Ziggy Marley

Ziggy Marley -Fly Rasta Horns arranged/recorded by Todd M. Simon
horns arranged/recorded by Todd M. Simon

2014 continues to be magical with the upcoming release of Ziggy Marley’s new album Fly Rasta. I was enlisted to assemble a horn section featuring Geoff Gallegos, Tracy Wannomae and Fabio Santana de Souza and bring Ziggy Marley’s brilliant horn lines to life. You can check out the first single, featuring the one and only U-Roy, here:

 

We tracked the horns at the legendary Village Studios in West Los Angeles.

It was a true honor to work on this project. I cannot wait to share more of the music from these sessions.

 

~ Todd

The Angel City All Star Brass Band – Sidama De Cali

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I’m ecstatic to announce the debut single under my own name featuring The Angel City All Star Brass Band. Sidama De Cali is a 50/50 blend of Ethiopian and Colombian music inspired by custom coffee blends that I brew. The mixtures of music from various cultures are just as delicious and unifying as the subtle tones and hints that I sip on at home. The lovely Jazz & Milk label has decided to feature my track on a new compilation titled Footprints. Sidama… is the inspiration for my Ethiopian-Jazz ensemble Ethio Cali and is interpreted by my 21-piece horn and percussion Banda.Continue reading “The Angel City All Star Brass Band – Sidama De Cali”

New Quadron Video

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Long-time collaborators Quadron just released a new video for the track “Favorite Star” off of their recent album Avalanche featuring my Brassive Attack horn section: Tracy Wannomae (winds), Elizabeth Lea (trombone) and Pablo Calogeo (winds). Avalanche is a special album with lush vocals, grooves, and textures. Coco O and Robin Hannibal are musical geniuses. Peep this sexy clip courtesy of  OkayPlayer.com:

 

Kelis!

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I’m proud to announce that I am the music director for Kelis. I worked extensively on her new album, FOOD, along with producer extraordinaire Dave Sitek providing horn and string arrangements in addition to recording brass. This record has been so much fun to work on. It features some of the finest musicians in LA.

The horns are such a big part of the sound, Kelis has asked me to direct both UK and US bands. I am excited and eager to be a part of this experience. Kelis has always been one of my favorite contemporary vocalists with her brilliant tastes and always impressive voice. It’s a treat working with her. We see eye-to-eye and share the same musical sensibilities.

You can hear Jerk Ribs and Rumble here.

Upcoming performances:

Feb. 28th – BBC 6 Music Festival, Manchester, UK; March 3rd – Metropolis Studios, London, UK

March 12-14 – SXSW (various venues to TBA)

April 21 – Late Night w/ David Letterman