Close Encounters of the jazz kind?

[bertrand]

In the same spirit as the 'Faces And Places' thread...

Have you ever run into any jazz musicians in a 'civilian' context? After all, they need to go to the grocery store or the barber or take the subway like the rest of us.

This excludes:

1. Meeting a musician at a gig, obviously

2. Running into a musician that you know on a professional level, because you are a musician or a jazz researcher or someone in the field

Not to knock local musicians who are great, but I am thinking more of musicians known on an international level. I know a lot of D.C. musicians, and I've occasionally run into them in the Subway or on the street. However, the odds of running into the three I mention below are very small, especially since I saw them in D.C. and they live in the NYC area.

One example I remember from the old board: someone posted that they once ran into Dr. Lonnie Smith at Tower Records. Also, a guy from my office was from Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (in fact he moved back there) where the Turbanator lives, and I asked him if he ever ran into a guy with a turban and a cane and a beard. He said he had run into someone with that description at the beach!

Anyway, my three:

1. James Williams. I ran into him at Dupont Circle in D.C. one Sunday. I know him a little, and I know he has friends in D.C., so it wasn't unlikely. But he was just walking down the street...

2. I'm 99% sure I saw Ron Carter at the D.C. Zoo one Saturday about two years ago. He had that pipe...

3. One Friday night, I walk into the Borders' in Friendship Heights at the D.C./Maryland border and who do I see but Joe Chambers! I know he has a girlfriend in D.C. (she was with him). I would not have recognized him, except that I had just seen him play in Delaware a few weeks before.

My uncle, who is a doctor in St. Brieuc, France (and knows nothing about Jazz) has an amazing story. One time, he had to fly from Paris to his home and took a small chartered plane. The only other passengers were a few 'bizarre' African-Americans.

The next day, he was walking with his son who plays the trumpet and knows a little bit about Jazz. They stopped in front of a poster of Miles who was playing that night. My uncle said: 'that's the guy I just flew in with'. Imagine! Miles must have gotten a kick out of sharing a plane with probably the only person in France who had no clue as to who he was!

Any other stories?

Bertrand.

Edited July 28, 2003 by bertrand

[Rooster_Ties]

Good idea for a thread...

I saw Bobby Watson in the grocery store about 6 months ago. I know, now he sorta qualifies as being in that "local musican" catagory, in some ways. Kansas City is now his home, and he teaches full-time (for at least part of the year) at the conservatory at the University of Missiouri, Kansas City (UMKC).

BUT, still, he's known (in jazz circles) the world wide, and I saw him checkin' out stuff in the produce section.

Didn't say anything to him at the time. (Not sure what I would have said that wouldn't have sounded dorky, come to think of it. )

( Note to FFA, and anyone else from K.C. --- it was at the SunFresh store in Westport. )

Edited July 28, 2003 by Rooster_Ties

[Rooster_Ties]

This doesn't exactly qualify (probably not even close), especially since it isn't about a jazz musican, and it's about somebody that somebody else knows, and I don't even really know the intermediate 'somebody' all that well.....

But, anyway, Jason Moran told me once - after a gig - that a good friend of his ran into Bjork on a New York City street once. She was in the city for several weeks, recording stuff for an album of hers (probably her most recent one).

Jason - who has recorded at least two of Bjork's songs (himself, and with Greg Osby) - kept hoping to run into her himself, and he said he purposely walked by where his friend met Bjork, several times over the next couple weeks, with the hopes of meeting her. Never happened, alas...

[brownie]

I travelled to New York with my then 14-year old son in 1992. When we checked in at Newark airport for the flight back to Paris, I noticed several musicians waiting in line to board the

plane. They had their instruments with them. I recognized Roy Hargrove but later saw

Jackie McLean standing in another line. McLean was traveling to Paris with his Dynasty band

for several gigs including one at the New Morning club in Paris. One musician I did not know

took his seat on the plane next to me and my son in the economy section. Turned out to be Steve Davis. McLean traveled in the first class section.

At Charles de Gaulle airport McLean and his musicians gathered at the luggage checkout.

My son who knew I was in awe of McLean went to him and asked for an autograph.

McLean obliged in a very nice way.

I kept the autograph since my son was never really into jazz. He is more into classical

music nowadays.

Another time when flying back from New York/Newark to Paris, I saw Johnny Griffin waiting to

check in but did not see him aboard the plane.

[bertrand]

I guess the probability of running into them at an airport is higher! Of course, you even got to fly with Jackie Mac.

Did you chat with Steve Davis at all? He's a real nice cat.

I stayed in the same hotel as Jackie in St. Louis one week-end (as well as Billy Higgins, Richard Davis, Randy Weston, and Sonny Fortune). But that doesn't count, since we were all there attending a Miles Davis conference!

Bertrand.

[brownie]

Bertrand, chatted briefly with Steve Davis. Had no idea what his musical abilties were.

I found out later in the week when I heard the McLean Dynasty at the New Morning

and was impressed.

On the same close encounters subject, should have mentioned that I ran into Billie

Holiday at a Louisiana-cuisine restaurant called Chez Gaby's in the Montmartre section

of Paris back in 1958. Thought she was just beautiful.

Speaking of Paris restaurant I ran into Quincy Jones whom I had been acquainted with

when he was in town for a couple of years in the late '50s. That was several years

later. He gave me a warm welcome and a too warm welcome to the girl I was going out

with.

And they're not jazz but I ran into the full four Beatles back in 1963 at a party in Paris

where they had been invited but were not expected to show up. I was there with a

British girl who could not believe her luck.

Edited July 28, 2003 by brownie

[JohnS]

Roland Kirk leaning on the counter and listening to recordings by New Orleans clarinet players in Dobells Record shop in London in the 60s.

[J Larsen]

I've run in to several musicians in NYC record shops, but none of my encounters can top the time my girlfriend wound up on an airplane with James Brown and his entourage from LA to NYC. Not jazz, I know, but pretty damn cool.

[jlhoots]

I ran into Art Farmer & Jim Hall having lunch at a restaurant in New York when they had their quartet together (so you know how long ago that was).

[connoisseur series500]

Didn't say anything to him at the time. (Not sure what I would have said that wouldn't have sounded dorky, come to think of it. )

Now I'm sure all your shyness would have evaporated, RT, if that was Andrew Hill checking out the legumes!