Fingerprints

For more than 15 years now, standing room-only crowds have been lining up to hear FINGERPRINTS at clubs and music festivals throughout the southwest. Fingerprints 1991 self-titled CD sold over 10,000 copies. The Dallas based sextet has expanded its range, garnering regular airplay on jazz and NAC radio stations from Dallas to San Francisco to New York City. This increased exposure has earned FINGERPRINTS critical raves and many thousands of loyal fans across the country. JazzUSA.com writes, ...Fingerprints is one of the best kept secrets of the south...the Smooth Jazz Mafia better watch out!FINGERPRINTS second release, Summertime Music , surpassed that number and reached top twenty status in both Radio and Records and the Gavin Report. The opening track, Whisper, on this 1994 disc continues to be a favorite of many programmers across the country and abroad. It features long time friend and saxophonist Marion Meadows. The bands third release Reunion Live was a definitive statement in the evolution of their musical growth and popularity. It was recorded at the world famous Caravan of Dreams club in Fort Worth, Texas. They can also be heard on This is Texas Smooth Jazz CD sampler, released in fall 1996. Fingerprints 2001 "DNA" CD is a real gem and is enjoyed by listeners everywhere. The single So In Love from DNA is also on an international compilation called Cafe de Soul- Chapter 3. DNA is distributed by The Orchard Distribution in NYC. Bret Michael, music director at 107.5 FM The Oasis in Dallas says ...it's great, a wonderful feel in such a fantastic collection of Smooth Jazz! The band's latest release is entitled Dream Life and was released Aug 4, 2009 on the newly formed South Memphis Music label. Critics are already hailing this as the band's best effort to date. FINGERPRINTS has performed at festivals and venues in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Washington, D.C. Band members have also recorded and toured with artists such as Marion Meadows, Ronnie Laws, Tom Browne, Harry Connick, Jr., Miles Jaye and Wayman Tisdale. Notable appearances: Taste of New Orleans Euless Arbor Daze Ft Worth Main Street Festival Denton Jazzfest Beale Street Music Festival Balcones Heights Jazz Festival Mansfield Wine and Music Festival MAAH- Detroit Tyler Jazz Festival Bishop College Alumni Reunion Taste of Dallas South by Southwest Jazz in June (Norman, OK) Bradley Fair Jazz series (Wichita, KS) Spirit of Jazz festival- OKC State Fair of Texas Houston International Festival Little Rock Riverfest Soulfest in Austin, TX FINGERPRINTS was founded in 1986 by guitarist Roy Machado and bassist Frederick Nichelson. At the time both men were students at the prestigious University of North Texas. Nichelson is originally from Memphis, where he grew up in the shadow of many STAX Records legends and their contemporaries such as The Memphis Horns, Kirk Whalum and the Bar-Kays. Drummer Kennan Wylie, from Austin, Texas, earned a Master's degree in Music from UNT. When not on stage he serves as an educator where he and his groups have won various awards at the Percussive Arts Society International Conferences (P.A.S.I.C.). Saxophonist Claud Hardrick hails from Wichita, Kansas. His sultry, intelligent play epitomizes Fingerprints' musical philosophy: striving for the cutting edge, while retaining respect for tradition. The live band also features veteran guitarist, Robert Lacroix and keyboard player Jordache Grant. In addition to the core group, FINGERPRINTS frequently features vocalists Tim Jones (who is featured on all the band's releases) and Ardina Lockhart, a versatile stylist and dynamic live performer. Finally, the rest of the world is discovering what the south has secretly enjoyed for years! It's no wonder that FINGERPRINTS is grabbing the attention of listeners craving more than formulaic commercial jazz.