Blakey vs. Baker

[Dave James]

With recent posts having to do with Art Blakey and Ginger Baker, I was reminded of a YouTube video with the two of them playing together in something resembling a "drum-battle."  WARNING: Crappy video.  

 

Edited October 11, 2019 by Dave James

[mikeweil]

10 hours ago, Dave James said:

With recent posts having to do with Art Blakey and Ginger Baker, I was reminded of a YouTube video with the two of them playing together in something resembling a "drum-battle."  WARNING: Crappy video.  

 

That was live broadcast on German TV. IIRC it was taped in Munich at the occasion of a Jazz Now Festival during the Olympics there. Blakey had an all-star band with guest Jeremy Steig, Stanley Clarke, and Tony Williams (!) which was great. All critics and viewers thought that Baker won by points because he was more creative and used Blakey's patterns as a base for his playing, while Blakey more or less threw his usuail repertoire of drum licks at him, as if he was asking "How about that?". Nice to see it again. 

There's an audio only track of a French performance of the group with Williams I mentioned:

 

Edited October 12, 2019 by mikeweil

[sidewinder]

There’s probably a potential thread to be had here on ‘Jazz and the Olympics’. I remember seeing on TV Maynard Ferguson doing a solo trumpet feature - must have been the Montreal Olympics. Either that or the Commonwealth Games in Edmonton.

[Steve Gray]

Elvin Jones as well

 

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/ginger-baker-elvin-jones/

[JSngry]