THE 33rd ANNUAL PINE GRILL JAZZ REUNION and Music Fest!
If the Pre-Pine Grill event featuring the incomparable Marsha McWilson is any indication of what to expect for the upcoming event in MLK Park this weekend – it’s going to be awesome!
Ms. McWilson performed an outstanding one-woman show to a standing room only audience last Friday in the Paul Robeson Theatre at the African American Cultural Center, sponsors of the Pine Grill.
This year marks the 33rd annual gathering August 7 and 14, and organizers have worked hard to make it one of the best with nationally known artists and outstanding local performers who will entertain with all genres of music from Gospel, R&B, Jazz, Blues and Fusion to Hip-Hop and Soul!
Although the entertainment starts at 3 p.m., for the first time this year reunion-goers are invited to visit with vendors who will be set up in the park as early as 1 p.m. before the show.
The Pine Grill is always a FREE EVENT.
However to show their appreciation to supporters, according to the Cultural Center’s Director Jackie Mines, this year there will be a special section for patrons and sponsors who donate $10 or more to support the work of the African American Cultural Center. It will be on a first come first serve basis and seats are limited.
-The Lineup –
This Sunday’s lineup will feature Tee Nyce, Serena Young, DaMarka Wheeler, Lady Kathy Bowman, Jacqueline Cherry, Nicole Campfield, Marsha McWilson, Wendy Cox, Taveem Gibson and Vibrant Strings.
Yao Kahlil Newkirk, Artistic Director at The Paul Robeson Theatre of the African American Cultural Center, is producing and hosting the first show.
On Sunday, August 14, well known promoter Eric Martin has stepped to the plate to lend his decades of promotional skills and experience to produce the second show which will feature national acts Tom Browne and Danny Clay also, the All Star Band, Intuition, Next Level and Juke Boxxx.
According to Yao, the intent is to make the event inclusive musically and while respecting tradition, build on what was; ranching out to others so they can appreciate the Pine Grill experience and continue to support the legacy.
The Pine Grill was a nightclub located on the corner of Jefferson and E. Ferry that was bursting with music during the heyday of Buffalo’s jazz scene – attracting some of the biggest national acts in music in the 50s and 60s.
The spot where it once stood is now a parking lot next door to a drug store.
We give thanks to the visionary late George K. Arthur, who founded the Pine Grill Jazz Reunion in 1989 and the dedication of the late Agnes Bain of the African Cultural Center who “held it down” for decades.
The memories are in the people and the music, and the people and the music return every year to MLK Park to reunite, remember and give thanks.
See you in the park!
