E."Doc" Smith's "Live" with Edo Castro

Spawned by the extraordinary Northern California bassist Michael Manring, the "Bass Solo Night" concert series has quickly become a stomping ground for some of the San Francisco Bay area's best musicians. It's a movable feast of talented bassists and features a rotating pool of extremely creative and innovative players. I'd had been asked to perform at one of those shows alongside the bassist and fellow Flecktone fan, Ariane Cap. Ironically, it was during this show at Oakland's Rooz Cafe that led to my first encounter with the bassist Edo Castro. Like Manring before him, Castro was another master of the "E-Bow". His 7 string bass playing was simply gorgeous and his ability to build loops and solo live was equally astounding. Needless to say, I was surprised when Castro graciously asked me to join him for a "gratuitous funk" tune. The result was a truly magical experience and a unique new musical friendship was born. We'll be celebrating our collaborations with a CD Release Party at Rasselas Jazz Club on Tuesday, March 17th. Joining me and Edo for this special St. Patrick's Day show is the extraordinary "improv-o-linist", Kippy Marks, one of the Bay Area's best known electric violinists. Marks will add his own blend of "irish" flavored electric jazz, textures and virtuosity.

Having played for 20 years in jazz, fusion, pop and folk bands as a serious student of drums, I'd developed a love of digital drumming that compelled me to design and build an instrument that would give me maximum flexibility as a writer, drummer, and performer. The Drummstick, a percussion controller with 16 finger-pads mounted on a 2 x 6 piece of wood, is worn like a guitar and used exclusively to achieve my primary musical goal in life— "to make spirits dance". Following the success of this creation, I soon found himself performing with members of groups like Gong, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, and many others. In 2007, the Zendrum company built a new, custom model for me, both wireless and extremely versatile.

Edo Castro was initially a self-taught bassist, but later attended the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago. “ My Teachers were not only schooling me, they’d recommend me for gigs," Castro marveled. During his stay in Chicago he played with some of the finest young bloods of the music scene at that time, Jim Trumpeter, Fareed Haque, Mark Walker and Hassan Khan. Of course there were the jazz icons, Miles Davis Guitarist Pete Cosey and drummer Roy Haynes that Edo was fortunate enough to play with. Castro recalls," After playing a set with Roy Haynes, there was a bunch of us standing around talking to him and out of the blue Roy handed me his card and said, ‘Man when you’re ready, come to New York and give me a call. That was the greatest stamp of approval in front of all my peers.’ I’ve yet to get to New York and collect on that call.”

Kippy Marks has been delighting audiences with his inspirational compositions and lively performances for over 2 decades. Raised in El Paso, Texas, Marks began his musical acclaim with performances with the El Paso youth symphony orchestra and also the Coronado T-bird Orchestra which was awarded a first-place recognition by winning the international Youth & Music Festival coveted Award in Vienna, Austria during his tenure. "During December's fifth night of Kwaanza at the African Cultural Center" says Smith, "I caught a glimpse of one of the most extraordinary electric jazz violinists I have seen in quite some time, the self proclaimed "Improv-o-linist", Kippy Marks. Marks delighted the crowd with his one man show of loops, samples and remarkable prestidigitations... I'm really excited to have him for this CD release show."

My pairing with Castro has often been compared to acid-jazz "jam band" of the Benevento/Russo Duo; intensely powerful, yet poignant music. This live album features the music of my earlier Drummstick 2, K2, Robert Anbian and the Unidentified Flying Quartet CDs, and culled from performances recorded at the Sheba Lounge in San Francisco and Mill Valley's 142 Throckmorton Theatre.

E.Doctor Smith Live with Edo Castro CD Release Party
with special guest, violinist Kippy Marks
Tuesday, March 17th, Rasselas Jazz Club
1534 Fillmore Street, San Francisco
8 pm-12 am

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