Press

ALBANY, NY – The New York State Museum will release a CD recording of its August 2004 live concert featuring Professor “Louie” & The Crowmatix with the Rock of Ages Horns following the group’s performance at the Museum on Saturday, Oct. 22.

Following the 7:30 p.m. concert, the performers will attend a CD release party free for all concert goers on its fourth floor Terrace Gallery celebrating the release of the new CD -- “The Spirit of Woodstock Live at the New York State Museum.” Professor Louie & The Crowmatix, with the Rock of Ages Horns, performed the music of “The Band” during the Museum’s summer 2004 Woodstock concert series. It was held in conjunction with the Museum’s exhibition – “Spirit of the Woodstock Generation: The Photographs of Elliott Landy” commemorating the 35th anniversary of the 1969 Woodstock festival.

“We don’t usually play this kind of music in a museum but it was great,” said Professor “Louie” about the performance. “The concert was recorded for archival purposes and we were thrilled when the New York State Museum wanted to release the performance as a CD.”

Professor “Louie” & The Crowmatix have toured consistently in Canada and the U.S. for the past six years playing at well-known festivals, concert halls and clubs. This past spring “Louie” traveled to Novosibirsk, Siberia, Russia to perform with musicians there in 10 concerts featuring music from the “Century of the Blues,” the group’s fourth CD released in January on the Woodstock Records label. “Louie” also taught students while he was there. He will return in November to finish work on a documentary/performance DVD of the trip, which will be released in 2006.

In the studio, Professor “Louie” & The Crowmatix have been the backup band for artists such as Rick Danko and Garth Hudson. Their other CDs are “Over the Edge,” “Jam” and “Flyin’ High.” The most recent – “Century of the Blues” – was ranked between #15 and #21 on the American Radio Roots Charts for six months following its release.

Tom “Bones” Malone and “The Rock of Ages Horns,” will perform with Professor “Louie” & The Crowmatix at the October concert as they did at the summer 2004 concert. Malone is a

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world-renowned trombonist and arranger. He is best known for his work with The Blues Brothers, The David Letterman Show Band, Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame group “The Band” and Gil Evans. He also has performed on stage with The Supremes, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gay and played on recordings for James Brown, Steve Winwood, Pink Floyd and Miles Davis.

Aaron Professor “Louie” Hurwitz sings, plays the keyboard and accordion. He worked for “The Band” from 1985 to 1999 and co-produced, played and sang on three of the group’s CDs. “Louie” also engineered the sound for a public television special that “The Band” recorded in New Orleans. He also traveled extensively as a duo with the late vocalist/bassist Rick Danko of “The Band,” who nicknamed him Professor “Louie.”

Other members of the Crowmatix are Marie Spinosa, (vocals, keyboards and percussion) who sang with “The Band”; Gary Burke, (drummer and arranger) who has performed with Bob Dylan and Joe Jackson; Frank Campbell, (bass and vocals) who has worked with Steve Forbert, Rick Danko and Levon Helm and Josh Colow, (guitar and vocals) who performed and recorded with Jesse Winchester.

The Rock of Ages Horns also includes John Allmark (trumpet), who started the John Allmark Jazz Orchestra and has a CD “The John Allmark Jazz Orchestra featuring Clay Osborne,” and Dino Govoni, (saxophone, tenor saxophone and woodwinds), who has played with a variety of well-known artists, including Aretha Franklin, at Arista Records star-studded 25th anniversary concert in May 2000.

More information about Professor “Louie” & the Crowmatix is available at www.Woodstockrecords.com.

Tickets for the October performance are $15 for members, $20 for non-members in advance and $25 the day of the concert. Tickets can be charged by phone by calling (518) 408-1033. They also will be on sale in the Museum lobby on October 22nd from 10a.m. until the start of the concert.

The State Museum, a cultural program of the New York State Department of Education, was founded in 1836 and has the longest continuously operating state natural history research and collection survey in the United States. The Museum is located on Madison Avenue in Albany. Further information is available by calling 474-5877 or visiting the museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.

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