilanti, MI — John E Lawrence Summer Jazz Series
8/18 — Aspen, CO — JAS Café – Jazz Aspen Snowmass
8/29 — Branford, CT — Branford Jazz Series
8/30 — Hershey, PA — The Englewood Listening Room
SEPTEMBER
9/1 — High Point, NC — John Coltrane International Jazz & Blues Festival
9/11 — Wilmington, DE — Levitt AMP! @ UAE Amphitheater
9/12 — NYC — The Iridium
9/20 — Bishop, CA — Millpond Music Festival
9/21 — Los Angeles, CA — Jazz @ Drew (Charles Drew University)
9/27 — Houston, TX — Empire State Jazz Café
9/28 — San Antonio, TX — Jazz’SAlive
OCTOBER
10/11 — Charlotte, NC — Middle C Jazz
10/13 — Duck, NC — Duck Jazz Fest
NOVEMBER
11/1 — Las Vegas, NV — Myron’s @ The Smith Center
11/8 — Cancun, MX — Cancun Jazz Fest
11/9 — Cancun, MX — Cancun Jazz Fest (Lao Tizer in a Collective Show with other artists)
DECEMBER
12/7 — Pasadena, CA — Boston Court Performing Arts Center
12/28 — Paso Robles, CA — Libretto
