THE RIPPINGTONS' 20TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR

For immediate release: 27 May 2008

THE RIPPINGTONS' 20TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR

PHOENIX, AZ – The Sanderson Ford Lincoln Mercury Volvo Music Series presents THE RIPPINGTONS starring Russ Freeman on Friday, June 6th. Special guest MINDI ABAIR starts the show at 8 p.m.; doors open at 6:30 p.m.

Russ Freeman founded the award-winning contemporary jazz group THE RIPPINGTONS in 1987. The band has enjoyed tremendous success from the beginning, with their groundbreaking album Moonlighting. Jazziz Magazine voted Moonlighting as the #1 Most Influential Contemporary Jazz Album of all time. Early personnel included David Benoit, Kenny G, Brandon Fields, and Gregg Karukas. Special guest stars have included Dave Grusin, Joe Sample, Dave Koz, Bob James, Kirk Whalum... the list goes on. In recent years people like Jeff Kashiwa made their names known from their association with the Ripps, and although the careers of many musicians have evolved from the Ripps, one thing remains constant: the songwriting and production skills of Russ Freeman. Marking an incredible milestone in the history of smooth jazz, the band celebrates its 20th Anniversary with a new CD/DVD package that includes all new Ripps music and a DVD featuring exciting videos from over the years.

Five of the tunes on special guest MINDI ABAIR’S new Stars album are vocals but for now it’s the instrumental “Smile” that’s charting in the top 20 of the R&R Smooth Jazz chart. Stars is the follow up to the composer-vocalist-saxophonist’s 2006 CD Life Less Ordinary, which debuted on Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz chart at #1. She has had three #1 singles, "Bloom" and "True Blue" from Life Less Ordinary, and "Lucy's" from the album It Just Happens That Way. Abair was named Best New Artist at the 2003 National Smooth Jazz Awards. This month, she debuts as the new host of Chris Botti’s Chill program. The popular show syndicated by Rendezvous Entertainment and Smooth Jazz Consultants Broadcast Architecture has been hosted by Botti since September 2004. Chill with Mindi Abair will feature the same mix of music including artists like Praful and Moby.

Tickets ($56, $76, and $101-includes VIP reception) are on sale now at Celebrity Theatre or online at www.sandersonmusic.com. To charge by phone, call 602-267-1600 ext.1. Patrons can get one music series show for free with the purchase of six shows from the series + free parking for all seven shows. All tickets are subject to a surcharge. Celebrity Theatre is conveniently located on 32nd St., just 4 blocks south of the Loop 202 freeway, in Phoenix.