Album Notes

I love all music--the kind that makes you dance, the kind that makes you think, the kind that makes you dream. I wrote my first songs during a few gypsy months in 1990, and one of them, "Down in the Everglades," appears on this album. At the beginning of Miles Davis's "All Blues," we offer up a canto to Yemayá, the Afro-Cuban orisha of the sea, and we end the album with a song fed by images from my travels across North and South America as well as my journey as an artist. I'm fascinated by how the African diaspora colored each European culture it was brutally blended with--the Anglo in America, the Spanish in Mexico and Cuba, and the Portuguese in Brazil. And so, among other things, we've got jazz, salsa (a version of Stevie Wonder's "Smile Please"), bolero (Caetano Veloso's ode to the circle of life and how man destroys it with his fist), reggae (a lilting look at the apathy and greed driving us into environmental destruction), samba (a futile effort to flee the vortex of passion), and something Wayne Wallace and I wrote together: "I Did It, I Live It." We think we'll call it samba caribe: a gumbo with reggae, samba and Trinidadian flavors. Enjoy! --Alexandra L. Weber Morales Praise for "Jazzmérica" "What a joy to hear Alexa sing these songs. Such soul, passion and beauty mixed with Wayne's exquisitely creative arranging and production touch is an inspiring combination." -Mike Marshall Mandolinist, composer Partner, Adventure Music "Alexa's considerable versatility, flexibility and talent, combined with Wayne Wallace's vision, make her debut recording a wonderful success. Her future is bright." -John Santos Percussionist, composer, educator Machete Ensemble "You go girl! You swing! I'm glad you're willing to put your talent toward a good cause! You obviously learned from many wonderful musicians and I hope now will be a time when this can mix into the vibe of a beautiful and much needed social movement. I hope to see you perform at some great festive event!" -David Kromm Music promoter and activist Music for America.org More About Alexa Alexa Weber Morales combines clarion vocals, high-voltage rhythm and emotive power in one compact package. Fluent in four languages, she fearlessly crosses borders with lush, acoustic jazz, boleros, salsa and samba. A percussionist, dancer, pianist and tree-climber, Alexa writes songs about smoldering obsessions, resourceful outcasts, captured sinners and freed spirits. Her new CD, "Jazzmérica," is produced by three-time Grammy nominee Wayne Wallace and boasts an all-star band including Frank Martin, John Santos, Ricardo Peixoto, Michael Spiro, Paul Van Wageningen, David Belove, Edgardo Cambón, Melecio Magdaluyo and many others. Alexa has performed with such artists as the late Carlos Federico, Dave Mathews, Carlos Oliveira, Edgardo Cambon, Phil Thompson, Stephanie Ozer, Vince Mansel and--as a child at Malcolm X Elementary School in Berkeley, California--Bobby McFerrin. At the Escuela Nacional de Arte in Havana, Cuba, she studied with Adrian McPherson, Andrés Olén and Cesar "Pupy" Pedrosa, culminating her stay in a performance for the national conservatory. While there, she also wrote and performed her first salsa tune, inspired by the pure and pulsing polyrhythms of the island. Her first full-length CD, released in September 2004, was the result of a magical collaboration with producer Wayne Wallace. Wayne Wallace is a trombonist, producer and arranger whose credits are a testament to his artistic drive, insatiable curiosity and pedagogical talent. He has produced and arranged for Pete Escovedo, John Lee Hooker, Phyllis Hyman, Chris Isaak, Dr. Loco's Rockin Jalapeño Band, Machete, Jesús Díaz and QBA, and Santana. Performances read like a who's-who of American all-stars, including Pearl Bailey, the Count Basie Orchestra, Diane Carroll, Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Sammy Davis Jr., Earl "Fatha" Hines, Lena Horne, Bobby Hutcherson (with whom he also studied), Irakere, Eartha Kitt, Gladys Knight, Patti Labelle, Manny Oquendo and Libre, Tito Puente, The Temptations, Los Van Van, Stevie Winwood and Stevie Wonder. But beyond the stellar credentials, musicians around the world know this San Francisco native as a generous and winsome mentor who never fails to inspire.