Fat Mama, the seminal jazz collective who received the New Groove award at the inaugural Jammys, will reunite at the Green Apple Music and Arts Festival this spring. The septet will perform at New Yorks Knitting Factory on April 22 as part of the festivals closing celebration. Since disbanding at the tail end of 2000 the members of Fat Mama have performed in a number of different settings: drummer Joe Russo co-founded the Duo with childhood friend Marco Benevento, keyboardist Erik Deutsch gigs with the Charlie Hunter Trio, vibraphonist Kevin Kendrick fronts A BIG YESand a small no, and guitarist Jonathan Goldberger scores film. The septet performed together for the first time in over six years on February 24 at New Yorks Lakeside Lounge (though the collective only performed material by the evenings birthday boy, Kendrick).
In preparation for their return, the group has launched a MySpace page posted some songs online. The entire lineup for the Green Apple Music and Arts Festival will be announced early this week.