Isaac Hayes brings jazz to The Bushnell May 12
Contact: Amanda Savio (860) 987-6068; e-mail: amanda_savio@bushnell.org
APRIL 23, 2002, HARTFORD, CT - 2002 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Isaac Hayes, along with the Cyrus Chestnut Quartet, will perform a jazz concert at The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts' Mortensen Hall on Sunday, May 12, 2002 at 8:00 p.m. as part of Fleet Showcase. Tickets are $18.00-$45.00, and are available at The Bushnell Box Office, located at 166 Capitol Avenue in Hartford or by calling (860) 987-5900. Tickets are also available online at www.bushnell.org. Groups of 10 or more may contact (860) 987-5959.
Hayes is one of the most influential musicians in America. The Oscar and GrammyAward-winning composer and singer's orchestrations and personal style set trends in the cultural and music scenes of the '60s and '70s that are an intrinsic part of our psyche today.
He was born in Covington, Tennessee on August 20, 1942, to a sharecropper family. After making his public debut singing in church at the age of five, where he taught himself piano, organ and saxophone, the family moved to Memphis. He dropped out of high school, but was later encouraged by teachers to get his high school diploma. He earned it at age 21.
In Memphis, he performed in the city's club circuit in a series of short-lived groups like Sir Isaac and the Doo-Dads, the Teen Tones and Sir Calvin and His Swinging Cats. In 1962, he began his recording career, butting sides for a variety of local labels. In 1964, he found his way to fame at Stax Recording Studio, where he was tapped to play keyboards in the Stax house band backing up Otis Redding, Carla Thomas and more, and eventually established a relationship with songwriter David Porter. He and Porter went on to compose 200 songs.
It was in 1967 that Hayes began his solo career, with Presenting Isaac Hayes and Hot Buttered Soul, which was his first commercial breakthrough. He reached even greater heights in 1971 with the score from the movie Shaft. Not only did the album win Hayes an Academy Award for Best Score (the first African-American composer to garner such an honor) but the single, Theme from Shaft, a blend of orchestrated prime funk and pre-rap monologues, became a number one hit.
After several more releases in the '70s, Hayes filed for bankruptcy in 1976, due to poor management and business associations. Through the '80s and '90s, Hayes forged a comeback, and the past few years have found his career take off again. He took on the morning slot at 98.7 KISS FM in New York, quickly becoming KISS' top-rated DJ. But perhaps the most unexpected twist in this rebirth is his appearance as the voice of Chef on the animated show South Park, appealing to a whole new generation.