April 8, 2007 With a Song In Her Heart
I was pleased to have Toni Denise and her band join me for my show on WCOM, Melva's Musings on Jazz. Toni is an acclaimed jazz singer who has charmed audiences from Los Angeles to London. She once performed at the home of the late Mayor of Los Angeles, Tom Bradley.
Toni was joined in the studio by Bryant Carthan on keyboard, David Binanay on violin, and Nicaho-o and Tony Yarborough on vocals. They all performed with a clear passion for their music.

They performed the following pieces during my show - Don't Get Around Much Anymore; My Favorite Things; My Funny Valentine; More; a Movie Theme Medley, which was dedicated to Toni's sister, Beverly Thomas; Boy from Ipanema; and Route 66. They sounded so good during my show that several friends commented to me that they assumed that I had been playing a CD.
They totally surprised me by sharing a song that Toni and Bryant wrote together, which was a theme song for my show. It was a beautiful song and I plan to use it on my show and on my blog.

A good friend and supporter of Toni's, Robin Robinson, called in from Sacramento, California. Toni was able to sing a song in Robin's honor.


We were joined in the studio by several friends, including Ellington Carthan (named after Duke Ellington), Joan Gantz, Bob Brower (bass player), Stan Levy (sax player) and Jay and Kathy Putnam.



We all had such a good time. Toni shared with me - "I really appreciate you allowing me to grace your show. It is allowing me to live my dream!" And the feeling was mutual.