Gail Marten: News

Gail Marten has been contacted by Australian Music Marketing Abroad offering international exposure and licensing for her music based on receipt of IS IT LOVE, her most recent collaboration with The Clem Ehoff Trio. AMMA was particularly interested in the tracks, Is It Love, Big Girl Blues and Her Point of View.

I recently found your music on SonicBids, and listened to your posted songs, and am interested in hearing more. "Just Before Dawn" and "Is it Love" are my favorites. You have a timeless and soothing voice. Our Agency has released and promoted music by over 400 artists. including Norah Jones. We'd love to see you play here in Atlanta sometime.

Marten & Ehoff have been nominated Best Vocal Jazz Album for their CD, IS IT LOVE, and in addition, the title song "Is It Love" has been nominated as Best Jazz Vocal Song. Press Release, September 11, 2006 The Just Plain Folks Music Organization has officially announced the nominees for its 2006 Just Plain Folks Music Awards after receiving over 25,500 albums and 350,000 songs from 105 countries... All nominations are posted on the Just Plain Folks website found at http://www.JPFolks.com The winners will be announced at the Just Plain Folks Music Awards Show on November 4th, 2006 in Santa Ana, CA at the Galaxy Theater.

www.isound.com is featuring the song with the feminine perspective written by Gail Marten this week at their jazz radio station.

Have you ever heard a song on the radio or in passing and just fell in love with it? It has happened to me, and it also happened to Gari Baxter, who gave me permission to share the tale of his quest for Just Before Dawn, a song written by Alfonso Rondon with lyrics by me. We are deeply touched and gratified to be able to reach out and connect by means of our music.

DEAR MS MARTEN-
On March 19, 2005 I was at Lexington Market having lunch on the upper floor, as I do a couple of Saturdays each month. A vocalist and a combo had been playing and the vocalist said something about Over The Rainbow being the greatest song of the 20th Century. As my companion and I were getting ready to go, the vocalist started a song that really caught my ear. I told my friend to wait so I could hear this song all the way through. I was really struck by it and couldn't remember having ever heard it before. I thought, how am I going to find out the name of the song. Can I just walk up to the singer and ask? Well, I guess there must have been a moment's lull, or else I was just so anxious to find out the name of the song, because I did just that. I walked up to the singer and asked. She said it was Just Before Dawn. I found something to write it on and also wrote down the name of the singer.

Imagine my joy when I found the person on the website and also found that my favorite source for esoteric recordings, Tower Records, had the singer and a recording that included Just Before Dawn.!!!! It was my lucky day.

I order from Tower every couple of months or so and did indeed order a week or so ago. To let you know how anxious I was to hear Just Before Dawn, I had also ordered Dizzy Gillespie's complete recordings on RCA Victor, Coleman Hawkins Centennial recording (including 2 versions of Body And Soul), Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits, an album by Roger McGuinn, Yo Yo Ma playing the Bach Cello Suites, 2 CDs by violinist Midori playing sonatas by Debussy, Elgar, Saint-Saens, Franck and Poulenc. I put Just Before Dawn on first!
- Gari Baxter

GAIL-
...A few measures into your vocal on Just Before Dawn, I was taken back to the moment a few weeks ago that had frozen me on my way out of Lexington Market.

If you don't mind, I must confess that I often pray when listening to certain music, whether it is classical, jazz or pop. Or whether or not the lyrics are obviously religious. Or whether the lyrics (like your piece) reflect our personal thoughts and meditations on life---as we sit and, sometimes, just wonder. Or, whether it is a composition like Just Before Dawn, whose melody and chord changes take me for a moment toward heaven.
- Gari Baxter

The title song from our CD, IS IT LOVE, is featured at www.isound.com. This is the song that won First Prize in the jazz category of the 2005 UK Songwriting Competition.

Clem Ehoff's composition, ALMOST A SAMBA, from our CD, BEYOND THE RAINBOW was featured at Sal Calfa's www.lejazzaffair.com on July 26th.

WE CAN LEARN TO FLY is featured at www.isound.com jazz radio this week. Our thanks to Max and the rest of the staff there for their continued support of our music.

LOTUS BLOSSOM and HER POINT OF VIEW are featured this week at www.isound.com jazz radio

PURE JOY and LOTUS BLOSSOM from IS IT LOVE are featured this week at www.isound.com

SHADES OF BLUE from IS IT LOVE? is at the top of the jazz playlist this week at isound.com radio.

Sal featured a medley from BEYOND THE RAINBOW, NATURE BOY/YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT LOVE IS, was featured at Le Jazz Affair on May 10th.

Three songs from IS IT LOVE are featured this week at isound.com radio: Just Before Dawn, Lotus Blossom and Shades of Blue.

Sal Calfa has featured DREAM WITH ME from Is IS IT LOVE this week and will be featuring music from PURE JOY and BEYOND THE RAINBOW in upcoming podcasts. Listen at www.lejazzaffair.com.

Gail Marten’s song, Big Girl Blues, is a finalist in Finland’s Vantaa Jazz Heritage Association blues songwriting competition, co-sponsored by Compo10.com

ISound.com is featuring two songs from our most recent CD this week, Is It Love (Marten & Ehoff, First Prize Winner in the UK Songwriting Contest) and Just Before Dawn (Marten & Rondon).

I had a wonderful afternoon at Lexington Market in Baltimore singing jazz standards with the Phil Ravita Quartet. Clem Ehoff, piano; Phil Ravita, bass; Jim Stewart, guitar and Ted Naperkoski, drums. As always, the audience was appreciative and responsive.

Lotus Blossom from Is It Love was featured at Le Jazz Affair this week. Listen at www.lejazzaffair.com

ISound.com is featuring two songs from our most recent CD this week, Is It Love and Pure Joy.

I had a beautiful week with my sister Linda in Mexico. Flew out just before the snow hit the northeast and returned to frigid temperatures. 85 degrees in Puerto Vallarta when I left and 20 degrees in Baltimore when we landed.

Sal featured Gail and Clem's original music on his February 5th podcast, Le Jazz Affair. ALWAYS THERE from Pure Joy and HER POINT OF VIEW from Is It Love were the choices. You can listen to Sal at: http://www.lejazzaffair.com/LeJazzAffair20-020506.mp3

Three songs from Is It Love are being featured this week at isound.com Jazz Radio: Pure Joy, Shades of Blue and Her Point of View

This CD is wonderful! Turn on the tunes, kick back with a glass of wine and enjoy!
- Trudy Long

Four songs from Is It Love are presently in rotation at isound.com’s jazz radio station:
Is It Love, Shades of Blue, Her Point Of View and We Can Learn To Fly.
www.isound.com

My beautiful friend, the one and only Shirley Horn has passed, but has left us the gift of her incomparable music and style.

Her life was celebrated at The Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church in Washington, DC on November 3, 2005 where Shirley Horn was honored by friends, family and admirers. Jazz was played by musicians including Warren Shadd, George Mesterhazy, Buck Hill, Steve Novosel and Ed Howard. Shirley’s profound renditions of Just In Time, You Won’t Forget Me, Here’s To Life were played between remarks offered by family and friends. It was an elegant, dignified and deeply moving service.

In life, Shirley was so good to me, so encouraging and supportive. I was privileged to have such an extraordinary friend.

I love you, Shirley. And I miss you.