As Is | “Crazy World” Album Release Concert

Described as “nothing short of enchanting” (All About Jazz), the musical union of jazz guitarist, Al Schulman and jazz vocal stylist Stacey Schulman is the heart of As Is. The couple — both on and offstage — have made a name for themselves for their imaginative re-expressions of 20th century song classics. As Jazz Mostly wrote, “They find new ways to approach the songs, ways that preserve the origins yet make out of them very personal statements.

This concert performance will feature the debut of their new release, “Crazy World” — an expansive mix of jazz repertoire combined with samba, soul, and original material. “Crazy World” is the follow-up to their Billboard Top 10 charting album “Here’s to Life”.

As Is takes audiences on an intimate journey through the world and words of songs long-forgotten — but newly created — with both the soulfulness and swing that’s accessible, memorable and highly musical.

The duo has toured extensively in the US, Europe and Asia performing live and in the studio with contemporary jazz talents including Marcus Baylor, David Binney, Christie Dashiell, Corcoran Holt, Kokayi, and Gregoire Maret.

The duo’s musical paths extend well beyond any single scene. Stacey Schulman grew up recording in studios and working across country, rock, and metal before moving more fully into jazz and the American Songbook, drawing from the lineage of classic singers such as Nancy Wilson and Dinah Washington. Possessed with an enchanting and singular voice, with bell-like clarity of tone, wide stylistic range, and emotional directness, Schulman has forged an expansive career grounded in adaptability, musicianship, and a passion for performing live and connecting with audiences. Scott Yanow, in Jazz Artistry Now, notes that “Stacey’s calling cards are ballads where both the strength and expressiveness of her art shine,” while All About Jazz describes her agile voice as “delicate lace on one song and bouncy jam on another.”

Al, originally from Cincinnati, studied early with Benny Goodman’s guitarist Cal Collins, and refined his bebop language in Chicago at the Bloom School of Jazz, where he performed as both a leader and sideman with artists such as Charles Earland, Brad Goode, Chris Forman and others. He went on to immerse himself in arranging and composition at Howard University in Washington, D.C. studying with such jazz greats as Grady Tate, Geri Allen, Keter Betts and James Williams.

While his sound draws deeply from the jazz-blues guitar lineage of Kenny Burrell, Grant Green, and George Benson, his sound is equally shaped by the soul and R&B traditions of Ernie Isley and Wilbert Longmire, giving his sound both harmonic weight and forward motion.