Recording features 11 Latin Jazz and Salsa Dura compositions by Berkeley songwriters/producers Molly Skuse and Dana Hinchliffe.
Crafted in the vibrant, cross-cultural setting of the San Francisco Bay Area, Everybody is a celebration of community and human connection. Longtime friends and collaborators Molly Skuse and Dana Hinchliffe wrote and produced this buoyant blend of jazz and salsa to express their inclusive musical vision and share complex musical ideas that simply swing.
Bringing together a powerfully talented cohort of regional musicians, the Sixth Street All Stars pay homage to Fania All Stars, the seminal musical collective that pioneered a modern Afro- Caribbean / Jazz hybrid for the
mainstream. The group's name also marks the corner of Sixth and Allston in Berkeley, California, where the album took shape.
From this little corner, a world of influences inspire 11 original compositions that command strong melodic lines, a rich palette of harmonic hues, and deeply textured rhythms. With Everybody, the Sixth Street All Stars create a sonic street mural; a new landmark in the musical landscape.
Everybody goes live on September 16th. It will be widely available on streaming services and for digital download on Bandcamp, and Apple Music.
Contact Molly Skuse for features, interviews or more information: [email protected]
While living in New York City, in the ‘90s, Molly paid her dues gigging three to five nights a week in downtown clubs including the Village Gate, The Knitting Factory, Small's, and Nuyorican Poets Café. Molly has given concerts throughout the Northeast and Mid-:Atlantic regions with grant support from Meet the Composer and Brooklyn Arts council.
A former faculty member at Church Street School for Music and Art Molly also worked as an artist-in-residence in elementary schools throughout NYC. It was this work in arts education that Molly expanded upon once she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2003.
For the past 20 years Molly has been dedicated to building community by facilitating shared arts experiences, integrating the arts as a mode for learning within curriculums, and providing direct instruction in music, creative writing, theater, and studio arts. (An artist in many mediums, It’s Molly’s collage that serves as the album art for Everybody.)
“At its best, art expresses a scope of feeling that is fundamental to the human experience. After coming through the Covid 19 pandemic, and with the ways our use of techknowledge keeps us socially distant, we hope that Everybody can help people feel more human and be more connected—in real life.”
While her work as educator and facilitator has occupied most of Molly’s efforts of the past two decades, She has continued to develop her musical skills through years of private lessons, studying composition, and orchestration, with Bay Area Composers Clark Suprynowicz and Ian Carey. Her voice is featured on Everybody. However, Molly’s primary roles with the Sixth Street All Stars are; Composer, Arranger, Musical Director and Producer.
Retired from her drumming days, Dana Serves as songwriter, producer and executive producer of the Sixth Street All Stars’ recording Everybody.
Says Dana, “Music is a direct link to the nervous system. To be a part of a writing team that creates frequencies that allow people to feel is an amazing life dream. I funded this project so that our music can live and breathe as a piece of art in the world.”
Skuse and Hinchliffe called on the hardest working heroes of the bay area music scene to create the Sixth Street All Stars. These consummate musicians render their music with vivid clarity and a strong sense of shared intention. Everybody, as the album title implies, captures a spirit of collaboration that begins with Skuse and Hinchliffe, encompasses the talented group of Bay Area musicians, and extends to include listeners as well. Reminding us that, while we each have our own little place in the world, we are all inevitably a part of the beautiful, variegated human community. This record creates a shared musical experience where “Everybody” is the ultimate collective, made up of individuals just like us.
Bringing together a powerfully talented cohort of regional musicians, the Sixth Street All Stars pay homage to Fania All Stars, the seminal musical collective that pioneered a modern Afro- Caribbean / Jazz hybrid for the
mainstream. The group's name also marks the corner of Sixth and Allston in Berkeley, California, where the album took shape.
From this little corner, a world of influences inspire 11 original compositions that command strong melodic lines, a rich palette of harmonic hues, and deeply textured rhythms. With Everybody, the Sixth Street All Stars create a sonic street mural; a new landmark in the musical landscape.
Everybody goes live on September 16th. It will be widely available on streaming services and for digital download on Bandcamp, and Apple Music.
Contact Molly Skuse for features, interviews or more information: [email protected]
About Molly Skuse
Molly Skuse graduated from The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music where she studied Jazz Performance and was recognized for her vocal prowess by DownBeat magazine's student music awards. At the New School, Molly drew inspiration from many Jazz luminaries; She has studied with Sheila Jordan, Reggie Workman, Kenny Werner, Cecil Bridgewater and the late Junior Mance, Chico Hamilton, and Jon Hendricks, to name a few.While living in New York City, in the ‘90s, Molly paid her dues gigging three to five nights a week in downtown clubs including the Village Gate, The Knitting Factory, Small's, and Nuyorican Poets Café. Molly has given concerts throughout the Northeast and Mid-:Atlantic regions with grant support from Meet the Composer and Brooklyn Arts council.
A former faculty member at Church Street School for Music and Art Molly also worked as an artist-in-residence in elementary schools throughout NYC. It was this work in arts education that Molly expanded upon once she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2003.
For the past 20 years Molly has been dedicated to building community by facilitating shared arts experiences, integrating the arts as a mode for learning within curriculums, and providing direct instruction in music, creative writing, theater, and studio arts. (An artist in many mediums, It’s Molly’s collage that serves as the album art for Everybody.)
“At its best, art expresses a scope of feeling that is fundamental to the human experience. After coming through the Covid 19 pandemic, and with the ways our use of techknowledge keeps us socially distant, we hope that Everybody can help people feel more human and be more connected—in real life.”
While her work as educator and facilitator has occupied most of Molly’s efforts of the past two decades, She has continued to develop her musical skills through years of private lessons, studying composition, and orchestration, with Bay Area Composers Clark Suprynowicz and Ian Carey. Her voice is featured on Everybody. However, Molly’s primary roles with the Sixth Street All Stars are; Composer, Arranger, Musical Director and Producer.
About Dana Hinchliffe
A Los Angeles native, Dana Hinchliffe grew up listening to Led Zepplin and Jimmy Hendrix. She also sites Eric Dolphi and Charles Mingus as major influences. However, It was first hearing Eddie Palmieri’s “Adoracion” that let loose the salsera within. Dana took to the music from both sides of the bandstand; dancing to her teacher’s tumbao and sitting in with their bands. After 3 years of private lessons with Edgardo Cambon and Carlos Caro, Dana filled the conga chair with the Franco Brothers Orquesta, where she burnished her Salsa credentials. Dana next joined Dulce Mambo, and when they disbanded Dana took up the mantle of raising the profile of female salseras when she created Cha Cha Boom. It was Dana’s desire that Cha Cha Boom feature original music that prompted the collaboration with Molly Skuse that culminates in this record.Retired from her drumming days, Dana Serves as songwriter, producer and executive producer of the Sixth Street All Stars’ recording Everybody.
Says Dana, “Music is a direct link to the nervous system. To be a part of a writing team that creates frequencies that allow people to feel is an amazing life dream. I funded this project so that our music can live and breathe as a piece of art in the world.”
Skuse and Hinchliffe called on the hardest working heroes of the bay area music scene to create the Sixth Street All Stars. These consummate musicians render their music with vivid clarity and a strong sense of shared intention. Everybody, as the album title implies, captures a spirit of collaboration that begins with Skuse and Hinchliffe, encompasses the talented group of Bay Area musicians, and extends to include listeners as well. Reminding us that, while we each have our own little place in the world, we are all inevitably a part of the beautiful, variegated human community. This record creates a shared musical experience where “Everybody” is the ultimate collective, made up of individuals just like us.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
