JAMIE CULLUM October 20, 2006

JAMIE CULLUM
With special guest
JOSH RITTER
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 8PM
PARAMOUNT THEATRE

Having weathered a non-stop, whirlwind schedule for the past two years, dynamic British singer, songwriter, and pianist JAMIE CULLUM could have easily taken some well-earned time off in 2005. The 26-year-old's Verve debut, Twentysomething, was a worldwide smash last year, selling over two million copies and garnering a Grammy nomination. But instead of cooling his jets Jamie kept doing what he loves best: making music, and recording a new album, Catching Tales. The fourteen-song set begins with "Get Your Way," a strutting number featuring celebrated hip-hop DJ and producer Dan the Automator (Gorillaz, Handsome Boy Modeling School), which juxtaposes cascading ivories with bursts of brass and a fat, funky backbeat. But this aesthetic team-up isn't as unlikely as it might seem, provided one is familiar with Cullum's eclectic musical background. "I listen to a lot of very percussive music; I used to always drum on my desk at school. I've always listened to a lot of dance music, and I love hip-hop." Born in Essex, and raised in Wiltshire, Jamie Cullum was obsessed with all types of music from an early age: rock, hip-hop, acid jazz, blues. He discovered jazz as a teenager, via artists like Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis, but also showed an interest in the groundbreaking Steely Dan albums purchased by his brother Ben (who plays bass throughout Catching Tales). While studying English at college, he began working as a singer-pianist anywhere he could get a gig: on cruise ships, in pubs, even wedding receptions. Here he crafted the explosive on-stage persona (captured on the 2004 DVD Live at Blenheim Palace) that would win him accolades in The New York Times and Variety in the years that followed. When Universal Classics & Jazz snatched up the rising talent in the spring of 2003, and sent him into the studio to make Twentysomething, he was ready for the rigors and joys that waited ahead. With Catching Tales, Jamie Cullum continues to redefine where the parameters of pop, and jazz indeed, all musical genres are drawn. "At first I didn't think certain songs had a place in what I was doing with jazz, but I've realized that everything does, and that reaffirms my belief that jazz is the greatest platform to do whatever you want. People ask why I play jazz. It's because you can take it to so many different places. You can embrace dance music, rock, pop music, classical, funk, everything. And I touch on all those things in this record."

Tickets are $25.00 and $35.00 plus applicable service charges and go on sale Saturday, September 9 at 10 a.m. and are available online at ticketmaster.com or hob.com, at all Ticketmaster outlets or charge by phone at (206) 628-0888

Official Website: http://hob.com/tickets/eventdetail.asp?eventid=40491