Chick, Christian, Roy & Kenny G
Damn, Christian McBride looks like Mingus. I never saw it before, but there it is. He plays like him too. Not that McBride doesn’t have his own thing, he does. Like all double bassists who play jazz, you’ve got debts, Jimmy Blanton, Ray brown, Ron Carter, Scott Lafaro and Mingus are a few of those who’re owed There are others, of course, but few as meaningful as the aforementioned crew. So, if ever the film industry decides to make the Mingus biopic, McBride is the man for the job. He’s got the look and the skills down. Can he act? When you can play like McBride, you’ve got to have a big imagination. It just needs to be redirected, that’s all.
Watching Roy Haynes play like a madman, swinging like crazy with invention to spare, is remarkable. When you consider this video was shot when Haynes was maybe 85 years old, it’s even more startling. Truly, the man is a master jazz drummer, making the youngsters set up and take notice. After 70 plus years of playing with everybody from Bird and Diz to literally everybody, he gives the rest of us hope that immortality is possible. This kind of drumming takes chops, but it also takes serious stamina. Haynes doesn’t miss a lick. In fact, he drives the band, stoking the engine with sticks of carved wood like just about nobody. Amazing.
Likewise, the rest of the band is superb. Do you expect less from Chick Corea? I don’t think so. How about Kenny Garrett, the real Kenny G, as he’s introduced by McBride. Garrett steps into the fray and builds his solo, rocking his body back in forth in time, playing out, then further out, but never losing solid ground. He plays against the beat, with the beat and manages to sound thoughtful all the while. Not like a lot of cats who just hit whatever keys fall under their fingers. No. There is purpose to Garrett’s playing, but there is feeling too. Put it all together and you have magic, which is exactly what Garrett offers chorus after chorus.
Chick Corea, the boss, the leader of the group, is timeless, as well. The man has stood on the stage with a portable synthesizer and made like a rock star, trading riffs with hotshot guitar players and more than held his own. He’s also played free jazz, modal jazz, Bebop, standards, accompanied singers, made records about leprechauns and fairies, written music that has become standard for the repertoire, to say nothing of modern Brazilian influenced jazz and even composed and performed classical music. I guess you could ask, “What hasn’t he done?” He hasn’t made bad music. Or, at least, not much of it, in an expansive fifty plus year career.
So, what else can I say, except, this is damn fine music and great jazz. One day, this period of explosive growth in amateur and professional videography will be looked back on as a golden age when just about anybody could grab a camera and record legends at their craft. Some of which are more polished than others, no doubt, but still available, and free to boot.
Remarkable? You betcha.
Mark Magula
Watching Roy Haynes play like a madman, swinging like crazy with invention to spare, is remarkable. When you consider this video was shot when Haynes was maybe 85 years old, it’s even more startling. Truly, the man is a master jazz drummer, making the youngsters set up and take notice. After 70 plus years of playing with everybody from Bird and Diz to literally everybody, he gives the rest of us hope that immortality is possible. This kind of drumming takes chops, but it also takes serious stamina. Haynes doesn’t miss a lick. In fact, he drives the band, stoking the engine with sticks of carved wood like just about nobody. Amazing.
Likewise, the rest of the band is superb. Do you expect less from Chick Corea? I don’t think so. How about Kenny Garrett, the real Kenny G, as he’s introduced by McBride. Garrett steps into the fray and builds his solo, rocking his body back in forth in time, playing out, then further out, but never losing solid ground. He plays against the beat, with the beat and manages to sound thoughtful all the while. Not like a lot of cats who just hit whatever keys fall under their fingers. No. There is purpose to Garrett’s playing, but there is feeling too. Put it all together and you have magic, which is exactly what Garrett offers chorus after chorus.
Chick Corea, the boss, the leader of the group, is timeless, as well. The man has stood on the stage with a portable synthesizer and made like a rock star, trading riffs with hotshot guitar players and more than held his own. He’s also played free jazz, modal jazz, Bebop, standards, accompanied singers, made records about leprechauns and fairies, written music that has become standard for the repertoire, to say nothing of modern Brazilian influenced jazz and even composed and performed classical music. I guess you could ask, “What hasn’t he done?” He hasn’t made bad music. Or, at least, not much of it, in an expansive fifty plus year career.
So, what else can I say, except, this is damn fine music and great jazz. One day, this period of explosive growth in amateur and professional videography will be looked back on as a golden age when just about anybody could grab a camera and record legends at their craft. Some of which are more polished than others, no doubt, but still available, and free to boot.
Remarkable? You betcha.
Mark Magula