Joe Lewis’s career is still cruising in overdrive, still amazing, and still “nowhere near retiring.” The Museum of Modern Art recently purchased four of his videos for its permanent collection. Joe will also perform with his band, “Three Black Bungalows,” as part of MOMA’s Club 57 exhibition, January 25, 2018.
About the band, Joe says, "The band has a fluid group of participants. The lineup for MOMA is: Marion Cowings - http://marioncowings.com/ and the artist David Wells. There's are great group of collaborators on the recording project:
- "Nichole Mitchell - Down Beat magazine named her the 'Rising Star' for flautists in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009. And in 2010 and 2011 Mitchell won 1st place in both the 'established' Flute and the 'Rising Star' Flute categories in the 'Down Beat International Critics Poll.'
- "John Chiodini - MCA recording entitled 'Weightless' was critically acclaimed. He toured and recorded with Natalie Cole ('Unforgettable' tour). Other artists with whom John has toured and/or recorded include: Buddy DeFranco, Maynard Ferguson, Carl Andersen, Louis Bellson, Tony Bennett, Michael Bolton, Bobby Caldwell, Celine Dion, Dr. John, Arthur Hamilton, Shirley Horn, Lainie Kazan, Hubert Laws, Barry Manilow.
- "Jimmie Wood - actor best known as the front man and harmonica player for his band the Imperial Crowns. ... Has worked as a 'harmonica player with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Megadeth, and Bruce Hornsby.'"
FYI, you can listen to the band on Spotify and other music streaming services, and buy CDs on many platforms. You can also see samples of Joe’s incredibly diverse work on his new website, joelewisartist.com. Click on the photographs below to enlarge them.
Joe also has projects coming up at the Palms Springs Museum of Art in California and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Oaxaca, Mexico. During periods when Joe was not performing, shooting videos or otherwise creating art, he wrote the introductory essay for Jules Allen's latest book of photographs, "Good Looking Out." The new book is scheduled for publication later in the year.
“Have you noticed that time seems to be moving faster than usual?” he asks. “Twenty-four hours isn’t what it used to be.” Well, the Joe Lewis whirlwind continued last July, when he was in Japan for the ParadiseAIR residency program – a project that was preceded by a 2-week adventure in Japan with his 13-year-old, trumpet-playing son, Joe. Meanwhile, his daughter Raven is ABD (all but dissertation) in Public Policy at the New School in New York. She’s an adjunct professor there and at Hunter College, and she also teaches at Baruch and Barnard colleges.