Michael G. Davis Leaves Rich Cultural Legacy

Mike Davis was a friend and my homeboy.I sadly learned of his death only yesterday, April 15 from a mutual friend.Mike passed December 6,,2009 in New York City.Michael G. Davis Sr. was one of the most gifted individuals I have ever met. He singlehandedly organized The Harlem Preservation Jazz band, a "toe tapping” big band favorite in Harlem's Clubs and soirées. Mike was a dedicated educator and teacher in NYC public schools until he suffered a near debilitating stroke. A talented athlete, Mike was streetwise, savvy and academically prepared to meet the challenges in New York City's toughest neighborhoods and classrooms, which he did with great effectiveness. Trained as a graphic artist, illustrator, his artwork and talent as a young artist/illustrator were employed by major television networks including CBS, NBC's Today Show and Johnson Publishing company's flag ship publication, Ebony magazine. I last spoke with Mike on Thanksgiving Day, 2009. We had vowed that 2010 would be a special year in which he and I would present a unique jazz showcase together. Michael G. Davis' was laid to rest in his hometown Gary, Indiana December 19, 2010.Michael G. Davis left a rich cultural legacy that will long be remembered. RIP

Obama's Historic Nuclear Pact with Russia

Today US President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev laid a historic cornerstone at Prague Castle by signing a major nuclear arms control agreement. Humanity has taken a much-needed significant good-faith step toward safeguarding our world from nuclear catastrophe and promoting world peace. President Obama is to be commended for exhibiting the rare moral courage, bold political leadership, and sure-footed diplomacy needed to seal the deal. As astronaut Neil Armstrong reminded us from the distant moon back in 1968 of how humanity's positive movement one step at a time can lead us toward reaching the most unimaginable destinations when he said, "One small step for man; one giant step for mankind." Obama’s 2010 “shuttle diplomacy” has succeeded at least by ensuring that future generations the world over may be more inclined to “give peace a chance" and to, as the traditional Spiritual intones, "study war no more." May God bless you for your vision of peace among the nations, Mr. President. For "without a vision,” it is said, “the people perish.”

D-Day Media Group (c)
(Warning: Video images in the link depict perils of war)

Dr.James A.Forbes Delivers Easter Tribute Sermon at The Riverside Church

Easter 2010 I attended a glorious Easter Sunday Service replete with mass choir, brass, and timpani, and heard a masterful sermon preached by Dr. James A. Forbes, Pastor Emeritus of the Riverside Church in Harlem’s Morningside Heights neighborhood. Dr. Forbes’ sermon title was, “When the Spirit of Life Fills the Temple.” The Reverend Forbes was voted by Time Magazine as one of the ten most effective preachers in the English language. His erudition is respected internationally. Dr. Forbes occasionally draws on folksy expressions and allegories, interspersed with original songs and urban rhymes steeped in his southern Pentecostal upbringing. This style makes him equally at ease in front of lecterns at Harvard, Yale, and Oxford, where he has lectured on the art of preaching, or at a store-front church in Watts or the Bronx. His Easter sermon, delivered 43 years to the day after Dr. Martin Luther King’s controversial anti-Viet Nam sermon also delivered at RSC, in which Dr. King critiqued racism, materialism, and militarism through the lens of the Christian Gospel. It was one of the most powerful sermons I’ve ever heard. If you listen before Sunday, April 11, you can hear the sermon at http://www.theriversidechurchny.org/mp3/service.mp3

Happy Easter!

The Soulful Sounds of Easter

For many believers, Good Friday is a time of personal reflection, introspection, and meditation; a season of renewal and shoring-up one’s spiritual foundations and plans. It’s a mystical day centered in the belief that through faith life has boundless possibilities and hope springs eternal. My musical listening choices include repertoire from Duke Ellington’s Sacred music: Meditation, Come Sunday, Praise God and Dance. Mahalia Jackson’s sonorous voice also offers sweet solace in our sunny Manhattan apartment, channeling me back to an era that seemed simpler and connecting my spirit to traditions in African American spiritual expression that are both familiar and comforting yet universal. And when Cannonball Adderly’s alto sax soulfully grooves the refrain “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy,” it liberates my soul. Finally, my late mother Irene Day’s heart stirring rendition of Balm in Gilead continues to inspire and fortify me and others around the world. So in your quiet time I invite you to listen to the immortal music of Good Friday and Easter.

Harlem Concert for Haiti A Huge Success

Yesterday's (March 7)"Concert for Haiti" was a tremendous success. Musicians and poets in the African griot tradition, along with outstanding guest solo artists, performed before an appreciative capacity audience at Harlem’s St. Paul Baptist Church, where the church’s pastor, Rev. Dr. V. DuWayne Battle helped organize Friends of Haiti, a group dedicated to assisting in efforts to revitalize and empower Haiti and its people. Performances were powerful and heartfelt. The Rev. Dr. James Stallings, president of sponsoring organization the Regional American Baptist Churches, was on hand and proved an able pitchman for the cause.

Lead organizer of the event Claude Jay served as Master of Ceremonies and enlisted a broad spectrum of artists from both gospel and popular music genres, including former Oscar nominee Tevin Thomas who along with Jamal Joseph and Charles Mack co-wrote the song "Raise It Up" from the movie "August Rush." The multi-racial Renaissance youth performance ensemble was outstanding and sang James Weldon Johnson’s Negro National Anthem with a diverse group of Asian, Hispanic and African youth exchanging verses. Very few dry eyes were to be found in the church sanctuary.

I found it especially gratifying to add my voice to this great chorus on behalf of alleviating some of the unimaginable suffering taking place in Haiti. The standing ovation and call-back I received for my rendition of Balm in Gilead affirmed to me again that “what comes from the heart goes to the heart.”

Visiting Haitian choral groups were visibly touched at the site of the Haitian flag draped from the interior church balcony in a show of solidarity with the Haitian people as their nation continues its struggle to rebound from unspeakable devastation in the earthquake’s aftermath.

I feel a wonderful sense of assurance that the funds raised by the Harlem “Concert for Haiti” will go directly toward completion of the much-needed emergency medical clinic being built in Haiti by the American Baptist Church’s Mission. I look forward to visiting the clinic in the future. I will report what I find in A New Day in Media.

To donate to the American Baptist Church’s clinic in Haiti or for more information visit ABC’s web site:
http://www.cruz-jenks.com/ABCMNYStaff2.htm

Singers, Musicians and Choirs Unite for "A Concert for Haiti" in Harlem

In response to the devastation and human suffering wrought by the earthquake in Haiti a group of musicians, singers, and choirs have come together to raise funds for the continued support of those in need in Haiti. Organized by singer/actor Claude Jay, “A Concert for Haiti” will feature an array of stellar gospel singers, choirs and jazz musicians.

A partial list of Guests Artists include:
Renaissance-EMS , Bervin Harris , L’Eglise Baptiste Eben-zar Choir, Max Lucas, Tevin Thomas, Nedgra Culp, Lorenzo Tyler, Dr. Gregory Hopkins, Darlene Cheek, Rev, Charlotte Holly,Bishop Carl Holley, deacon Bill McEahern, masters Mime, Linda Humes, Russell Craig, Claude Jay and Dennis Day and many others.

The funds will go to the American Baptist Churches Missions in Haiti and Le Gonave Development Corporation Earthquake Relief Fund.


Sunday, March 7, 3:00p.m.
St. Paul Baptist Church
249 West 132nd Street
(between Frederick Douglass & Adam Clayton Powell Blvd.)

Chicago Area’s Jesus of Nazareth an Institution by Dennis Day

Among Chicago-land’s array of attractions, the passion play Jesus of Nazareth has become a “must see” theatrical event. The passion play is directed by Steve Munsey, pastor of the Family Christian Center, a mega church located 30 minutes outside Chicago in Munster, Indiana that has attracted nearly10,000 members. Several years ago Munsey’s church erected a permanent set depicting Old Jerusalem, which spans nearly 100 feet. From this elaborate set, Munsey directs a cast and crew of 2,000, bringing the story of Jesus of Nazareth to life in a manner resembling today’s big-budget Broadway productions. Actors and volunteer crew, make-up artists, seamstresses, carpenters and the hundreds who help make the play a success year-end and year-out are passionate in their zeal for the project’s mission to share the story of Jesus Christ’s life, death and resurrection.

Pastor Steve, as he is fondly known, is a charismatic figure who possesses a flair for dramatic illustration. He is often seen in different roles as a fervent evangelical fundraiser on TBS and CBN television channels. His long running production of Jesus of Nazareth was first staged in an outdoor amphitheater in the Seattle Washington area where a version of it continues to be seen today.

The Chicago-area passion play production features a variety of unique theatrical highlights that entertain and dazzle an ever-growing diverse audience comprised of every conceivable demographic classification, religious denomination , ethnic background from urban and rural America, attracting conservatives and liberals.

Matinees and weekend night performances of the passion play begin in February and run until after Easter. Theatergoers arrive by bus caravan, church van, or in family recreational vehicles. Youth groups, singles, and couples seeking a departure from the normal weekend dating regimen flock to Jesus of Nazareth each season. Steel workers, farmers, lawyers, clergy and VIP entertainers and politicians like former Vice President Dan Quayle and Oprah Winfrey have been among those to view the stunning Mid-West production. They come in droves from towns large and small, mostly throughout the mid-west but also from points vastly farther away. Through word of mouth each year the crowds are attracted and they come expecting to see a dazzling theatrical spectacle.

Live camels, horses, period chariots, cascading waterfalls, and fireworks explosions simulating earthquakes as Jesus is crucified are featured. There is even an obligatory Hollywood style chase scene employing electrifying aerial stunts as a thief attempts to escape amidst a crowded street scene. Biblical or historical revisionism, Mmmm? I’ll leave that to theologians to figure out. Great theater? Definitely! The verdict is in. Jesus of Nazareth is a hit, attracting larger audiences each year.

Many viewers leave the experience strangely aware that they have experienced a wonderfully engaging medium, the theater, for translating a familiar biblical account into something viscerally powerful that becomes for some spiritually transformative and perhaps for others purely interesting entertainment.

During one the play’s early incarnations, I had the honor of being chosen from an open casting call to play a principal role as Pontius Pilate – a first for an African American. This season, I plan to attend a performance of Jesus of Nazareth, but this time as a spectator not an actor. When the curtain closes I’m sure I’ll continue to ask myself the same rhetorical question for which neither Pontius Pilate, I, nor anyone since has found a definitive answer, “Truth! What is truth”? If you plan to visit Chicago in the next two months, do yourself a favor and check out Jesus of Nazareth.