Pearl Williams

Appearing at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Delaware County—145 West Rose Tree Road in Media—on Wednesday, May 15th is singer Pearl Williams. Tickets are $10, $5 for students, and are available only at the door. Show time is 7:30 p.m. Information: 215-517-8337.

Pearl Williams embodies, embraces and perpetuates the legacy of legendary Philadelphia jazz singers. Gaining early experience singing in her high school choir, she quickly graduated to jazz by way of a jazz group formed by a neighbor and friend whose name happened to be McCoy Tyner. Her association with that future star helped shape her style, which she describes as “warm and sensually sophisticated, with an instinctive feeling for rhythm and lyrics, and deep emotional characteristics.” While she certainly has her influences, what comes out is singular and, quite simply, inimitable. Despite having no formal training, Pearl Williams three decades-plus career has taken her all over the globe, performing with certifiable, international jazz legends such as Houston Person, Count Basie, Barry Harris, Bobby Durham, Al Grey, Shirley Scott, Trudy Pitts, Milt Buckner, Cat Anderson, “Philly” Joe Jones, Richard “Groove” Holmes and literally hundreds of others. Artists like Pearl Williams, a living legend, are just not made any longer, and her every appearance is a unique and very special event.

Jazz Bridge is a Philadelphia-based non-profit organization dedicated to assisting area jazz and blues musicians in need. Their “Jazz Bridge in Media” program is one in a series at this venue, and four other area locales. For more details, visit JazzBridge.org/Upcoming-Events.

Kevin Valentine

Appearing at the Arch Street Friends Meeting House—4th and Arch Street in Philadelphia—on Thursday, May 16th is singer Kevin Valentine. Tickets are $10, $5 for students, and are available only at the door. Show time is 7:30 p.m. Information: 215-517-8337.

“I can’t remember any phase of my life when I wasn’t singing,” says this Bronx-born singer, who counts as his first influences giants like Johnny Hartman and Erroll Garner. By his own admission, those traditional artists eventually “shared space” with the likes of Sly and the Family Stone and Tower of Power. Indeed, his early gigs in New York—after first meeting future bassist Mike Boone when both were members of the Boys Choir of Harlem—were of the rhythm and blues variety at spots such as the Apollo, Sweetwater’s The West End and Lennox Lounge. He returned to his jazz roots upon his arrival in Philadelphia to attend law school, and has worked most of the major clubs here. He describes his sound as “an easy, effortless style that swings,” and believes that his mission as an artist is “to find those tunes and be part of the presentation that presents pictures with new colors.”

Jazz Bridge is a Philadelphia-based non-profit organization dedicated to assisting area jazz and blues musicians in need. Their “Jazz Bridge in Old City Philadelphia” program is one in a series at this venue, and four other area locales. For more details, visit JazzBridge.org/Upcoming-Events.