- Arrival in Bloomington 2006
May, 2006 – Great Gatsby Gala. Bloomington, Indiana. It was sincerely a beautiful opportunity and so cool to be the torch singer at the speak-easy, swinging and jiving. My band was the Torch of Jazz; George Cullinan on piano , Jamie Reid on drums and Steve Mascari on bass. We even had a policeman monitoring fobidden liquor, with a flask in his coat. The flappers were flapping and the band was playing. What a blast! It was my singer’s dream come true. Thank you, Laura, for the invite.
Bruce Willis & The Accellerators. Sun Valley. This photo includes none other than, yes – my friend, Bruce Willis, the singer/actor, etc. Spent 3 years singing with The Accerlerators and, inevitably, working for The Mint as weekly entertainment. He treated me so good; a kind and generous man. When I left to perform with the Jerry Garcia Band (JBG), Bruce hosted a barbeque, in my honor. Hailey, Idaho. I love it there and look forward to returning again very soon.
Here, I performed as a trio at Cafe D’jango with B. Courtland Saxon on saxophone and Tom Ladendorf on guitar. We have since rotated from saxophone to piano and guitar, Paul Whalen on keys.
The GoodenPlenty Project. My favorite of the GoodenPlenty Projects (SF, Idaho, Seattle and Indiana). I take all the credit for shopping for and putting these individuals together. One of the tightest bands I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing with. We have Phil Hipskind on guitar, Jim Rollins on drums, Jack Joseph on bass and Nelson Batalon, Sr. on keys and Nelson Batalon, Jr., on saxophone. You could never go wrong supporting this project.
More? When you come back, I’ll have more. Hahahaha!
INTERNATIONAL BLUES CHALLENGE (IBC) 2011 – Representing Indiana in Memphis, TN with Crossover as semi-finalists. Encountered and competed against some incredible bands and extremely gifted musicians from various countries; Italy, Germany, Canada. Fantastic down-home American blues, too, lest we forget! The competition was hot!
2012 – Congratulations to our friends Dickie James and the Blues Flames, INBC (Indiana Blues Challenge) and Blues Society winners heading for Memphis. Also, my girl, Paula Harris, has thrown her hat in the ring, representing California. All my love and support guys!
Bean Blossom Fest – 2007. With the incredibly precious George Cullinan, on piano. He is my musical soul mate. There is an air that reads possibility, in my desire to play with him once more.
Miss Loretta Gooden - vocal stylist
