Deep in the Shed was originally written and released in 1989. After completely revising and re-arranging the suite, Marcus re-recorded it (in Tallahassee, FL) for the current release on his own label, J-Master Music. The story of the new recording can be found in the liner notes posted here on the website.

This new release, Deep in the Shed: A Blues Suite, will make a perfect addition to your holiday gift list for all your jazz aficionados! And while you are adding to your list don’t forget the Marcus Robert’s Trio’s 2011 holiday CD release Celebrating Christmas.

Celebrating Christmas was praised by reviewers, a best seller on Amazon’s Holiday CD list, and the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas” was selected by USA Today for their Holiday Playlist. Both CDs are available either through our web store or Amazon.

As Roberts said in an interview with the Florida Times-Union before the Jacksonville Jazz Festival, he knows that “people’s initial reaction to the pairing tends to provoke some head-scratching.” “There does seem to be a little bit of shock,” he said. “A little bit of, ‘What? You’re playing with Bela? What in the world could you be playing?’ … But always in a friendly way, you know, not in a bad way.” They may come from different styles, but they share a musical vision as well as a passion for their instruments. Roberts said he appreciates that Fleck is a virtuoso who is intimate with every aspect of the banjo, just as he is with the piano. Ten years ago, though, if you had asked if he could imagine himself playing with a banjoist and stopping at bluegrass festivals, he probably would have said, “No.” “It just goes to show, until you know people and play with them, you don’t know,” he said. The history of American music inspires them both, he said, and they wanted the album to have a feeling of their soul and blues roots.

The tour started this spring with the release of the collaborative CD, Across the Imaginary Divide (Rounder Records). Since then there has been lots of great reviews and lots of incredible music made out there on the road! The tour has stopped in places as far-ranging as a wonderful 200-seat music hall in Brownfield, Maine to a crowd of 10,000 at the Telluride festival. It’s been great fun. After a stop at the Caramoor Festival in early August, the group will resume their tour in late summer. Check the calendar at www.marcusroberts.com for a date near you. Across the Imaginary Divide is available both as a MP3 download and CD album.

Related show

• Artist: Marcus Roberts Trio
• Date: Friday, March 30th 2012
• Time: 3:00pm
• City: Marcus Roberts Trio in Savannah, GA
• Venue: Savannah Music Festival
• Address: Lucas Theatre
• Country: United States
• Notes: “Cole in the Afternoon”
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