Ethan Iverson interviews Ron Carter

[7/4]

"I'm not sure I understand, are you trying to say he's a jerk or something? What exactly are you getting at?"

sorry, my mistake; I thought we were talking about Jimmy Carter -

Oddly enough, when I think of Jazz, I never think of Ron Carter or Jimmy Carter.

[Chuck Nessa]

Well.......................I think he's a complete asshole and his playing drives me nuts.

One time while asking Benny Carter about his desires for a big band we were assembling for him, Benny said "you always do fine - just don't hire Ron Carter".

[jlhoots]

Well.......................I think he's a complete asshole and his playing drives me nuts.

One time while asking Benny Carter about his desires for a big band we were assembling for him, Benny said "you always do fine - just don't hire Ron Carter".

Ouch!!!

[marcello]

Tough Crowd! (just like Ron Carter)

This is a good one:

Stay away from Mr. Bow Tie!

I have a friend who hired him for his trio record. Ron refused a rehearsal and when my friend wanted to do a second take of the first song they played, Ron said "No, I don't do second takes"... and that was that. The record came out fine, though.

I have another friend who toured and recorded with him. He complained that the music lacked a certain, let's say, visceral intensity. He was treated and compensated very well though.

[ep1str0phy]

No opinion on Carter as a man, running hot and cold on his playing (though I've often found Carter, especially in the presence of a "polite" drummer, dense but unjovial, frequently indifferent), but that Adams/Sims date is great. A lot of that, of course, is due to Elvin, but Sims and Tommy Flanagan, in particular, come across in the album's harmonically adventurous territory surprisingly and uncharacteristically (in the best sense of that term) well.

[JSngry]

I'd feel better about Ron Carter playing the Personal Bitch Card if he played the Musician Bitch Card more often.

[Tom Storer]

MANY of us will tell you that, as a player Ron Carter fell

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay... the

fuck

off

a long time ago.

That his presence on a record does not guarantee exciting music is clear, and many of his own records are not inspired. So be it. However, I saw a videotaped performance of Carter with his trio (Jacky Terrasson and Russell Malone) in 2006 that was very, very fine. I wouldn't write him off.

[CJ Shearn]

I have heard constantly that Ron is a jerk, but I love his liners for I think, the single disc of Miles' "My Funny Valentine". I can't comment on his personality all I know is I like the way he grooves, on stuff like Roberta Flack's version of "Compared to What".

[Shawn]

Where is Sangrey's review of that Ron Carter Bach album when you need it.....??? One of the best album reviews OF ALL TIME!

[AllenLowe]

Ron Carter? I thought we were talking about the Magna Carta -

[paul secor]

Don't care much for his playing, and don't care much about what he's got to say.

[Big Al]

I could see where some might find his comments a little sharp...but honestly, he sounds like a guy that's been around the block, thousands of times more than most of us have. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

My thoughts exactly.

[AllenLowe]

not so sure - I'll bet he was just as obnoxious when he was 12 years old -

I mean, that crap about "I don't do second takes" - give me a break - if I had been the leader I would have fired him on the spot and refused to pay - no kidding - guys like him get away with that shi* because everybody's afraid to stand up to them -

[Larry Kart]

MANY of us will tell you that, as a player Ron Carter fell

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay... the

fuck

off

a long time ago.

That's my impression, too, but then I haven't listened to a whole lot of Carter records -- his own or ones on which he's been a sideman -- since maybe the CTIs he was on that seemed to call for attention. When did the fall off occur and what were its manifestations? About the latter, IIRC his sound got kind of semi-artificially gross (thanks in part to new ways/styles of recording the instrument that were horrendous IMO -- I have nightmares about listening to Eddie Gomez), he developed self-indulgent habits of accentuation (perhaps in response in part to how he was being recorded), and didn't his intonation begin to wobble as well?

[JSngry]

Yeah, the pitch began to get weird sometimes. Not Rufus Reid weird, but still...

And yeah, his use of "personal devices" increased exponentially over time, if you know what I mean (and why it bugs me), and I think you do.

Can't take away from the fact that the guy is still a stone motherfucker of a bass player when he wants to be. But having to add "when he wants to be" to that sentence says it all, I think.

[sal]

He played in what was arguably Miles' greatest group, and was a crucial part of that sound. Just because of the fact that those records exist renders me incapable of saying anything bad about the guy. I even found myself a couple weeks back defending his cello playing on "The Quest", which isn't an easy thing to do.

[danasgoodstuff]

Hey, he's nowhere near the asshole that Miles could be, but then he's nowhere near the motherfucker (in a good sense) that Miles could be either.

[Simon Weil]

This is one of those threads that's guaranteed to create conflict. Bit like the over-rated/under-rated threads or the Cuscuna thread we had recently. 'Nough conflict in the outside world in my opinion.

I mean, unless you're actually trying to do something real that is.

Simon Weil

Edited June 21, 2007 by Simon Weil

[bluesoul]

Iverson interviews Carter again:

http://dothemath.typepad.com/dtm/word-association-with-ron-carter.html

[mjzee]

Great interview; thanks for posting. I like EI's interviews much more than his music. Reading it, I couldn't help think of the Keith Jarrett thread... Jarrett, Carter and Joey Baron would be an interesting trio. Just sayin'.

[CJ Shearn]

Great interview! That's the level of interview I want to get to someday, that deep.

[Guy Berger]

I enjoyed reading this as well.

[bluesoul]

New release from Iverson with Ron Carter and Nasheet Waits:  The Purity of the Turf  on Criss Cross Jazz.

[Dave Garrett]

Ron Carter picks 10 faves from his 2,200 recordings

[mjzee]

4 hours ago, Dave Garrett said:

Ron Carter picks 10 faves from his 2,200 recordings

Thanks for posting.  I loved this: One time I played a note on the last measure of the song to go back to the top of the tune. It was a note he didn't expect to hear, and as we were playing behind George he walked by and said, "What was that note?" I told him it was a B natural, the third of G dominant 7 going back to C minor, and I can't talk while I'm playing so don't ask me any more questions.