99 Miles

from Kate's Soulfood by Allan Harris

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Renowned vocalist and guitarist Allan Harris is thrilled to announce the release of his long-awaited new studio recording Kate’s Soulfood. Available on February 12th, 2021 via Love Productions Records, Kates Soulfood is a spirited, soul-drenched ten track recording that pays homage to Harris’ home of Harlem, NYC as only he can. Harris will be embarking on a tour to support Kate’s Soulfood in February that will take him through North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

Showcasing his brisk baritone and deft songwriting ability, Harris’ fourteenth release as a leader paints a vivid portrait of his vibrant neighborhood that draws heavily from a deep well of childhood memories. “As a child, the rhythmic rocking of the subway was music to my ears. Every Sunday I took a magical ride along those tracks from Brooklyn to Harlem, which became my island of refuge,” he says. Like his ancestors who emigrated there during the Harlem Renaissance, Harris saw Harlem as a place of opportunity, belonging, and most importantly, love. “The people that enveloped me with their love and teaching placed an armor of music, literature and history around my underdeveloped mind.” Kate’s Soulfood is the outcome of their heartfelt efforts.

Among those that had an impact on the young Harris was his Aunt Kate, and her popular luncheonette Kate’s Home Cooking. Located on the corner of Frederick Douglass Boulevard and 126th street, right behind the Apollo Theater, the diner was often frequented by musicians (and notably appears on the cover of Jimmy Smith’s Home Cookin’). Harris would spend his Sunday afternoons at his aunt’s restaurant, soaking in the sounds and sights, before catching a show at the Apollo. “I experienced many pivotal moments at my aunts’ restaurant. I witnessed parts of the civil rights movement, rubbed shoulders with exceptional people, and it was there that I really found my voice.” In composing the music featured on Kate’s Soulfood, Harris drew from these impactful experiences, and in doing so, has produced a wide-ranging sonic tapestry of his beloved neighborhood.

To bring his vision to life, Harris enlisted GRAMMY winning producer Kamau Kenyatta, known particularly for his work with Gregory Porter. Harris’ A-list backing band includes his working rhythm section made up of Arcoiris Sandoval on piano, Nimrod Speaks on bass and Shirazette Tinnin on drums. Also featured is Grégoire Maret on harmonica, David Castañeda on percussion, Curtis Taylor on trumpet, Alex Budman on alto saxophone, Keith Fiddmont on tenor saxophone and Ondre J Pivec on organ. Harris plays guitar throughout the album, with the exception of on “Color Of A Woman is Blu”, which features Tonga Ross-M’au in his place.

The contagious, vivacious energy of Harlem is personified on the opening track and album highlight “I Grew Up”, on which striking horn arrangements by Etienne Charles shine brightly. Against a backdrop of children playing and singing, Harris paints a vivid picture of an afternoon in Harlem, and proudly declares “Harlem is the place, Harlem is the place where I live,” perfectly setting the stage for the proceedings.

Harris shifts gears on “One More Notch (Put Down Your Gun)”, on which he steps into the role of a former gang-member who pleads with his junior to get off the street, and follows it up with “Wash Away My Sins”, a mid-tempoed declaration of appreciation for the strong women who love and support Black men in today’s broken society. Harris shines on neo-soul infused tracks “Open Up” and “Shallow Man” before barring his romantic soul on “The Color of a Woman is Blu”. The back-half of Kate’s Soulfood, “99 Miles”, “Autumn Has Found You”, and “New Day”, were written for Harris’ friends and family that showered him with love throughout his life.

Closing out Kate’s Soulfood is “Run Through America”, which was released as a single in August. Written in response to the unjust police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, “Run Through America” is a modern-day protest song that ends the album with a call to action: to take to the streets and call out their name. The emotional music video was premiered by JazzTimes. It is a fitting end to an album about Harlem, a place where the civil rights movement boomed in the 1960’s – something Harris saw up close from his counter seat at Kate’s Home Cooking.

Kate’s Soulfood is a tour-de-force for Allan Harris, who has been called the “Jazz Vocal King of New York”. Described by the Miami Herald as possessing a voice with “the warmth of Tony Bennett, the bite and rhythmic sense of Sinatra, and the sly elegance of Nat ‘King’ Cole,” Harris has garnered wide acclaim from critics and legions of fans from all over the world. Recently, Harris made national headlines with his riveting work Cross That River, which tells the unsung story of America’s black cowboys and sheds light on their oft-overlooked contribution in taming the American West. Cross That River was featured in the New York Times, on NPR’s Weekend Edition, and on CBS and NBC.

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, Harris has remained in the public eye due to his weekly live stream concert series “Harlem After Dark”. These virtual performances, which stream on Youtube and Facebook Live and garnered attention from Forbes, regularly attract thousands of fans and have become a staple in many music lovers’ homes every Tuesday evening. Harris has often featured tunes from Kate’s Soulfood during these performances, and the music has been met with great enthusiasm.

Harris will be bringing Kate’s Soulfood on tour this February. This tour is made possible with the support of Jazz Road, a national initiative of South Arts, which is funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation with additional support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The dates are as follows:

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about

I always shunned the term working class hero because it means “A person who has given up their dreams for a realistic life in the working middle class." The teachers and figures of authority who controlled my development outside of my home, tried to drill into me the notion that I should only dream but so much. For me to waste time on dreaming would only lead to a series of life long disappointments.

How wrong they were! To this day I thank the heavens or whatever celestial power it was that put me under the loving care and guidance of a people who nurtured my dreams. The only demand they asked of me was to work and be true to myself and to seek and find like minded souls who dreamed with the same fervor.

This song, 99 Miles, was written to celebrate the journey that two way- faring souls have taken in order to realize their common dreams. It also heralds and shows what obstacles and sacrifices two people in love had to make in order to stay true to each other. In this song those two souls are Pat and I, my life long partner.

lyrics

99 Miles

99 miles from Atlanta Georgia
Got one thing on my mind
Two whole weeks on this lonely road
Lord knows I've served my time
Gonna pull in the driveway
Pop on the 'mergency
Jump like a frog on the porch
Take a long hot bath
and a shot of tequila
Hear the sound of my sweet baby's voice

Been a lotta long years of scrapin and a scufflin
but time has proved us well
We might not have a lot of frills and tassles
but Lord knows we've had ourselves
I say its back to the basics
We're at our best
That's how we started out
We had love then and we have love now
and that's what we're all about

Just put out the dog and redd up the house
Cause the last two weeks have been hell
I'll be in the city by 11:00 o'clock
She knows to expect me by 12:00
Now there ain't too many jobs
For the working class hero
I gotta do the best that I can
They can stop me from working
But they can't stop the lovin
That happens between a woman and a man

There were times when I'd wake up
In the dark of the night
And watched as you slept in our bed
The room was so cold no food in the freezer
Tears welled up in my head
Now I've been a lot of places
Seen a lot of faces
She smiles when she walks by my side
If there's one thing I'd do over again
I'd ask her to be my wife

credits

from Kate's Soulfood, track released February 12, 2021
Allan Harris (music, lyrics, guitar and lead & background vocals)
Kamau Kenyatta (producer & arranger)
Pat Harris (executive producer)
Shirazette Tinnin (drums)
Arcoiris Sandoval (piano, keyboard)
Nimrod Speaks (bass)
David Castaneda (percussion)

license

about

Allan Harris New York, New York

Allan Harris has established himself as one of the jazz world's most acclaimed vocalists, possessing a potent combination of dynamic vocal abilities, impeccable phrasing, and powerful emotional resonance.