Grammy Winner Aaron Neville Named Baldwin Piano Endorsee and Performer

Press release
Source: Rogers & Cowan

Baldwin Piano announced today that GRAMMY® winner Aaron Neville has been named an official Baldwin Piano endorsee and artist. The New Orleans native, whose career was launched with the #1 hit “Tell it Like it Is” and again when Linda Ronstadt and George Massenberg produced his "Warm My Heart" hit, will continue to heat up the charts while performing on America's favorite piano, Baldwin Piano.

The third youngest of the famous four Neville brothers (Art, Charles, Cyril, Aaron) was born into one of New Orleans’ most celebrated families.  Aaron was the first Neville to hit the national charts. In 1996 his "Tell It Like It Is" hit #1 on the charts. Claiming that his first musical influence was his brother Art, Aaron has been nominated for 16 GRAMMYS in categories as diverse as Country Western, Pop, Rhythm & Blues and Gospel. In 1994 he and Trisha Yearwood won Best Country & Western vocal collaboration for "I Fall to Pieces" and, in the same period, he won Best Male Singer two years running in the Rolling Stone magazine critics poll.  Aaron won two GRAMMY Awards in duets with Linda Ronstadt which were "Don't Know Much" and "All My Life." Both hit the top 10 on the charts.

He founded the charitable foundation along with Allen Toussaint and Dr. John called New Orleans Artists Against Hunger and Homelessness (NOAAHH).  The organization has developed into a successful non-profit organization that annually presents concerts and gala celebrity mixers to raise funds to help alleviate hunger and homelessness in metro New Orleans.  By joining the Baldwin Piano family, Neville will also draw support from Music Rising, an organization dedicated to putting instruments back in the hands of musicians in New Orleans who lost everything during the hurricanes of 2005 and was co-founded by Gibson Guitar, Baldwin's parent company. In the aftermath of Katrina, Neville along with some members of his family lost their homes and were forced to relocate from the city which they deeply loved.

"This is a strange moment in my career," muses Aaron. "Since Katrina I have devoted months and months to benefit concerts and it has been a real blessing. My profile and the profiles of my brothers have been raised by the storm. People all over see us as the face of New Orleans and they want to hear us play. They want to know that we survived the storm. It is nice to know that Baldwin Piano is not only willing to help me continue to make great music but through its parent company, Gibson Guitar, offer assistance through Music Rising which they helped co-found and is dedicated to bringing the music back to New Orleans."
 
Neville's latest album, "Bring It Home - The Soul Classics" was released in September 2006, has won critical acclaim and is his highest charting debut of his career. The album is one of Neville's most remarkable works to date full of personal testimonies and deepening interpretations of legendary tunes.  "These classic songs," says Aaron, "have been pumping blood to my heart from the first second I heard them.  They've been a part of my life. Singing them, especially in the aftermath of Katrina, was a deeply spiritual experience.  They helped me get through.  They gave me hope. And, for me, music has always been about hope. In the years to come I can count on the sweet sound of Baldwin Piano to help me make music to sooth the soul of all who listen."

Neville will perform at this year's NAMM show in January 2007 as a special guest of Baldwin Piano and will take part in publicity related events for the company as part of the overall partnership. A customized Baldwin Piano built to the artist's specifications is also scheduled for production.

Baldwin has been "America's Favorite Piano" since 1862, when former music teacher D.H. Baldwin opened his music store in Cincinnati, Ohio. At the turn of the twentieth century, Baldwin pianos won international awards, and by the end of the century Baldwin was the largest American piano maker. Baldwin joined Gibson Guitar Corp. in 2001, and is now headquartered in Nashville. The Baldwin family of brands includes Wurlitzer, Chickering, Ellington, Hamilton and D.H. Baldwin.

For more information on Baldwin Piano go to www.baldwinpiano.com.

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