Art Lillard and Blue Heaven
Blue Heaven’s latest release, Eternal Swing, is on the Soul Kid Jazz Records label.
Blue Heaven is an energetic, tasteful blues and swing ensemble that has been playing in the New York area since 1998. The band’s instrumentation includes trumpet, trombone, tenor saxophone, guitar, bass, and drums.
Led by drummer and composer Art Lillard, the group plays a variety of swing standards and not-so-standard swing and blues numbers, written by such luminaries as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, and Lester Young. The band’s repertoire also includes original tunes by Lillard and some of his musical colleagues.
Blue Heaven has appeared nationally and internationally on the CBS television daytime soap opera, “Guiding Light.” It has also performed for New York’s Swing Dance Society at Irving Plaza in Manhattan, and the Brooklyn Public Library’s Summer Swing Series, as well as at various jazz venues and private parties.
Where a piano is available, Blue Heaven can add a pianist to the lineup or substitute a pianist for the guitarist. A male or female vocalist can be added upon request. All Blue Heaven musicians are top quality, seasoned professionals who together create a seamless ensemble and make the music sparkle.
Art Lillard has been playing for over twenty-five years on New York’s swing and blues circuit. He is known for his ability to “read” an audience and its changing moods. Art keeps the room hopping from the first downbeat to the very last note.
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May 2022: Blue Heaven has another cd release on Soul Kid Jazz, called Deep Art.
CLICK HERE to listen to a track from that collection on SoundCloud.
May 2021: Art Lillard’s Blue Heaven Swing Sextet is excited to announce the release of a new compact disc recording on the Soul Kid Jazz record label. It’s called Eternal Swing.
