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In the hallowed ranks of New Orleans "piano professors," Jon Cleary is on the tenure track. With his new trio: Piano, Bass & Drums, Cleary utilizes an acoustic format as a vehicle for his varied compositions embodying the flavors of New Orleans Funk, Classic R&B, and tropical rhythms.

Cleary remarks, "I've long been harboring a hankering to drive a band from behind the wheel of an old acoustic piano to bash out a selection from my side stash of material. These include songs I've been writing, borrowing and stealing for swampy Caribbean drums and upright bass or Tuba."

The lineup features Lafayette-native Doug Belote (Larry Carlton, Jerry Douglas) on drums, multi-instrumentalist Matt Perrine (Bonerama, The Nightcrawlers, Stanton Moore), and New Orleans stalwart James Singleton (Astral Project, Professor Longhair, James Booker) who alternate gigs on upright bass, with JC on acoustic piano.

For Cleary this is a chance to, "Paint from another palette, flexing a few other musical muscles, loading up with a different kind of ammunition. By virtue of the fact the guys making the music are products of the Big Easy, it goes without saying the ingredients of the music are going to include soul, jazz and funk. We'll be squeezing Caribbean juice out of a bag of 'back in the day' grooves, working in a bunch of fresh new tunes and parading a second-line street beat, with some red-hot peppers to crank up the heat."

more about PIANO, BASS & DRUMS at joncleary.com/band