MILES DAVIS, GEORGE DUKE, STANLEY CLARKE, DONALD BYRD & MY FUNKY JAZZ PERIOD

In the 1980's before I got consumed and seriously overwhelmed with our classical, ballet and opera period where I changed direction in terms of the artists I was producing and presenting I was deeply involved in bringing major jazz and jazz rock/funk artists to the UK and Europe. This was a deeply satisfying time for me and great fun - it was a big step to move from "Bitches Brew" to "Swan Lake" but that's the way it went.

Miles Davis was significantly involved with changing the face of jazz and his transition from the music of the famous Quintet (Miles, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter and the brilliant Tony Williams) to his what I call "Funky period" and with the seminal album "Bitches Brew". Of course the transition didn't happen overnight  - Miles had been at his most creative in the early 70's - great albums like "In a Silent Way", "Quiet Nights", "Seven Steps to Heaven", "ESP", "Nefertiti" and so forth had been paving the way - but then his music stopped for awhile!

In my previous blog I wrote about the concerts I produced with MILES DAVIS at the Hammersmith Odeon but during the same period I got deeply involved in the music and brought to the UK and Europe a number of artists who were thrilling audiences everywhere with their own jazz/rock/fusion music.

The first artist in this genre I brought to London was DONALD BYRD who sold out three nights at the Hammersmith Odeon to standing ovations - the music was funky and raw but superb and Donald himself a joy to work with. I was truthfully stunned by the public interest in Donald - I had always loved his playing but the way the tickets flew out of the box office was quite amazing - London was buzzing and the interesting phenomenal.

I was so knocked out by the public's reaction that I almost immediately contracted and presented STANLEY CLARKE & GEORGE DUKE at the same venue - breathtaking techniques - stunning music that drove the sold out audiences crazy. This happened everywhere we presented them. 

Next in line was EARL KLUGH - a fine guitarist and he also performed brilliantly to a sold out audience - Earl was a different type of artists to Duke and Clarke - more gentle and sensitive but he communicated brilliantly with the people and I consider his concert to be one of the best.

During this period we were touring more traditional jazz artists like BUDDY RICH, Louie Bellson, Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Pass, Barney Kessell etc - but it was fascinating for me to hear a supreme artist like Buddy Rich playing his version of funky big band jazz - and it was brilliant as anyone who heard the band during that period will attest to. Listen to the album of Buddy "Mercy,Mercy, Mercy" - the band rocks (and swings) to the roof - fantastic - this band had my favourite alto player of all time in it - the great ART PEPPER.

The music was undoubtedly changing and of course had been for the past couple of decades or so - jazz always reaches out and pushes the boundaries - I was (and remain) passionate about the music of artists like John Coltrane, Don Cherry, Albert Ayler and others - but the beat had changed and it was inevitable that the pop/rock world would have its influence.

Artists did not want to be constrained by the traditional 4/4 or 3/4 swing mode - for me that was a sadness simply because some of the greatest music in the world had been created in this genre - you only had to listen to Miles "Kind of Blue" or "Four and More" to hear the greatest jazz musicians at the top of their game. Would the jazz/rock fusion provide the bedrock (no pun intended) for a continuation of this improvisational wonder called jazz?

We were also presenting artists such as the great TOM WAITS (I loved his writing and singing) as well as pop icon MICHAEL JACKSON but it was the jazz rock scene that fascinated me - we quickly brought back STANLEY CLARKE & GEORGE DUKE but this time with singer JEFFREY OSBORNE - fantastic concert. Other promoters such as my friend Barrie Marshall were also presenting similar artists like AL JARREAU - the scene was buzzing.

Looking back at that period I have say it was an amazing time and experience working with these incredible artists. - Having said this - I still feel that the move away from the essence of SWING into the funky/rock rhythms was understandable as the musicians wanted to extend the boundaries, but did it bring the quality and depth to their music? 

I want to quantify my comments by saying that what I write are only my personal opinions - but I believe that the jazz/rock/fusion era, which has continued up to today has NOT generated the same canon of great work that emerged from the 1920's through to the 60's - I accept that this is a massive generalisation, but in my humble opinion Miles Davis never climbed the heights of his earlier work again - to watch JOHN McGLAUGHLIN (whom we also presented) and SHAKTI, PAT METHENY, AL DIMEOLA, LEE RITENOUR, JACO PASTORIUS and all those other technically gifted players who have thrilled audiences throughout the world - was (and is) a wonderful experience - the music is pulsating and exciting and at times brilliant - but has it produced the quality of work that we have been gifted from the jazz masters of an earlier generation - I do not think so!! I welcome your own thoughts and comments.

The technical ability of todays musical geniuses is undoubtedly astounding - but where is the individuality? Lets look at some examples - when you listen to Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Stan Getz or Sonny Rollins on tenor saxophone - you can immediately tell who is playing - take the drummers - when Gene Krupa, Buddy Rich, Ray Bauduc, Louie Bellson, Art Blakey, Tony Williams, Elvin Jones, Roy Haynes as examples played, we knew exactly who they were - Pianists - you knew instantly when Art Tatum was playing or Oscar Peterson and you could never confuse them with Bill Evans or Errol Garner could you? Joe Pass played completely differently to Tal Farlow, Charlie Byrd or Wes Montgomery - but today - can you tell one musician from another?

I am not criticising today's players - I love artists such as Brad Mehldau, Keith Jarrett, Pat Metheny or Branford Marsalis and there will always be exceptions to the rule - but you have to admit that there is a need for more individuality today - technique can never be everything - as Miles said its what you don't play that counts (or words to that effect)

Will we ever hear again the likes of Stan Getz or Lester Young? Art Pepper or Sonny Stitt or Johnny Hodges - what about Louis Armstrong, Roy Eldridge and Dizzy Gillespie? All of them instantly recognisable and sublime :)

OK enough rambling - but I loved the days when Miles, Stanley, George, Donald and Earl rocked the stages of London and Europe - I had a ball and was so thrilled to be a part of their on-stage success - my future for the next fifteen or so years was to the sound of a different beat - that of Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Mussorgsky and Tchaikovsky - later it was Beyonce and Shakira but its all music and as Duke Ellington said " there are only two types of music - Good and Bad"