Dilla Time

Book Review & Playlist

Dilla Time: The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, the Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm, by Dan Charnas (Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, 2022)

Having recently read Dizzy Gillespie’s autobiography, this book about James Dewitt Yancey (a.k.a J Dilla a.k.a Jay Dee) was in many ways an echo. Dizzy accelerated tempo. Dilla fucked with it. Both are revered as pioneers who changed their genres forever.

This book was hotly anticipated among hip-hop, jazz, and R&B musicans and fans. Finally, someone has written a book about J Dilla! Who was he, why is he so important, and what journey did he take to influence so many marquee musicians, including A Tribe Called Quest, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Kendrick Lamar, and, um, Michael Jackson?

Author Dan Charnas is a music educator and writer with a certain degree of credibility for writing James Yancey’s story. With blessing from Yancey’s mother, Maureen, and a historical relationship with the Detroit scene where Yancey came up, Charnas had access to many primary sources, including meeting J Dilla himself many years ago.

The book’s title signals a reoccurring theme around time and rhythm. Dilla shifted it, sprinkled it with magic, and made us all move like we’d never moved before. Like a time lord of beats, Dilla transcended musical space-time and showed us the future. Charnas is particularly adept at describing this in practical terms with helpful diagrams, analogies, and examples from well-known recordings.

Like a time lord of beats, Dilla transcended musical space-time and showed us the future

But Charnas is not just a music wonk. He’s provides an intimate portrait of Yancey and his relationships with family, friends, and collaborators. There are wonderful stories featuring a who’s who of R&B and hip-hop. Detroit native and Parliament alum Amp Fiddler was one of the first to introduce Yancey to the drum machine. Years later, Yancey showed Erykah Badu how to manipulate a classic jazz record to make one of her most iconic songs. Stories like these abound and make for a delicious read.

I didn’t know much about Dilla when he was alive. Like many artists known for their production more than their performance, their celebrity lags the release of their work. When he died of a rare blood disease in 2006, musical circles were shaken and his legacy started to reverberate more widely. In recent years, I’ve come to appreciate his body of work and Dilla Time illuminated even more about his innovation and import.

At the end of the book, Charnas includes a selected but extensive listing of Dilla’s musical output. My playlist includes some personal favourites of Dilla’s music as a member of Slum Village, as a solo artist, and as a producer/collaborator.

J Dilla Playlist (listen on Spotify)

The playlist opens with a Sly and Family Stone track, “Sing a Simple Song” that was reportedly J Dilla’s first choice as a sample to use when he was being introduced to beat making by Amp Fiddler. Prince’s “Lady Cab Driver” is another influence that features Prince using the bass to play off-beat against a machine-driven rhythm.

There are several selections from Slum Village, A Tribe Called Quest, and other collaborators/contemporaries that revered Dilla and employed his techniques in their music. “Rico Suave Bossa Nova” is a short but catchy track influenced by Brazilian jazz. It’s one of Dilla’s first productions using traditional instruments with key collaborator, Karriem Riggins on drums. More remarkable is the remake 20 years on by Brazilian legends Azymuth, inspired by a kid from Detroit in the genre they’ve dominated for decades.

“Really Love” by D’Angelo and “Telephone” by Erykah Badu are odes in a way to Dilla, both songs inspired by him and recorded after his death. The Robert Glasper, Kendrick Lamar, and Hiatus Kaiyote tracks are all representative of a new crop of disciples of the Dilla sound.

I included some recordings of old source material that Dilla would have mined for some of his better known productions. The sample of Vince Guaraldi in The Pharcyde’s “Splattitorium” is particularly inspired. The sample is from a cover of “Fly Me to the Moon” but the short segment Dilla chose is arguably the most beautiful snippet of an otherwise conventional interpretation of a jazz standard.

I close the playlist with an orchestral version of one of Dilla’s best known songs, “Fall in Love.” This version was arranged by Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and performed live in Detroit with a 60 piece orchestra. Dilla’s mother, Maureen Yancey, sat in the audience surrounded by friends, musicians, and admirers alike.

James Dewitt Yancey (1974 – 2006)

Dizzy Gillespie

Book Review: To be or not…To Bop, Dizzy Gillespie with Al Fraser (Doubleday, 1979)

A playlist based on significant events in the book can be found on here on Spotify

John Birks ‘Dizzy’ Gillespie is foundational to jazz music. Widely regarded, in tandem with Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker, as the inventor of bebop, Gillespie changed how players played, listeners listened, and dancers danced to music. His autobiography takes the reader on a lyrical journey that tells the tale of the man and the musical movement he spawned. Gillespie’s first-hand accounts are interspersed with stories written by dozens of his contemporaries from the jazz pantheon – Ella Fitzgerald, Cab Calloway, Miles Davis, and Roy Eldridge to name a few.

Dizzy Gillespie, 1967
(AP Photo/Frank C. Curtin)

Dizzy Gillespie, as household name and popular figure, was best known for his inflated cheeks and his trumpet’s turned up bell. These stylistic markers were iconic but superficial in the greater context of his contribution to music. His historical and musical significance is forever entwined with bebop, an evolution of jazz characterized by fast tempo, complex chord progressions, and numerous key changes in a much more compressed form than jazz performance and composition had historically expressed. One might also argue that without bebop, there would be no hip hop. Quincy Jones writes in his own autobiography (Doubleday, 2001) that he sees echos of his generation’s affinity to bebop in today’s hip hop community.

Gillespie’s book expounds on the origins of bebop, his relationship to Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk, and how the three of them became the vanguard of jazz’ transformation in the late 40’s and early 50’s. Better than an academic treatise of what bebop really is, you can read story upon story as told by the likes of Count Basie, Sarah Vaughan, Max Roach, Billy Eckstine, and Gillespie himself on why and how bebop was new and different. One such passage by American saxophonist Budd Johnson surmises the origin of the term, ‘bebop.’

“…Dizzy would be trying to explain something or show you how to play it, he would hum it to you. And he would say, ‘no, no, it goes like this – ump-de-be-de-bop-be-bop-be-bop-be-doo-dop-de-de-bop.’ So they would come up to Dizzy and say, ‘Hey, play some more of that bebop music.'”

Budd Johnson

“Undanceable” was another label applied to Gillespie’s music in the early days of bebop. Post-war, Americans were in the mood to dance but bebop was a form of concert jazz played by “young, crazy cats,” proclaims Gillespie. He recalls a gig where the promoter, unimpressed by what he heard, offered to give Dizzy some money so he could buy some stock arrangements of popular tunes of the day. Dizzy rebuffed in character, “Man, I got money to go downtown and buy some stocks, if I wanna buy some stock arrangements…I don’t want no stock!”

Dizzy the man was sassy, convivial, and scrappy. There are numerous accounts of run-ins with unsavoury characters and brushes with injury or worse. On a tour to the South in 1955, Gillespie took his band to perform as part of the Jazz at the Philharmonic series, an effort to popularize jazz as a serious art form, migrating from nightclub to concert hall. On the tour’s Houston stop, there was an element in the local police force unhappy with a band playing to mixed race audiences, something Gillespie insisted on and promoter Norman Granz supported. That night, between sets, the band killed time by played craps in Ella Fitzgerald’s dressing room. Suddenly, plainclothes policemen raided the room, took the cash for themselves, and hauled everyone off to jail. Cheekily, when the police asked his name, Gillespie replied, “Louis Armstrong.” They were eventually released. Dizzy would not let the incident go, hiring lawyers to right the wrong that had been committed that night and winning in court. A galling postscript to the story: one of the arresting officers had the nerve to ask Fitzgerald for her autograph while she was being held.

Publicity pin, Associated Booking Corporation

In 1963, after the March on Washington, Gillespie was unsatisfied with the political status quo. Egged on by fans, he took up the cause to run for President of the United States. His platform was simple – Voting rights, Abolish income tax, Dissolve the FBI, and Legalize the ‘numbers’ racquet. Serious as he was, he kept the masses wondering with tongue-in-cheek pledges such as putting Miles Davis in charge of the CIA and replacing all foreign ambassadors with jazz musicians [author supports that last one]. In the end, he almost got on the State ballot in California.

Dizzy Gillespie & Lorraine Willis

Dizzy Gillespie was a long-standing member of the Baha’i faith. He was married to Lorraine Willis for 53 years, until his death in 1993. He credits Lorraine with keeping him straight and managing his business affairs. “Without her, I wouldn’t have a quarter.”

Annotated Playlist (Open in Spotify)

This playlist draws from references Gillespie makes in the book to recordings and events that struck me as particularly consequential to his musical journey. There are many more references in the book, including a voluminous selected discography. My playlist closes with a few of my personal favourites, starting with a cover of Joe Cuba’s “Bang Bang.”

1. After You’ve Gone, Roy Eldridge – Roy Eldridge was the trumpeter that Dizzy admired and emulated as a young musician. They would eventually record an album together, Roy and Diz (Clef, 1954)
2. Ain’t Misbehavin’, Fatts Waller – Fatts was Dizzy’s idol. He writes, “The bridge in Ain’t Misbehavin’. Where did he get that from?…That’s some hip shit. I haven’t heard anything in music since that’s more hip, harmonically and logically.”
3. King Porter Stomp, Dizzy Gillespie – His first recording, made with Teddy’s Hill band in 1937
4. Stompin’ at Savoy, Dizzy Gillespie – Dizzy played with the Savoy Sultans, the house band of this famed venue
5. The Honeydripper, Alberto Socarras – The cuban bandleader hired Dizzy for his band and recounts, “It was easy for Diz to go between American music and Cuban music…Dizzy’s solos were very nice, very cubanlike.”
6. Cuban Nightmare, Tito Puente – Not a Gillespie recording but a tune he played while in Cab Calloway’s band, noting, he “tore up” the number.
7. Hot Mallets, Lionel Hampton – Dizzy described his style on this record as close to Roy Eldridge’s.
8. Bye Bye Blues, Cab Calloway – His style still developing, Gillespie’s playing starts to break away from his Eldridge influence.
9. Algo Bueno (Woody’n You), Dizzy Gillespie – Influenced by Thelonious Monk to use a minor sixth chord, Dizzy wrote this tune and used a similar chord in the intro he wrote to Monk’s classic, Round Midnight
10. Round Midnight, Dizzy Gillespie – From the Giants of Jazz in Berlin ’71 recording, featuring the intro penned by Gillespie
11. Little John Special, Lucky Millinder – Dizzy played in Millinder’s band in 1942 and recorded this number, which he credits as a rhythmic influence to one of his best known compositions, Salt Peanuts
12. Goodnight My Love, Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb – Dizzy started writing arrangements on commission to earn some money between gigs. This was the first he did for a big band.
13. Pickin’ the Cabbage, Cab Calloway – An early composition of Gillespie’s written for Cab Calloway’s band in 1940. Elements of this song would later be used in his future hits, Manteca and Nights in Tunisia
14. Rosetta, Earl Hines – Dizzy and Charlie Parker became close while in Hines’ band in 1942. This was a theme tune for that band.
15. Red Cross, Charlie Parker – A tune Parker wrote and recorded in the hotel room of engineer Bob Redcross when Bird and Dizzy were playing at the Savoy together.
16. Max is Making Wax, Charlie Parker – Arranged by Dizzy, some deemed it “undanceable” because it was so far out from conventional rhythms and arrangements of the day.
17. Things to Come, Dizzy Gillespie – The fastest tempo Gillespie’s band had played to date, trying to outdo Woody Herman’s band in 1945.
18. Lady by Good, Ella Fitzgerald – Fitzgerald credits Gillespie with inspiring her to take risks. Indeed, her scatting on this tune skews a little zany.
19. St. Louis Blues, Dizzy Gillespie – Gillespie’s recording of this classic was arranged by Bud Johnson on Dizzy’s behest. Write’s Johnson, “I had everything in it. I had dissonance and a lot of movement and Dizzy loved it.” When W.C. Handy, the original composer of the tune, heard Dizzy’s version, he didn’t want the record company to release it because it was so unlike his original tune.
20. Manteca, Dizzy Gillespie – Chano Pozo was a congo player that brought Dizzy to Afro-Cuban music and its complex polyrhythms. Pozo wrote this tune and Dizzy wrote the bridge.
21. Tin Tin Deo, Dizzy Gillespie – This was one of the first recordings for Gillespie’s own label, Dee Gee Records, formed in 1951. John Coltrane happened to be one of the studio musicians in this recording session.
22. Rio Pakistan, Dizzy Gillespie – In 1956, attempting to curb the spread of communism, the US State Department arranged an international tour of jazz musicians as ambassadors of American culture abroad. Gillespie was inspired to write this tune after spending time with staff musicians at Radio Pakistan. Quincy Jones happened to be on the same tour.
23. Tangorine, Dizzy Gillespie – Influenced by trip to South America and the music of the Tango, Gillespie wrote this tune in 1957.
24. Gillespiana Suite, Dizzy Gillespie – Written by famed composer and bandleader Lalo Schifrin on Dizzy’s commission. Schifrin, a successful musician in his native Argentina, came to and remained in the US because of the opportunity to work with Gillespie.
25. Bang Bang, Dizzy Gillespie
26. Unicorn, Dizzy Gillespie & Lalo Schifrin
27. Incantation, Dizzy Gillespie & Lalo Schifrin
28. Umbrella Man, Dizzy Gillespie
29. Salt Peanuts, Dizzy Gillespie & Charlie Parker
30. Night in Tunisia, Dizzy Gillespie

Further Viewing

Jivin’ in Bebop, a 1947 film featuring Dizzy Gillespie’s big band and various guests. It was a success in theatres that catered to African-American audiences.

Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong’s first public appearance together, on the Timex All-Star Jazz Show (CBS, 1959)

My ‘Q’ Playlist: Inspired by the Autobiography of Quincy Jones

Playlist: The Autobiography of Quincy Jones, Quincy Jones (Doubleday, 2001)

Having recently read this account of producer Quincy Jones, a.k.a. ‘Q’s life, I’m inspired to assemble a playlist from his far-reaching and remarkable career. Taken from moments that struck me in the book as particularly germane to his becoming a living legend, the playlist covers influences, legacy recordings, and turning points that slingshotted him further and further into the straosphere of jazz and pop music.

The book itself is a quick read, especially for those like me who are jazz history wonks. Jones has worked, it seems, with nearly everyone to make a mark on jazz music and has set the stage for countless pop sensations, notably Michael Jackson. Jones writes about his humble beginnings, his brother Lloyd, his beloved father, and the troubling mental health saga that plagued his relationship with his mother. Various chapters are also contributed by guest writers and offer insights into his life story from those that see him differently than he does himself.

The book is a few years old but I found it timely and a fitting complement to the “Quincy” documentary currently streaming on Netflix (2018). Jones turns 86 on March 14, 2019.

My Quincy Jones Playlist

Listen on Spotify

[Jones’ credits: PD-Producer, CP-Composer, AR-Arranger]

“Fly me to the moon,” Frank Sinatra with the Count Basie Orchestra, 1965 [AR] // Jones had idolised and met Basie at the age of 13; they enjoyed a long professional and personal friendship.

“What I’d Say,” Ray Charles, 1959 // Charles was one of the first musicians that inspired Jones; they were 16 and 14 respectively when they first met.

“Kingfish,” Lionel Hampton, 1951 [CP] // Written by Jones at the age of 18; He joined Hampton’s band around this time, which was one of the hottest big bands of the time.

“Wail Bait,” Clifford Brown, 1954 [CP] // Jones toured Europe with Clifford Brown while they were both part of Lionel Hampton’s band; Brown included this Jones composition on his first album.

“L’il Darlin’,” Count Basie, Composed and Arranged by Neal Hefti, 1957 // Hefti wrote and arranged this number for Count Basie; Jones states that it was a master class of “in-the-pocket tempo,” and served as a lesson that stayed with him all through his life.

“My Old Flame,” Dinah Washington from the album, For Those in Love, 1955 [AR] // The first album Jones did with Dinah Washington, who had advocated for him with her record label before he gained widespread notoriety as an arranger.

“I Can’t Stop Loving You,” Count Basie, 1963 [AR] // This recording earned Jones his first Grammy award.

“Firebird Suite,” Igor Stravinsky, 1910 // Jones has a second-degree connection to Stravinsky, via his tutelage by the great French teacher, Nadia Boulanger; Boulanger was a contemporary and friend of Stravinsky’s and was a teacher to many modern arrangers, including Aaron Copland, Philip Glass, and Michel Legrand; Jones had gone to Paris in part to work on arranging strings, an opportunity not afforded to black musicians in America.

“The Birth of a Band,” Quincy Jones, 1959 [CP] // Jones toured intensely through Europe with his own band and created this album around the same time period; The tour was a financial drain and lead to more commercial priorities for Jones upon his return to the USA.

“It’s My Party,” Leslie Gore, 1963 [PD] // Jones’ first hit as a Producer and of a pop song.

“Theme from ‘The Pawnbroker’,” Quincy Jones, 1965 [CP, AR] // Jones’ first major film score.

“Theme from ‘Ironside’,” Quincy Jones, 1967 [CP, AR] // The synthesizer used in the opening phrase was the first time the instrument was used for a TV score; In this period of his life, Jones was in demand for scoring but was simultaneously leading Frank Sinatra’s band at his residency at The Sands in Las Vegas.

“Walking in Space,” Quincy Jones, 1969 [CP, PD] // Shifting away from scoring and moving back toward Jazz, Jones recorded this early jazz fusion album. This was a year prior to Miles Davis‘ release of Bitches Brew, often said to mark the arrival of electric instrumentation in jazz music.

“Body Heat,” Quincy Jones, 1974 [CP, AR, PD] // Jones assembled a remarkable group of musicians for this steamy R&B/Jazz/Funk recording including Herbie Hancock, Hubert Laws, Bob James, and vocalist Leon Ware; The album was near-platinum, selling over 800,000 copies.

“Stomp!” The Brothers Johnson, 1980 [PD] // Jones produced all four multi-platinum albums by The Brothers Johnson; This song was co-written by Rod Temperton, a collaborator that would work with Jones and pen many of Michael Jackson’s monster hits, including “Rock with You” and “Thriller.”

“The Girl Is Mine,” Michael Jackson feat. Paul McCartney, 1982 [PD] // The first single from Thriller was a “red herring” according to Jones who worked with the team finishing the album while this track rose to Number 2 on Billboard’s Hot 100; Once released, the album and monster hits like “Billy Jean” and “Beat It” ‘inhaled the charts,’ writes Jones.

“We Are the World,” USA for Africa, 1985 [PD] // Jones’ account of this project and the now iconic recording session is a fun read.

“Beautiful Black Girl,” Quincy Jones, 1975 [PD, AR, CP] // This track from Jones’ Mellow Madness album featured spoken verse overtop beats and was a precursor to hip-hop. The rap on this track is courtesy of The Watts Prophets;  Q has often remarked that his generation and their fascination with be-bop is echoed in today’s hip-hop culture. The difference, he writes, is that hip-hop made it to the mainstream.

“Give Me the Night,” George Benson, 1980 [PD] // The only album Jones produced for Benson garnered three Grammy awards. The title track, which topped both R&B and Jazz charts was written by Rod Temperton. 

“Back on the Block,” Quincy Jones, 1989 [PD] // Jones won yet more Grammy’s, including Album of the Year, for this fantastic project that brought together masters of jazz and a newer generation of hip-hop artists. The album included a re-imagined version of Weather Report’s Birdland and featured its composer and Miles Davis protegee, Joseph Zawinul. Other greats like Ray Charles, Chaka Khan, George Benson and Miles himself also appeared on the album. 

“The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince, 1992 [CP] // By this time, Jones had diversified into print media (Vibe Magazine) and numerous projects under his Qwest production banner. This foray into television was tremendously successful and, like many things Jones touched, made an indelible mark on pop culture.

“How Do You Want It,” 2Pac, 1996 // Tupac Shakur happened to date one of Jones’ daughters for a time. This track samples the title track from Jones’ Body Heat album and was released not long before Tupac’s murder.

“Setembro,” Quincy Jones, 1989 [PD] // This was the last recording by Sarah Vaughan; Jones has outlived many of his contemporaries and mentors; He was at Sinatra’s bedside in his final days and with Vaughan, who wanted to sing to the last.

 

Link to this playlist on Spotify

Reading and Listening to Maurice White

Book Review & Playlist: My Life With Earth, Wind, and Fire, Maurice White with Herb Powell (Harper Collins, 2015)

Maurice White was the visionary, founder, and very much the Chief Executive Officer of Earth, Wind, and Fire. I recently read his fascinating memoir, published just a year before his death in 2016. He was 74.

What you would expect from a musical autobiography is all there: Rich detail about EWF’s beginnings and the backstory of their many classic songs and albums. EWF’s fascination with things celestial, astrology, and Egyptology are illuminated. For me, White’s observations on racism in the music industry were among the most interesting. Maurice White’s hard-fought journey was presciently articulated by African-American leader Booker T. Washington. This quote opened his chapter called Black Tax:

I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed. Out of the hard and unusual struggle through which he is compelled to pass, he gets a strength, a confidence, that one misses whose pathway is comparatively smooth by reason of birth and race.  – Booker T. Washington

Wanting to include a playlist in this post, I struggled with how to keep it concise. White’s body of work is so vast and EWF’s hits so numerous that even a sampling would be inadequate. Instead, I’ve focussed not so much on EWF’s greatness but on White’s perspective of just how that greatness came to be. The playlist is in three parts, named: Inspiration, Evolution, and Transition.

Part I – Inspiration

1. “I Will Move On Up a Little Higher” – Mahalia Jackson (traditional): White begins his story in Memphis TN where he lived with his “Mama,” who loved Mahalia Jackson. “The Queen of Gospel,” as she was known, could be heard frequently in White’s boyhood home.
2. “It Should Have Been Me” – Ray Charles (Atlantic Records, 1954): In Mama’s house, the spiritual was balanced by the boogie-woogie grooves of Ray Charles and others.
3. “Sakeena’s Vision” – Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers (Blue Note Records, 1960): Having moved to Chicago, White was exposed to more music. He described being “mesmerized” by this album from drummer Art Blakey, learning the parts by banging on schoolbooks with his drumsticks.
4. “You’re No Good” – Betty Everett (Vee-Jay Records, 1963): Now a session drummer in Chicago’s hot R&B/Soul recording scene, this was the first hit record featuring Maurice White on drums, reaching number 51 on Billboard’s Hot 100.
5. “Sittin’ in the Park” – Billy Stewart (Chess Records, 1965): White played drums on this lovely tune. Stewart was known to gesture and interact with his musicians during his recording sessions. Writes White, “Billy Stewart taught me how to the pull the best out of a rhythm section by just standing there half directing, half dancing.”
6. “Hang on Sloopy” – Ramsey Lewis Trio (Chess Records, 1965): Having joined the popular jazz pianist’s trio, White enjoyed his first major financial success, with a steady stream of work from hit records like this one.
7. “Dance to the Music” – Sly & the Family Stone (Epic, 1968): White was strongly inspired by Sly & The Family Stone, giving credit to the group for serving as a blueprint for some of the biggest R&B groups of the 70’s, including EWF.

Part II – Evolution

1. “La La Time” – The Salty Peppers (Capitol Records, 1969): Considered ‘proto-EWF,’ White recorded this with Don Whitehead and a band of session musicians from the Chicago scene. Donny Hathaway who would later become an R&B legend in his own right, was on keyboards and did the vocal arrangements.
2. “I’d Rather Have You” – Earth, Wind & Fire, Last Days and Time (Columbia, 1972): Written by Skip Scarborough who was a regular collaborator with White, this song was one of the first with the backing vocal sound that would become a signature of EWF. Jessica Cleaves is on lead vocal.
3. “Evil” – Earth, Wind & Fire, Head to the Sky (Columbia, 1973): I think this song is apt for three reasons. First, it features White on Kalimba, a traditional African instrument he was known for, even in his time with the Ramsey Lewis Trio (watch this touching tribute from Lewis recorded not long after White’s passing, where White’s kalimba performances are referenced). Second, it was the first record featuring a Minimoog, played by none other than Larry Dunn, who would be a core member of EWF for their greatest decade of recording. Finally, this album saw EWF enter a “flower power” phase and turn to a more visual expression, pushing the importance of costume in their live performances.
4. “Devotion” – Earth, Wind & Fire, Open Our Eyes (Columbia, 1974): This is the first album EWF recorded with Charles Stepney, one of White’s most influential collaborators. White notes that Stepney drew out one of Philip Bailey’s best vocal performances to date at the time of this recording, setting the tone for Bailey’s legendary contribution to the EWF sound, even to this day.
5. “That’s the Way of the World” – Earth, Wind & Fire, That’s the Way of the World (Columbia, 1975): Written by Stepney, this has become one of EWF’s most famous recordings. Also notable is that this was the first album recorded with George Massenburg as lead Engineer. Massenburg was key to the mixing of the numerous and complex layers to EWF’s arrangements.
6. “Getaway” – Earth, Wind & Fire, Spirit (Columbia, 1976): Another Stepney collaboration, White described the intro of this song as ‘blazing’ and credited it with putting heat into the EWF sound. Sadly, Stepney died before the album was released.
7. “The Best of My Love” – The Emotions, Rejoice (Columbia, 1977): Written by Al McKay and Maurice White for The Emotions, a vocal group White helped develop, it was the most successful single of White’s career, topping the R&B, Disco, and Pop charts.
8. “September” – Earth, Wind & Fire, The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire Vol. 1 (Columbia, 1978): Also written by McKay and White, this now iconic song was released on the group’s first collection. Writing about this moment in their career, White quotes CBS president Bruce Lundvall as saying EWF was the biggest band in the world.

Part III – Transition

1. “After the Love Has Gone” – Earth, Wind & Fire, I Am (Columbia, 1979): White brought in new songwriters for the I Am album. Among them was David Foster a newcomer who would make his mark not only on EWF but on pop music for decades to come. This was the first album where no other members of the band were used as songwriters. A bit of salt on that open wound was an incident when Foster, hailing from the distinctly white community of Vancouver Island, naively used the term “boys” in the Canadian context (like “buddy”) while directing the famous EWF horn section. One of the musicians immediately drew a gun in protest, prompting White to step in and give Foster a crash course on American race relations.
2. “Let’s Groove” – Earth, Wind & Fire, Raise! (ARC Columbia, 1981): The longest running #1 R&B hit at the time, this song was co-written with Wayne Vaughn. The tour for Raise! was a massive production and demonstrates EWF’s exceptional scale. Pre-production for the tour cost $700k and each date cost $60k to produce. The crew was 60 people strong, with equipment, costumes, and sets filling up 14 tractor trailers. With the explosion of MTV and the importance of the music video in promoting new music, White points out the inherent racism that excluded black acts from the medium. Rick James and EWF had some of the biggest hits of the day but were absent from MTV playlists. White described this as a “black tax” and it was pervasive through their touring, media appearances, and promotional activities.
3. “Time Machine” – Barbra Streisand, Emotion (Columbia, 1984): An odd choice, I admit, but indicative of the stature White held in the business. His songwriting talents were sought out to create a strong single for Streisand’s 23rd studio album, which went on to Platinum. Despite the dated 80s treatment, this is essentially a pretty good tune. This was also the year EWF went on a 3-year hiatus. White would also record a solo album in 1986, including a hit remake of Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me.”
4. “Sunday Morning” – Earth, Wind & Fire, Millennium (Warner Brothers, 1993): Maurice White was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease prior to this album’s release and the tour of Millennium was the first without White. Despite his health struggles and the changing musical tastes since the group reformed in 1987, the band reached #20 on R&B charts with this Grammy nominated hit.
5. “Hearts of Longing” – Urban Knights, Urban Knights (UMG Recordings, 1995): His performing career at an end, White continued to contribute musically to EWF and produced this project with his original jazz mentor, Ramsey Lewis. This smooth jazz album featured Grover Washington Jr. on saxophone, Omar Hakim on drums, and Victor Bailey on bass.

White wrote that he wanted his music to uplift and unify humanity. Listen and you’ll see, he succeeded by any measure.

 

Related:

UK DJ/Producer Patrick Forge podcast tribute to Maurice White

 

 

Turning Points in Jazz: The Career (so far) of Herbie Hancock

Book Review: Possibilities, Herbie Hancock with Lisa Dickey (Viking, 2014)

Reading Herbie Hancock’s memoir is akin to reading the modern history of jazz. His career touched numerous branches of jazz and was responsible for sprouting some entirely new ones. From his mentorship with Donald Byrd, to being a sideman for Miles Davis, to becoming a band leader and trail blazer, reading Herbie’s history gives you a fair reading of the genre itself.

The book covers his life story, from his upbringing, discovery of music and performance, and the music he has made with great artists over five decades. Possibilities is an apt title because the book, and Hancock’s journey, can be characterized with a series of turning points that Hancock had the courage to embrace. It also resonates with his Buddhist philosophy, which receives generous attention in the book. Hancock handles this personal aspect of his story maturely, simply relating how it affected his outlook on life and ultimately his music. Similarly, his confessions and reflections on drug addiction are offered in appropriate contexts, without becoming unseemly.

I think the best way to write about this book is to offer a playlist of the recordings that Hancock himself cites throughout the book. Of course, there are too many to offer a comprehensive list. Instead, I’ve filtered my selections for those that I found reflected the most important turning points in developing his remarkable career.

1. Body & Soul, Coleman Hawkins, Body & Soul (Bluebird, 1939) – Hancock’s first professional gig was in 1960 with Coleman Hawkins and this song is recalled in the book as one of the pieces he had to first perform with a professional jazz player.

2. The Injuns, Donald Byrd, Byrd in Hand (Revolver, 1959) – I didn’t know until reading this memoir that Donald Byrd mentored Herbie Hancock as he was coming up in the music business. Byrd took Hancock on as a member of his band and this song was one of the first Herbie played with the band. I was especially intrigued by this connection because Byrd and Hancock happen to be two of my top three favourite musicians of all time.

3. Shangri-La, Donald Byrd, Royal Flush (Blue Note, 1961) – Hancock’s recording debut was on Byrd’s 1961 release, Royal Flush. This was a key event in Hancock’s career because it led to his own recording contract with Blue Note and more importantly, thanks to Byrd’s counsel and urging, culminated in Hancock retaining the publishing rights to his compositions.

4. Watermelon Man, Herbie Hancock, Takin’ Off (Blue Note, 1962) – Hancock’s first record. This would become a major commercial success, paving the way for financial independence thanks to his publishing rights. His income from this record would support more experimental work later in the decade.

5. Burning Spear, Eric Dolphy, Iron Man (Charly Records, 1963) – Playing as a sideman to saxophonist Eric Dolphy was Hancock’s first exposure to free jazz. It was Dolphy’s breaking of the rules of music that helped Hancock see the possibilities in music when new directions were taken. I believe this is one of the most important influences on Hancock’s approach to music, probably second only to Miles Davis himself.

6. Seven Steps to Heaven, Miles Davis, Seven Steps to Heaven (Sony, 1963) – Hancock’s notoriety from Watermelon Man and his reputation as a singular talent lead the great Miles Davis to invite Hancock to join his now legendary quintet. This album was the first of Miles’ records that Hancock appeared on.

7. Maiden Voyage, Herbie Hancock, Maiden Voyage (Blue Note, 1965) – Now a sought after composer, Hancock took on commercial work, writing jingles on the side. A fragment of a jingle for a men’s cologne evolved into this, one of Hancock’s most recognizable compositions. It was unique in its spiralling structure and Hancock discusses his discovery of this form in detail in the book.

8. Blow Up (Main Title), Herbie Hancock, Blow-Up Original Soundtrack (Rhino, 1966) – Hancock’s first commission to do a film soundtrack. It had a sound that was influenced by the pop music of the day. The book contains an amusing story of how Hancock hosted a decoy recording session in Canada to navigate European content rules imposed by the film’s backers.

9. My Ship, Miles Davis, Miles Ahead (Sony, 1957) – Gil Evans’ work on this Miles Davis album strongly influenced Herbie’s first incarnation as a band leader.

10. Speak Like A Child, Herbie Hancock, Speak Like A Child (Blue Note, 1968) – Hancock’s first band was a sextet inspired by the fullness and smoothness of sound on Miles Ahead. He chose 3 horns (Sax, Trombone, and Trumpet). The rhythm section included Miles Davis Quintet bandmate, Ron Carter on Bass. Speak Like a Child was the sextet’s first recording.

11. Stuff, Miles Davis, Miles in the Sky (Sony, 1968) – Another key turning point was Hancock’s discovery of electric instruments. Hancock relates his first encounter with a Fender Rhodes electric piano while in Davis’ quintet. Without a piano to play at a venue they were booked at, Herbie asked his band leader what he was supposed to play. Miles pointed to the Rhodes sitting in the corner of the room and said, “play that.” This track is off the first recording of Miles’ that used the electric piano.

12. Fat Mama, Herbie Hancock, Fat Albert Rotunda (Rhino, 1969) – Having known Bill Cosby for some years before, Hancock was invited by Cosby to write music for TV special, which would later be adapted and become Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. This was also one of the earlier instances of funk elements in Hancock’s music.

13. Quasar, Herbie Hancock, Crossings (Warner Bros., 1970) – Now in his Mwandishi period, Hancock had embraced Afro-centric culture and was working more in the jazz/funk fusion mileiux with greater degrees of musical experimentation.  Hancock himself describes Mwandishi as an “R&D band.” This track off of their Crossings album showcases a new technology Hancock had adopted when he met synthesizer pioneer, Pat Gleeson. The Moog Modular synthesizer first appears in Hancock’s recorded work on this album.

14. Toys, Herbie Hancock, Speak Like a Child (Blue Note, 1968) – Mwandishi’s bassist was Buster Williams and Hancock relates a story in the book where Williams performance of this particular track in 1972 was so focussed that Herbie asked him how he managed to play it so well on that particular day. Williams’ response was that he chanted before the performance in his practice of Buddhism. A philosophy and practice that Hancock adopted from that point forward, Buddhism can’t be overlooked in how it has shaped his personal and professional life.

15. Yes We Can, Can, The Pointer Sisters, The Pointer Sisters (UMG, 1973) – Having spent a few years with Mwandishi in “far out” experimentations, Hancock was searching for a change and was inspired by an unlikely encounter with the Pointer Sisters in 1973. Noting how much of a crowd-pleaser this tune was, Hancock made a sharp turn into funk.

16. Chamaeleon, Herbie Hancock, Head Hunters (Sony, 1973) – Another iconic Hancock composition, Chamaeleon was the first song written and recorded by his next band, The Headhunters. Bernie Maupin was on reeds, Paul Jackson on electric bass, Bill Summers on percussion, Harvey Mason on drums, and Herbie on synthesizers and clavinet. The clavinet allowed Hancock to play guitar lines on the keyboards and meant he didn’t need a guitarist in the band.

17. Doin’ It, Herbie Hancock, Secrets (Columbia, 1976) – His interest in electric instruments continuing to build, Hancock took on a young sound engineer, Brian Bell, for this record. Bell would become an integral part of Hancock’s creative process for years to come. His ingenuity and innovation is showcased heavily in the book. The passage where Bell describes how he managed patch cords in the first synthesizers (that had no memory banks) evokes thoughts of other technology pioneers like Hewlett & Packard or Jobs & Wozniak.

18. Don’t Hold it In, Herbie Hancock, Monster (Sony, 1980) – Now fully invested in making music with computers and electronics, this album was the first in a series where microcomputers, including the Apple II+ and several of Bell’s improvised equipment were featured. Another technological influence was Keith Lofstrom, who developed an automated patch bay for this period in Hancock’s work with early synthesizers.

19. Buffalo Gals, Malcolm McLaren, Duck Rock (Virgin, 1983) – A sea change was hitting popular music in the 1980’s with the emergence of new wave and the post punk British invasion. Hancock first heard this track through some associates who were exposing him to what young people were listening to. The scratching on this record was a direct influence on what would become Hancock’s biggest pop hit of the 80’s.

20. Rockit, Herbie Hancock, Future Shock (Sony, 1983) – Teaming up with producers Bill Laswell and Michael Beinhorn, as well as pioneer turntablist DXT, Hancock released this song accompanied by Godley & Creme music video that hit number 1 on Billboard’s US Dance chart. Rockit also won best R&B Instrumental Performance at the Grammy’s in 1983.

21. Una Noche con Francis, Herbie Hancock, Round Midnight (Original Motion Picture Sountrack) (Sony, 1986) – Returning to more straight-ahead jazz, but still with an innovative spin, Hancock produced the soundtrack to this film, featuring Dexter Gordon in the lead role. He won the Oscar for best soundtrack for this work.

22. Manhattan (Island of Lights and Love), Herbie Hancock, The New Standard (Verve, 1996) – Composed with his sister, Jean Hancock, who had died tragically in a plane crash years before, Hancock included this song on his 1996 release, the The New Standard. Manhattan won the Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition that year.

23. Tony Williams, Herbie Hancock, Future 2 Future (Columbia 2001) – In this current stage of his career, Hancock states in the book that he seeks projects that bring something new to his experience and that have a purpose. This track is a tribute to Tony Williams, the talented drummer and Herbie’s bandmate in Miles’ quintet. Williams’ talent is mentioned at length in the book and this tribute featuring spoken word by Elenni Davis-Knight, is an excellent example of Hancock’s aim to be innovative and purposeful.

24. Both Sides Now, Herbie Hancock, River: The Joni Letters (Verve, 2007) – A truly great talent never wanes and Hancock was on top again with this album, a deliberate tribute to an artist he respects greatly, Joni Mitchell. This record won Album of the Year at the 2007 Grammy Awards.

Although I’ve tried to distill what resonated most with me, I would recommend a full reading of Possibilities to personalize your own appreciation of Hancock’s life and career. Like the genre he helped shape, this book offers so much insight that each reader will develop a slightly different view of Hancock’s life and music. In this, Hancock and his writing partner Lisa Dickey have achieved what Hancock has done time and time again in his career: create something that adds to our experience of music but do so in a way that is not uniform among those who listen.

 

Beginning with the End

Book Review: Canada, Richard Ford (HarperCollins, 2012)

 Richard Ford won the 1996 Pulitzer Prize  for his novel, Independence Day (Knopf, 1995). Canada was his most recent release two years ago when I picked up this title. It had taken a few attempts for me to start and finish this book but i’m glad I finally did.

Like many of the authors I appreciate, Ford creates an engaging depth of character and richness of time and place. Canada is set partly in Montana and partly in Saskatchewan in the 1950’s. Ford’s research and ability with detail brought them vividly to life.

One of the distinguishing qualities of Ford’s storytelling is his playfulness with timelines. He used to satisfying effect, a non-linear narrative that started with the end and invested most of the storytelling in the journey of how it came to be. This was not only true for the overall arc of the story but also for subplots within the book. There was anticipation and suspense but it was often followed by a plot revelation much earlier than the reader expected. These tactics somehow made the book more enjoyable to read, as if the author was giving us a break from the long work of getting through the story.

Written in three parts, the book transforms from an immersion in character and place to a faster-paced thriller — not the Ludlum variety but the stakes do get higher and the pages start turning faster in the latter half of the second part.

In this excerpt, the protagonist, Del Parsons, describes the experience of he and his sister, Berner, in their hometown of Great Falls Montana, after their parents’ arrest for bank robbery:

It’s a good measure of how insignificant we were, and of the kind of place Great Falls was, that no one came to see about us, or to get us and transport us to someplace safe. No juvenile authorities. No police. No guardians to take responsibility for our welfare. No one ever searched the house while I was there. And when no one does that — notices you — then people and things quickly get forgotten and drift away. Which is what we did. My father was wrong about many things; but about Great Falls he wasn’t. People there didn’t want to know us. They were willing to let us disappear if we would.

Berner and I walked home that Monday by a different route. We felt different now — possibly we each felt freer in our own way. We walked up to Central past the post office and down toward the river, along by the bars and pawn shops, a bowling alley, the Rexall, and the hobby shop where I’d bought my chess men and my bee magazines. The street was bustling and noisy with traffic. But, again, I didn’t feel anyone staring at us. School hadn’t started. We weren’t out of place. A boy and his sister walking back across the bridge in the sunny breeze, the river sweet and rank on a late morning in August — no one would think: These are those kids whose parents went to jail. They need to be looked after and protected.

– Canada, chapter 38

I’m glad I stuck with this book through my many fits and starts. It’s a testament to the richness of character that allowed me to come back to it after many months of being away and reading on without much need for review.

Richard Ford’s newest book, Let Me Be Frank with You (Ecco/Harper Collins) is a collection of four novellas set during Hurricane Sandy. It is set to release in November 2014.

Chic Geek: The Freakin’ Genius of Nile Rodgers

Book Review: Le Freak: An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco, and Destiny, Nile Rodgers (Random House, 2011)

Nile Rodgers is a mandarin of pop music. His discography is littered with colossal hits like Bowie’s Let’s Dance, Madonna’s Like a Virgin, and Duran Duran’s “The Reflex.” These Eighties icons were follow-ups to 70’s icons like CHIC, Sister Sledge, and Diana Ross. Despite his superstar buddies with big personalities, Rodgers’ autobiography reveals him as a behind-the-scenes-music-theory-wonk.

Rodgers’ prose is crisp, easy to read, and his story is captivating. I didn’t expect to be all that interested in his childhood. But Rodgers manages to tell a fascinating tale about his early years, being raised by “junkies” as he referred to his biological mother and adoptive step-father.

The insight into his early years reveals something about the uniqueness of Nile Rodgers. He was an outsider in most circles and ultimately found himself at home with other outsiders. His anecdote about being out in LA at a young age and spotting a group of “freaks” across the street, engaging them in conversation, and later the same night dropping acid with Timothy Leary, seems torn from the pages of a neo-noir pulp novel. Later in life but still before his breakthrough, a personal intrigue with Roxy Music spawned the idea for CHIC as a concept band. That an American-born-and-raised a black touring and session guitarist with R&B and funk roots became fascinated with a British white glam group doing art rock was…weird. And thus is Nile Rodgers’ musical pedigree. Thank goodness.

The rise and fall of CHIC is a fantastic read. Rodgers delves into the creative process he and long-time collaborator Bernard Edwards used to pen their barn-full of smash hits. The precipitous fall of CHIC as the “disco sucks” movement rose was felt acutely by the duo but they are vindicated today to be sure. My post, In Defence of Disco, discusses that public rejection, which was so palpable as the seventies closed out.

Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers

Rodgers had a massive second wind through his production of David Bowie, Madonna, and Duran Duran in the 80’s. There is scrumptious detail about Bowie’s Let’s Dance album and the evolution of Madonna from a streetwise and business savvy recording artist to an international pop icon.

As I read the book, I found myself uttering, “oh, he wrote that song” and “that was him?” and “him again?” on every other page. Rodgers’ fingerprints and guitar licks are on so many hit records, you wonder why most people have never heard of him.

Which brings us back to Rodgers as a ‘geek.’ Being behind the scenes was a deliberate strategy for Rodgers and Edwards. They were more focussed on the quality and meaning of the music than the celebrity it would garner. Watch some Nile Rodgers interviews and lectures on YouTube (like this one) and you’ll see what I mean. He describes with glee the secret of CHIC, which was to utilize complex jazz chords in a funky way to trick the listener into thinking it was basic. “It’s what you don’t play that matters,” is a mantra he borrows from Miles Davis and applies artfully to his music.

Le Freak: An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco, and Destiny is a great read not only for music lovers and fans of CHIC but for anyone interested in the evolution of a career and an impressive legacy from the humblest of beginnings.

Redemption story, almost

Book Review: The Low Road, Chris Womersley (Scribe, 2007)

Chris Womersley has an Ian McEwan problem. Worse can be said for a budding novelist. But if you know what I mean about McEwan, you’ll understand why this is a begrudgingly mixed review.

The Low Road is a very good novel about two men whose lives intersect just as each is at their nadir. Families long since alienated, caught up in a gritty and decidedly unromantic underworld, they find each other, and in their travels on the run, they give each other reason for hope.

The writing here is adept, like McEwan’s. Imagery is Womersley’s strongest suit. An example,

  Of acquiring his own tattoo, he had no memory, not even of the scabbing that occurred afterwards. It was as if – like the skin itself – it had always been there and sometimes as he rubbed at it, he believed it had just floated to the surface, some thin wreckage washed up on the shores of his body.

Womersley’s prose often paints a cinematic picture. One could argue that he is prone to using what Salman Rushdie recently called “filmic devices” that resonate with readers who have been trained by film-makers to imagine in a certain way. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Indeed, several times I found myself musing at how good a film this story would make, doing my own armchair casting.

However, the story is where the ‘McEwan problem’ begins and ends. I should explain that I hold a grudge against Ian McEwan for his novel, Saturday (Random House, 2005), which was beautifully written but really had no story in my opinion. It’s unfair to say that The Low Road has no story. There is great promise of redemption in the set up. Would each of these men indeed be the other’s salvation? They are flawed but their humanity drew my compassion. I invested fully in their relationship and I wanted it to unfold more than Womersley allowed.

Still, it was a good read and I’m glad I discovered this Australian author. His skill at imagery reminds me of modern masters such as Rushdie, Peter Carey, and yes, the very talented Mr. McEwan.

Womersley’s second novel, Bereft (Scribe, 2010), won the Australian Book Industry Award for Literary Fiction.

A short rant about airport bookstores…

I picked this book up in an airport bookstore in New Zealand after having been disappointed with the title selection at airports in Toronto, Chicago, and LA, where my journey began. At some point in the last year or two, someone wrongly decided that the only fiction airport bookstores should carry are books that inspired hit movies (Moneyball anyone?). I’m glad Asia Pacific is ahead of this curve. As for Womersley, some discerning screenwriter may yet make him a fixture on the shelves of LAX.

Jazz’ family tree, revealed

Book Review: The History of Jazz – Second Edition, Ted Gioia (Oxford University Press, 2011)

It is perhaps hubris to use “The” in this book’s title. There are numerous accounts of how “America’s music” germinated and flowered all around the world. But if a handful of people are to be given some latitude, Ted Gioia is one of them. As the founder of the Jazz studies program at Stanford and a former editor of Jazz.com, Gioia has the credentials to speak authoritatively about the jazz form and its beginnings.

Gioia’s research and depth of coverage in this 400 page tome are quite simply awesome. From the root of the African drum, to its evolution in New Orleans during the Slave Trade, to the jazz artists who top the charts today, this account is remarkable for its thoroughness. What Gioia does particularly well is take the reader on a mostly chronological journey through jazz’ family tree without forcing a linear structure. Instead, he takes us along a branch over the course of a decade or so, then pulls back and describes an adjacent branch, explaining its similarities and differences to the former.

I picked up this book simply because I wanted to understand just that – the complex pedigree of today’s jazz music and the great musicians that shaped it over the years. Much of the music I write about has its ancestry in jazz and I enjoy exploring those connections.

In the end, I was delightfully edified by the answers to all the questions I had before I read it: Where did bebop come from? How was it different from hard bop? Why is Ellington so important? Was Bird more influencial than Coltrane? And so on.

What’s more, Gioia cites generous examples of key players, compositions, and recordings. I found it fascinating to read a passage about Ahmad Jamal, for example, and quickly look up the tracks referenced on youtube or iTunes so I could listen along while I read.

At times, The History of Jazz comes across as professorial and academic but Gioia also captures the very human element of jazz with rich biographies of key figures. Generous (and welcome) length is given to Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis among others. Their personal history, influences, and choices are explored in good depth and give us an understanding of what made these musicians unique and how they shaped jazz.

Being a relatively recent Second Edition, the references are up-to-date and on the mark. The book comes full circle with the final sections exploring the “new traditionalists” who have recently reached back to the swing era of the 30s and 40s and the modern jazz era of the 50s and 60s. Reading about Diana Krall or Herbie Hancock in this context and then listening to their current works enriches our appreciation for what their music is today and where it came from.

Although it is a dense and lengthy book, those of you interested in jazz and its many subgenres will find it a valuable resource. For me personally, this book went even further. I hadn’t set out to read it cover to cover but once Gioia started connecting the dots for me, I wanted more. This, for any historian, is a job well done.

Favourite insights I gleaned from Ted Gioia’s The History of Jazz:

• Louis Armstrong was influenced and mentored by Joe ‘King’ Oliver, one of the first great players of the cornet. But Armstrong was a better virtuoso and heralded the beginning of the age of the soloist.
• Benny Goodman was the first media celebrity. As radios made their way into American living rooms, band leaders would be among the first household names.
• Duke Ellington brought a classical approach to jazz, making ‘art’ music instead of popular music. Although not as commercially successful as some of the more dance-oriented bands of the time (e.g. Benny Goodman), his work would later be recognized as some of the most ingenious musical compositions in the genre.
• Charlie Parker is the father of Bebop, a form of jazz less concerned with the swing rhythm and simple melodies. He and Dizzy Gillespie characterized the form with their super-fast and complex melodies. When challenged about the seemingly off notes he played in his solos, Parker famously said, “there are no wrong notes if you play them in the right context.”
• The relationships between band leaders and sidemen are numerous and intertwined. All the greats started as sidemen, ascended as leaders, took on new sidemen, who then ascended as the next generation of leaders. Miles Davis is a great example. In the late 40’s Davis at 19 years of age, was one of Dizzy Gillespie’s sidemen. In the 50s and 60s, Davis fostered talents under him like Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, and Bill Evans. Each of them went on to be giants of jazz in later years.
• As with any art form, jazz was shaped not only by its players but by its environment. The advent of the railway, racism, WWII, the rise of television, and the 60s protest ethos all had a significant impact on what kinds of jazz proliferated and diminished through the years. “Free Jazz,” for example, emerged in the 60s when conformity to the norms of the 50s was viewed as artistic compromise.
• As the big band era gave way to the modern jazz era, some big bands carried on into the 70s. One of the most long-lived was lead by a Japanese-American woman named Toshiko Akiyoshi who, to date, has garnered 14 Grammy nominations. Akiyoshi was discovered in 1952 by Oscar Peterson. She was the first Japanese student at Berklee. Her daughter is Monday Michiru, a well known vocalist in contemporary House and Dance music.
• Miles Davis’ 1969 release, Bitches Brew, is the progenitor of jazz fusion, most remarkably, the construction of jazz compositions around electronic instruments.

Great characters, stories, and several punches in the stomach

Book Review: The Imperfectionists, Tom Rachman, 2010

This was a peculiar read – well written and easy to engage with the story and characters. Yet in the end I didn’t enjoy it because I felt the author didn’t want me to.

“The Imperfectionists” is a collection of vignettes of the lives of journalists, editors, and publishers of a Rome-based newspaper, based not so loosely on the International Herald Tribune. Rachman was an editor for that paper and manages wonderful detail to immerse the reader in the world of the international newsroom.

What Rachman also brings to the book, it seems, is some serious baggage. Each vignette, although nicely crafted, ends up punching the reader in the stomach with a burst of pathos or tragedy.

In each chapter, I found myself falling for his protagonist, cheering them on, and then watching them fall ‘splat’ into the cold, wet concrete of the Rachman’s  dark whimsy. Heck, he even has a dog murdered in one of the stories.

This is not to say that all stories should be happy. I’ve enjoyed many books with sad themes and failed characters (James Joyce, anyone?). But there is something relentlessly dark about this book that dulls the usual joy we get from reading.

Despite the gloom, Rachman’s is a very readable prose and his humor reminds me, at times, of Mordechai Richler. I’d like to read more from this author, but only after he’s had some therapy and accepted that the world can be a nice place, at least some of the time.