Jazz comes back to the Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus on Saturday when Pauline Wilson joins Junior Choy and the Volcano Art Center Jazz ensemble for an evening of “hot sultry jazz.” The performance will feature Wilson on vocals, Choy on keyboard and trumpet, Brian McCree on acoustic bass and Bruce David on drums. There will be two performances, at 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets for the matinee concert will be $15 for VAC members and $18 for nonmembers. The 7:30 performance will be $18 for VAC members and $20 for nonmembers.
Wilson is an American jazz/pop singer best known as lead vocalist with the jazz/fusion group Seawind in the 1970s and early ’80s. Born and raised in Hilo, she won a Grammy Award in 1979 for her duet “Friends” with George Benson, part of the album “In Harmony/A Sesame Street Record” and voiced The Fairy on the track “My Fairy In The Crystal Reeds (And Other Frogs)” from Michel Colombier’s album “Old Fool Back On Earth.” During most of Seawind’s main period of activity, Wilson was married to Bob Wilson, the drummer/main songwriter of the group. As a duo, they released a contemporary Christian album, “Somebody Loves You” in 1981. She has also released several solo albums.
Wilson’s professional debut was with Larry Williams, Kim Hutchcroft, Bud Nuanez, Ken Wild, Jerry Hey and Bob Wilson as the popular Hawaii group called Ox. In 1976, they moved to Los Angeles to advance their career and changed the group’s name to Seawind. They performed throughout the world and she recorded four albums with them. The next 19 years were spent performing, doing commercials, touring and recording soundtracks and back-ground vocals as a session artist for the likes of Bruce Hornsby, Bill Medley, Brenda Russell, Michael Colombier, Celine Dion, the Crusaders and more. Wilson also has toured with Seawind, Boz Scaggs, George Benson, Michael Paulo and the Pauline Wilson Band through the U.S., the Philippines and Asia.
For tickets to Wilson’s performances and any VAC Spring Series concerts, call 967-8222 or visit Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus, VAC Art Gallery in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park or volcanoartcenter.org.