Dave Koz Enjoying Side By Side Tour with Brian Culbertson
September 3, 2009 - Sax star and accomplished composer Dave Koz and gifted keyboardist, trombonist and composer Brian Culbertson are touring this summer. It’s the Side By Side Tour, launched in July, where they collaborate each other with their bands and promote their latest releases : Dave Koz’ “Great Hits” and Brian Culbertson’s “Bringin Back The Funk”.

As David Koz recently declared to Detroit’s Smooth Jazz radio station, Smooth Jazz V98.7:
“This seems to be something that excited me creatively and also just for the times that we find ourselves in and that is just to hang out with someone, a good friend, and support each other, and be there for each other. So basically we're on stage together the whole time. We put our bands together, so it's two members of my band, two members of his band, we put our music together. There's a natural kind of kinship”.

Beside being a widely popular radio host, Dave Koz, a six-time Grammy Award nominee currently signed to Concord Records, is pledging that his upcoming CD will be a come back to the classic instrumental pop sound he is well known for. Koz will also be honored with a star in the sidewalk on Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame later this year.

After his tenth successful album “Bringing Back the Funk”, Brian Culbertson’s next CD and DVD will be called “Live from the Inside”. Recorded in the historic Capitol Records A Studio in Hollywood (where legendary artists such as Frank Sinatra and the Beatles recorded), the project will come later this fall.

So finish your summer with plenty of smooth, funky fun and great music with the next “Side By Side Tour” dates (with special guest, famous soul vocalist Peabo Bryson) : For more information : www.brianculbertson.com and www.davekoz.com
By Akbar Nour

"A Soulful Christmas Tour": 2nd Edition hosted by Brian Culbertson
November 22, 2007 - The Smooth Jazz Christmas tours season will start with the second edition of "A Soulful Christmas Tour", an all-star cast hosted by keyboardist Brian Culbertson and featuring sax player Gerard Albright and guitarist Nick Colionne. The other musical guests will be famous vocalist Howard Hewitt, who was the former lead singer of mythic funk band Shalamar, and a promising new comer on the Smooth Jazz stage, talented song writer, guitar player and vocalist Victoria White.

This amazing musical coalition will perform holiday favourites, tunes from Brian Culbertson's holiday album "A Soulful Christmas" released last year and hits from the other musicians' catalogues.

As Culbertson puts it: "I am thrilled to be taking "A Soulful Christmas" on the road for the second year in a row. I can't wait to share the stage with this talented group of musicians to celebrate the Holiday season!"

And all the smooth jazz lovers will not have to wait too long, as the performers will take the road and start their US tour on tomorrow, November 23rd in Indianapolis.

For more information: www.asoulfulxmas.com; www.brianculbertson.com.

Brian Culbertson Hosting All Jazz Event
August 20, 2007 - Brian Culbertson will be running the show at the First Annual Inland Empire Jazz Festival on August 24-26th. The popular multi-instrumentalist will team up with actress Vivica A. Fox to host the event at Cucamonga-Guasti Regional Park in Ontario, California. The big gig this weekend will be high on variety featuring Jazz genre's from New Orleans and Dixieland to Smooth Jazz and Free Funk. Some of the artists include, Steve Cole, Paul Jackson Jr., Gerald Albright and even Fox will perform. Proceeds from the event will benefit Operation REAPP which helps economically deprived and at-risk students. Executive Director of the Inland Empire Jazz Festival, Annetta Bryant says, "Our company is proud to have been chosen by Operation REAPP to develop this event as a fundraiser and to bring awareness to the education challenges of our youth, who will be well represented during this event." - by John Beaudin

Brian Culbertson's Happy Reunion with Steve Cole
June 6, 2007 - Two greats are reunited after eight years. This summer, look for Brian Culbertson to team up with jazz saxophonist Steve Cole and The Sax Pack, featuring a few other sax heavyweight players Jeff Kashiwa and Kim Waters. The tour just kicked off in Seattle, on May 25th and will end in Huntington, NY, September 29, 2007.

When speaking about this reunion, Culbertson stated, "It's been over eight years since we've shared the stage together and I can't wait to get out there once again. The chemistry back then was so strong, there's no telling what's going to happen this summer!"

Culbertson, a musical prodigy since he took his first piano lessons at the tender age of eight, has been on top of the jazz world since Long Night Out, his debut album which spent 10 consecutive weeks atop the Top Five of the adult contemporary charts. The gifted young composer/arranger/pianist and trombonist has a knack for music with a mature soul. Influenced by his father, a well-respected high school jazz band director himself, he's been able to soar with albums like Modern Life (1994), After Hours (1995), Secrets (1997), Something' Bout Love (1999), Nice & Slow (2001), Come on Up (2003), It's On Tonite (2005) and his most recent Soulful Christmas, a collection of holiday classics and some original material, just last year.

Brian Culbertson's "Soulful Christmas"
November 14, 2006 - He's been called "the Barry White of Smooth Jazz" and he's bringing his funkiness to the Christmas season. Brian Culbertson has just released his first holiday album "Soulful Christmas. The keyboardist says, ""I definitely love Christmas time, as a kid that's all we did thought about all year is wait for Christmas." As for the selection of the actual tune Culbertson says that was easy, "I'm just doing a bunch of songs that I remember as a kid that got me excited, and doing them in a whole new way. I think this record will be a whole new twist to all the Christmas songs." "Soulful Christmas" is his first album on GRP. - by Kari Graham

Smooth Jazz Music News
June 21, 2005 - Spirit Cruise Lines of New York City will once again offer its popular summer cruise series beginning June 29th, 2005. The evening cruises leave from Pier 61 and will feature Smooth Jazz artists Brian Culbertson, Down to the Bone, Spyro Gyra, Peter White, and The Rippingtons. - by Cheryl Philips

Brian Culbertson Shared His First Gig with Future Wife Michelle
October 20, 2004 - Brian Culbertson knows how to keep it in the family his father Jim a long time music educator tours with his son and it's not surprising that the multi instrumentalist married a musician. Michelle is an opera singer, "I met my wife in music school in college," says Culbertson. "It was at DePaul University in Chicago. It was my third year there and she was a freshmen. Interestingly Culbertson was introduced to Michelle through the bass player of his first touring band back in 1994, 'he just happened to live in the same dorm building as her and so they were friends. He told her one day "you know what you would dig this guy.' So she came to my very first concert." Indeed Culbertson has the proof, "I have a picture of that night with me and my band and you can see the back of her head in the audience" he says laughing, "It's up on the website actually. It's on the timeline she's the little blonde in the audience." You can check out that picture by clicking here. The two were married on October 4, 1997. Brian Culbertson is our artist of the month for October. Read our now completed interview.