Asbury Park-based Alexander Simone & the WHODAT? Live Crew will rock their hometown Feb. 5 at What a Wonderful Year at the Wonder Bar and Feb. 12 at Langosta Lounge in support of their new Telegraph Hill Records single, “Even Now.”

Of the many artists who’ve graced Earth, few have had more important things to say than the great vocalist-pianist Nina Simone, one of the most eloquent and passionate voices of the Civil Rights Movement. That’s why it’s no surprise that her Asbury Park-based grandson Alexander Simone has plenty to say about today’s turbulent times, and, man, is it uplifting.

His new soulful anthem “Even Now” with his band, the WHODAT? Live Crew is the Makin Waves Song of the Week.  

As the Makin Waves Song of the Week, “Even Now” also can be heard between 6 and 8 p.m. on Feb. 4 on “Radio Jersey” at ThePenguinRocks.com. 

Believing that “even now God is with us” despite all our enraging, frustrating differences in the face of hopelessness, Simone produced the gospel-enriched track with Joe Pomarico, an Atlantic Records senior engineer-producer who owns the single’s Telegraph Hill label, and WHODAT? guitarist Jules Trucker, who adds greatly to the song’s sacred vibe. Jules plays every Sunday at New Hope Baptist, the Newark church that musically spawned Dionne Warwick, her cousin Whitney Houston, and her auntie, Cissy Houston, Whitney’s mom.

One of the most soul-stirring tunes  I’ve heard come out of the New Jersey music scene throughout 42 years of covering it, “Even Now” is the one to beat for 2022 Makin Waves Song of the Year!

Hear it live in Asbury on Feb. 5 at the second night of Telegraph Hill’s annual What a Wonderful Year celebration at the Wonder Bar, as well as Feb. 12 at Langosta Lounge. 

For more about Alexander Simone & the WHODAT? Live Crew, click here.  

Bob Makin has produced Makin Waves since 1988. Follow Makin Waves on Facebook and contact Bob at makinwaves64@yahoo.com.