Interview With Nancy Wilson, Ramsey Lewis
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: More than 500 jazz musicians have gathered in Monterey, California, for the 45th edition of what organizers there are calling the world's best jazz festival. Our Daryn Kagan joins us live from Monterey with two special guests, two Grammy winners, who, Daryn, they might say it was meant to be that they are together, right?</s>DARYN KAGAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You could say that. I am living -- I continue to live the jazz lovers' dream this weekend, Renay, here at the 45th annual Monterey jazz festival. And I am joined by two legends, Nancy Wilson and Ramsey Lewis. Greetings to you.</s>NANCY WILSON, JAZZ MUSICIAN: Well, it's good to be here for the first time, I might say.</s>RAMSEY LEWIS, JAZZ MUSICIAN: Wonderful to see you. How are you?</s>KAGAN: I'm doing great. I feel like I'm visiting with two old friends and I'm just getting to know just how long you guys have been together and collaborated over the years?</s>WILSON: We started together around the same time.</s>LEWIS: Early '60s.</s>WILSON: Early '60s. 1960, actually.</s>LEWIS: Yeah, indeed.</s>WILSON: And my first album came out, and we were in New York at the same time with the same management company, and consequently, we did a lot of work together earlier.</s>LEWIS: We always promised each other that somewhere down the line we're going to do some stuff together. So we did one album together in the '80s, but we didn't tour behind it. So this one, the album is out now, "Meant to Be," we're out doing the tour thing.</s>KAGAN: You're doing the thing. And of all the places that each of you have played separately and together over the years, as you were mentioning, you never played the Monterey jazz festival.</s>WILSON: The first time for me, first time for Ramsey. I found out today it was Ramsey's first time to Monterey. I'm interested in seeing how it goes. I mean, this is just exciting seeing all these people and all the venders and all the -- people are wonderful. I haven't had so many people yelling at me. And so, I love it. It's great. It's really nice.</s>KAGAN: You guys have groupies. Who knew, Ramsey.</s>LEWIS: I don't know. I think the Monterey people, I'm 67 years old, you want to make sure that I was mature enough to play the festival. Finally got it right.</s>KAGAN: Like the fine wine, they're ready to open up the Ramsey Lewis and Nancy Wilson bottle.</s>LEWIS: Maybe it's the combination.</s>WILSON: It's very nice the way you put that. In fact, I will definitely do "An Older Man is Like an Elegant Wine," that's the song off the...</s>KAGAN: Anything you care to share with us right now?</s>WILSON: We're going back in the studio.</s>KAGAN: You are?</s>WILSON: Yes, we are. We haven't decided the final -- I've pared down songs and we kind of have a general idea. But we'll be in the studio in October for an early spring release. Strings and things.</s>LEWIS: Which means there will be more dates together.</s>WILSON: Yes.</s>LEWIS: ... next year.</s>KAGAN: So if folks aren't lucky enough to be with you right here at the Monterey jazz festival you're performing tomorrow, to look for other dates?</s>LEWIS: Right.</s>KAGAN: But for the folks who will be here, give us an idea of what you'll be performing tomorrow.</s>WILSON: We open together, which is unusual. The very fact that we go out, we greet people and we do a couple of songs upfront. Ramsey then does what Ramsey does.</s>KAGAN: So well.</s>WILSON: Oh. We'll probably hear the in-crowd. I mean, it's just a great package. And then I come back out and I do my part, where you will always hear "Guess Who I Saw Today" and some of the classic songs, and then we close out together with the rest of the songs on the album.</s>KAGAN: Well, we look so forward to it. They are performing tomorrow afternoon, just about almost 24 hours from right now. We look forward to that. Right now on the stage where you'll be playing, Marsha Ball (ph), a little taste of Texas and Louisiana. We're going to give a little taste to the folks at home. Let's listen in.</s>KAGAN: They are feeling the music here, whether it's on the stage, on the live stage as you just saw there, Marsha Ball (ph) and her band, or whether it's Nancy Wilson and Ramsey Lewis, who the folks here will be able to enjoy tomorrow. Renay, this is, as I said, a jazz lovers' dream. People come from all over the world just to enjoy really, really good music all weekend long. And I get to be part of it. So there.</s>SAN MIGUEL: And you are very, very lucky to take part in that. And listening to Marsha Ball (ph), I felt like I was at the old Antone's (ph) in Bladaluque (ph) Street in Austin, Texas back in the '80 and '90s listening to her.</s>KAGAN: A lot of Texas things happening around here, Renay, a lot of Texas.</s>SAN MIGUEL: Exactly. Thank you very much, Daryn. We appreciate your report.</s>KAGAN: Sure. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com