His last performance in the Coachella Valley was in October of 2012. Now, National Recording Artist, vocalist, composer, TV personality and columnist, Slim Man returns as part of the concert series presented by promoter Patte Purcell, MUZIC TASTINGS TM. This performance will be on Sunday, March 24, from 6 until 9 p.m. in the Ballroom at Outdoor Resort Indio, 80-394 Avenue 48 in Indio. For tickets call (800 892-2992. Advance tickets are $12 and available at the door for $15. No Host Bar. Crater Lake Vodka and Gin is one of the sponsors with martinis and specialty drinks.
At 6 p.m., vocalist Lola Rossi will open the pre-show along with performances by keyboardist Joey Navarro and saxophonist Rodney Taylor with drummer and percussionist Patrick Ready. Slim Man will take the stage at 7 p.m. performing a high-energy 90-minute concert.
Born and raised with the name Timoteo Camponeschi in Baltimore, Maryland along with two siblings, the nickname Slim Man came later in his career. With no musical background to speak of, Slim remembers the first time he was exposed to music. “My father took me to see a movie when I was five years old. I heard Louis Armstrong perform in this movie and I was hooked on jazz. I started playing the trumpet soon after that.” His mother was very supportive of his musical interest, however, he feels, “If my Dad knew I was going to make music my lifetime career, I don’t think he would have taken me to see the movie,” Slim says while laughing.
He attended the local public elementary schools and at ten years old, they asked him to be part of the Junior High School Band, however, being a big jazz fan, he declined so he could play the music he enjoyed. “When Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass came out, I just loved them. I made my trumpet teacher help me play all of his songs.” He and his trumpet teacher played the different parts together. “I was so crazy about the Whipped Cream and Other Delights album, I took a magnifying glass to figure out how they did the cover. It is a white blanket with some whipped cream on it.” He was a straight A student, president of his Junior High School Class, studied six years of French and was in an excellerated academic program. He attended Northern High School.
He sang and performed in bands during his high school days and discovered the music of Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix. “I remember going to see Jimi Hendrix in concert and I went back stage and stood right next to him while the opening act was performing. He was talking to me and I just stood there frozen. After hearing him perform, I decided to take up the bass, it only has four strings.” After high school, he attended the Peabody Institute of the John Hopkins University in Baltimore. At this conservatory he studied music theory, classical piano, composition and harmony. Slim would constantly study and write songs and have them critiqued by his teachers.
His first real paying job was for Motown Records, who then had an office across from Carnegie Hall. Stevie Wonder, Tina Marie and Rick James were some of the musicians who were being released during that time. “One of the first songs I wrote was for jazz vocalist Angela Bofill called ‘Summer Days’ and was one of the first jazz CDs on GRP.” Motown offered him a recording contract and his musical career exploded from there.
He started a rock band called “Bootcamp” that had two of the first one hundred videos ever aired on MTV. The songs were “Hold Onto The Night” and “I’m A Victim” that are still on occasion used in special MTV programs. This band opened for many of the famous acts of the day.
The first Slim Man CD was released in 1995 that featured one of his top ten hits, “Faith In Us” which is also featured on his Slim Man Live CD. He was nominated for International Vocalist of the Year at the Canadian Jazz Festival. His CDs include guest performances by Marc Antoine, Peter White, Rick Braun, Randy Brecker, and others. J.D. Considine of Rolling Stone Magazine describes Slim Man as “a near perfect example of how jazz and soul can be combined as pop”. Gavin Magazine dubbed him “The Male Sade”. Slim Man’s music exudes romanticism.
Slim Man’s talents don’t stop in the music arena. He is also a consummate cook and writer. He is a regular contributor to Entree Nashville, a food magazine. Slim Man is also in negotiations with several networks to do a half-hour TV show. He would love to have a smash hit television show, that is a combination of cooking and music, start his own restaurant, write a cookbook and then have a line of Slim Man Sauces for everyone to enjoy. “The most rewarding thing to me is bringing joy to people through my music.”
For more information on Slim Man visit www.slimman.com, his CDs are also available on I-Tunes.
