New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu



 

Dara Tucker To Perform at NJ Jazz Society's Virtual Social

originally published: 01/18/2022


Vocalist Dara Tucker’s recent album, Dreams of Waking: Music for a Better World (Green Hill Productions: 2021), featured tunes associated with well-known singer/songwriters such as Carole King and Stevie Wonder and composers such as Burt Bacharach. According to Betsey Bell, writing in the (UK) Jazz Journal, “The great subtlety in the arrangements brings freshness to these already legendary tracks. Tucker achieves this especially in her take on Burt Bacharach’s ‘What the World Needs Now’. It’s fleshed out with beautiful piano flourishes from Cyrus Chestnut, who is also very good on Tucker’s rendition of Carole King’s ‘You’ve Got a Friend’.” 

On Saturday, January 29 at 7:00pm, Tucker, accompanied by pianist Michael Kanan, will be singing selections from the album and other songs from her repertoire at the New Jersey Jazz Society’s Virtual Social. 

Other jazz musicians appearing on the album, in addition to Chestnut, include pianist Sullivan Fortner, bassist Dezron Douglas, drummer Johnathan Blake, saxophonist John Ellis, and trumpeter Giveton Gelin. Among additional song selections on Dreams of Waking are James Taylor’s “Secret O’ Life”, Donny Hathaway’s “Someday We’ll All Be Free”, and Wonder’s “You Haven’t Done Nothin’”. 

As a composer, Tucker collaborated in 2019 with Keb Mo’ to write the title track for his Concord Jazz album, Oklahoma, which won a Grammy Award in 2020 for Best Americana Album. One of her original compositions, “Do We Sleep?”, appears on Dreams of Waking.

Reviewing her 2019 Watchman Music Group album, Oklahoma Rain, London Jazz News’ Peter Bacon wrote that Tucker “brings a fresh approach to jazz-inflected singing with a big sky atmosphere to the soundscapes she and her band create.” Born in Tulsa, OK, to a family of singers and ministers, Tucker traveled across the United States, performing with her family. She lived in Switzerland and Nashville before settling in New York City. She now resides in Newark with her husband, Greg Bryant, the host of “Jazz After Hours” on WBGO 88.3FM.




New Jersey Stage provides affordable advertising for the arts, click here for info



Bacon pointed out that Tucker’s singing style “mixes jazz and R&B . . . and adds tinges of gospel and country.” At times, he said her tone reminded him “vaguely of that other singer/songwriter with Nashville connections, Mary Chapin Carpenter . . . The act of stretching from jazz towards an Americana direction shows greater potential for originality -- no one else seems to be operating in this particularly territory.”

For the past 20 years, Kanan has been the accompanist and arranger for vocalist Jane Monheit. A resident of Brooklyn, he leads a trio with guitarist Greg Ruggiero and bassist Neal Miner.

The January 29th Social will be streamed on the njjs.org website as well as on the NJJS Facebook page and YouTube channel. There is no admission charge, but donations are welcome and appreciated.

Funding for the NJJS Socials has been made possible, in part, by Morris Arts through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.




New Jersey Stage provides affordable advertising for the arts, click here for info



 

EVENT PREVIEWS

Rick

Rick Springfield, John Waite, Wang Chung, and Paul Young to bring the "I Want My 80s Tour" to NJPAC

(NEWARK, NJ) -- Get ready to revive the spirit of the 1980s! Iconic rock star and eternal heartthrob Rick Springfield, a true emblem of the '80s music scene, is set to take the stage on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC). Showtime is 7:00pm.



Young

Young the Giant to Play Tropicana Atlantic City

(ATLANTIC CITY, NJ) -- Critically-acclaimed, multi-platinum selling band Young the Giant announces the In The Open 2025 Acoustic Tour. An intimate concert experience performed in beautiful spaces and venues around the country, the band will be supported by Cassandra Coleman (debut album produced by Jack Antonoff out June 6 via Warner) throughout. Locally, the tour comes to Tropicana Atlantic City on Saturday, July 12, 2025.



West

West Windsor Arts presents Summer Music and More: Channel Collective

(PRINCETON JUNCTION, NJ) -- West Windsor Arts presents Channel Collective on Saturday, July 12, 2025 from 5:00pm to 7:30pm. Dan Kassel and Friends, featuring Gregg Merkle, will open the night. This is the first of three in their free summer concert series sponsored by Site Centers. Admission is free.



Asbury

Asbury Lanes presents There, There - A Tribute to Radiohead

(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Asbury Lanes presents There, There on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at 8:00pm. They are the premier Radiohead tribute act, playing songs from throughout the band's iconic multi-decade catalogue.



All-Bluegrass,

All-Bluegrass, All Night: Live at Albert Music Hall on July 12th

​​​​​​​(WARETOWN, NJ) -- On Saturday, July 12, 2025, Albert Music Hall will present an evening dedicated entirely to Bluegrass music. The event begins at 6:00pm and features six live performances, each offering a 30-minute set, showcasing both new and returning acts.



FEATURED EVENTS

ART | COMEDY | DANCE | FILM | MUSIC | THEATRE | COMMUNITY

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


There,

There, There (A Tribute to Radiohead)

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 8:00pm
Asbury Lanes
209 4th Avenue, Asbury Park, NJ 07712
category: music


 

Band

Band Infusion Musical Night by GG

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 7:00pm
New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC)
11 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
category: music


 

Annual

Annual Jazz, Health and Food Truck Festival 2025

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 11:00am
Monte Irvin Orange Park
S center and South Harrison Street, Orange, NJ 07050
category: music


 

The

The Fumos

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Morris Museum Back Deck
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
category: music


 

Michael

Michael Allman Band (evening show)

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music


 



Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info