DAVE KOZ AND FRIENDS CHRISTMAS TOUR 2014 FEATURES SPECIAL GUESTS JONATHAN BUTLER, CHRISTOPHER CROSS AND MAYSA
17th Anniversary Run Kicks Off November 28 In Sarasota, FL And Includes December 7 Show At Best Buy Theater In New York City
Koz’s First-Ever Holiday Duets Album, The 25th Of December, Is Out Tomorrow, September 30 (international release dates may vary)
Produced by Rickey Minor, collection features holiday duets with India.Arie, Eric Benét, Jonathan Butler, Gloria Estefan, Fantasia, Kenny G, Heather Headley, Richard Marx, Johnny Mathis, Trombone Shorty, BeBe Winans and Stevie Wonder
“All You Need Is Love,” The First Single, Premieres On Yahoo! Music And Is #1 Most Added At Billboard Smooth Jazz
Multi-GRAMMY® nominee and saxophonist extraordinaire Dave Koz isn’t one to let the holidays sneak up on him. He’s already recorded his fifth Christmas album and first-ever duets Christmas album – The 25th of December, set for release tomorrow, September 30, by Concord Records – and now he’s announcing the 17th anniversary run of his annual holiday tour. The 2014 Dave Koz and Friends Christmas tour will feature Koz along with three special guests: longtime friend and frequent tour mate Jonathan Butler, who has earned accolades in the R&B, contemporary jazz and gospel fields, plus two artists who are new to the run – GRAMMY-winning singer-songwriter Christopher Cross, known for such Top 10 hits as “Sailing,” “Ride Like the Wind” and “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do),” and Soul Train award winner/GRAMMY nominee Maysa, who has released 10 solo albums and collaborated with everyone from Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan to Incognito and Angela Bofill.
Each year, Koz re-imagines the holiday tour, earning rave reviews. “Dave Koz = Christmas,” said the El Paso Times and Examiner.com assured readers, “There really is a…Santa Koz,” calling the 2013 outing “a must see show.” This year’s run will kick off on the day after Thanksgiving (November 28) at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall in Sarasota, FL, and include an evening at the Best Buy Theater in New York, NY (December 7), Dave’s annual two-night stand at Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts in Cerritos, CA (December 19 & 20) and a return to the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, CA (December 21). See below for itinerary.
The uplifting, high energy show will feature the quartet’s fresh takes on holiday classics – including songs from The 25th of December – as well as other selections that beautifully capture the spirit of the season.
The pre-order for The 25th of December is underway now on Amazon. The album, which was produced by Rickey Minor, features Dave performing with some of the most prominent pop and jazz artists of the last several decades, including India.Arie, Fantasia, Kenny G, Trombone Shorty and Christmas 2014 tour mates Jonathan Butler and Maysa. Fans can get a taste of the album and a peek behind-the-scenes at the recording sessions for The 25th of December in this album trailer.
“All You Need Is Love,” the collection’s first single, was #1 Most Added at Billboard Smooth Jazz this week. The track was recently given its world premiere by Yahoo! Music, which noted, “[this] isn't just any Beatles cover! This particular rendition features Koz along with Eric Benet, Johnny Mathis, Heather Headley, Richard Marx, Jonathan Butler, Maysa, BeBe Winans, Gloria Estefan and Stevie Wonder...What better way to get in the holiday mood (a little early!) with this performance by an all-star cast of singers delivering a message that's as important today as it was 50 years ago when the Beatles originally released it?” You can stream “All You Need Is Love” HERE.
This weekend, Koz wrapped up his Summer Horns outing with fellow saxophone players Gerald Albright, Richard Elliot and Mindi Abair, who also joined him on the 2013 No. 1 album of the same name as well on his sold-out September 2014 Dave Koz and Friends at Sea cruise to Alaska. Downtime doesn’t have much of a place on Dave’s schedule, but he recently gave the Wall Street Journal a peek at where he goes for a little R&R – the John Marsh Davis-designed retreat that he rents in Sausalito, CA – in this “Inside Story,” which ran earlier this month.
Dave Koz And Friends Christmas Tour 2014
All dates are with Special Guests Jonathan Butler, Christopher Cross and Maysa
11/28 Sarasota, FL Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall
11/29 Clearwater, FL Ruth Eckerd Hall
11/30 West Palm Beach, FL Kravis Center – Dreyfoos Hall
12/1 Naples, FL Hayes Hall
12/3 Atlanta, GA Cobb Energy Centre
12/4 Newport News, VA Ferguson Center for the Arts Concert Hall
12/5 Morristown, NJ Mayo Center for the Performing Arts
12/6 New Haven, CT John Lyman Center
12/7 New York, NY Best Buy Theater
12/9 Bethesda, MD Strathmore
12/10 Greeneville, TN Niswonger Performing Arts Center
12/11 Columbus, OH Palace Theatre
12/12 Cleveland, OH Palace Theatre
12/13 Chicago, IL Chicago Theatre
12/14 Carmel, IN The Palladium
12/16 El Paso, TX The Plaza Theatre
12/17 Mesa, AZ Mesa Arts Center – Ikeda Theatre
12/18 Highland, CA San Manuel Casino
12/19 Cerritos, CA Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
12/20 Cerritos, CA Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
12/21 San Francisco, CA Warfield Theatre
12/22 Rohnert Park, CA Weill Hall at the Green Music Center - Sonoma University
12/23 San Diego, CA Balboa Theater