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Longineu Parsons
Ted Shumate
Longineu Parsons and Ted Shumate are both accomplished jazz musicians, with highly evolved technique and musicianship, whose careers have taken them before audiences all over the world. But when they play blues, they get down, to their roots, to the depths of their souls, and they come home.
Although Ted and Longineu have diverse styles, they share a common bond via their mentor and teacher, the jazz and blues master Nat Adderly. In fact, it was at Nat's funeral in January 2000 where they became re-acquainted and decided to memorialize Nat by keeping the blues alive with Blues for the 21st Century.
The Blues for the 21st Century album was released in the summer of 2001. They recorded it at King Snake Studios, in Sanford, Florida, with Bob Greenlee's encouragement. As luck would have it, Lucky Peterson was in town, and provided the perfect compliment on the Hammond B-3 organ.
Longineu Parsons has been hailed by critics internationally as one of the world's finest trumpet players. He also plays recorders, flute, percussion, and sings the blues. His music defies classification, and crosses the genre boundaries of jazz, blues, funk, and world fusion. In addition to live and studio performances, he is a notable composer, arranger, and music educator. He serves on the music faculty of Florida A&M University, where he coaches the trumpet section of the infamous Marching 100 Band. He appears in blues clubs, at jazz festivals, and in symphony hall. Some notable performers that he has shared the stage with are the Sun Ra Arkestra, Cab Calloway, and singer Nancy Wilson's band. He believes in and is passionate about the universality of music which serves as a metaphor for world communication and peace.
Ted Shumate was inspired musically from gospel and blue sounds of the Deep South, which were then spiced up with aural sensations of Cuba, South America, and the Caribbean. His guitar playing is in a class that few achieve in technical prowess and expression. He teaches at Gulf Coast Community College and has written a guitar instructional book titled Chords Concepts that is used worldwide in colleges and universities. Some of the outstanding musicians he has played with include Sonny Fortune, Al DiMeola, Jimmy Cobb, and Larry Willis. He is dedicated to keeping the blues alive.