   "I
had the honor of knowing Warren for nearly 10 years before his death. I met him in 1988 or
1989 when he performed with David Foster
at a seminar David gave at the old At My Place club in Santa Monica. My
songwriting partner, Scott Fuller, and I both lived in the San Francisco
Bay Area at the time, and we came down for David's seminar.
David had Warren sing a few tunes, and then began to talk about the song that he had
written that was recorded by Chaka Khan, "Through the Fire".
He said at one point "I'd love to have Warren sing this song, but I can't remember
how to play it!" I leaned over from my seat near the stage and told him that Scott
could play it, as we used to perform the song at nearly every gig we did together. David
invited Scott Fuller up to the stage, and together they performed an amazing rendition of
"Through the Fire", even more amazing because Warren sang it in Chaka's key!
Soon after that wonderful night, we invited Warren up to the Bay Area to sing on several
demos of our songs. That weekend he spent with us cemented our relationship and endeared
Warren to us forever.
Not long after this, I moved down to Los Angeles to pursue my songwriting career. In 1992
I was selected to participate in the prestigious ASCAP West Coast Songwriting
Workshop with Brendan Okrent based partly on the demo I
submitted which included Warren's vocals. Not long after that, I won the Lionel
Richie Songwriting Scholarship at UCLA Extension, again based on a demo I
submitted that included Warren's angelic rendition of several of the songs I and Scott had
written. I continued to keep in touch with Warren, and saw him as often as I could. We
talked on the phone at least once a week, and I always tried to find projects that I could
include him on.
Another project soon developed that I knew Warren would be perfect for, and one that I
believed would be of particular interest to him. I was participating in a songwriting
project called "In Harmony With the Homeless", and was
co-writing songs with formerly homeless men and women who were now enrolled in a
rehabilitation project at the Los Angeles Mission. The song I had co-written with another
Los Angeles songwriter, Denise Osso, along with a lovely young man at the
Mission (J.R. Bencomo) was entitled "This Blue Tattoo".
It related the story of a boy who had been chased by fears and troubles throughout his
young life, but was beginning to make strides toward recovery. I immediately thought of
Warren, and believed that he could bring a more poignant personal perspective to this song
than any other singer I knew. I called him and he agreed to record it for us.
The session was, as always, amazing. Warren had heard our rough demo a few times, and when
he stepped behind the mic and began to sing, the first take brought tears to everyone's
eyes. The final result was incredible, and we were all so proud of the song, even Warren.
I invited Warren to perform the song at the concert "In Harmony With the
Homeless" put on at the legendary Troubador, and that was another
amazing experience. He was to sing to the tracks we had recorded in the studio, and as he
stepped onstage, looking rather shy and a bit rumpled that night, I could hear a ripple go
through the audience: "Who is this guy? What is THIS going to be like?" I knew
these were the whispers of the uninitiated! Warren pulled a folded up lyric sheet out of
his shirt pocket and stood very still behind the mic, head bowed, waiting for the tracks
to begin. As the song began, he raised his head and closed his eyes, and then began to
sing. The audience was absolutely spellbound for the first verse, and by the end of the
first chorus, they had all risen to their feet: he was getting a standing ovation before
the song was even over! He looked surprised, but very pleased, and when he finished the
song, the entire room was in an uproar! Who was this man, indeed, who could step modes tly
onto a stage and transform the entire audience into true believers in a matter of 3
minutes or less!
We were approached immediately after the show, and invited to perform the song on a local
television show for a Thanksgiving special they were planning to do that included a
segment on "In Harmony With the Homeless". Warren again agreed, and we did the
special. It was another flawless and moving performance by a most generous and loving
person.
Warren was gifted with the most gorgeous voice imaginable, and enjoyed many successes in
his life, but never, ever lost sight of the most important elements of heart and soul. He
was a haunted angel, and I will love him and treasure his memory forever. I hope you have
found the peace that seemed to forever elude you here on earth, Warren." Cecily
Gardner
About
Cecily Gardner...
Cecily Gardner is a singer and songwriter with a B.A. in music from the University of
California at Santa Cruz. Shortly after relocating to Los Angeles to pursue her writing
career, Cecily was one of 14 songwriters selected to participate in the yearly ASCAP West
Coast Pop Workshop conducted in L.A. She was also awarded the 1993 Lionel Richie
Songwriting Scholarship at UCLA Extension.
Cecily has recorded and appeared with many artists including Bobby McFerrin, Linda Tillery
(now with McFerrin’s Voicestra), Patti Cathcart (of Tuck and Patti, Windham Hill
recording artists), Ray Obiedo (also on Windham Hill), Dianne Reeves, and William Kennedy
(of The Yellowjackets).
Cecily has taken her own group out on several overseas tours, including a number of
engagements in Paris, France, and several at The International Babylon Festival of Music
in the Middle East. These concerts were taped for television and radio and continue to air
on European stations.
Cecily’s forté is performing and writing music in a style that fuses these three
elements: Jazz, Pop, and R & B; Adult Contemporary or “Quiet Storm”
material. Her songwriting style has been compared to that of Bobby Caldwell and Brenda
Russell, and her sound has been described as being somewhere between Sade, Anita Baker,
and Tracy Thorn of “Everything But The Girl”. She also has a solid background in
jazz as well as contemporary pop and R & B, singing with such veterans as Jaki Byard,
Walter Davis, Jr., and the Harper Brothers.
Cecily has spent a lot of time in the studio writing and recording her own material;
co-writers and producers include Will Kennedy (formerly with The Yellowjackets) and
Russell Ferrante (one of the founding members of The Yellowjackets), Clair Marlo, Doug
Lenier, and Scott Fuller. One of her songs, “This Blue Tattoo” (co-written by
Denise Osso & J. R. Bencomo), was recently covered by great jazz-pop vocalist Carl
Anderson on a 1996 album release entitled “In Harmony With the Homeless”.
Cecily continues to perform locally at such venues as The Jazz Baker in Culver City as
well as many private and corporate functions. She also sings regularly on recording
sessions for both commercial and private clients. |
