3:00 that morning, Bobbie Parker comes
knocking on my door and tells me Quincy
Jones wanted us to come downstairs and
sing for his birthday. And I said, ‘Wow,
Quincy Jones! I gotta get up for this.’”
Joining the other three singers, the
group sang “Old Man River” a cappella
for Jones, with the members of Take 6 and
Patti Austin also listening. “He loved it
and we had a nice conversation with him,”
Barnes continued. It was a great opportunity
to be in his presence and with Take
6. We had a great time with those guys.”
“It’s been extremely exciting and
rewarding to be able to do what we do in
different countries and see all the people
who appreciate what we do and what we
bring to them,” Johnson said. “And to be
able to do an a cappella song for Quincy
Jones with Take Six present, that was such
a great experience.”
To date the New Orleans Mystics have
recorded a self-titled CD with 12 songs,
all of which are covers of R&B and Soul
classics. They are currently working on a
second CD with all original compositions
and it is being recorded in Memphis, Baton
Rouge, New Orleans and Slidell. “We’ve
got all the songs and all the arrangements,
so we’re in the stage of laying down the
tracks right now,” Baptiste said.
As the group grows in stature and
popularity, they are optimistic for what
the future holds, especially with Miller
managing and promoting them. Over
his 50-plus years in the music business,
Miller has managed or promoted such
icons as Bread (and its lead singer
David Gates), Little Anthony
and the Imperials,
Brian McKnight
and others
of that
stature.
����������������������
“We feel very fortunate to be able to get
together with him and give our career a
fresh look. Selwyn is a real professional
manager who knows how to put talent
where it needs to be,” Baptiste said.
Summing up the camaraderie shared
by the four members of the New Orleans
Mystics and all the factors that have
contributed to their longevity and popularity,
Mims said, “If we never do anything
else, I thank God for the guys and for the
honor of having sung with them; to have
traveled with them and shared the talent
that God gave us. It wasn’t me or any one
of us individually who got us where we
are. It was all of us, as a unit, and that’s
enough to keep us together and humble.”
You can follow the New Orleans
Mystics on Facebook, You Tube or on
their website, www.theneworleansmystics.
com. For booking information call Selwyn
Miller at (310) 430-0333, Mike Baptiste
at (504) 442-7600 or Lee Barnes at (832)
349-8555.
ates),e McKnight
hers
at
18 | BREAKTHRU MEDIA | breakthrumediamagazine.com MAY / J U N E 2 0 1 9
/www.theneworleansmystics.com
/breakthrumediamagazine.com
