DURHAM — Vocalist Al Jarreau will perform with The George Duke Trio June 19 at the Carolina Theatre.
Tickets for the 8 p.m. performance go on sale at 11 a.m. Friday. Tickets are $46, $39 and $40 for Star Members. VIP tickets are $95 and include a pre-show meet & greet. Tickets are available at the theatre box office, 309 W. Morgan St., or online at www.carolinatheatre.org. Call 919-560-3030 to purchase tickets. Box office hours are weekdays from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and one hour prior to show time.
Jarreau and Duke first performed together in the mid-1960s, when they were part of the house band at the Half Note Club in San Francisco.
Jarreau has earned five Grammy Awards in the categories of jazz, pop and R&B, scores of international music awards and accolades worldwide. Jarreau has been singing since the age of four, harmonizing with his brothers and performing solo at a variety of local events in his hometown of Milwaukee, Wisc. While attending Ripon College in Wisconsin, Jarreau continued singing for fun, performing locally with a group called The Indigos during weekends and holidays. After graduating he moved to the University of Iowa to earn his master’s degree in vocational rehabilitation. Jarreau then relocated to San Francisco where he began performing with a trio headed by George Duke. He moved to Los Angeles and began his apprenticeship in such famed nightspots as Dino’s, the Troubadour and the Bitter End West. He gained national network television exposure with Johnny Carson, Merv Griffin, David Frost and Mike Douglas.
In 1977, Jarreau embarked on his first world tour, won his first American Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance. His album, “All Fly Home,” was released in 1978 to further accolades and a second Grammy for Best Jazz Vocalist. It was followed by a string of original offerings that brought him a broader audience and two more Grammy awards for Best Male Pop Vocalist and Best Male Jazz Vocalist. In 1987 he became a weekly guest in America’s living rooms singing the Grammy nominated theme song for the hit television series “Moonlighting.”
When pianist and record producer Duke was 4 years old he was inspired to pursue music after seeing a Duke Ellington concert. By the age of seven was studying piano, and by 16 he was performing in high school jazz bands. While in college, he kept busy working in San Francisco jazz clubs, including The Both and The Half Note, where he was in the house band with Jarreau. By 1969 he formed The George Duke Trio with French electric violinist Jean-Luc Ponty. The band toured Europe and the United States, establishing their own niche in the burgeoning jazz fusion scene. Duke also recorded with Frank Zappa and Julian “Cannonball” Adderley
Duke became a solo artist in 1976, and enjoyed success with a series of fusion-oriented recordings such as his debut “From Me To You.” In 1978, the funk-flavored sound of the gold album “Reach For It” propelled George Duke into the upper reaches of the charts, and from small clubs to large arenas.
Duke has served as musical director for a wide variety of projects including charity events, television specials, political gatherings and festivals. In the 1990s his solo work revisited his funk and jazz-fusion roots, as well as broadening to include orchestral works such as 1994’s “Muir Woods Suite.” Duke’s latest album, “Dukey Treats,” was released in 2008 and peaked at number three on Billboard’s Jazz Albums chart.
