Earth, Wind & Fire, Michael McDonald, Tower of Power to headline Jazz Aspen Snowmass June Experience

Jazz Aspen Snowmass released its lineups for both the June Experience and the summer-long JAS Cafe on Friday.

Singer Michael McDonald, funk legends Earth, Wind & Fire and R&B greats Tower of Power will headline the June festival in the Benedict Music Tent on June 23 to 25.

The bill also will include New Orleans pianist and “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” house band Jon Batiste and Stay Human on June 23, with McDonald and former Rolling Stones backup singer Lisa Fischer on June 25 with Tower of Power.

The June Experience weekend will kick off June 22 with acclaimed Japanese piano sensation Hiromi with Colombian harpist Edmar Castenada performing at the JAS Cafe Aspen Art Museum.

Along with the ticketed concerts inside the tent, Jazz Aspen will host its free Lawn Party on the grounds outside during the June Experience.

“The free Lawn Party has become a staple for the community,” Jazz Aspen President Jim Horowitz said in the announcement, “with free, vibrant music and a colorful array of booths, the scene has become an integral part of the JAS June Experience.”

The June festival will conclude July 1 with “Ella at 100: Direct from the Apollo,” a celebration of the centennial anniversary of the birth of Ella Fitzgerald. Presented in collaboration with the Aspen Music Festival and School, it will feature the Count Basie Orchestra alongside three generations of vocalists including Patti Austin, Lizz Wright and Andra Day. Comedian David Alan Grier will host the evening-long journey through Fitzgerald’s life in song.

Tickets for the June Experience go on sale at 9 a.m. Tuesday. Tickets will be available at jazzaspensnowmass.org, 866-527-8499 and at the Belly Up box office in Aspen. Tickets for “Ella at 100” will be sold through the Aspen Music Festival box office and http://www.aspenmusicfestival.com.

JAS CAFe

The summer JAS Cafe lineup includes 12 artists over a two-month span, opening with Hiromi and spread between venues at the Aspen Art Museum, The Little Nell and the Cooking School of Aspen.

Drummer, composer and bandleader Jamison Ross will play June 29 and 30 at the Little Nell.

Hammond B-3 organ master Dr. Lonnie Smith brings his new band, Evolution, to the Cooking School July 7 and 8.

New Orleans pianist/vocalist Henry Butler and retro trumpeter Steve Bernstein will play with Butler Bernstein & the Hot 9 at the museum July 14 followed by Clint Holmes & the H2 Big Band playing classics from Frank Sinatra to Ray Charles on July 15.

Buron Stripling and Carmen Bradford recreate the music of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong at the Cooking School on July 29.

French jazz vocalist Cyrille Aimee returns Aug. 10 for a performance at the Aspen Art Museum followed by the 11-piece Cubanismo on Aug. 11 and the 10-time Grammy winners Take 6 on Aug. 12.

Eliane Elias performs “100 Years of Sinatra” on Aug. 18, followed by singer Nnenna Freelon on Aug. 19 — both at the Aspen Art Museum.

The JAS Cafe series will close Aug. 10 with 19-year-old British pianist and vocalist Jacob Collier at the Aspen Art Museum.

“From multiple Grammy winners to legendary icons, across genres from traditional jazz vocals to sizzling rhythms from across the globe, from barrelhouse New Orleans sounds to eye and ear opening collaborations, this may be the strongest and most diverse line-up of world class artists in a single JAS Café season to date,” said Horowitz.

JAS Cafe tickets will go on-sale at 9 a.m. Feb. 24 at jazzaspen snowmass.org and 970-920-4996.

The music nonprofit also announced its summer benefit, taking place July 21 featuring The Family Stone playing 50 years of music by Sly and the Family Stone.