In It
by Keith Marks
© Copyright - Keith Marks & Timothy Marquand / Kent's Island Music

ABOUT THIS ALBUM

Album Notes

“In It” contains a variety of musical styles. The material ranges from jazzy adaptions of soul favorites like “Ooh Child” and “Ain’t Nobody”, through Caribbean and Jazz classics (“Boo Boo” and “Hipsippy Blues”), to a rousing interpretation of the South African National Anthem, “Nkosi Sikelel’iAfrika”.

Keith was joined by a stellar band of New York’s finest musicians, including keyboardist Ray Chew, who is currently Musical Director at the legendary Apollo Theatre in New York City, the South African bass virtuoso Bakithi “Graceland” Kumalo, singers from the cast of Sarafina, and the great Buddy Williams, who is drummer and percussionist in the Broadway play The Color Purple in New York City.

Keith Marks, born and raised in the South Bronx, has projected the diverse cultures of that neighborhood into a powerful and imaginative concept of playing the flute. His influences include Shirley Caesar and King Curtis as well as Roland Kirk and Hubert Laws. For the past thirty years the Keith Marks Quartet has performed at clubs and festivals throughout the country. Every January, for over 30 years, Keith has traveled to Hawaii where he has been invited to perform at their colleges and universities. He is also in great demand on the college circuit throughout the country.

“My flute is CONNECTED directly to my central nervous system”, Keith stated in an interview and, over the years, thousands of fans have joyously shared that CONNECTION. In the tough, street-wise worlds of R&B and Jazz, Keith has forged a unique and commanding rhythmic voice from a seemingly delicate instrument. He has become, in the words of George Kanzler of the Newark Star Ledger, “an infectiously funky Pied Piper of jazz flute”.

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