Janet Planet Joins LJO for the Final 2021 Jazz in the Park Concert
07/28/21The Jazz in the Park 2021 Concert series, featuring the La Crosse Jazz Orchestra, wraps up on Sunday, Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. in Riverside Park with guest artist Janet Planet.
“Janet is an incredibly talented and relatable singer," says LJO Director, Greg Balfany. "We have worked with no one finer!”
Janet started as a folk singer until a recording with jazz legends Nancy Wilson and Cannonball Adderley set her on the jazz pathway. She was hailed by Jazziz magazine as a "voice of the new jazz culture ... amazingly powerful with seemingly limitless expression.” When asked about being a jazz vocalist, she recalls a quote by Della Reese: “I like to be called a working singer.” That sentiment has resonated with her throughout her 25-year career.
“My interpretations are based not only on meaning, but also on the way the words feel as they fall out of my mouth," she says. "I revel in the power of the blues and the eternal pursuit of pocketing a groove.”
Janet will perform selections from her many albums including Just Like A Woman: The Music Of Bob Dylan. Selections will include Dylan's song “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You” and “I Shall Be Released,” her powerhouse version of “Amazing Grace” and two selections from her soon-to-be-released album “Under the Venus Moon.”
The concert will also feature guest pianist Dave Marck on Count Basie’s “Kid from Redbank” and the LJO’s virtual release of “The Night Has A Thousand Eyes.”
The concert is free for all and suitable for the whole family. This is the final concert of the Gertrude Salzer Gordon Jazz in the Park 2021 Concert Series.
The rain site for all LJO concerts is the Cavalier Theater, 118 5th Ave N., in downtown La Crosse.
ABOUT THE BAND
The La Crosse Jazz Orchestra is Western Wisconsin's premier big band. Directed by Greg Balfany, the group is best known through its Jazz in the Park concert series. The LJO mission: to promote, preserve and forward the creation of jazz music through free live performances available to all in our region. LJO operates under fiscal sponsorship from La Crosse Community Foundation.