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Langston Hughes’ Weary Blues LIVE
Weary Blues is an album by poet Langston Hughes, recorded in March 1958 in New York and was released on the MGM label in 1959. Hughes recites several of his poems, from his 1926 debut collection by the same name, over jazz accompaniment composed and arranged by Leonard Feather and Charles Mingus. It was later reissued on Verve Records.
The gritty poems, all featuring the rhythms of daily Black life in Harlem, swing between narrative and lyric with a sometimes breezy, sometimes dirge-like reverberations. Feather and Mingus’ compositions set the tone for each poem, guiding the emotional weight and hue of Hughes’ poetry, from swing to blues to be-bop.
In the summer of 2000, Quraysh Ali Lansana had the privilege of reprising this album at the Chicago Jazz Festival with a 7–8-piece band who were members of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), a seminal organization for experimental music founded by the late Sun Ra.
May 17, 2025
The Oak Cliff Assembly | 919 Morrell Ave.
8pm
$35 with VIP tables available
About The Performers
Rebecca Cordes (pianist) is a classically trained pianist, jazz musician, composer/arranger, teacher, and band leader. Originally from Nebraska, Rebecca has been active on the Dallas music scene for over ten years. Comfortable in both classical and contemporary styles, she can be found in a variety of performance settings, most notably playing with her band, Plus One Jazz Group. Previously, she collaborated with writer-lyricist David Parr on two original works for theater: The Great White Way, a full-length musical; and A Most Happy Stella, a through-composed mini-musical jazz parody of A Streetcar Named Desire. These works have been performed at theater festivals in Dallas and New York. Most recently, Rebecca contributed to The Pollinators, a new musical under development by local playwright Carol Crittenden.
Thaddeus Ford II (trumpet) is a sixth-generation jazz musician from New Orleans. He began playing the trumpet at age 8, eventually enrolling in New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) for high school. Following graduation, Thaddeus and his father enrolled in the music program at Southern University in Baton Rouge where they studied together under jazz educator and clarinetist Alvin Batiste. A year later, he and his father transferred to The University of New Orleans (UNO) to study under Ellis Marsalis, and, after two semesters at UNO, Thaddeus joined the brass-hop group, Coolbone, with whom he played for five years.
Dr. Joyce Hsu (trombone) holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from Texas Tech University, a master’s degree in Trombone Performance and Pedagogy from Oklahoma State University. A native of Taiwan, she also holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the oldest and most prestigious art college in her country, National Taiwan University of Arts. She has performed with the Rio Bravo Trombone Quartet, El Paso Jazz Collective, the salsa group Azúcar, and the El Paso Winds. Dr. Hsu served as the Director of Trombone Ensembles at the University of Texas at El Paso, where she coached the UTEP Trombone choir, which was invited, under her direction, to perform at the 2019 Big 12 Trombone Conference and the 2020 Texas Music Educators Association Conference.
Quraysh Ali Lansana (vocals) is author of over twenty books in poetry, nonfiction and children’s literature. Lansana is currently a Tulsa Artist Fellow and a Visiting Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing at the University of Tulsa. He was formerly a Lecturer in Africana Studies at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa where he also served as Director of the Center for Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation. Lansana is Executive Producer of KOSU/NPR’s Focus: Black Oklahoma monthly radio program, which is a recipient of a 2022 duPont-Columbia Award, a 2022 NAACP Image Award, a 2022 Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists Award and was a Peabody Award nominee. Lansana is also the recipient of a 2022 Emmy Award, a 2022 Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters Award and a 2022 National Educational Telecommunications Association Public Media Award for his roles as host and consultant for the OETA (PBS) documentary film “Tulsa Race Massacre: 100 Years Later.” Lansana is a three-time International Regional Magazine Award-winning Contributing Editor for Oklahoma Today magazine. A former faculty member of both the Writing Program of the School of
the Art Institute of Chicago
and the Drama Division of
The Juilliard School, Lansana served as Director of the Gwendolyn Brooks Center
for Black Literature and
Creative Writing at Chicago State University from 2002-2012 and was Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing there until 2014. His most recent books include Killing the Negative: A Conversation in Art & Verse (with Joel Daniel Phillips), Opal’s Greenwood Oasis, the skin of dreams: new and collected poems, 1995-2018, The Whiskey of Our Discontent: Gwendolyn Brooks as Conscience & Change Agent) and The BreakBeat Poets: New American Poetry in the Age of Hip Hop.
Ann MacMillan (percussion) holds a bachelor’s of music education degree from Emporia State University in Kansas and a master’s of music education degree from the University of North Texas. MacMillan began repairing musical instruments at Foster Music Company in Garden City, Kansas then joined the U.N.T College of Music as an adjunct professor of instrument repair in 1997. She teaches beginning and advanced repair courses and workshops. As a drummer, she collaborates with various jazz and pop ensembles.
Paul Nunn (bass) studied at Tuskeegee University and currently plays at Highland Hills United Methodist Church.
Joyce Spencer (saxophone) has an extensive repertoire that spans traditional and contemporary jazz, classical, R&B, funk, fusion, blues, pop, and Gospel/Christian music. Originally from Dallas, Joyce’s artistry is a testament to her diverse musical upbringing. With mastery over the soprano, alto, and tenor saxophones, as well as the flute and her vocal talents, Joyce has performed at numerous venues, including music festivals, concerts, church gatherings, and corporate events across the United States, where she has had the privilege of collaborating with notable acts such as Yarbrough & Peoples, i.Tina (Tina Turner Tribute Band), Satin Dolls, Jazz in Pink, and her band, Joyce Spencer & Expressions which includes her Sade Tribute Show.
About Taylor Entertainment Group
Taylor Entertainment Group LLC (TEG), based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is a premier entertainment management, booking, and consulting company dedicated to delivering exceptional live performances for a variety of events, including corporate gatherings, private parties, weddings, and festivals. Under the leadership of CEO John Taylor, TEG has earned a reputation for its commitment to quality, professionalism, and outstanding customer service. The company’s extensive roster includes talented artists such as saxophonist, flutist, vocalist, and Billboard #1 Artist Paula Atherton; jazz vocalist Cynthia Simmons; saxophonist Joyce Spencer; and comedian Sondra Slade. TEG’s services encompass live music, DJs, emcees, and comedians, covering genres like rock, jazz, blues, classical, R&B, Caribbean, reggae, and more. This diverse selection ensures that clients can find the perfect entertainment to suit their event’s unique atmosphere and audience. http://www.bookwithteg.com
