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Ursula Walker Performs at SEMJA / KCH Club Series

Ursula Walker, on stage for close to sixty years in the Detroit area, will make a rare Ann Arbor appearance at the Kerrytown Concert House on Saturday, October 12, at 8:00 p.m. She is backed by an all-star quintet led by her husband and pianist Buddy Budson: trumpeter Dwight Adams, saxophonist Keith Kaminski, bassist Marion Hayden, and drummer Pete Siers. This group also appears on her recent CD, Today and Yesterday.

Walker was a child prodigy who started out at age eleven on TV and radio in Detroit, but eventually settled into a career as a jazz vocalist. She sang with a number of prominent Detroit bands including the Jimmie Wilkins and Brookside Jazz orchestras; Jack Brokensha and Bess Bonnier quartet; pianists Terry Pollard, Matt Michaels, and Howard Lucas. Since 1971 her major pianist has been Buddy Budson, who she also married in 1974.

Walker is the recipient of many awards, including the SEMJA Award in 2000, the Midwest Arts Legends of Jazz Hall of Fame Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2012 Detroit Black Music Awards.

Buddy Budson is a veteran of the Buddy Rich big band, and has played with Earl Klugh, the Four Tops, Mel Torme, Sammy Davis Jr. and many others. With his sextet he has recorded On With Their Heads, which also showcases his compositions and arrangements.

The SEMJA / KCH Club Series means that SEMJA will be running the cash bar for the concert. Please call 734-769-2999 for reservations or go to the Concert House website. The Concert House is located at 415 North Fourth Avenue in Ann Arbor.