Take 6 and Manhattan Transfer Team Up for "The Summit" Tour

By Timothy Yap Jun 23, 2016 12:47 AM EDT

Between them, Take 6 and The Manhattan Transfer boast a remarkable 20 Grammys, and a range of styles that cover nearly every genre of popular music; from jazz to swing, from gospel to R&B. Now, two of the most acclaimed, award-winning vocal groups in music are combining forces for an unforgettable concert event. "The Summit: The Manhattan Transfer Meets Take 6" kicks off on Oct. 1 in Bangor, Maine, and continues into 2017 (full list of tour dates below).

"It's basically putting together these two groups that have listened to and been fans of each other for many years," says Claude V. McKnight III, first tenor and founder of Take 6. "We'll be doing some songs together, stripping some songs down, and doing different kinds of pairings, and just having a really good time onstage. This is something you can only do live."

This past March, Take 6 released the critically-acclaimed albumBelieve via SonoRecordingGroup/ILS/Caroline/Universal, which simultaneously landed across six Billboard charts in its opening week. Believe debuted at #2 on the Contemporary Jazz Chart, #5 Current Jazz, #9 Current Gospel, #25 Current R&B Albums, #41 Christian/Gospel Albums and #58 Current R&B/Hip Hop. Produced by recording legend Ross Vannelli (Celine Dion, Richard Marx, Jeffrey Osborne) and featuring Stevie Wonder, along with a song penned by the multiple Grammy-winning and Oscar-nominated writer Diane Warren, Believe is a contemporary record filled with exciting collaborations and new material. It is a true return to form for the Gospel and R&B sextet with every hallmark of the classic Take 6 sound.

iTunes smarturl.it/Take6Believe
Amazon MP3 smarturl.it/Take6Believe_Amz
Amazon CD smarturl.it/Take6Believe_AmzCD
Google smarturl.it/Take6Believe_GPlay
Spotify smarturl.it/Take6Believe_Stream
SRG Store bitly.com/Take6Believe

The Summit Tour Dates
Oct 1 Bangor, ME Gracie Theatre
Oct 6 Lexington, MA Cary Hall
Oct 7 Salisbury, MA Blue Ocean
Oct 8 Cranston, RI Rhode Island Center for the Perf. Arts
Oct 9 Plymouth, MA Plymouth Music Hall
Oct 11 York, PA Pullo Performing Arts Center
Oct 12 Ridgefield, CT Ridgefield Playhouse
Oct 13 Bergen, CT Bergen Performing Arts Center
Oct 14 Bethesda, MD Music Center at the Strathmore
Oct 15 Annapolis, MD Maryland Hall
Oct 16 Collingswood, NJ Scottish Rite Auditorium
Oct 19 Nashville, TN City Winery
Oct 20 Bowling Green, KY Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center
Oct 21 Danville, KY Norton Centre for the Arts
Oct 22 Pittsburgh, PA Craftsmen's Guild
Oct 23 Cleveland, OH State Theater
Oct 26 Milwaukee, WI Wilson Theater at Marcus Center
Oct 27 Green Bay, WI Weidner Center for the Performing Arts
Oct 28 St. Louis, MO The Touhill Performing Arts Center
Oct 29 Skokie, IL South Shore Center for the Performing Arts
Nov 2 Sheboygan, WI Weil Center for the Performing Arts
Nov 3 Champaign, IL Virginia Theater of Champaign
Nov 4 Naperville, IL North Central College
Nov 5 Des Moines, IA Hoyt Sherman Place
Nov 6 Wichita, KS Orpheum Theatre
Nov 10 Fort Collins, CO Lincoln Center
Nov 11 Boulder, CO Mackey Auditorium at UC Boulder
Nov 12Parker, CO Parker Arts Center
Nov 14 Ogden, UT Val A Browning Center For the Arts
Nov 15 Logan, UT Cache Valley Center For the Arts
Nov 16 St. George, UT Cox Performing Arts Center
Dec 1- Dec 9 Europe Christmas
Jan 21 Charleston, SC Gaillard Center
Feb 7 Modesto, CA Gallo Center For The Arts
Feb 8 Carmel, CA (Private)
Feb 9 Northridge, CA Valley Performing Arts Center
Feb 10 Palm Desert, CA McCallum Theater
Feb 11 Cerritos, CA Cerritos Center
Feb 14 Tucson, AZ Centennial Hall - Univ. of Arizona
Feb 19 Sarasota, FL Van Wezel PAC
Feb 21 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Broward Center
Feb 22 W. Palm Beach, FL Kravis Center
Feb 23 Jacksonville, FL Florida Theatre
Feb 24 Newbury, GA Newbury Opera House
Feb 25 High Point, NC High Point Theatre
March 4 Newport News, VA Ferguson Center
March 10 Tacoma, WA Broadway Center for the Perf. Arts

About Take 6
Take 6 is the most awarded acapella group in history, with 10 Grammys, 10 Dove Awards, Best Jazz Vocal Group honors for seven consecutive years in Downbeat's prestigious "Reader's and Critic's Poll," a Soul Train Music Award, BRE (Black Radio Exclusive) Vocal Group of the Year, two NAACP Image Award nominations, induction into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame and countless other musical and humanitarian citations. Known for working with some of the biggest and most iconic names in music, including Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Celine Dion, Lionel Richie, Justin Timberlake, Al Jarreau, Don Henley and James Taylor, to name a few, Take 6's uniquely cutting-edge style is comprised of six virtuosic voices united in crystal clear harmony, against a backdrop of syncopated rhythms, innovative arrangements, and funky grooves. All of this bubbles into an intoxicating brew of gospel, jazz, R&B and pop. Take 6 are quintessential a cappella. They have performed on Saturday Night Live, the Oscars, the Grammys, had the honor of performing for four sitting U.S. Presidents, and appeared at the Democratic National Convention. They've also appeared on film soundtracks, including Spike Lee's Do The Right Thing, John Singleton's Boyz In The Hood, Warren Beatty's Dick Tracy, David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross and the theme song to the TV series Martin.

take6.com
facebook.com/Take6Official
sonorecordinggroup.com

About The Manhattan Transfer
The Manhattan Transfer has become a legendary vocal group and remained an important part of musical history for over forty years. The legendary quartet has won 10 Grammy Awards of 20 nominations, has been inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, and continues to wow audiences with live performances throughout the world. The Manhattan Transfer is comprised of Cheryl Bentyne, Alan Paul, Janis Siegel and Trist Curless, who recently stepped into the shows of the group's founder, Tim Hauser, after his passing. With worldwide record sales in the millions, the extraordinary group topped the charts consistently for decades with their melodic and jazz infused vocals that bring audiences back year after year and that span generations. The group was founded by Tim Hauser when he was paying his bills by driving a New York City cab and aspiring to form a harmony vocal quartet that could authentically embrace varied musical styles, and still create something wholly unique in the field of American popular song. While driving, he met the first members of the legendary group -- Laurel Massé and Janis Siegel. Alan Paul, who was appearing in the Broadway cast of "Grease" at the time, was recommended as the additional male voice and the four became The Manhattan Transfer on October 1, 1972. Cheryl Bentyne joined The Manhattan Transfer in 1979, replacing Laurel. In 1974 the group began performing regularly throughout New York City at Trude Heller's, Mercer Arts Center, Max's Kansas City, Club 82, and other hip, underground venues. By the end of the year they were the number one live attraction in New York City. They were signed to Atlantic Records and released their self- titled debut album in 1975. The second single, a remake of the gospel classic "Operator," gave the group their first national hit. The band was soon tapped to helm a weekly hour-long summer replacement comedy- variety show, which premiered on CBS on August 10, 1975. Their next two albums, Coming Out and Pastiche, brought them a string of Top 10 hits in Europe and produced a #1 smash in Britain and France with "Chanson d'Amour". The group's 1979, Extensions, earned them another smash with "Twilight Zone/Twilight Tone." The vocal remake of the classic "Birdland" became recognized as the group's anthem, and earned them their first two Grammy Awards, for Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental and Best Arrangement for Voices. In 1981, they became the first group ever to win Grammy Awards in both Pop and Jazz categories in the same year - Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "Boy From New York City," and Best Jazz Performance, Duo or Group for "Until I Met You (Corner Pocket)". That was followed by "Route 66." The next two years, the group won consecutive Grammy Awards in the Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group. The 12 Grammy nominations they received for Vocalese in 1985 made it the single greatest Grammy nominated album in one year to date, and cemented the group's status as one of the most important and innovative vocal groups in the history of popular music. The band's next studio album, the ground breaking "Brasil", won the Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. Their Grammy wins continued into the '90s. In 2008, An Acapella Christmas became a top selling record and they expanded their catalog to include recorded children's music and different genres of swing music. The phenomenal, creative quartet looks to the coming year with new plans to record and add another exciting chapter to the legacy of the famed music by The Manhattan Transfer.