Curtis Amy

[Durium]

CURTIS AMY (1929-2002)

A Forgotten West Coast saxophonist.

Curtis Amy is one of those 1950s west coast saxophone players, original from Texas, who made a career in the film and pop music scene of the US in the bands of Ray Charles, but also performed as a member of the Doors and composer of the film music of Dirty Dancing. Thanks to some old fragments of a long forgotten TV-program you can learn that he was a great saxophone player ....

Curtis Amy - A Forgotten West Coast saxophonist.

Durium

[AndrewHill]

katanga! is great album!

[brownie]

His Mosaic Select is one of my very favorite from the series!

Wish Mosaic had gone to the box set format to include more sessions!

[porcy62]

His Mosaic Select is one of my very favorite from the series!

Wish Mosaic had gone to the box set format to include more sessions!

Yep, I hunt for Amy's vinyl since I got the Mosaic.

[Dan Gould]

Curtis deserves a lot of respect, but also accuracy in the details.

I don't think a session player becomes "a member of The Doors".

Frank Evans was the host of Frankly Jazz.

[sidewinder]

Gary Markas was the Director, I think. At least according to the TCB Films issue.

[Durium]

Curtis deserves a lot of respect, but also accuracy in the details.

I don't think a session player becomes "a member of The Doors".

Frank Evans was the host of Frankly Jazz.

Thanks Dan for pointing me to some details.

Durium

[Dave James]

Curtis deserves a lot of respect, but also accuracy in the details.

I don't think a session player becomes "a member of The Doors".

Frank Evans was the host of Frankly Jazz.

Thanks Dan for pointing me to some details.

Durium

As nearly as I can tell, Curtis Amy played on one Doors album (Soft Parade) and only on a single track, Touch Me.

[AllenLowe]

I thought he played a solo on Touch Me Babe -

on the Ed Sullivan Show.

or maybe he didn't. But I remember seeing it.

Anybody know?

Edited August 12, 2010 by AllenLowe

[Quincy]

I thought he played a solo on Touch Me -

on the Ed Sullivan Show.

or maybe he didn't. But I remember seeing it.

Anybody know?

Solo is around 2:30.

*Edited to add this is The Smothers Brothers Show. I believe the band was banned from Ed's show after keeping "higher" in the lyrics of "Light My Fire."

Edited August 12, 2010 by Quincy

[Dave James]

The Doors with strings? Some things work. Some things don't. This doesn't.

[Dan Gould]

Curtis deserves a lot of respect, but also accuracy in the details.

I don't think a session player becomes "a member of The Doors".

Frank Evans was the host of Frankly Jazz.

Thanks Dan for pointing me to some details.

Durium

Thanks Hans but there is one more edit to make. In the sentence after your identification of Frank Evans as host of the show, you need to remove "Gary" from the prior identification and replace it with "Frank".

Also, come to think of it, I am not sure if its fair to say this was a "US Network" program. Pretty sure it was limited to the L.A. market and I suspect it was partially supported by the jazz station that Evans worked at. But I am sure it wouldn't make sense to promote an LA radio station if the show was nationwide.

Oh, and you really should mention that the Frankly Jazz tunes are on the Uptown Dupree Bolton reissue Fireball.

[Quincy]

The Doors with strings? Some things work. Some things don't. This doesn't.

Given how drunk & drugged up Jim could be, I was kind of impressed how they pulled that off as it's not easy to play with horns & strings when it's not your usual thing. Maybe Robbie was got the black eye for messing up in practice.

[bertrand]

I think they were lip-synching.

Bertrand.

[sidewinder]

Also, come to think of it, I am not sure if its fair to say this was a "US Network" program. Pretty sure it was limited to the L.A. market and I suspect it was partially supported by the jazz station that Evans worked at. But I am sure it wouldn't make sense to promote an LA radio station if the show was nationwide.

Oh, and you really should mention that the Frankly Jazz tunes are on the Uptown Dupree Bolton reissue Fireball.

It was indeed an LA-area local programme and Dick Bock's Pacific Jazz Label also provided support (inc. artists), which is why you get the 'latest' Pac Jazz releases for the artists plugged on the shows. For example, Gerald Wilson on his show gets his 'latest' issue (either Moment Of Truth' or 'Portraits' - can't remember) plugged. True period piece !

Edited August 13, 2010 by sidewinder

[BFrank]

I picked up that Curtis Amy Select last year, but honestly haven't given it much time. I'll pull it out this weekend and take it for a spin.

[Quincy]

I think they were lip-synching.

I'm not sure if the singing is live or not. With The Who's "My Generation" from the Kids Are Alright Smothers Brothers appearance the music was pre-recorded but the vocal was live. I thought that might be happening here, but I'm not positive. (Duh, guess someone should Google & see, but not lazy me.) Even lip-synched the whole way, I'll still tip my hat to at least the director. Not too long ago I saw the famous Syd Barrett can't lip-sync so we'll pretend Roger Waters is singing video again, so anything looks good after that.

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

forgotten my foot, i knew about curtis amy before i knew about coltrane

[flat5]

Was it Jerry Southern in Downbeat that told how embarrassing in was for Mr. Amy in the army where in roll-call the names are reversed.

[Dan Gould]

Did no one watch the whole video? The last vocal chorus demonstrates conclusively that Morrison was singing live. And I like the whole performance, the strings definitely work, and I like the visual of the white guys in suits with the lone black guy in mod garb blowing the sax solo, visually and musically distinct from the background band.

[AllenLowe]

didn't watch the video, just remember seeing it when it was first on -

I saw the Doors a few times and they were the dullest rock band ever, in person.

Also, the first time I saw them (August '67 I think) opening for Simon and Garfunkel at Forest Hills - the guitarist wasn't playing the lead parts, which was painfully obvious for anyone watching closely enough - I mentioned this on a bulletin board some years later and caught lots of flak questioning the accuracy of my recollection and THEN - I was reading an article in Guitar Player some years later about Hollywood studio guitarists when, sure enough, one guy was noted as having travelled with the Doors and having played with them -

Lousy group, though Morrison wrote fairly well.

[Dan Gould]

All I know is that they recorded some great songs - I'd say along with CCR my favorite "hit makers" of the era, Non-Beatles Division.

[AllenLowe]

I actually prefer the records - in person there was just a deadness about the band.

[brownie]

Curtis Amy's widow is the great singer Merry Clayton who appeared on several of the most celebrated albums of the past decades. She is the singer who duets with Mick Jagger on the Rolling Stones 'Gimme Shelter'.

[Dave James]

I actually prefer the records - in person there was just a deadness about the band.

I saw the Doors once at an outdoor concert in Eugene. I remember two things. First, that Van Morrison was there with Them. Second, Morrison spent most of the time the band performed berating John Densmore's drumming. That proves he wasn't far enough out of it to recognize bad playing when he heard it. Densmore is right behind Dennis Wilson as my all-time least favorite drummer in rock. A genuine hack.