Make a reservation for this show.Janiva Magness WebsiteJaniva Magness TwitterJaniva Magness FacebookJaniva Magness LIVECindy Alexander WebsiteThe Pacific Jazz Institute at Dimitriou's Jazz Alley presents award winning blues vocalist Janiva Magness touring in support of her newest release Stronger For It special guest, Cindy Alexander. Band members Janiva Magness (vocal, cigar box guitar), Gary Davenport (bass/background vocals), Zach Zunis (guitar, background vocals), Matt Tecu (drums, background vocals), and Jim Alfredson (organ, keyboards, background vocals). Opener: Cindy Alexander (vocals) and Mason Stoops (guitar). Set times on Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:30pm. Doors open at 5:30pm. Janiva Magness (vocal, cigar box guitar), Gary Davenport (bass/background vocals), Zach Zunis (guitar, background vocals), Matt Tecu (drums, background vocals), and Jim Alfredson (organ, keyboards, background vocals).Janiva Magness, 2012's recipient of The Blues Foundation's prestigious awards for B.B. King Entertainer of the Year and Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year, is among the premier blues and R&B singers in the world today. Her voice possesses an earthy, raw honesty and beauty born from her life experience. A charismatic performer known for her electrifying live shows, Magness is a gutsy and dynamic musical powerhouse. Her streak of nominations for Blues Music Awards continues this year in the category of Best Contemporary Female Artist. She received the coveted 2009 Blues Music Awards for B.B. King Entertainer of The Year (she is only the second woman to ever win this award, Koko Taylor being the first) and for Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year, an honor she also received in 2006 and 2007. She has received eleven previous Blues Music Award nominations. USA Today declared, "Magness is a blues star," and The Philadelphia Inquirer said, "Magness sings superb, potent soul-blues with a scorching intensity." Billboard writes, "Magness carves out a niche by singing the blues with maturity and sophistication." Singer Magazine writes, "Her voice is sultry, smoky and strong with jazz, blues, and soul textures enveloping it."In the last few years she seems to have really hit her stride, creating powerful and soulful blues, R&B and soul music. Her newest release, Stronger For It (2012), finds Magness exploring new ground with all the chops and emotional commitment she's brought to the blues world for so long. In addition to covering Hubbard, Magness dips into the songbooks of Tom Waits, Shelby Lynne, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Ike and Tina Turner, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Buddy and Julie Miller and Sweet and Thorn. Alt-country, alt-rock, soul, blues, whatever source you want to name, Magness transforms it into something personal and downright exhilarating. This is not a case of trying out different genre exercises to see if Magness can handle them; it's a case of finding great songs and arranging them into her own original and intoxicating approach. But that's not all. For the first time in her career, Magness co-writes three songs herself, with producer/guitarist Dave Darling. All three are impishly hook-filled, and they stand neatly alongside the songs by the more celebrated writers.Cindy Alexander is an L.A. based Singer/Songwriter, winner of a multitude of awards including David Foster's/NBC Star Tomorrow, L.A. Music Awards Songwriter of the Year/ Independent Pop Album of the Year, All Access Magazine's Best Female Pop Vocalist, and Just Plain Folks Song of the Year and Female Artist of the Year. She has toured and shared the stage with America, Joe Bonamassa, John Hiatt, Suzanne Vega, Joan Osborne, Edwin McCain, Marc Cohn, Dishwalla, Art Alexakis (Everclear), Gin Blossoms, and more. Her music has been featured on compilations with Aimee Mann, Norah Jones and Sarah McLachlan, and in movies (Here on Earth/ Sugar & Spice/ Dorm Daze 2) and television (So You Think You Can Dance/ Party of Five/ various MTV and VH1 reality shows). Known for songs that people sing along with, lyrics they quote to their friends, and a wicked sense of humor in between poignant songwriting, her live performances have charmed audiences and critics alike. $22.50