david weiss

You know, coming from a rock backround and other varied influences before I got into Jazz, hearing all the electric Miles stuff wasn't that big of a leap for me and I loved most of it upon first listen especially On The Corner, Big Fun, Get Up With It and Live Evil. Perhaps the only ones I didn't absolutely love were Agartha and Pangea. I wasn't really influenced by all the world influences in this much but loved the grooves and of course Miles' playing on top of them. The "Lost Quintet" of 1969 is the music that has had the strongest impact on me though. The energy they bought to the music is some of the most intense playing I've probably ever heard from any band rooted in Jazz and this is the energy I'm going for in my new group. The music itself might not be as strong of an influence but the power and impact of how this music is presented is how I want to my stuff to come off. We don't seem to be in an era where most are trying to bring it like this and I miss that. I do have to admit that some of Belden's projects come the closet I've heard to this (not Miles in India though) but while Tim Hagans is an amazing trumpet player, I never thought he was right for this (but maybe no trumpet player is, big shoes to fill)

So much to comment on here....and so many of you guys are dead on with your observations. First, that is a big drop in sales from 2007 to 2008 but there can be a lot of factors involved in that drop. There is the Kenny G factor where back in the day, jazz sales would double in a year Kenny G had an album out. Now maybe Chris Botti does this. It could also be that with the major labels dropping out like they have been this drop is a reflection of their putting out a lot less product from one year to the next and maybe to a lesser extent, no Miles Davis box set and that there isn't a lot left out there to reissue. As for the nothing to buy argument, I'm not buying that one. There is a lot of great music being released these days and I'm a pretty tough critic. There is always plenty of new stuff I'm interested in checking out. That is one aspect of this site I wish was more active and that there would be more discussion in the new release forums. There is a lot of new stuff coming out, probably too much and sites like this can be invaluable in sifting through all the crap and finding the solid, interesting stuff and the few gems that do come out. The problem to me has always been this; CDs are too expensive and always have been. All new products and mediums are expensive when they first introduced to the public but if they are accepted into the mainstream, the prices are lowered to more acceptable levels for the masses. This never happened with CDs. Everyone got a little greedy. Soon people who just wanted to get their favorite hit single had to pay $16.99 for the whole CD (that CD single thing never worked) and that created Napster and on and on until where we are today. I was tempted to start a thread about this but got too busy. When the Union Square Virgin in New York closed a while back I went there a few times as they were in my neighborhood. From what I could see, it looked like they sold well over half of their stock at 40% off. At 50% off, at least 70% and maybe as much as 80% of their stock was sold. This is when I bought some CDs as well. I got the new Corea/McLaughlin 2 CD set for $10 and bought a couple of Criss Crosses, the new Dave Holland Sextet CD and a Graham Collier 2 CD set. A week later at 80% off, the place was still mobbed and I found another 5 or 6 CDs I was curious about and was willing to take a risk and get them at $4 a pop new. One thing I found interesting was there were about 30 or 40 CDs left in jazz section at the end and 10 of them were the Aaron Parks Blue Note CD. So, if you can sell more than half your store and it is a huge store at 40% off, isn't that a pretty clear indication that there is a market out there and that it's just that these fuckers are too expensive. In the US, I generally sell my CDs at gigs for $10. That seems fair to me and I'm not selling myself short. The funny thing is sometimes people insist on giving me $15 or $20 for them anyway. It is also clear that CDs are way too expensive in Europe and in Japan. As much as I love browsing in stores, if I lived there, I would probably buy most of my stuff on-line.

CD Trader in Tarzana is good, I always find stuff there and reasonably priced.

Perhaps. I don't think that comparing the Miles/Miller collaborations to the Miles/Evans ones are completely irrelevant. Even with the obvious chronlogical, sociologial, and technological differences, there's a lot that remains similar, not the least of which is Miles lending himself to be the lead voice in an environment created by somebody else, although completely with him in mind, and with his input along the way. Marcus Miller deserves a lot of credit for creating these tracks, as intersting, challenging and varied as they are, just as Miles deserves credit for inspiring them and how he interpreted them in the studio and especially, as you note, live. To me, this is vital contemporary (then and now) music of a quite high esthetic. The one adjustment I've ahd to make to get more into the music is that of the "digital" recorded sound. It's too easy (and I say this from experience) to let the color of the recorded sound color one's perception of the content of the music. Maybe that's why the live material speaks more immediately and fullfillingly to some of us? I think the comparisons between Evans and Miller are apt and I remember having such conversations when these recordings were released calling them the Miles/Gil albums of the '80s. I always thought they were more Marcus Miller's albums than Miles' but that is probably overstating things a bit. Let's just say, to me at least, that Marcus created the best atmosphere for Miles to function in at that period of his life. I think they are beautiful records.

Not that I really care but if I were to suspect someone of juicing, Papi would be on that list. Playing at Fenway helped but he was so mediocre as a Twin. That said, I don't think there is any drug that gives you that ability to come through in the clutch like he did. I'm bothered by the whole leaking of these confidential tests. They were supposed to be confidential and I think it is probably a crime to leak this information but nobody is touching that. Yes, perhaps if you cheated you should be outed but if the tests where taken under the conditions of anonymity then that should be protected at all costs. It's not fair that just a few have been leaked and of course it's just some of the stars so this whole process is smelly. Lawyers working on these cases are leaking this stuff, is that right? The Bonds thing is ridiculous, he tested negative but the government seized the sample and tested it themselves and got a positive test? There is just something flat out wrong about that. I'm tempted to totally contradict myself and say that at this point you might as well release all the names as fair is fair and maybe this will dilute the attention from the few that were outed but ultimately the outing of any of these players is a result of what essentially is criminal behavior and I'm always a little scared when government agencies and other agencies of power operate outside of the law to get what they want.

There was just a piece abut Lenny on one of those HBO sports shows recently. In it he said he didn't owe anyone anything of course. He got his first big windfall selling his chain of car washes for millions. He lived the life too since then, 10 million dollar plus house, fancy cars etc. and was quite successful investing etc until the stock market tanked and it hit him hard but he basically ignored the warning signs etc. He was asked in the interview how he figured all this finance stuff out to initially make all this money and Lenny answered, invest with me and I'll show you. Mind you this was while he was already being sued and owed all these folks money......

Thought we'd try this once at least...... Hope some of you can make it Iridium Jazz Club presents Hubtones: The Music of Freddie Hubbard Bobby Hutcherson- Vibraphone (June 12-14) Nicholas Payton- Trumpet (June 11 and 12) Curtis Fuller- Trombone (June 13 and 14) James Spaulding- Alto Sax Craig Handy- Tenor Sax (June 11-13) Javon Jackson- Tenor Sax (June 14) David Weiss- Trumpet George Cables- Piano (June 11 and 12) Mulgrew Miller- Piano (June 13 and 14) Dwayne Burno- Bass Lenny White- Drums (June 11 and 12) Louis Hayes- Drums (June 13 and 14) Thursday- Sunday, June 11-14 at Iridium Jazz Club 1650 Broadway (at 51st Street) (212)582-2121 http://www.iridiumjazzclub.com/ Sets at 8:30 and 10:30 pm

Damn Jim, how old do you think I am..... I did one Japanese tour with the band in December 1995 and none of those guys were there. I knew Johnny Coles did the band but didn't know that Don Wilkerson did it and I don't know Mark Van Sickle. Rudy had already done the band for years when I did it and the other tenor player (Al something I think) was there for a while as well so I don't know when Wilkerson could have done it but it was long before I made my brief appearance. The only guys that were there when I was that seemed to have been there for a while where the two tenor players, the alto player/music director (Al Jackson was his name I think) and the organ player (I think his name was Earl). I guess it's all a blur to me at this point. NTSU alumni James Farnsworth was in the band at the time. I left NTSU in 1986 by the way.....

Actually according to what I've heard from various sources, at some point Alfred did pay guys for rehearsals.....

I worked with Rudy in Ray Charles' band. Rudy was there for years I believe. I heard he passed away a few years ago but I'm not entirely certain. I used Doug Sides on a Cookers gig last year. He does live in Germany and he did sound great on the gig.

Well, we asked him to speak....I don't expect he'll play Below is a more updated list " To Freddie With Love " The Freddie Hubbard Memorial Please join Freddie's widow Briggie, his son Duane, his musical director and friend David Weiss as well as: Donald Byrd, Cedar Walton, Louis Hayes, Charles Tolliver, Gary Bartz, Slide Hampton, Jimmy Heath, Billy Harper, Joe Chambers, Wallace Roney, Buster Williams, Lenny White, Stanley Crouch, Randy Brecker, Javon Jackson, Christian McBride, Carl Allen, Reggie Workman, Joe Lovano, George Cables, Russell Malone, Jeremy Pelt, Vincent Herring, Larry Ridley, Killer Ray Appleton, Howard Johnson, George Coleman, Jimmy Owens, Pete "LaRoca" Sims, The New Jazz Composers Octet (David Weiss, Myron Walden, Jimmy Greene, Steve Davis, Norbert Stachel, Xavier Davis, Dwayne Burno, and E.J. Strickland) along with many others- the list is getting longer each day... Date: Monday May 4th Time: 6:30 pm - 9:30 pm Place: The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine 1047 Amsterdam Avenue New York, New York 10025 The Cathedral is located at 112th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, one block east of Broadway. The Jazz Foundation took care of Freddie during his times of illness. A tax deductible donation can be made in his name to the Jazz Foundation of America. Aside from helping to make this possible, you will be saving hundreds of great artists in crisis. 1600 emergency cases a year. Saving jazz and blues... One musician at a time. The family asks that donations be made in Freddie's name to the Jazz Foundation of America: Donations online: www.jazzfoundation.org or make checks payable: Jazz Foundation of America 322 West 48th Street 6th floor New York City 10036 Attn: In honor of Freddie Hubbard Special thanks to St. John the Divine for all they are doing to make this possible.

Well the lie thing..... I don't have a big problem with musicians lying to themselves so much, that self-delusion can be motivating. If they believe they are doing something and continue to work hard fueled by that belief than hey, more power to them. If you want to dress like it's 1948 as well then, I don't know, as long as your happy I guess. The problem to me are the ones who believe their own press without the slightest hint of irony and act accordingly. Ego is a tricky thing but if you are not smart enough to take all the attention with a grain of salt and not let it deter you from whatever path you originally were on then you deserve whatever inevitable downturn in attention you get. Hype giveth and hype taketh away. There are few exceptions but eventually they will stop writing about you unless you continue (or begin) to be interesting. If your star was made by record labels and publicists and you believe the hype and get lazy or stop growing then there won't be much to cushion your fall from grace. One of the ironies of this is that many of the second generation of young lions are just coming into their own now, most of them ten years removed from their last record on a major label. As for the college thing, me and Freddie Hubbard used to have this argument often and it started on during an on air interview at a college radio station. He didn't think going to school to learn jazz was useful or helpful in any way mostly I think because the folks who did this, came out with no personality of their own in his opinion. My argument was that this was perhaps true to a point but if you had the talent and you were going to get it, that you would get it despite the perceived harm studying at a college would do. I think he might be right though at this point though there are exceptions of course. I see a lot of young guys who seem to absorb the language of this music very quickly, some at an amazing rate actually but then as Jim said, they don't ultimately know what to do with it (or even know they are supposed to do something with it). How do you learn to be a bandleader if you've never worked in a band with a true bandleader. Now there are some with a real conception that have a strong enough vision to pull something off but this is rare. If you have enough talent or a look or something to get signed by a record company at a young age and you've never really led a band before but now you have 50- 100 dates a year as a leader and some at major jazz festivals, do you figure something out and grow into the role or do you just get a little better because you have some talent and you are playing more often. Do you develop a group sound because you are able to use the same guys for all these gigs or does your group just sound a little better because you have all these gigs together and can't help but improve a little bit but you have no real great bandleading skills or real group conception so you probably can't soar to the heights that a group with a strong conception and purpose would do with the same amount of work. Does it work anyway because of the press and the hype and because there aren't that many killing acts on the same program to put this to shame. Is that as big of a problem for the public perception of this music as J@LC?

Well, maybe..... I think if you are going to play in an older style (which is just about every style by now) than you should play with the best musicians from that era. That's what I miss about the apprenticeship system and makes me ask this question. If you played with Art Blakey, Elvin Jones, Tony Williams or Horace Silver for a few years than does this make that music your native language even if you came up in another era. I don't see the point of playing music from another era with my peers or subsequent generations (except at jam sessions I guess but that's more about exercise for me) but I do play in a group with Billy Harper, Eddie Henderson, George Cables, Cecil McBee and Billy Hart on a regular basis. If I live and breath this music with these guys (and also working with Freddie Hubbard and Charles Tolliver) is it my native tongue or am I just getting more fluent in a foreign language even if playing with these guys helps me develop my own voice. If I take these lessons and experience and apply them to my bands with my own original conception and my own compositions does it make my work less original because of my experience with these guys? I'm not sure I can convince myself of anything but the point is I think, is to get there, whatever that there is and there are many paths to this, some that might take you off in the wrong direction but again as long as you get there eventually that should be good enough, no?

I feel I can comment on the Dorham part of this a bit.... As a trumpeter, I think if you are going to play in the be-bop/hard-bop element or at least master it's language than Kenny Dorham harmonically is about the most important trumpeter to study. I certainly transcribed him more than anyone else in college. Early Dorham had elements of Gillespie and Navarro and probably Miles but it gets blurry at times as to who is learning from who as except for Gillespie, they all seem to have common traits that can be attributed to any of them though Navarro is probably the strongest influence. Any trumpet player I ever talked to from that era (mostly Tommy Turrentime) were most in awe of Navarro. To me, and I can be wrong about this but Kenny Dorham seemed to come into his own when he was in Max Roach's band with Sonny Rollins. Suddenly you hear him being much more harmonically complex and using tri-tone subs to greater effect and basically turning into the Dorham that you hear for the next ten years or so. It could be a coincidence or timing, perhaps he just got certain things together during this time or perhaps hanging with Rollins opened him up a bit (remember, Dorham started on tenor sax, which might have something to do with his conception as well). I think Dorham's unique tone had developed way before this, certainly by his first records under his own name and when he was with Art Blakey but the harmonic complexity came later and my theory is the Rollins influence might have had a hand in this. Or maybe people just develop at different paces. Almost everyone from that period started out sounding like someone else. I guess it's just a matter of how fast you got away from that and developed your own voice.

sorry, my typo - fixed above. no relation to Strata East, then? Don't know the exact details but it was to be a partnership of sorts. Strata was first and Strata East was to be the East Coast leg of the organization. It never panned out though they kept the Strata-East name. The Detroit folks would know better than me but Cox and company apparently put on a lot of concerts, bringing out all the heavyweights from New York in the late '60s early '70s. I believe Tolliver and Music Inc performed there and that was the start of this. A shame about Kenny. I spoke to him a few times and he was a really sweet and helpful guy. The band of course was incredible but we've talked about this before I believe...... I have the Strata LP of the group, looser and more electric than the Blue Notes....

This is absolutely not true. I just spoke to his wife less than an hour ago upon her return from the hospital (which I do almost every day). He's still alive and kicking. Not much change in his condition at this point.

Go to this page http://www.organissimo.org/forum/index.php...mp;#entry859576 and see how you can donate to a good cause and receive a copy of this CD as a bonus........

Last one I could find.....

Here's another... Lee didn't make this one however and Joe Newman subbed and according to Freddie, kicked ass.

That might explain why Jackson wasn't doing David Weiss' Golden Boy/Blakey Tribute show last weekend in New York then! Enjoy the show, Mike! Actually Jackson did do the Golden Boy thing but had to miss the night you were there to play with Les McCann at the Kennedy Center is Washington DC. Right after our gig he was off to Europe to join Ceder. Not a bad life I think.

Actually this is the personnel from our first CD from 1999 or 2000..... The group on this CD is David Weiss, Xavier Davis, Dwayne Burno, Nasheet Waits, Myron Walden, Jimmy Greene, and Steve Davis. If you are not familiar with Myron Walden and Jimmy Greene, I strongly recommend you check them out on something.

and another... I only have the trumpet ones scanned. I'll get to the others when I have a minute....

and another.....

Here's one.....

Thanks for the kind words Larry. The Cookers is a great experience for me and a lot of fun and quite intense but I do like to have my own stuff checked out as well.