The famous vocal quartet Transfer Manhattan it’s just not fulfilling 50-year career but he just released a very aptly named record called fiftyand has embarked on an anniversary tour that will continue into 2023. Additionally, that album is nominated for a Grammy, an award the group has already won ten times.
And if there was any reason missing to award the prize to the Manhattan Transfer, now there is the heartwarming fact of the announcement that the latter series of performances will be part of a farewell tour. They will not retire, but they want to slow down the pace of performances and not tour more intensively.
Statistics lovers have discovered it he is one of four artists to win seven Grammys followed by seven consecutive albums. In addition, in 1981 they were the first artists to win Grammys in the pop and jazz categories. Y in 1985 they obtained 12 nominations for his record vocalizea disc for jazz and any other musical style, second only to thriller by Michael Jackson.
The beginnings
Officially, Manhattan Transfer’s start date is October 1972, although founding member Tim Hauser had another band with the same name in the late 1960s, but only recorded one album and disbanded. Hauser started driving a cab and had plans to record a demo to get a new record deal, so he was looking for singers for a vocal quartet.
One passenger turned out to be Laurel Massé, who was a waitress and singer, so he recruited her. She then discovered Alan Paul who was in the original cast of Fat on Broadway. Next in was Janis Siegel, and that’s how they started, in full fury with most glitter.
“Unusually,” Paul said in a recent talk at the Grammy Museum, “we wanted people to notice us and not go unnoticed. We didn’t want to go on stage in jeans, so we wore a lot of makeup, wigs, and fancy dresses, like a party. .” The push came only in 1975, thanks to the famous Bette Midler, who convinced the president of Atlantic Records, the legendary Ahmet Ertegun.
The first hit was a version of the classic gospel theme operatorand from the next record he hit Love song. following Twilight Zone, The Boy from New York City and the anthological version with texts of the instrumental theme birdland. Subsequently, since the Vocalese album they have become one of the most distinctive artists of the world jazz scene.
The current line-up includes Trist Curless, who came on as Hauser’s understudy when he fell ill and died unexpectedly.
“We never imagined a 50-year career,” said Alan Paul. “But it’s been a blessing to have done so much and traveled so far everywhere and to see that there are people who want to hear our music.”
Added Janes: “If there’s one thing the world needs, it’s harmony.”
the last record
fifty It was made with a German orchestra called the WDR Funkhausorchester, a union born after playing together in 2019. The pandemic delayed the completion of the project, but in the end they did it remotely and the edition coincided with the 50th group anniversary.
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Source: Clarin
