LIVE Magazine Issue #265 December 2017

SPENCER DAY
IN “ANGEL CITY”
Acclaimed singer-songwriter/pianist—and
San Diego favorite—
Spencer Day returns to MA4 to
celebrate the release of his much-anticipated
new album, “Angel City,”
on Thursday, December 21 at 8pm.
Called his most complex concept
album to date, “Angel City” will feature
all-new original songs, as well
as concert favorites and a few reimagined
interpretations of previous
recordings. The release of “Angel
City” marks the completion of Day’s
seventh album.
Audiences around the world have enthusiastically
supported Spencer Day for over
ten years at venues as diverse as Birdland
in New York, the Hollywood Bowl, Jazz Alley
in Seattle, the Pacific Rim Jazz Festival in
Manila, the Kennedy Center in Washington,
DC, Tanglewood Music Center in Boston, and
The Craig Ferguson Show. Day has been a
perennial favorite in the San Francisco Bay
Area, New York, NY, and is widely regarded
for his original songs that blend compelling
melodies, smart lyrics and lush arrangements.
He enjoys the versatility and flexibility
of his music and performs shows that
infuse elements of cabaret, storytelling, and
comedy with his piano and vocals.
For his recent album Daybreak, debuting #1
on the iTunes Jazz Chart, Day crafted five
new works that blend seamlessly with the
cover tunes to create a moving tribute to
the time, sound, feel, and sensibility that
defined the California mid-century experience.
Daybreak evokes the breezy feel of a
sunny Southern California afternoon. Classics
including Groovin, A World Without Love,
and Never My Love have been re-imagined
and interpreted in Spencer’s trademark honey
baritone voice. Daybreak reflects Spencer’s
roots in the Great American Songbook,
with a contemporary, upbeat twist that has
become his signature sound.
Early Raves for Daybreak: “Album number
five from jazzeteer, Spencer Day, sees him
paying homage to the sixties, with an album
split evenly between originals and covers. And
it’s good.” — the-rocker.co.uk
“Day’s music is simply charming, from top to
bottom. Where should we place him? Jazz?
Pop? Crooner’s music? Which genre really
does not matter.” — keysandchords.com
• Daybreak debuts on Billboard’s charts Jazz
Albums #20 and Contemporary Jazz Albums
#11
• Debuted at #1 on iTunes jazz chart
• Top 5 most added single (Missing Tonight) on
Billboard smooth jazz
For Spencer remaining relevant in the music
industry is a constant. He continually examines
who he is both as a person and an artist. “I
really have come to believe that my job as an
artist is to help people access their emotions.
My first job is to help people feel something;
anything. I want us all to be able to celebrate
our shared humanity, regardless of where
we come from.” With this energy, Spencer’s
latest and fifth album Daybreak, was born. The
album is filled with a selection of classic tunes
from the 60s in addition to five original songs
that he wrote in a style to pay homage to
them. “The whole album is really a reflection
of where I stand at this moment; more happy
than I’ve ever been in my adult life.”
Spencer Day: In the beginning. . . .
Spencer was raised in the small town of Pinetop,
Arizona by his mother, an accomplished
music teacher and soprano vocalist. Her talent
and love of music encouraged and influenced
him to become the singer and musician he is
today. Spencer found inspiration in the works
of Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Roy Orbison,
Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon and many others.
These artists are the foundation of Spencer’s
creative process and continue to influence his
writing and performance style.
Over the years, Spencer’s fan base has grown
immensely and continues to grow. A clear
tipping point was in 2007 when he was asked
to perform at the San Francisco Jazz Festival,
which led to many requests to headline in a
number of music venues including: Yoshi’s in
San Francisco and Oakland, the Plush Room,
the Great American Music Hall, Monterey
Jazz Festival and the Hollywood Bowl in LA.
On the east coast, he has earned rave reviews
for performances at Town Hall, Joe’s Pub, and
the Canal Room in New York City. He has also
headlined internationally in England, Japan,
Australia and Mexico.
“I hope to create music that is sophisticated
but teeming with raw emotion and fire under
the surface. It is in life’s contradictions where
the most beautiful things are created.”- Spencer
Day