Kirk Whalum loves the Lord and he tells everyone who crosses his path. Just ask those in attendance at the ‘Maze featuring Frankie Beverly’ concert on July 17, at the Microsoft Theater.
Whalum performed his signature mix of jazz, gospel, and R&B to the delight of the crowd. A family affair, the audience got to hear a special treat – the velvety vocals of his younger brother, Kevin Whalum.
Considered a virtuoso by many and known for his extraordinary solo saxophone performance on Whitney Houston’s, “I Will Always Love You,” Kirk Whalum did not disappoint as he did what he always does – used his music to “describe the indescribable Savior.”
Whalum’s latest musical offering, “The Gospel According to Jazz, Chapter IV,” is the fourth installment of a series of recordings where he explores the “convergence of jazz and gospel music infused with rhythm and blues.
“This album is a message of tribute, tragedy, and triumph, musically illustrating God’s radical hospitality,” Whalum said.
The recording features such popular hits as Paul McCartney & Wings,’ “Let Him In” and the Foo Fighters,’ “My Hero.”
“With ’Let Him In,’ I’m trying to say, don’t block people from God, and with ‘My Hero,’ I’m saying Jesus was my hero, He was open, radical, and He was all the things we sometimes forget,” said Whalum, who also pays tribute to Curtis Mayfield, John Coltrane and Nelson Mandela.
Whalum hopes that this album will cause people to “make much of Jesus. We paint between the lines of someone who is invisible to us, but whose impact on world culture, and on us individually, is profound and transformative. I want the listeners to experience Him.”
You can join Kirk Whalum as he reads through the Bible in 365 days – “Bible in Your Ear” podcast on iTunes.
