Michael Lington

MICHAEL LINGTON
Heat



With his debonair looks, charm, and charisma to burn, MICHAEL LINGTON defines the contemporary jazz experience. Since the late 90s, he has scored hit after Top Ten hit while seducing fans with passionate performances that turn sax into a celebration of love and life. Fresh off the success of A Song for You, the prolific sax-man's dynamic, critically acclaimed collection of 70s pop covers featuring lush arrangements and a full orchestra, Lington -- who became a US citizen in March 2008, 18 years after emigrating from Denmark -- gets back to his sensual funk roots, turning up the Heat big time on this highly anticipated release from Nu Groove.
Beyond his trademark mix of cool and explosive instrumentals, Lington crosses over into the mainstream pop/adult contemporary realm with two key vocal collaborations: That's When You Save Me, an original track penned by hot young songwriter Claude Kelly (Leona Lewis) performed with soul legend Aaron Neville, and a rock-edged twist on Gerry Rafferty's classic Baker Street, with former American Idol finalist (and Grammy nominated songwriter) Ace Young. Sure fire AC hits in the making, these instantly infectious sax/vocal tracks will remind longtime Lington fans of his early multi-format success with Bobby Caldwell on Tell It Like It Is which is, ironically, a song that Aaron Neville made famous.
Lington co-produced seven of the tracks on Heat with legendary session keyboardist Greg Phillinganes, whose credits range from Quincy Jones' The Dude and Michael Jackson's Thriller, to Herbie Hancock's Possibilities and Chris Botti's To Love Again. Three other cuts are helmed by Keith Olsen, who has produced with everyone from Pat Benatar and Whitesnake to Fleetwood Mac.
Lington wrote the high energy Shout About Ya with Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe nominated team Allan Rich and Jud Friedman, and penned three songs with hitmakers Michael and Danny Sembello: the up-tempo and summery Ocean Drive (think: South Beach fun in the sun), hauntingly beautiful ballad Nostalgia; and breezy, Brazilian flavored Chuva, meaning ‘rain' in Portuguese. Lington's good friend Michael Sembello travels to Brazil frequently and is a longtime buddy of Daniel Jobim, the grandson of legendary composer Antonio Carlos Jobim. Chuva's composition began on the vintage piano where the elder Jobim composed his classic The Girl from Ipanema, and features an authentic Rio touch by celebrated guitarist Torcuato Mariano who was born in Buenos Aires and lives in Brazil.
Other veteran musicians populating the sensual Heatare keyboardist Randy Waldman (who produced A Song For You), guitarists Michael Thompson and Kim Pierce, bassists Neil Stubenhaus and Nathan East and drummers Teddy Campbell and Vinnie Colaiuta. Lington also gives exposure to two up and coming female vocalists, U.K. born Keely Pressly (whose voice graces Shout About Ya) and Nashville based Janie Clewer (Angelina).
The upper reaches of the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart and Radio & Records' Jazz Chart are familiar territory for Lington, whose 2000 breakthrough disc Vivid featured the 2 hit Twice In A Lifetime, and Sunset (Por Do Sol) which reached 4. Lington's third release Everything Must Change was chosen as one of 2002's top contemporary jazz recordings by Jazziz Magazine and spawned the Top 5 radio single Still Thinking Of You and Top 30 hit Off The Hook. 2004's Stay With Me, his first release on fellow sax superstar Dave Koz's Rendezvous Music, remained on Billboards Contemporary Jazz Chart for 24 weeks and yielded three major radio hits with Show Me (2), Two Of A Kind (2) and Pacifica (6). A Song For You included two popular singles, It's Too Late and Tell Me All About It, a duet with Koz.
If fans around the world sense something regal about Lington, it's no doubt due to the upscale company he keeps. Lington -- whose stepfather was a drum major for the Queen's guard and recently knighted -- performed at the Queen of Denmark's 50th Birthday celebration in Copenhagen. He was later invited to perform at the wedding of Crown Prince Frederick, the country's future king, at Fredensborg Castle.
Lington keeps similarly royal company on the musical front, doing arena dates in 2008 opening for AC royalty Barry Manilow with contemporary jazz keyboardist Brian Culbertson, and collaborating on Heat with powerhouse writers, musicians and producers from both the pop and contemporary jazz worlds.
Lington began playing clarinet at age seven and remembers spending time as a young boy learning about the music industry from his grandfather Otto Lington, a Danish jazz pioneer and bandleader for Shirley Bassey, Josephine Baker and Fats Waller among many others. His grandfather's rich jazz legacy, classical training and a stint touring Europe inspired the young musician to move to the U.S. at age 21. Not long after, Lington began performing with esteemed vocalists such as Little Richard, Gary "U.S." Bonds and Randy Crawford. His major breakthrough came with singer Bobby Caldwell, whom he played with from 1994 to 1998, and their collaboration on the AC hitTell It Like It Is.
In between his busy slate of touring and recording dates, Lington lends his artistry to the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation which raises funds for children's music programs and provides instruments to public schools throughout the U.S. The Copenhagen native also participates in Create Now mentoring troubled teens in Los Angeles, and Acres of Love which provides for abandoned and AIDS-infected children in South Africa. In addition, Michael launched his own cigar company in 2006, MICHAEL LINGTON CIGARS