The Queen is Back!
Donna Summer Performs All Her Hits Plus Music
From First New Album in 17 Years
August 17 in Santa Rosa

Barrage of national media coverage builds momentum for Queen of Disco’s cross-country tour in support of new CD Crayons, with new #1 hit single, “I’m A Fire”

Santa Rosa, Ca. (June 13, 2008) – Guest appearances on American Idol, the Today Show, Letterman, and Entertainment Tonight (just to name a few) are building anticipation to a fevered pitch as legendary singer/songwriter/pop culture icon Donna Summer showcases her first new music in 17 years with a cross-country concert tour coming to Santa Rosa August 17 at 8:00 pm..

The arrival of a new Donna Summer album is always a major musical event and her new CD, Crayons is no exception. Released in May, the album debuted at #17 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart and #5 on the R&B chart. It is Summer’s highest debuting album ever and her highest charting album since She Works Hard For The Money in 1983. The album features the new hit singles “Stamp Your Feet” and “I’m A Fire” -  the later of which hit #1 on the Billboard Dance chart, making Summer the first-ever artist to top the chart in every decade since the '70s.

Containing a potent mix of tunes and ballads, Crayons showcases incredible new material, all co-written by Summer (who wrote or co-wrote the majority of her hits of the '70s and '80s). “This surprisingly lively set finds the former disco diva teaming with a crew of young collaborators—including Greg Kurstin, Danielle Brisebois, Ziggy Marley, J.R. Rotem, and Lester Mendez—for a series of up-tempo forays into stomping dance-pop, juke-joint blues-rock, breezy Latin jazz and African-accented soul,” wrote Michael Wood of Billboard Magazine. 

In a recent interview with CNN, Summer described the background of the CD’s title and the aesthetic of the album as a menagerie of colors and styles. “…when you were a little kid and you got your first box of crayons ... you open them up and there you go, you start scribbling on everything in sight. ... So the concept is, we're free when were little kids, were out of the box, we don't have any restrictions. And this album for me, is an out of the box album, I set no restrictions, except that no two songs could be the same. ...”

A five-time Grammy winner, Donna Summer maintained an unbroken string of hits throughout the '70s and '80s. She has had 19 #1 Billboard singles, 12 Gold and Platinum singles, six American Music Awards, two Double Platinum albums, one Platinum album, and eight Gold albums. Her song “Last Dance” won both Oscar and Golden Globe awards.

Along with new music and hits from her four decade-career, Summer’s upcoming Santa Rosa performance promises all the glitz and showmanship one would expect from the Queen of Disco. In 2006 at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, Summer opened her sold-out show by rising out of a piano onto the stage (via hydraulic lift), and the performance featured no less than three stunning costume changes. 

Tickets ($15, $65, $85, $95) for Donna Summer’s “Stamp Your Feet Tour” August 17 at 8:00 pm are available at the Box Office located at 50 Mark West Springs Road in Santa Rosa, by phone at 707-546-3600, and online at wellsfargocenterarts.org.

 

Print quality artist images available at:

http://www.wellsfargocenterarts.org/docs/contact/media.html

 

The non-profit Wells Fargo Center for the Arts is the North Bay's premier arts organization presenting world-class performances, contemporary sculpture, festivals, and events to 500,000 residents and visitors each year. Together with its resident companies, Wells Fargo Center for the Arts provides more than 100 annual performances, serves to present intriguing contemporary art, and is one of California's largest providers of arts education programs for children. Located in the heart of the Wine Country, Wells Fargo Center for the Arts campus features spacious auditoriums, an intimate cabaret, and outdoor festival grounds with a big-top tent. Unlike many similar organizations, Wells Fargo Center for the Arts is not aligned with any federal, state, or municipal entity-such as a city or university. The Center was created by and is supported by the community it serves, making it uniquely positioned as an independent, entrepreneurial-focused, non-profit arts organization. We serve to Enrich, Educate and Entertain - Connecting Our Community through the Arts.