Keith Jarrett on a Rant

[Patrick]

...or last.

[Chalupa]

Another Jarrett rant from last Friday night....

http://www.mercurynews.com/entertainment-headlines/ci_14720066?nclick_check=1

Review: Keith Jarrett keyboard genius puts on extended solo concert temper tantrum

By Richard Scheinin

rscheinin@mercurynews.com

Posted: 03/20/2010 06:36:37 PM PDT

Updated: 03/21/2010 03:42:43 AM PDT

SAN FRANCISCO — Keith Jarrett stepped onstage Friday at Davies Symphony Hall to thunderous and worshipful applause. Spot-lit, he made a deep emptying Buddha-bow toward his 2,700 fans in the sold-out hall, then sat down at the at the piano for a solo recital. The ritual was about to begin.

Quietly, he launched a free-form improvisation, flicking fingers at keys, building sounds from scratch, making them denser and rumblier, adding in right-handed squiggles like Jackson Pollack paint splatterings. Then someone coughed.

Uh-oh.

[Dan Gould]

I'd pay $90 to get a front row seat to drive that POS bat-shit insane with my carefully placed coughing.

[GregK]

I'd pay $90 to get a front row seat to drive that POS bat-shit insane with my carefully placed coughing.

You think front row seats are only $90??

EDIT: Wait, I read the article now. Never mind.

Edited March 21, 2010 by GregK

[WorldB3]

Another Jarrett rant from last Friday night....

http://www.mercurynews.com/entertainment-headlines/ci_14720066?nclick_check=1

Review: Keith Jarrett keyboard genius puts on extended solo concert temper tantrum

By Richard Scheinin

rscheinin@mercurynews.com

Posted: 03/20/2010 06:36:37 PM PDT

Updated: 03/21/2010 03:42:43 AM PDT

SAN FRANCISCO — Keith Jarrett stepped onstage Friday at Davies Symphony Hall to thunderous and worshipful applause. Spot-lit, he made a deep emptying Buddha-bow toward his 2,700 fans in the sold-out hall, then sat down at the at the piano for a solo recital. The ritual was about to begin.

Quietly, he launched a free-form improvisation, flicking fingers at keys, building sounds from scratch, making them denser and rumblier, adding in right-handed squiggles like Jackson Pollack paint splatterings. Then someone coughed.

Uh-oh.

He did do five encores so at least people got their money's worth.

I contemplated going but didn't due to the price and the risk of getting verbally abused. I will buy his CD's but I won't give him concert money.

[RDK]

Jarrett's been one of my favorite pianists for nearly 30 years now, and I finally got to see him live (with his trio) last year. I figured I had to do it once, and it was a perfectly great show, but I came armed with a pocketful of cough drops and I have to admit I was a bit nervous about coughing during his performance and "ruining" it. He seemed to be in a good mood that night, though, and (maybe because he was with the trio) the few audience sounds didn't appear to bother him. But I'm with WorldB3: I'll still buy his discs and cherish his music but it's too expensive and stressful (for me!) to see him in person again.

[Son-of-a-Weizen]

Another Jarrett rant from last Friday night....

http://www.mercurynews.com/entertainment-headlines/ci_14720066?nclick_check=1

Review: Keith Jarrett keyboard genius puts on extended solo concert temper tantrum

By Richard Scheinin

rscheinin@mercurynews.com

Posted: 03/20/2010 06:36:37 PM PDT

Updated: 03/21/2010 03:42:43 AM PDT

SAN FRANCISCO — Keith Jarrett stepped onstage Friday at Davies Symphony Hall to thunderous and worshipful applause. Spot-lit, he made a deep emptying Buddha-bow toward his 2,700 fans in the sold-out hall, then sat down at the at the piano for a solo recital. The ritual was about to begin.

Quietly, he launched a free-form improvisation, flicking fingers at keys, building sounds from scratch, making them denser and rumblier, adding in right-handed squiggles like Jackson Pollack paint splatterings. Then someone coughed.

Uh-oh.

Jarrett stood up and wandered away from his instrument and over to a microphone to complain about audiences everywhere; they just cannot stop coughing when he tries to play softly for them. "Even the Japanese have started to cough. That's how weird it is."

As far as the Japanese patrons, could he be confusing coughing with snoring? Those red flights are a killer.

[7/4]

Sounds like people are paying the $$$ just to cough and see if he flips out.

Get yer "I made Keith Jarrett flip out because I coughed!" shirts now!

Edited March 22, 2010 by 7/4

[papsrus]

I wonder if he'd be OK if you just let out the occasional moan and wail?

[Dave James]

If the making of inappropriate and ill-timed noises flips him out, wouldn't the person most likely to make Jarrett crazy be Jarrett himself?

Edited March 22, 2010 by Dave James

[Big Beat Steve]

If the making of inappropriate and ill-timed noises flips him out, wouldn't the person most likely to make Jarrett crazy be Jarrett himself?

Selective deafness, I guess ...

[AllenLowe]

I always thought he was just having sex while playing the piano -

[WorldB3]

Jarrett's been one of my favorite pianists for nearly 30 years now, and I finally got to see him live (with his trio) last year. I figured I had to do it once, and it was a perfectly great show, but I came armed with a pocketful of cough drops and I have to admit I was a bit nervous about coughing during his performance and "ruining" it. He seemed to be in a good mood that night, though, and (maybe because he was with the trio) the few audience sounds didn't appear to bother him. But I'm with WorldB3: I'll still buy his discs and cherish his music but it's too expensive and stressful (for me!) to see him in person again.

It's too bad that its lost on Keith that when he goes on one of his rant's he ruins it for the people who love him, pay a lot of money and who don't cough!

Edited March 22, 2010 by WorldB3

[Chuck Nessa]

I always thought he was just having sex while playing the piano -

Funny you should say that. Once when I saw him he kept coming off the bench and shoving his pelvis at the piano. After numerous thrusts, I turned to Ann and said "he can't hit the keyhole".

[kenny weir]

I saw him he kept coming off the bench and shoving his pelvis at the piano.

I betcha he can't do that as good as Fats Domino!

[thedwork]

from everything i've seen, heard, and read, jarrett seems to be nothing if not a totally fucking pretentious jackass who is completely full of himself. being a great artist is never a license to act like an asshole. he, and his enablers, seems to believe it is. they're wrong. and this latest article is the worst yet that i've heard of in terms of jarret's "diva-don't-dare-cough-at-my-concert-spiritual-higher-plane-genius-gifted-artist-my-world-you're-privileged-to-just-be-here" vomit. people like him make the world a worse place. he can sit on it and rotate.

[kenny weir]

OK, so I finally got 'round to reading that review.

All's I can say is that after all this time, anyone who pays good money to see Jarrett has little ground for complaint.

I liked a couple of the reader comments: 1. Duct tape! 2. Jarrett ain't that good.

Can anyone ever recall if Jarrett has ever been confronted by the seeming contrast between his absurd and long-running touchniness about audience failings and his own pathetic moaning and groaning?

Geez, I'm sure glad his stuff falls otuside the realms of my current and ongoing interests.

Edited March 23, 2010 by kenny weir

[papsrus]

... his stuff falls otuside the realms of my current and ongoing interests.

Pretty much sums it up for me, too.

[AllenLowe]

I'm thinking that his whole asshole bit is half of what attracts an audience -

the other half is the chance to see him engaged in coitus with the keyboard.

Chuck was right -

though I've heard that, in order to last longer Jarrett thinks about baseball -

that's why, at the moment of greatest musical passion, he often yells "slide! slide!"

Edited March 23, 2010 by AllenLowe

[Steve Gray]

... his stuff falls otuside the realms of my current and ongoing interests.

Pretty much sums it up for me, too.

Me too. I'll play a Bill Evans record instead

I liked that quote "I've been a really good guy since Perugia"

I almost expected him to follow that with "And I have been taking all my medicine"

[jlhoots]

I've only seen him live once. There were no problems.

His recorded playing has given me many hours of enjoyment.

Guess I'm in the minority here.

[Man with the Golden Arm]

is his hamster still singing with the band?

[DrJ]

I enjoy Jarrett's recorded music - have since the early days, and continue to.

Guess that makes me extremely unfashionable around here, but so be it.

I don't plan on seeing him live - don't feel compelled. I don't condone these rants in the least but I also don't think they should be the defining moments of a very long and productive career.

I could pretty much care less if Jarrett's got a massive ego. So did/do a lot of artists.

Not to mention that there has been MUCH worse stuff than Jarrett's ego trips perpetrated by many of the departed and still living jazz artists whose assess are regularly kissed around here.

Also people making comments like "I'll just listen to a Bill Evans record" display their ignorance. Say what you want about Jarrett, like him or not, but he sounds nothing like Bill Evans. Sure there's an INFLUENCE but it's just plain stupid to imply that listening to Jarrett is like listening to Bill Evans.

There is the strong whiff of jealousy in all these negative comments. It happens any time someone in jazz makes it big in terms of wider recognition and sales and a sweet contract with a high profile label. Slap that man down, put him back where he belongs - God forbid one of our own has a little commercial success; that's grounds for being run out of town on a rail. No way can we afford to have a bona fide jazz artist make it big...'cause then we can't all walk around with chips on our shoulders and tears in our eyes, lamenting the fact that our music is "dying" but feeling ever so good about ourselves because we are the "last defenders of the faith."

It's clear that people's comments aren't just in reaction to his latest rants - Jarrett's "fashionability index" has been dropping steadily as his wider popularity has grown. That's the way of the jazz world, folks. Ain't it grand?

And about the rants - has anyone stopped to seriously consider that he really MAY be having some major mental health issues? Those reviews certainly read like it to me - his comments to the audiences certainly don't sound like the comments of someone who's fully hanging on at this point. A long successful career isn't a magic antidote against mental illness. He had a long bout with the controversial "chronic fatigue syndrome" previously, which is frankly often (though not always) diagnosed only as a more palatable label for severe depression.

How about giving the guy the benefit of the doubt until we're all sure we know what we're talking about?

Sometimes this place makes me fucking want to puke.

Edited March 23, 2010 by DrJ

[7/4]

And about the rants - has anyone stopped to seriously consider that he really MAY be having some major mental health issues? Those reviews certainly read like it to me - his comments to the audiences certainly don't sound like the comments of someone who's fully hanging on at this point. A long successful career isn't a magic antidote against mental illness. He had a long bout with the controversial "chronic fatigue syndrome" previously, which is frankly often (though not always) diagnosed only as a more palatable label for severe depression.

Yeah...he's nuts. Obviously a sick man.

[papsrus]

Also people making comments like "I'll just listen to a Bill Evans record" display their ignorance. ... it's just plain stupid to imply that listening to Jarrett is like listening to Bill Evans.

I don't think anyone said that listening to Evans is exactly like listening to Jarrett, sans rants. It was just a statement of preference.

I've enjoyed some of Jarrett's music in the past. May well again in the future. My listening interests simply lie elsewhere right now, that's all. I don't have any animosity toward the man. His rants are a sideshow that I don't find particularly significant one way or the other.

Sometimes this place makes me fucking want to puke.

Seriously? Because people point out that Jarrett displays some unusual behavior on stage from time to time? Would you feel less nauseous if everyone simply ignored it?