Felix Cavaliere - Then and Now (2023)

My Manager Obi Steinman suggested recording some songs that thrilled my soul when I first heard them. The Idea for “Then And Now” was born – great old songs that made me want to sing and play. Then, write new ones that reflect the past influences.

Growing up with AM radio, at the beginning of rock’ n’ roll, afforded me a huge collection of recordings that I used to sing to the radio and in my first groups. Saddled indelibly besides rock ‘n’ roll were tunes laced with soul and backed by rhythm and blues. These songs included voices emblazoned with passion that inspired me to reach deep inside when I’d sing. To this day, hearing the soulful spirits like Ben E King, Jackie Wilson, and The Great Ray Charles, I am consumed and inspired by their brilliance. I didn’t know then that the sound I heard as joy came from a recipe mixed with so much more. This wasn’t the Beethoven, Mozart, or Chopin my piano teacher taught me to play with precision; it was loose, soulful, and it spoke to me in a language beyond words. Their sound—Boogie Woogie—was alien, and I’ve felt at home on that planet everyday ever since. Their raucous rhythms took hold of me and have never let go.