Trenton Native Orrin Evans Takes A Bebop Time-Out

Written By Mike Greenblatt
Frederick Douglass

Orrin Evans, 49, born in Trenton—a Rutgers grad (where he still lectures)—has taken a time-out from his career as a bebop piano man with 29 albums as a leader to arrange and perform in a new musical based on the life and times of Frederick Douglass [1818-1895]. No Cowards In Our Band dramatically retells the story of the legendary abolitionist Douglass via his own words. Liberally sprinkled with Negro Spirituals, starring Masad Olufani as Douglass amid a trio of opera singers, composer-educator Evans—who toiled in the Mingus Big Band for years—deftly juxtaposes disparate elements to create a cohesive whole. It will debut Saturday at Hudson Hall, a historic landmark building in Upstate New York where Teddy Roosevelt once spoke. For tickets and more info, visit https://hudsonhall.org/event/no-cowards-in-our-band/

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Mike Greenblatt

MIKE GREENBLATT has been writing for Goldmine magazine and New Jersey's Aquarian Weekly for more than 35 years. His writing subjects fill the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

He's interviewed Joe Cocker, Graham Nash, David Crosby, Carlos Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Johnny Cash, and members of The Rolling Stones and The Beatles. He was 18 when he attended Woodstock in 1969.

In addition to writing about music, Greenblatt has worked on publicity campaigns for The Animals, Pat Benatar, Johnny Winter, Tommy James and Richard Branson, among others. He is currently the editor of The Jersey Sound.

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