DATE: OCTOBER 20, 2011
FROM: TODD BRODGINSKI/MITCH SCHNEIDER
ICONIC ROCK GROUP
AMERICA
TO APPEAR AT TWO SPECIAL GRAMMY MUSEUM PERFORMANCES:
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4 IN SAN DIEGO &
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012 IN LOS ANGELES
Iconic GRAMMY Award-winning rock group AMERICA have been invited by the GRAMMY Museum to perform at two special shows in San Diego and Los Angeles. The Friday, November 4 performance at 8:00 PM and audience Q&A in San Diego is part of the ongoing Pacific Standard Time: Art In L.A. 1945-1980 series taking place at museums throughout southern California and will be held in the Sherwood Auditorium at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego. After the interview, moderated by GRAMMY Museum Executive Director Bob Santelli, America will take audience questions and will perform an acoustic set. All proceeds benefit the GRAMMY Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.
The group–founded by GERRY BECKLEY and DEWEY BUNNELL–will also perform at Los Angeles’ GRAMMY Museum Tuesday, February 7 in conjunction with GRAMMY Week, which leads up to the annual GRAMMY Awards ceremony. This intimate performance will also include a Q&A with the group, who won the “Best New Artist” Grammy in 1973 and have major hits with songs like “Horse With No Name,” “Ventura Highway,” “Sister Golden Hair” and “Daisy Jane.” Also in 2012, the group will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
AMERICA is celebrating their 40th anniversary with the July 2011 release of their latest album BACK PAGES via Entertainment One Music. It’s a collection of interpretations of great songs by Bob Dylan, The Buffalo Springfield, Simon & Garfunkel, the Beach Boys, Jimmy Webb, Mark Knopfler as well as Fountains of Wayne, New Radicals and Gin Blossoms, among others. Upon hearing AMERICA’s version of his song “Caroline No” by the Beach Boys, Brian Wilson said: “An absolutely stunning version…I almost got tears.” The group is on tour non-stop, having performed over 100 shows a year every year since their 1970 formation.
For more information on these shows, please call the GRAMMY Museum Box Office at 213.765.6803 or visit www.grammymuseum.org.
About AMERICA:
The group’s debut album was released in late 1971 and quickly went Platinum. Five subsequent releases went either Gold or Platinum and their History greatest hits compilation reached the four million sales mark. #1 hits include “Horse With No Name” and “Sister Golden Hair.” Other hits include “Ventura Highway,” “Tin Man,” “Daisy Jane,” “I Need You,” “Don’t Cross The River,” “Lonely People” and “You Can Do Magic.” At the same time, there was always more to America than the hits indicated. In many ways the band was rooted in the melodic pop rock of the British Invasion, most particularly in Gerry Beckley’s hook-laden songwriting. This connection was made explicit when legendary Beatles producer George Martin came on board to help refine their sound. For his part, Dewey Bunnell brought a tinge of folk-jazz, combining Latin-leaning rhythms with playfully rhyming words and impressionistic lyric imagery.
About The GRAMMY Museum
Paying tribute to music’s rich cultural history, this one-of-a-kind, 21st-century Museum explores and celebrates the enduring legacies of all forms of music, the creative process, the art and technology of the recording process, and the history of the premier recognition of excellence in recorded music — the GRAMMY Award. The GRAMMY Museum features 30,000 square feet of interactive and multimedia exhibits located within L.A. LIVE, the downtown Los Angeles sports, entertainment and residential district. Through thought-provoking and dynamic public and educational programs and exhibits, guests can experience music from a never-before-seen insider perspective that only The GRAMMY Museum can deliver.
Catch up with the band and their tour dates at their official website: www.venturahighway.com.
For more information on AMERICA contact:
MSO 818.380.0400
Mitch Schneider X235 mschneider@msopr.com
Todd Brodginski x239 toddb@msopr.com
For more information on the GRAMMY MUSEUM contact:
Andie Cox
213-763-2133
acox@grammymuseum.com
www.venturahighway.com
www.grammymuseum.org
www.e1music.us
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