James Taylor Helps Raise Funds for Cancer Research at The Nearness of You Concert

James Taylor

James Taylor headlined this year’s The Nearness of You Concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Appel Room on February 9. Kurt Elling of Broadway’s Hadestown was a late-added replacement for Chris Botti. Lisa Fischer, Richard Blanco, and Randy Brecker also performed at the fifth annual concert in honor of the late Michael Brecker.

In front of a floor-to-ceiling window revealing Central Park and traffic congestion on Columbus Circle as the performance backdrop, the charity event at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Appel Room on February 9 interspersed live music, poetry, comedy and spoken presentations. Pianist John Beasley served as music director, leading a house band that consisted of Randy Brecker (brother of Michael Brecker) on trumpet, Ada Rovatti (wife of Randy Brecker) on saxophone, guitarist Adam Rogers, bassist James Genus, and drummer Terri Lyne Carrington. Comedian Susie Essman hosted the event. Hugh Jackman, Dr. Azra Raza, Susan Brecker were among the speakers.

Kurt Elling

Lisa Fischer

Randy Brecker (left) and Ada Rovatti

Richard Blanco

The late Michael Brecker played saxophone in jazz and popular music over a four‑decade career, appearing on more than 900 albums as both a lead and backing musician. A 15-time Grammy Award winner, he collaborated with Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Herbie Hancock and hundreds of other artists. He died in New York City in 2007 at age 57 from complications of leukemia following a 2005 diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS).

The Nearness of You Concert was founded by Michael Brecker’s widow, Susan Brecker, and longtime manager Darryl Pitt as a way to connect Brecker’s musical legacy with efforts to advance cancer research. Paul Simon, Elvis Costello, Diana Krall, Chaka Khan, Christopher Cross, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, and Will Lee have performed at The Nearness of You Concert in previous years. Since its launch, the concert series has raised more than $5 million.

Hugh Jackman

Susie Essman

Dr. Azra Raza

Susan Brecker

Proceeds from The Nearness of You Concert support MDS-Leukemia stem cell research at the Columbia University Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center (HICCC). The focus of the research has been on studies led by Dr. Azra Raza, Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee and their colleagues at Columbia. The team is investigating the power of stem cells to replenish blood cells for the possible benefit of its patients.

Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) are a group of blood and bone marrow diseases that devastate the body’s ability to produce healthy blood cells. About a third of MDS patients develop acute leukemia. Currently, no cure exists for MDS, and treatment options are limited.

Related Article:

The Nearness of You at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Appel Room (2024)

***

The Manhattan Beat covers New York City's live music circuit. All articles are written by Everynight Charley Crespo. All photographs are taken by Everynight Charley Crespo, except when noted otherwise.

For a list of Manhattan venues that are presenting live music regularly, swing the desktop cursor to the right of the home page and click on the pop-up tab "Where to Find Live Music."

For a more complete listing of upcoming performances in the New York City area, visit The Manhattan Beat's February calendar.