by Lola Rossi-Meza
Composer and recording artist Derek Bordeaux is the featured vocalist appearing with smooth jazz guitarist, composer and producer Blake Aaron, to kick-off the new music concert series JAZZ TASTINGS™ produced by Patte Purcell of Muze Music this Saturday, January 12, from 6 until 9 p.m. at the Emerald Desert RV Resort Ballroom, 76-000 Frank Sinatra Drive in Palm Desert. Bordeaux’s soulful vocals give an added dimension to the Blake Aaron Show and will have the crowd up and dancing. Band members include Larry Kester on keyboard, David Levray on bass and Winston Butts on drums.
Born in Topeka, Kansas, with two brothers and two sisters, Derek Bordeaux lived in a home where music was always playing.“My Mom, Anna Jo, loved country music, especially Hank Williams, Sr.,” said Bordeaux. “Her Aunt Annie was a music teacher and because of that, we were exposed to all genres of music.” He started singing at the age of nine in the youth choir at Mt. Carmel Baptist Church.
After a devastating tornado hit Topeka, his Mother and her sister June, both nurses, packed up their thirteen children and took a train to Santa Ana in Orange County. Now ten years old, Bordeaux attended Monte Vista Elementary School, where music continued to be of interest and later sang in the jazz band at Valley High School. After graduating, he attended Santa Ana College and earned a BA in Music. “My first paying gig was when I was still in high school for the Veterans Administration of Orange County. I played with my brother Byron, who is still a great guitarist and studio musician and my cousin Vensen Quarles on drums, along with several other kids from school. We have all gone our separate ways musically, however, we do occasionally perform together at special events.”
He married a California girl in 1980 and has three children and five grand-children. All of his children and grand-children have grown up with music and although they have not pursued careers, Bordeaux feels music has been a positive influence in their lives. To support his family, he worked various jobs and still continued singing in bands. In 1985, while working for the Post Office, “a friend of mine called and told me that Luther Vandross was looking for back-up singers and they were holding auditions in New York. I really wanted to audition, but I wasn’t able to get time off from work, so I quit,” Bordeaux said with a jolly laugh, continuing, “It gave me the confidence I needed to seriously pursue my career. When I got home to California, I put my own band together and started singing in restaurants and nightclubs seven nights a week.”
The Bordeaux Brothers, together and individually, have been performing for years and have opened shows for and performed with such noted artists as Michael McDonald, The Funk Brothers, The Righteous Brothers, Buddy Miles, Kenny Loggins, The Beach Boys, The Coasters, K.C. & The Sunshine Band, Poncho Sanchez, The Drifters, The Shirelles and Bill Medley.
Currently working on his next CD project set for release this summer, you can hear him sing Blake Aaron’s arrangement of “Sara Smile” released as a single in 2011. You can hear it on YouTube. This song, along with several other cover and original songs, will be included on the up-coming CD. As a matter of fact, his original composition, “Never Knew Love” co-written with John Paul, was a 1990 hit for recording artist Rich Ashley, “the white guy with the black sound.” Bordeaux’s discography includes: “Derek Bordeaux Live In Long Beach” released in 1999; Derek Bordeaux Sings Standards” released in 2000; “Faith and Compassion” released in 2001; “Bordeaux Brothers Blues” released in 2002, and “Everything Must Change” released in 2010 as a single.
He performs with Aaron, Kester, Levray, Butts and saxophonist Jimmy Roberts every Wednesday from 8 until 11 p.m. at Original Mike’s, 100 South Main Street in Santa Ana, (714) 550-7764; every Thursday from 7:30 until 10:30 p.m. at Kobe Steakhouse and Lounge, 3001 Old Ranch Parkway in Seal Beach, (562) 596-9969; every Friday from 7:30 until 10:30 p.m. at Salt Creek Grille, 32-802 Pacific Coast Highway in Dana Point, (949) 661-7799, and Sunday Brunch from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Spaghettini Grill and Jazz Club, 3005 Old Ranch Parkway in Seal Beach, (562) 596-2199.
This dynamite group of musicians will be in town, this week, so plan to attend. I know I’ll be there. For tickets call Patte Purcell at (702) 219-6777. General admission is $20. VIP Reserved Seats are $25 or $250 for a table of 10. Tickets can also be purchased online at Brown Paper Tickets under “JAZZ-TASTINGS”.
