Kathryn Keats w/special guest Ben Babylon July 8, 2010

FEATURING MICHAEL MANRING, JOE VENEGONI, KELLY PARK, CELSO ALBERTI, TOM LATTANAND and JEFF OSTER w/ special guest BEN BABYLON

Kathryn Keats is a soulful singer and prolific songwriter who is re-emerging in the entertainment world after spending two decades hiding from an abusive partner. And she is doing so with help from some of the Bay Area’s leading jazz artists.
Working under her original name, Ellen Munger, Keats gave up a promising career in music, when the man she loved threatened to commit murder-suicide. After being held captive and tortured for 54 days in an Oakland apartment, she escaped with help from her sister, and went into hiding with the help of the Victim Witness Assistance Program. She changed her name and severed all ties with her family and friends. Keats finally reemerged into the public eye in 2005, after learning that her abuser had died of natural causes. Her harrowing story has since been told in national and local media, including Reader's Digest, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Gil Gross Show, The Montel Williams Show, and The Mancow Muller Show.
Keats has been involved with music since the age of five, working as a teenager with such legends as Tennessee Ernie Ford, Loretta Lynn and Word Baker. She initially studied at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). Her studio work has included soundtracks and recordings for various media producers.
In 2007, Keats recorded her first CD, After the Silence. She is currently working on a live concert album with producer Joe Venegoni, and is writing and recording an inspirational CD with Grammy-winning producer Narada Michael Walden, at Walden's Tarpan Studios in Marin County.

The Kathryn Keats Show includes some of the Bay Area’s most renowned musicians: master percussionist Joe Venegoni, Grammy-nominated bassist Michael Manring, guitar virtuoso Tom Lattanand, pianist Kelly Park, award-winning trumpeter Jeff Oster, and Brazilian-born drummer Celso Alberti.

Joining The Kathryn Keats Show as a special guest will be keyboardist, songwriter and singer Ben Babylon, the 12-year-old son of the late Guy Babylon, Elton John’s long-time keyboardist and arranger. The young musician has been working under the tutelage of Elton John, who remains a close family friend. It will be the Los Angeles native’s first appearance in the Bay Area.
More information about Kathryn Keats is available at www.sonicbids.com/kathrynkeats

Official Website: http://www.yoshis.com/oakland/jazzclub/artist/show/1345