"Melba's huge voice is her instrument of peace".....
In the world of Jazz, singers come and go, sometimes appearing for a brief moment in the limelight, and then sinking beyond the horizon, forgotten by all except for a few die-hard fans. But every once in a while, a special someone defies all the odds and manages to make her talent shine again and again, in different venues, on stages, in the recording studios, on tour and in clubs. Such a singer is Melba Joyce, whose long and impressive career has spanned three decades in the company of and sharing top billing with such giants of the music business as Louis Armstrong, Sarah Vaughan, Louis Jordan, Lionel Hampton, Tony Bennett, Herbie Mann, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and too many others to list here. A graduate of Antioch University West in Los Angeles, Melba Joyce was born in Dallas, Texas, where she grew up under the warm and instructive musical influence of her mother and grand parents. Her father, Melvin Moore, a prominent vocalist with the jazz and swing bands of the era--including Dizzy Gillespie, with whom he toured and recorded--was also an influence. After her family moved to Los Angeles, Melba was immediately noticed by musicians and soon found herself opening for such renowned artists as Benny Carter, and sharing the jazz festival bill with Miles Davis, Freddy Hubbard and Bobby Hutcherson.
In addition to her jazz singing appearances, Melba Joyce appeared in the hit show "Black and Blue" on Broadway, where she understudied all three principal characters, played by: Linda Hopkins, Ruth Brown, Carrie Smith and LaVern Baker and starred in the launching of that show's successful world tour.
She tirelessly toured the war-torn fields of Vietnam to entertain the troops at the height of that horrid conflagration, an experience that raised her social conscience to new heights. When she returned, she was appointed panelist for the Congressional Black Caucus of Women in Jazz Forum. She produced the first Women in Jazz Festival at Harlem's Schomburg Center for Black Culture and became a principal in the Day of the Child Series for UNICEF. And with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, Ms Joyce produced Jazz For Special People, a musical education series for the mentally and physically challenged. Melba Joyce traveled overseas as part of the 1998 Kennedy Center-USIA Jazz Ambassadors program for a tour of several African countries with a special performance at the Kennedy Center as part of the program. In addition to her busy schedule she is a Lecturer/Instructor in The Music of Global Cultures at SUNY Old Westbury College, Long Island.
In the summer of 2005 Ms. Joyce toured the European jazz festival circuit with the Count Basie Orchestra.
Bosco Theatre, George Square
MAYBE it was because it was her last gig of a three night run at the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival. Maybe it was something in the air. Or, in all honesty, maybe it was just because Melba Joyce clearly loves performing and the audience love her for loving them.
Joyce certainly filled a small venue with a large presence - not really a surprise considering she's been entertaining such audiences for over 30 years. When Joyce began to sing the opening number, a cover of Louis Armstrong's All of Me, the lights plunged the trio into a vibrant red, blending them into the flowing velvet curtains.
With the scene set and the mood already perfect, Joyce held the audience captivated by a succession of engrossing and beautiful jazz and blues numbers, including covers of Joni Mitchell, Nat King Cole and Bessie Smith, which she dedicated to a new friend in the audience, blowing him a kiss.
The audience showed themselves to be one with a real appreciation for talent. When Joyce informed them that "jazz is an instrument of peace, bringing us all together," they immediately burst into applause.
A huge voice that demands respect, yet at the same time is calming and soothing, it was almost as though Joyce didn't even need a microphone, it's probable the crowd would have sat there all night, mesmerising as Joyce was. Darren Scott
Melba's latest release; "Live in London" released in 2005.
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