Let's Get to the Nitty Gritty

[Pete B]

I remember these ads in the back of comic books, yet I have never seen a copy of Grit, nor do I know anyone who has!

When I was a boy I had a friend who sold "GRIT". My mother subscribed for a year or two.

It was a nice little paper with a lot of appeal to a 10 year old in 1968. Human interest stuff, as I remember (and I am at that age where memory begins to be questionable).

Hey, it's still around, and on the web

Edited March 2, 2006 by Pete B

[Ken Dryden]

I actually do have a review copy of Let's Get to the Nitty Gritty on the way to me, though I don't know where my review will appear.

[Guy Berger]

D'OH

If it's any consolation, I also thought it was spelled "forward".

For what it's worth Zawinul never struck me as heavily influenced by Horace Silver. Maybe I should listen to his playing more closely. Chick Corea, on the other hand...

Guy

Edited March 2, 2006 by Guy

[makpjazz57]

Just received my copy of Let's Get to the Nitty Gritty today, Foreword (brief) and all! Looking forward to the end of my work day to begin reading.

Marla

[Hot Ptah]

[Hot Ptah]

Joe Zawinul is holding the box of apple juice above the state flag.

[Hot Ptah]

I read an excerpt from this book in the new issue of Jazz Times, about Silver's time with the Jazz Messengers. It was very interesting reading. If that is representative of the book, it will be worth going out to get.

[JSngry]

For what it's worth Zawinul never struck me as heavily influenced by Horace Silver. Maybe I should listen to his playing more closely.

I hear it most in his mid-period tenure w/Cannonball, the Capitol stuff that's mostly not yet been reissued. But it's more of a "conceptual" influence than a "specific" one.

[andybleaden]

hey - i missed this earlier and will be getting a copy of this when I have found my book tokens ...I just hope there is no great reprint of all those lyrics we used to see for his songs

[Lazaro Vega]

So everyone's noticed Horace's web site is up?

[Chuck Nessa]

[Ken Dryden]

I've finished reading it. Silver is generally upbeat throughout most of the book, with his wrath directed mainly at bootleggers and Tyrone Washington (whose actions while in Silver's band may help to explain his obscurity on record). There's a thorough discography, including some bootlegs and at least one broadcast which is circulating among collectors. I wish he had devoted a little more space to discussing some of the folks who worked with him. The editing is generally pretty good, though a number of misspelled names weren't caught.

Four and a half stars out of five in my book! Look for my review in an upcoming AAJNY issue and in AllAboutJazz.com afterward.

[bertrand]

I will eventually read this, but please tell us more about Tyrone Washington. I heard some bad stories, but they were much more recent.

Bertrand.

[Soul Stream]

I'm skipping around a bit in the book. Like the Grant Green book, it's nice to have anything that relates to these guys (and it's nice that it comes from Horace himself). However, I wish it were more detailed. His most famous units just get cursory acknowledgment, yet we get an earful about spiritual mediums and the like.

It's a nice book, because it's Horace. But details of the music and players are just not there.

[Dan Gould]

[lurk mode off]

I have not yet finished Horace's book but I'll share the following observations:

Its nice to get Horace's memories and observations, and for that the book is valuable. But I find the writing to be pedestrian at best with a lot of banal comments, like how much he misses his old bandmates. The last two books I read were the autobiographies of B.B. King and Ray Charles, both written with the assistance of David Ritz, and the difference is staggering. It sounds like Horace simply remembered what he felt like remembering/sharing and wrote his life story, while with Ritz as co-author, B.B. and Ray's life story truly to came to life and you felt (as both subjects have said) that you were listening to their voices telling their stories. That is what is missing in this book.

There is at least one very poorly edited section:

P. 97:

"Some of the musicians who worked with my quintet back in the first couple of years but never recorded with me were drummers Alvin Queen, Harold White, and Jeff Brillinger; tenor saxophonists Ronnie Bridgewater and Vincent Herring; bassists Chip Jackson, John Burr, Mike Richmond, and Will Lee; and trumpeters John McNeil, Dave Douglas and Barry Reese."

Unless Horace has had both Vincent Herring and Dave Douglas SENIOR in his band in the early years, this is a major "senior moment" that wasn't caught by anyone. I am not familiar with Horace's post-Breckers bands, but I am also wondering about Chip Jackson, and could Barry Reese actually be trumpeter Barry Ries? I seem to recall that he was in Horace's group, though again I could be wrong.

Bertrand, the gist of the Tyrone Washington commentary is:

He was humble at first but his head got big when he started getting compliments.

He would take the music "out" and that wasn't what Horace wanted. He'd tell him to play some funky stuff and he would but by the second or third time, he'd be taking the music out again.

He was very anti-white and would make anti-white comments out loud in clubs.

Horace got tired of it and when Tyrone and Woody and the drums and bass took the music out one time too many, he decided to fire the whole band.

Horace realized afterwards that its best to fire the one guy who is making trouble instead of everybody.

[ghost of miles]

Hey, welcome back, Dan--that was fast! Thanks for the early remarks on the Horace book... I'm hoping to pick this up sooner rather than later.

[Ken Dryden]

I also caught that time-sensitive goof on p. 97, though I didn't include it in my post. It was something the editor definitely should have caught, if he is as familiar with Silver's music as he states. It makes me think that he sat around recording Horace's commentary, then typed it up himself. That would also explain the misspelling of the names of Eddie Locke, Jon Burr, Charlie Lourie and several other folks.

I was surprised that Horace took the time to describe his first exposure to fart-lighting, something that would normally associated with bored 12 year old boys. That's one ritual I'm glad that I missed.

[skeith]

Interesting comments guys.

Dan- it is an autobiography right? So why is Horace referring to himself as Horace or are you paraphrasing? ( I am looking at the Horace "quotes" about Tyrone Washington from your earlier post)

Any other comments?

I am interested because I love the guy's music, but on the fence about the book.

Edited May 5, 2006 by skeith

[Dan Gould]

Dan- it is an autobiography right? So why is Horace referring to himself as Horace or are you paraphrasing? ( I am looking at the Horace "quotes" about Tyrone Washington from your earlier post)

I was paraphrasing. The quote at the top, about members of his band, was direct, but I was just trying to give the gist of what Horace wrote about the Tyrone.

FWIW, I noticed at least one other chronological error in describing band members, though I didn't add it or make note of it.

I'd still recommend it, but again after reading the ghost-written autobios of B.B. and Brother Ray, it is a disappointment. Had I been involved, I'd have really pushed Horace for many more stories.

[AllenLowe]

one of my books has a foreward - or maybe a foreskin - and it was written by Roswell Rudd -