The rich vocal talents of Al Jarreau

(Editor’s note: Sam Geati is a resident of Sun City whose musical background covers over 60 years. Currently, Sam can be seen and heard as a percussionist with the Sun City Concert Band, the “Let’s Dance” swing band, which he helped form, and his own trio called “Blue Skies.”)

Next up is one of my favorite jazz vocalists, seven-time Grammy Award-winning American jazz singer, Al Jarreau.

Born Alwin Lopez Jarreau in Milwaukee in 1940, he has several albums to his credit, including “Givin’ It Up,” “Breakin’ Away,” “All Fly Home,” “This Time,” and “L is for Lover,” plus a few live albums.

The son of a minister and singing father, with mom a church pianist, Al was exposed to music early in life. He and his family sang at various church functions and concerts. He attended Ripon College, where he sang with a group on campus. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and later went on to earn a master’s degree from the University of Iowa in vocational rehabilitation. While working as a counselor, Jarreau moonlighted with a jazz trio both as a singer and as a percussionist. Later, he partnered with guitarist Julio Martinez. Their success contributed to Jarreau’s decision to make professional singing his life and full-time career.

He soon was making the rounds as a guest on late night shows, including Johnny Carson, Mike Douglas, and Merv Griffin. That’s when Warner Bros. Records spotted him and soon thereafter released his critically acclaimed debut album, “We Got By.” It was not too long before he became internationally known and recognized as he garnered a German Grammy Award.

His big breakthrough came in 1981 with two events: the first being his “Breakin’ Away” album, which includes the hit song “We’re in This Love Together.” Around the same time, he wrote and performed the Grammy-nominated theme to the 1980s TV show “Moonlighting.” Among other things, he became known for his “scat” singing and ability to imitate instruments with his voice.

Now it’s time to sample some of Al’s best singles. Here are my favorite Al Jarreau cuts for you to search for on YouTube: “Mornin,” “After All,” “Take Five,” “Moonlighting,” “We’re in This Love Together,” and “We Got By.” One his best live videos is with drummer Steve Gadd because it couples Al’s scatting vocals and Gadd’s outstanding percussion skills within a wonderful Latin composition called “Mas Que Nada.” Don’t miss it.

That’s “all that jazz and more” for now. I hope that if you weren’t familiar with Al Jarreau previously, perhaps now you, too, are a fan. My next column will focus on the man that has been called the “King of Swing,” Benny Goodman. Please send your comments to me at greengeezer9@comcast.net. I’d love to hear from you.

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