Who Are Kath And The Tom Kats?

2008 brought a lot of change with the music she has created with her band and this year she ‘will’ record some tunes and get serious about what she was born to do and that was to sing jazz and blues … besides the few other things that keep her busy. The year proved to take her beyond even her own expectations where she orchestrated and delivered the first Rarearth Jazz and Blues Fest. Along with her friend Charles Lamarr, (agent for the Chambers Brothers), they were able to bring Vernon’s first jazz and blues festival to fruition with over 20 acts from budding stars like Sistas Blue to Juno Award Winners like Rita Chiarelli. 2009 has Kath even more focused by doing everything she can to make the festival a ‘non-plastic’ using site, but also she has vowed to do her part in educating our youth to not only honour our ‘rare piece of earth but also to find that certain young musician that just needs a chance to shine. With that said, she, along with 107.5 Kiss FM, and the Music Shoppe (Vernon) sponsored a HUGE competition called, ‘Our Kids Have Talent’. Every single possible future star aged 8-18 will be welcome to submit their musical talent …Check out the website www.rarearthjazzandbluesfest.com

Lead singer for both Kath and the Tomkats - local dance band and Kath ‘in blue’’ - old jazz and blues, Kath Raeber decided to amalgamate the two bands to be able to offer it "all". Kath has brought her interpretation of these tunes to various nightclubs, private garden parties, weddings, fundraisers, bistros and resorts across British Columbia. From a sultry, smoky piano bar ambiance, to an up-beat, uptown swing, she reproduces a great ‘big band’ feel to those brilliant old classics creating a marriage with Kath’s bluesy voice together with Walt Musekamp on guitar – an amazing musician who masters every song from jazz to rock, taught music for many years and toured with his own band in the 70s; Craig Carmody – "Dr. Sax", a 30 year vet who recorded an album under the Yorkville label where one of the three singles were in the top ten, his ¾ ‘tet’ jazz ensemble plays all over the Okanagan - Craig also is one of the main players in the horn section with the well known and respected Mark Rose Swing Band; the amazing Roy Kowano on bass who brings his great percussive bass style to the band. Roy is another 30 year veteran who started in the 70s with jazz, moved into rock, country and even Latin; his love for jazz and blues is evident with his great musical history in providing the rhythm section for the band, and finally John Keith who doubles as Kath’s drummer and Sound Engineer. John has played, recorded and toured with many freelance artists across Canada and the US where he was privileged to play with the likes of Mojo Williams. His sound tech background has seen him with such names as Big Sugar, Nickelback, and Long John Baldrey to name a few. Kath affectionately refers to him as her ‘little drummer boy’.

Kath lives to promote other entertainers and works hard to keep live entertainment ‘alive’ throughout the Okanagan Valley. She is a freelance writer for the ‘Blues Underground Network’ and has been a guest writer for Off-Centre Magazine as well as the Vernon Courier. Her mandate is to bring the reader into the world of the interesting and captivating lives of the artists she admires by promoting and marketing their stories; this was evident in the twice running musical, ‘adult’ play that she co-wrote and acted in. Kath was selected as one of 12 artists in Vernon to be in ‘Reciprocation’ the Calendar – the ‘Female Artists’ Edition 2007- December, and Kath ‘in blue was also nominated by the Scorpion Entertainment Awards for Best Blues Group and or Artist / and Best Jazz Group and or Artist for 2007.