Turn Up That Jazz, Captain
05-23-2013, 06:12 PM
#72
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Miles Davis was of course one of the greatest jazz players of our time, far better than the current icon of trumpet Wynton Marsalis. The latter is a locust-plague on jazz lasting even longer than the plague of smooth jazz, almost unbearable. Media hype is the only explanation. The well known story is that Marsalis tried to obtain Davis' approval by showing up unannounced one day, and was summarily kicked off the stage by the latter and issued harsh insults. He later also received additional negative comments in Davis' autobiography. I have been involved in jazz since 1978 and have heard not a single recording by Marsalis that I thought had any real soul. Huge technician, that's about it. I also played with some of his contemporaries, Bob Hurst and Marcus Roberts by name. Gifted with smarts, heart and rather boundless musical talent, Davis was a great fellow of the jazz idiom then and now. But he lost on one important count- vanity. Through time it seemed to really occupy his mind. His vanity seemed to know no bounds, and fed an isolation that was probably painful. Whacky costumes, snarky behavior, lavish lifestyle and real estate, Miles really lost his center over time. But there was never any doubt Davis was the artist of artists.
Last edited by Cubdriver; 08-24-2013 at 06:10 PM. Reason: fix link
06-05-2013, 08:03 PM
#73
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Here's the late Mike Brecker doing a sax and drums duet on a Charlie Parker tune, Confirmation. I always loved the blinding speed of Brecker on saxophone, even when I was a sax player myself. It was scary how fast he was, and he scared me as a young buck to the point of giving up ego-based fears just to share and enjoy his wonderful gift. Speed is not art, but I am not sure anyone on the planet could match his speed then or now, event greats of the times. He simply had the gift for speed. As for artistry, well, he had some depth too, but his main thing was speed. I bet if you did a scientific test of Michael Brecker's speed as a notes per microsecond technical study, he would match about anything ever done by any musician at any time. Too bad he died young. Nobody is as fast any more.
08-24-2013, 05:39 PM
#74
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The ever-talented Gillian Welch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
No-Harm Poem
Get pumped up on Jack, stroll slowly through the Goodwill making an insult or two.
There's no harm.
Hide a fresh fish deep into the canned goods section at the store.
There's no harm.
Spend your life savings on dope and cheetos if it amounts to less than $1500.
There's no harm.
Sit in Starbucks with your McDonalds to save a buck.
There's no harm.
Park super close to a vanity car and pee on the front tire.
There's no harm.
Believe in almost nothing. Have no goals, check your bank balance occasionally though.
Have a psychotic personal investment portfolio that makes occasional sense.
Have a cat or dog if you care to.
There's no harm.
Revere music, the arts, science, going fast. Be careful going fast.
Have no investment strategy unless you have some money to invest.
Have your children be over 18 if at all possible.
Get high and space out.
There's no harm.
Forget where your car keys are sometimes because really, there's no harm.
-Cubdriver
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
No-Harm Poem
Get pumped up on Jack, stroll slowly through the Goodwill making an insult or two.
There's no harm.
Hide a fresh fish deep into the canned goods section at the store.
There's no harm.
Spend your life savings on dope and cheetos if it amounts to less than $1500.
There's no harm.
Sit in Starbucks with your McDonalds to save a buck.
There's no harm.
Park super close to a vanity car and pee on the front tire.
There's no harm.
Believe in almost nothing. Have no goals, check your bank balance occasionally though.
Have a psychotic personal investment portfolio that makes occasional sense.
Have a cat or dog if you care to.
There's no harm.
Revere music, the arts, science, going fast. Be careful going fast.
Have no investment strategy unless you have some money to invest.
Have your children be over 18 if at all possible.
Get high and space out.
There's no harm.
Forget where your car keys are sometimes because really, there's no harm.
-Cubdriver
Last edited by Cubdriver; 09-02-2013 at 04:36 PM. Reason: add poem
09-14-2013, 06:42 PM
#75
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Blues, Pressure, and Force
Sideways if you wish, but you can't stop it.
Don't even try.
Massive force, like a jet skidding down the runway.
Lightning speed blinding accuracy finesse and tricks won't work either.
Anybody can do that.
You are small, it is large. Very large.
Best bet, just work straight out, be sincere, don't expect much.
Time is on your side doing that-some things are just too powerful.
Laugh at it, and it still wins.
"Time devours all" as they say.
Stay on message. Only explain if they ask. They won't.
Try and find the internal logic if there is any.
I bet there is. Ought to be, anyway.
So if there ought to be, then what does that tell you?
-Cubdriver
10-13-2013, 08:22 AM
#77
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I just knew I'd figure out what cell phones are good for eventually, and after 5 years I finally did!
Stanley Turrentine Group- Sunny (Y/T, 1965)
Stanley Turrentine Group- Sunny (Y/T, 1965)
Last edited by Cubdriver; 10-13-2013 at 06:37 PM.
11-08-2013, 05:32 AM
#79
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Some people think avante garde jazz is downer music, but I disagree with them. Those who do not understand jazz say this right before they can dismiss it. But in contrast I think avante garde art in any idiom tries to understanding life itself and find a new way to express it. Who among us can say that life does not contain many difficult and challenging things? Wouldn't an art form that tries to grapple with difficult themes sometimes be contorted, troublesome and anguished? The problem with any art form that goes forth with such ambition is that few can follow it or even want to, and those who do are gifted with an insight that can be difficult to bear. Truth is beauty however, and those who go to that end find what they came looking for.
Last edited by Cubdriver; 11-08-2013 at 03:40 PM.
11-22-2013, 06:45 AM
#80
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I knew Harold Vick personally many years ago, he passed in the late 80s but here's one of my favorite items of his. His style on the tenor sax was laid back- legato, melancholy, thoughtful. Nobody sounded like him.
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