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Browse our calendar of upcoming Bobby Torres Ensemble shows. We hope to see you at a gig soon!
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Arrivederci’s presents live Latin Jazz featuring a quartet version of the Bobby Torres Ensemble! Music from 8:00-11:00pm. Reflecting the family ambiance of this unique Italian venue, Bobby has gathered a quintet of well known NW Artists featuring vocalist Julana Torres, Dan Gaynor on piano, Al Criado on bass and of course Bobby Torres on congas and percussion. With any luck, Steve Hanneman will sneak in with his axe during the last set. And, with some encouragement, Steve will also break into song! Jazz lovers, the intimate seating, that closely surrounds the bandstand, gets booked out early so call for your reservation today (503) 659-1143. This is a family friendly venue for the entire evening. Don’t miss this opportunity to chill-ax up close and personal with your family and friends with some of the best live jazz in Portland!
In addition to the live music, enjoy a selection from Kate and Steve’s menu and wine list. Bobby recommends a glass of pinot noir with the Vegetarian Pizza (ask for it because it is not listed on the menu). Order it Bobby’s heart healthy way (extra veggie) on a fabulous gluten free crust and hold the cheese! For your starter, enjoy a small roasted beet and pear salad. Yum! Some vegetarian, GF, vegan options available upon request.
Call to reserve your table today: (503) 659-1143.
Joe Cocker’s band, Woodstock (3 Days of Peace & Music), Bethel, NY, 1969. Photo By ©Elliott Landy, LandyVision Inc. http://elliottlandy.com/
Watch the Koin TV News Feature “Where We Live” at 5:00pm – This story, reported by Ken Boddie, features Bobby Torres and the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock ’69 which is coming up in August. Joe Cocker introduced “Feeling Alright” as an “English variation of somebody’s head bashing tune”. In his introduction, Joe said “It features our conga player…I’d Like to give him a hand (a round of applause) for Mr. Bobby Please… a New York Cat as they say”. From then on, Bobby Torres became known as “Mr. Bobby Please”. Watch the link below to hear the introduction and the song. In the still shot to the left, published here with permission from Elliott Landy – http://elliottlandy.com – you can see Bobby Torres on stage to the left at Woodstock in 1969. Bobby is sporting an afro, a styling tie-dyed shirt and purple pants with suspenders.
Jo Bar & Rotisserie presents live Latin jazz featuring the Bobby Torres Ensemble Trio Monday July 15, 2019 at 7:00pm. Enjoy Bobby Torres on congas, Clay Giberson on keys and Paul Mazio on trumpet. View Bobby Torres Oregon Art Beat special. Jo Bar offers wood-oven-fired and spit-roasted seasonal fare, wine and distilled spirits.
Bobby Torres Ensemble
River Space Happy Hour presents live Latin jazz with a trio version of the Bobby Torres Ensemble featuring Mike Horsfall on vibes, Jay Bird Koder on guitar and, of course, Bobby Torres on congas. Enjoy the summer evening with great food, cocktails, expansive Willamette River views and live Latin jazz at River Space with Bobby Torres’ Trio! Music from 6:30pm-11:30pm.
About Bobby Torres Music: Inspired by years of touring and engagements with such greats as Tom Jones, Joe Cocker, Jeff Porcaro (Toto), Etta James, Tim Wiesberg, The Captain & Tenille, and the Beach Boys (to name a few), Bobby Torres music is packed with driving Latin jazz.
About River Space: River Space is located close to the River Place Hotel on the waterfront – at 1910 SW River Drive Portland OR 97201. River Space is a polished special event venue conveniently located downtown in Portland’s hottest upscale urban neighborhood at the SW Waterfront River Place Promenade and Marina (Strand Condominium complex) at 1910 SW River Drive Portland OR 97201. It is an iconic free standing building – a sleek glass and steel structure that resembles the prow of a futuristic ship come to rest along the river bank. The aptly named River Space features unusually high ceilings embraced by floor to ceiling windows that offer breathtaking views of Portland’s waterfront and bridges. The serene interior is polished and elegant with chandeliers that swirl in circular patterns, cantilevered windows that open to wrap-around brick and glass-walled patios, and frosted glass bridges that straddle a rivulet that encircles the space. With the expansive view of the river, the reflective surfaces, the many distinctive elements and custom interior finishes, there is an exciting sensory discovery around every gorgeous curve and corner. It’s a space to awaken the senses.
The Cafe Bar at BlueHour features a trio version of the Bobby Torres Ensemble with Clay Giberson on keys, Jay Bird Koder on Guitar and Bobby Torres on congas. Enjoy a fantastic late night bite, cocktails and live Latin jazz at Bluehour with Bobby Torres’ Trio! Music from 9:00pm-11:00pm. Call to reserve your table today: (503) 226-3394. Dinner is served until 10:00 pm and Happy Hour is offered from 9:30 pm – 12:00 am. View Happy Hour Menu Here. Bluehour is located in the Pearl District at 250 NW 13th Avenue, Portland, OR. View Bobby Torres on Oregon Art Beat Special.
Bobby Torres Ensemble
Bobby Torres joins Mike Horsfall at the Lan Su Chinese Garden for PDX Jazz presents: Tjaderade: A Tribute to Cal Tjader – celebrating the music of Latin Jazz great Cal Tjader! Featuring: Mike Horsfall / vibraphone; Cheryl Alex / flute & vocals; Dan Gaynor / piano; Bill Athens / bass; Charlie Doggett / drums; Bobby Torres / congas
Mike Horsfall has enjoyed a successful and diverse musical career for over 35 years, serving as a performer, educator, composer, arranger, recording artist and concert soloist on both piano and vibraphone. He has performed and recorded with a large number of world class musicians, including Bud Shank, Bobby Shew, Leroy Vinegar, Chuck Redd, Holly Hofman, and Rebecca Kilgore, and has worked with such notable groups as Pink Martini, the Nu Shooz Orchestra, and the Portland Chamber Orchestra. In 1989 Mike co-founded the trio Tall Jazz, which went to perform, record, and educate for over 20 years. They became the first ensemble to be voted into the Jazz Society of Oregon’s Hall of Fame. Mike currently serves on the music faculty at Willamette University, Mt. Hood Community College, and Oregon Episcopal School.
The Cafe Bar at BlueHour features a trio version of the Bobby Torres Ensemble with Dan Gaynor on piano. Enjoy a fantastic late night bite, cocktails and live Latin jazz at Bluehour with Bobby Torres’ Trio! Music from 9:00pm-11:00pm. Call to reserve your table today: (503) 226-3394. Dinner is served until 10:00 pm and Happy Hour is offered from 9:30 pm – 12:00 am. View Happy Hour Menu Here. Bluehour is located in the Pearl District at 250 NW 13th Avenue, Portland, OR. View Bobby Torres on Oregon Art Beat Special.
Bobby Torres Ensemble
Montavilla Jazz Festival presents The Bobby Torres Ensemble Sunday August 18, 2019 from 5:30-6:20 pm at Portland Metro Arts 9003 SE Stark Street Portland OR 97216. The Bobby Torres Ensemble features musical talent of the highest caliber in Portland to explore the many musical inflections of Latin Jazz. Bobby’s Ensemble delivers driving Latin polyrhythms by Dan Gaynor, tasty piano licks, a pulsating Latin bass by Al Criado, the Ensemble’s sizzling horns, and songs with both Spanish and English lyrics performed by his powerful vocalist, and daughter, Julana Torres. Bobby’s music is a toe tapping fusion of American and Latin standards arranged with churning Latin grooves richly ornamented with jazz inflections. It is a fusion of Latin-Jazz-and Rock’n-Roll with original songs and music by both American and Latin song writers. The Oregonian describes the Bobby Torres Ensemble as “Latin jazz with enough flavor and spice to satisfy your body and soul’s need for rhythmic harmony.”
Bobby Torres Ensemble
Julana Torres Featured with the Bobby Torres Ensemble
Lan Su Garden & PDX Jazz Present the Bobby Torres Ensemble: Remembering Woodstock, With a Little Help From My Friends. To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock, Bobby Torres presents a look back at Woodstock and some of the iconic music played that weekend with this PDX Jazz series ending showcase. Musicians include: vocalists Julana Torres and Sean Holmes; Dan Gaynor, piano; Al Criado, bass; Dick Titterington, trumpet; James Travers, drums and, of course, Bobby Torres, congas. Bobby performed with Joe Cocker and The Grease Band at Woodstock — the first and largest three-day outdoor live music festival to date, in the summer of 1969 at Max Yasgur’s Farm in Woodstock NY with more than 500,000 attendees. No festival since has maintained a gathering of one-half million people for an outdoor live music concert without violence. It really was three days of music, peace and love.
Some details Bobby remembers of Woodstock…
“The only day of rain was Saturday — it started with thunder occurring right after we performed ‘With a Little Help From My Friends’… it felt like God was applauding. It rained heavily for about an hour and a half. We all had to clear the stage. People had to clear the speaker stands and light stands they had climbed on out in the field. The mix of the rain and the electricity on stage was frightening. I took cover back stage under hastily strung tarps. The stage hands scrambled to cover the amps, keyboards and drums… all the electrical equipment. When the storm was over, we took the helicopter back to the hotel.
“Looking back at this event, after all these years, I understand more now the importance of this event much more than I did at the time. I find myself very fortunate to have been involved, as a musician, for this world changing event.” — Bobby Torres
Bobby Torres on stage (afro, purple pants) with Joe Cocker’s band, Woodstock (3 Days of Peace & Music), Bethel, NY, 1969. Photo By ©Elliott Landy, LandyVision Inc. Photo courtesy of Elliott Landy http://elliottlandy.com/
Bobby Torres joins Mel Brown on stage at the Jack London Revue. Music starts at 8:00pm. Mel and Bobby go way back – during their long careers touring on the road, finding themselves in the same town, and – at times – even in the same hotel, Bobby and Mel would hang out together telling jokes, sharing road stories and occasionally playing music together. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear these two musicians performing and having a good time together on stage at the Jack London Revue. The Mel Browne Quartet features Mel Browne on drums, Luis Payne on 3-B Organ, Dan Balmer on guitar and Renato Carranto on Saxophone.
Bobby Torres with Mel Brown at the Mel Brown Jazz Camp
Bobby Torres (L), Mel Brown (C), Renato Carranto (R) on stage at Jimmy Mak’s for Mel Brown’s Birthday
Bobby Torres, Band Leader
About Bobby Torres: Bobby is a band leader, musician, record producer, songwriter, and session musician with a 40-year professional history that spans the globe and a lengthy discography. Originally from New York City, Bobby developed his reputation while performing with Joe Cocker at Woodstock, touring with Joe Cocker Mad Dogs & Englishmen, and performing and/or touring or recording with countless other music stars such as Al Jarreau, Jackson Browne, Beach Boys, the Captain & Tennille, and Etta James – to name a few. He has an extensive discography. He also performed and toured the globe for 10 years with Tom Jones. Bobby was nominated “Outstanding Percussionist” (a Muddy Waters Award), he was inducted into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame and he received The Jazz Hero Award from the Jazz Journalists Association. Bobby has been a respected advocate, speaker, instructor and keeper of Latin rhythms on the Portland music scene for many years. The Ensemble is his central focus.
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