randissimo

There's a great mountain biking trail near Hastings,, the Deep Lake Trails @ Yankee Springs...

10pm?? Don't you remember the one we did at the church March 20th? We start at 5:50pm and we're done at 7pm..

The July 17th Jazz Vespers gig is a go... Maybe you guys can come and hear us in church...

Yeah,, I really enjoyed their creations together.. What an interesting alchemy... Jack D of course is one of my all time favorites...

Ya gotta dig Roy Haynes !!! I first became aware of Roy Haynes"s greatness on Chick Corea's "Now He Sings, Now He Sobs" LP.. I had to find out who this rhythmic genius was! So I started buying any recordings I could find that he played on... He is also outliving a lot of the great masters... Roy has been on the scene since the 40's and is still healthy and going strong!

WORD... B)

We've been getting one bitchin' storm after another since Friday and there are still more to come!

I posted this story earlier on the other Elvin thread... In case you haven't read it here it is... One of the first times I heard Elvin was at the Jazz Showcase in Chicago... It was back in 1977 and a drummer I knew was there and half in the bag and grumpy because his old friend Ira Sullivan hired Wilbur Campbell instead of him to open for Elvin....So my grumpy friend just keeps getting drunker and grumpier... So by the time Elvin comes on, my friend becomes rather vocal.... Elvin starts the set with a 5 minute drum solo, followed by a slow burning blues. The next tune is another slow burner that goes on for about 10 - 15 minutes with another 5 minute drum solo.... When the tune is finally ended, my drunken friend yells up to Elvin, "Come on Elvin, stop bullshittin and take it upstairs ".... With the timing of Jack Benny, Elvin comes back with, "He's right,,,, it's time to take it to the mezzanine" . The room exploded in a roar of laughter and applause..... Then Elvin kicks off a blistering 8 bar intro and just burns for the rest of the set! That was an unforgettable night for me! And drummer Wilbur Campbell also played his ass off that night! I'll never forget that night!

One of the first times I heard Elvin was at the Jazz Showcase in Chicago... It was back in 1977 and a drummer I knew was there and half in the bag and grumpy because his old friend Ira Sullivan hired Wilbur Campbell instead of him to open for Elvin....So my grumpy friend just keeps getting drunker and grumpier... So by the time Elvin comes on, my friend becomes rather vocal.... Elvin starts the set with a 5 minute drum solo, followed by a slow burning blues. The next tune is another slow burner that goes on for about 10 - 15 minutes with another 5 minute drum solo.... When the tune is finally ended, my drunken friend yells up to Elvin, "Come on Elvin, stop bullshittin and take it upstairs ".... With the timing of Jack Benny, Elvin comes back with, "He's right,,,, it's time to take it to the mezzanine" . The room exploded in a roar of laughter and applause..... Then Elvin kicks off a blistering 8 bar intro and just burns for the rest of the set! That was an unforgettable night for me! And Wilbur Campbell also played his ass off that night! God Bless you Elvin and thank you so much for all the great music!

This morning I ordered "Youngblood". I found it in one of the 2ed hand stores of the net. I'm not sure where my dad got the info.... It could be that he got it from a questionable source.. If anyone gets an update please post it...

I just got an e-mail from my dad that Elvin Jones has passed away...

Here is the gist of that update, a note to JazzTimes from Adam Mansbach, co-author of Elvin Jones' forthcoming memoirs: I just called Keiko after reading your email. Elvin is alive and recuperating. I was at Yoshi's with him all week, and while he was weak and has lost weight (and had difficulty playing at some points), the whole experience was, for me, tremendously uplifting: To see him walk onstage with an oxygen tank and proceed to not only play an entire set, but also an amazing fifteen-minute solo while the room was being cleared (as he did on two of the nights) was truly inspiring. Set by set, there was a lot of variation in terms of Elvin's strength -- largely due to whether or not he had the oxygen with him, which he only did about half the time. A lot of the reports circulating have seemingly been from people who only saw one set and thus didn't really get a full picture. Elvin is certainly in very grave condition, but he's still full of tremendous love -- for the music and for life -- and that, along with his many friends and loved ones, seems to be keeping him going. --Adam Maren, thank you for the update... I needed to read that.

I just love this line by your Mom! Yeah,, me too My mother had an outstanding sense of humor..

For those members living in west Michigan who would like to attend one of the memorial events, here is the info... A memorial service will be held at Daystar Ministries, 2220 Three Mile Rd, NE, GR, Thursday, May 6th, at 1pm.. Afterwards, there will be an event to celebrate and honor the life of Mary Lou Marsh at Westgate Bowl Complex, 4489 Alpine, comstock Park, in the same room we had for the fund raiser last year. There will be live music in a good 'ol fashioned jam session format. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions will be appreciated to help with funeral expenses. May this great lady rest in peace.. Randy Marsh

Well put, maren. My feelings too. Again, I would like to thank all of my friends here on this beautiful board.. You all have helped give me the strength and comfort I'm going to need to face the upcoming week...

Thanks everyone for your support and concern...

Thank you Rainy Day.. BTW, I lived in Oakland from Dec '85 to Nov '89. I lived at 3000 Nicol st. For 2 of those years I was a member of the San Francisco Mime Troupe.

Mary Lou Marsh, my mother, passed away peacefully at around 9:35pm at age 74, with many family members and friends present... I was sitting next to her bed, with a nice tenor sax solo playing in the background when she took her last breath... We thought it only appropriate to have Jazz, the music she loved so much playing in her last hour, so I shmoozed the nurses into finding me a CD player.. while she was still breathing, I played one of her favorite ballads, "In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning" and held her hand.. Mom had been struggling with small cell cancer of the lungs since she was diagnosed in December of 2002. She is the one responsible for my love of Jazz and she had an outstanding sense of humor. I was sitting with her last Sunday night at the hospital watching TV... She caught me off guard saying, "That drummer on Conan O'Brien? He really sucks".. Mom always had jazz records playing around the house while I was growing up and also gave me my first drum lesson on the back of an Art Blakey album with a pair of brushes a drummer had left at our house. I was 13 years old at the time. May this great lady rest in peace..

HAPPY BIRTHNESS J G !! I'll see ya tonite at Vitale's

Word

Chrome, I somehow missed this post.... I have since 1968 been a big fan of the MC5. I used to go to a lot of their shows and thought at the time that they were the baddest rock n roll band in the US! That is a sad but interesting letter... I know Wayne Kramer has payed a lot of dues over the years... There's a great book on the history of the MC5 and the White Panther party written by John Sinclair. It's entitled, "Guitar Army"...

Impossible, Thanks for that great photo... I remember when you posted the news about Elvin... I think I might have responded with a story of seeing him in Chicago... Elvin has always been a great source of inspiration for me...

Cool,,, I'm glad things worked out.. I am also an avid rider... I have a Miyata racing bike but do mostly cross country mountain biking... When I ride the road bike it's usually on paved trails where the common problems are passing roller bladers and families with kids and strollers sprawled out over the pavement.... I don't ride much these days on roads and streets with motor traffic unless there is a wide paved shoulder or a bike lane..

2004, on the “Jazz Program List” site from Larry Applelbaum. “I saw Elvin last night at Yoshi's here in San Francisco.He could barely make it to the stage, his wife helping him sit and placing the sticks in his hand. Elvin had trouble hitting the drums but his time and sound was impeccable. His wife made an announcement that Elvin was obviously very sick and has been in the hospital for 3 months and she wanted him to spend his last moments, at his wish, behind the drums. He looked about like he weighed 75 pounds and was truly sick...it was one of the saddest moments of my life. I was so used to seeing him look fit, happy and powerful. The last number was announced, Dear Lord, and his wife asked us all to pray as she hugged him from behind the drums for the entire tune. I could not stop crying... Please send prayers to this legend, the great inspirational Elvin!" and this, from an unidentified doctor, is from the Latin Jazz site: I was really eager to see Elvin Jones, waiting to see the Black Thunder pounding those drums. The scenario was perfect, no mikes over the drums so I though "wow, he can really pound those drums, eh?". Well, the band came out (2 saxes, pianist and bassist) and the place went crazy but...no Elvin...and no Elvin...and no Elvin. After about 5 minutes of constant applause, Elvin Jones came out, couldn't walk and had to be helped by his wife and the band members. We were a group of physicians and nurses and we all looked at each other with the same expression in our faces "he is dying of heart failure". His wife gave him the sticks and the band started playing a bebop-like tune. It was quite an experience seeing him playing that night. The stick in his right hand (hitting the cymbal) kept slipping back and he needed to reposition it. He was certainly off, considering the timing of the tune. I couldn't see his left hand, but I could not hear any beats. Similarly with the hi-hat, I did not hear it all night long. As the performance continued, he looked more ill...in fact, he closed his eyes once, and grabbed his stomach as if he was in pain, and everybody in my group got up because we though that he was going to fall. He finally woke up and continued playing. He took one solo all night long, and basically what he did was to drop the sticks on the drum one at a time, at a very slow speed. He did not have the strength or energy to lift up the sticks from the drum fast enough. The band sounded great thought. I guess he is like Art Blakey and surrounded himself with the best young players available. The bassist kept the rhythm going all night long, working super hard and the pianist would take very long solos, as both sax players. Elvin could still swing at a very low speed, but was well complemented by the bassist and pianist. At the end of the performance, his wife whose name I couldn't catch, came out and said that Elvin Jones was very ill, dying from heart failure. She also said that he had not eaten anything that day but that she had fired his prior 3 physicians when they said that he was dying and decided to take care of things herself, booking him continuously until July (she also went on and on talking about medical insurances, doctors, etc) Elvin did not said a word all night long, and I actually wondered if was still coherent enough (which is a common, late event in patients with heart failure). He stayed there, sitting by his drums for about 20 minutes after the performance was over. We all gave him a standing ovation, I guess is the way of thanking him for what he has done. He did wave goodbye as he was helped out of the stage. We sent him our cards as there are some options for patients with advanced heart failure (which we happen to specialize in our group). I am not sure I can actually describe the feeling I had that night. The music was good, and seeing him on the drums made me happy and sad. Happy because I got to see him before the inevitable. Sad because somebody like him should be at home, spending the last few days of his life surrounded by family and friends. I know he also needs our support (income as his wife put it). I haven't heard anything about his health in the news, and patients with heart failure have good and bad days, but I can actually say that he is in bad shape, weakened by his illness (already cachectic). I will forever have the image of an elderly Elvin Jones playing the drums that night.” Very sad! A wonderful person who it has been my pleasure to spend time with on a number of occasions. Len Dobbin

I wonder who this guy could be ??