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Tag Archives: jazz

What If Beethoven Wrote Jazz? Discuss and Show All Work.

22 Saturday Jan 2022

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Beethoven, chords, jazz

Yeah, so what if? What if he heard swing eighth notes in his head?

What if jazz came out of that era and we were now in the hey day of classical music? I don’t think jazz would have been beyond his comprehension and all it would have taken, I suppose, was a couple of swing eighth notes to get him started.

Chord progressions are chord progressions and my long ago piano teacher once told me that Bach wrote in I, IV, V which is the building block for rock and roll.

In any case, rather than delve into a post doctoral thesis about the title I’ll leave it to someone with more musical knowledge than me to pick up the ball and run with it.

More Paris

13 Friday Nov 2020

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jazz, music, Paris, WWll

More on my week long Parisian vacation with some musical notations added.

Before I get too far down the page I have to admit my two biggest regrets after I returned home from Paris.

One – I didn’t stay longer and two – I didn’t spend more money.

Ok, got that out of the way and before I lose my train of thoughts I have a few more recollections from The City of Light.

I was stunned to see how how any current and live references there are to the Second World War in Paris.

Correct me if I’m incorrect but I seem to recall a metro station named for D-Day, The Sixth of June and there is an FDR stop. Maybe one for the Battle of Stalingrad too.

I remember walking down the Rue du Winston Churchill which was near a street named for FDR. It was on this street corner that my daughter and I ran into a local with whom we had a very lively and enlightening conversation.

Maybe we looked like Americans, I don’t really think so as we were both dressed rather smartly. Americans stand out in a Paris crowd and we tried to blend in with the locals and the surroundings.

Somehow we struck up a conversation with a Frenchman from Morocco and the talk turned to great world leaders, remember while we were there we were on the cusp of the anniversary of the 70th of the liberation of Paris.

I remember how this fellow said DeGaulle’s nickname was “Deux Metres” since he was much taller than the average Frenchman in those days. He stood 6’5″ which meant he towered over almost everyone he met. He used his height to his advantage as one should I suppose.

By the way, the current occupant of the White House is nowhere near the purported 6’3″ he claims. He wears lifts in his shoes and is probably closer to 6’1″. The lifts make him lean forward all the time.

The Moroccan man was a real joy speak with and seems to be genuinely happy to be conversing with his two new found American amis although we never got his name.

Earlier in the day we visited Napoleon’s Tomb and spent time at the adjoining French military museum.

The history of warfare in Europe goes back to just about forever as the locals always seemed to be either carving each other up, bludgeoning each other, blowing up, shooting and mangling soldiers and non-combatants alike from the air, the sea and at ground level too.

It feels good to recall those memories especially these days. We rented a rowboat at Versailles, rode the train to Caen and visited the Canadian D Day beach.

When I saw the statue of Charlemagne at Notre Dame Cathedral all I could think of was the Steely Dan song” Kid Charlemagne.” That’s on me.

Our days were full, we walked almost everywhere and by evening we were bushed so there was no nightlife for us. Another regret – No Paris jazz.

” The Last Time I Saw Paris” was written by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein soon after the Nazis occupied Paris.

“April in Paris” written in 1932 by Vernon Duke ( Autumn in New York, I Can’t Get Started) and E Y Yip Harburg ( Somewhere Over The Rainbow).

Possibly the best big band song ever is Count Basie’s version of the tune replete with the “One More Time” coda.

Finally, ” I Love Paris” from the show “Can Can’ and Mr. Cole Porter.

And still more finally, ” Midnight in Paris” the Woody Allen film.

Maybe the sense of history doesn’t hang on as much in the air these days for Parisians as it did for me. Time marches on as they say. Perhaps there is too much to occupy the local’s time and minds in the present environment.

I felt the weight of history like I was wearing a jacket with all the pockets stuffed with the years 1940 – 45.

The oldest structure in my neck of the woods is probably a log cabin from around 1600 something or so.

And since adding a new follower who recently added a post about visiting Philadelphia I distinctly remember looking at buildings in Paris and saying – “Gee, these look just like the Philadelphia City Hall.” And they do.

It was built in the Second Empire Style or as it is also known Napoleon III style.

To the Colorful Sisters – in your post about visiting Philadelphia you left out 30th Street Station, one of my favorite places to be ever.

I wrote a post once titled ” The Birds of 30th Street.” It’s somewhere out there in the mist and fog of the internet and WordPress.

As Casey Stengel said ,” You could look it up.”

The Jam Session Last Night

18 Saturday Oct 2014

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Beatles, fiddles, folk, Guitars, jam session, jazz, mandolin

Here’s a nod to the Rhythm portion of the title and of one of the things that makes me tick.

Went to a jam session a bit north of here last night – about an hour away but worth the time and distance for the opportunity to share music with some really nice people and wonderful musicians.

The instrument breakdown was about as follows – 6 guitars, 7 fiddles, 1 harmonica, 1 washboard and a mandolin.  That’s a guess as people were showing up late, leaving after a song or two or staying to the very end.

There were good versions of songs I didn’t recognize and and bad versions of songs that I didn’t want to recognize. The songs we played were pretty eclectic and in no particular order were among others:

” You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere, Ashokan Farewell, What’s Goin’ On?, Memphis, Route 66, Centerfield, 16 Tons, Sarah Smile and Our Day Will Come.”  That’s about all that I can recall.  We played and sang for three hours straight.

Everyone gets a chance to pick a tune and we go around the circle taking leads on instrumental breaks when the time comes.  It’s the way to get better – taking chances when you can and playing with better players when you can too.  It’s playing with out a net but among friends and ” If you play it wrong, play it strong.”

Dylan to Motown to them jazzy chords and fiddle tunes and a couple of stops in between.

My musical genre has finally dawned on me after all these years of playing – I’m a Big Band Beatles Jazz Folkie.  More on that later I suppose.

Below is not from last night but a reasonable facsimile of the gig.  If you’re really interested it’s a 1963 Guild F-30.  The guitar, not me.  I’m the third owner.  Her name is Louise.  She’s not half bad.

2011Guitarn

Duke Ellington

30 Wednesday Apr 2014

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Duke Ellington, jazz

Continuing on with the music theme and another genius talent.

Yesterday, April 29 was his birthday.  He was born in 1899 and died in 1974.

I read a biography a few months ago called ” Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington” by Terry Teachout.

Duke and his band were sent to the Soviet Union by the State Department on a goodwill tour in the 1960’s.  If there’s one language we all understand it’s music and Duke’s music was universal.

This was written in 1953 by Duke, Billy Strayhorn and Johnny Mercer.

Six Guitars

14 Monday Apr 2014

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Beach Boys, Beatles, Django, Duke Ellington, Grapelli, Guitars, jazz

I own six guitars.  Six of the best friends I have.

John Denver was my inspiration for buying the first guitar.  John and a woman named Kate who sang and played a red Gibson Hummingbird.

I met Kate at a party where she played and sang.  It was obvious to me how important music was to her. She was a sweetie.  I already owned the album ” Poems, prayers and Promises” by John Denver.  I bought  a Yamaha 12 string guitar and the sheet music to ” Take me Home, Country Roads.”  I played the song over and over again and learned to play by putting my fingers on the frets where the dots on the music said that I should.  That was in 1972.  Here we are some 44 years later and I still play that song.

I can’t not pick up my guitar and smile.  Pardon the convoluted negatives.  My guitar takes me to place that’s mine alone. It has good days and bad days completely independent of my mood.  Sometimes even a good guitar mood can’t get me out of a funk but that’s pretty rare.

The more relaxed I am the better I play.  Steve Goodman wrote in song lyrics that ” The words always sound so much sweeter when you smile.”  It’s that way with playing too.  if I’m smiling on the inside and the outside the guitar responds and the music is the beneficiary.

Since my folkie days I’ve drifted through rock and roll and jazz.  When someone asks me about my musical preferences i always say that I like to be at the corner where Duke Ellington intersects with Bob Wills and Django and the brothers Gershwin and Allman along with Stephane Grappelli, Kenny Rankin, The Beatles and The Beach Boys and Benny Goodman and Steve Goodman along with his buddy John Prine.

You know the old joke?

How many guitars does a guitar player need?

Just one more.

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