"The Amigos Band have their own loose-limbed charm...serving up a sprightly mixture of folk, country, mariachi, and more." -The New Yorker The Amigos Band (formerly The Tres Amigos) careen back and forth between three-part harmony-singing and bursts of instrumental improvisation, The Amigos deliver daring takes on American standards and original songs that already sound like classics - all tightly arranged to suit the group's unique mix of alto saxophone, accordion, acoustic guitar, and hollerin' voices. The Tres Amigos have appeared in recent performances with New Orleans' Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Pete Seeger, bluegrass legends Tony Rice and the Del McCoury band, and Grammy-award winning Americana singer/songwriter Jim Lauderdale. They recently gave a sold-out performance at New York City's Lincoln Center and completed a popular residency at famed Lower East Side club, The Living Room. They were awarded a Formal Showcase at the 2012 North East Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) Conference in Kerhonksen, NY and are currently at work on their first full-length album. Avid students of American culture, The Tres Amigos travel the country in search of unique sounds and collaborations. They relish in genre-crossing, messy history of American music and believe in the importance of keeping these stories and songs alive and accessible to all people. Who are The Tres Amigos? Amigo SAM REIDER, vocals Vocalist/accordionist Sam Reider is to The Amigos what the green chile is to the tamale. Raised in the musical hotbed of San Francisco, Sam was recognized early on for his talent on the piano. As a teenager he appeared on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz on National Public Radio and performed with artists like David Grisman (Grateful Dead) and John Handy (Charles Mingus). A prolific songwriter and student of American music, Sam studied at Columbia University where he received the highest awards for his comparative research on Woody Guthrie and Ira Gershwin. Amigo EDDIE BARBASH, percussion, vocals A former resident of Oaxaca, Mexico and an alumnus of the Juilliard School, vocalist, saxophonist & percussionist Eddie Ray Barbash is the virtuosic fuel of The Amigos machine. Eddie Ray has performed at major festivals around the world like New Orleans Jazz Fest and the Umbria Jazz Festival with the likes of Wynton Marsalis, Marc O'Connor, and Chico Hamilton. In addition to his work with The Amigos, he is a member of Columbia Artist Jonathan Batiste's Stay Human Band with whom he has appeared everywhere from the Grammy's to the Kennedy Center. Amigo JUSTIN POINDEXTER, guitar & vocals Hailing from the rolling hills of North Carolina, vocalist & guitarist Justin Poindexter is the descendant of a long line of southern storytellers. His songs and guitar pickin' have been featured in award-winning films and albums, and in hundreds of venues from Georgia road-houses to Lincoln Center in New York City. Justin is the recipient of numerous grants for his music research and composition, and is the artistic director of the Music Academy of the American South Festival at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Amigo JEFF PICKER Joining the mariachi-shirted ones to complete tonight's quartet is Oregon native Jeff Picker, an award-winning and in-demand bassist and guitarist for jazz and roots music in the Northeast. Picker, who was deemed "one of the country's most talented young bassists" by the Oregonian, has played with his fair share of top-tier artists across genre lines. His current projects include The Birdhive Boys, a Brooklyn-based traditional bluegrass band which he co-leads, and Izzy and the Catastrophics, with whom he just completed a month-long stint of domestic touring. Jeff graduated in 2011 from Columbia University with an English degree. He resides in Brooklyn.

• published: 06 Sep 2013
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