A possibly heretical statement re Bill Evans' first trio

[sgcim]

Are ya' like me? When you heard "Little Lulu" for the first time, didja' kinda think, ok, real virtues vs real vices, all at once...this is gonna be somebody else's drama from here on out, take the needle up off the record and put something, anything else on without thinking twice or looking back?

How 'bout when he sang "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town"?

[sgcim]

or as Evans told his wife, "if Evan ever sits down at a piano, put a golf club in his hand."

at this late stage he was not happy in the music business, though a lot of it was classic depression, I think, mixed in with narcissistic tendencies; exacerbated (self medicated?) by drug abuse. He was also fond of playing, during his sets, the MASH theme: Suicide is Painless.

Yea, BE was a total mess towards the end. Andy LaVerne said he wanted them to let him die in the hospital.

They tried to create an image of a clean cut, professorial dude, but he was anything but...

The narcissistic side of him came out when he became obsessed with having a son and ditching his prostitute/junkie GF of many years (Elaine, who threw herself under a subway in reaction)for a young blonde who was good breeding material...

The funniest example of his ego came out on the live record he made with Getz.

Getz called a tune that they didn't rehearse for the concert (I forget what country), and Evans sat on his hands and shook his head when the bass player and drummer tried to keep playing with Getz. Getz was left playing all alone.

[Ted O'Reilly]

Is anyone else fond of the last BE trio with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera? They played Toronto just a couple of weeks before Evans' death, and it was intense...

[jazzbo]

I think that trio was doing amazing work.

[Ted O'Reilly]

I think that trio was doing amazing work.

So do I. It was more of a trio, rather than duo + drummer, which I felt it had been for a long while. Joe LaBarbera was great for Evans, I think. Too bad it was only 18 months or so we had that group.

[erwbol]

or as Evans told his wife, "if Evan ever sits down at a piano, put a golf club in his hand."

at this late stage he was not happy in the music business, though a lot of it was classic depression, I think, mixed in with narcissistic tendencies; exacerbated (self medicated?) by drug abuse. He was also fond of playing, during his sets, the MASH theme: Suicide is Painless.

Yea, BE was a total mess towards the end. Andy LaVerne said he wanted them to let him die in the hospital.

They tried to create an image of a clean cut, professorial dude, but he was anything but...

The narcissistic side of him came out when he became obsessed with having a son and ditching his prostitute/junkie GF of many years (Elaine, who threw herself under a subway in reaction)for a young blonde who was good breeding material...

The funniest example of his ego came out on the live record he made with Getz.

Getz called a tune that they didn't rehearse for the concert (I forget what country), and Evans sat on his hands and shook his head when the bass player and drummer tried to keep playing with Getz. Getz was left playing all alone.

That's very disturbing. I've never heard these stories before.

[Larry Kart]

About Getz playing with other people, there was a Chicago Jazz Festival (almost certainly 1985, for reasons that will become evident) where both Getz and Gerry Mulligan were booked, each with his regular group. Because Zoot Sims had died that year (thus 1985), it was suggested that Mulligan and Getz play a short additional set dedicated to Zoot. When the time came to sketch out what they would play -- in the afternoon before that evening's performance -- Mulligan insisted that his rhythm section be used, not Getz's, and that he call the tunes. Apparently angry words were exchanged between the two, and the planned run through was broken off. Driving Getz back to his hotel afterwards, Penny Tyler, head of the Jazz Institute of Chicago, which booked the fest, was concerned that the set might have to be cancelled, such was the enmity between Mulligan and Getz. She expressed this to Stan, who said, "Don't worry. I've played with the fagelah before, and I can play with him again."

[sgcim]

Getz was very apologetic about the scene with Evans, On the next cut, he makes a speech about it being BE's birthday, and he plays a beautiful version of "Happy Birthday" for the birthday boy.

A friend of mine, who has pretty much based his entire life and playing style on BE, bought the DVD of the concert, and you can see BE with a sadistic little grin shaking his head 'no' to Eddie Gomez and the drummer(?) as they leave Getz out in the wilderness, all alone.

As AL said, BE was probably in a severe clinical depression, (after the suicide of his beloved brother), and it touched off this desperate desire to breed at any cost.

If you watch his last television appearance on The Merv Griffin Show, you can see what shape he was in, by the weird speech he made before he started playing.

[Chuck Nessa]

About Getz playing with other people, there was a Chicago Jazz Festival (almost certainly 1985, for reasons that will become evident) where both Getz and Gerry Mulligan were booked, each with his regular group. Because Zoot Sims had died that year (thus 1985), it was suggested that Mulligan and Getz play a short additional set dedicated to Zoot. When the time came to sketch out what they would play -- in the afternoon before that evening's performance -- Mulligan insisted that his rhythm section be used, not Getz's, and that he call the tunes. Apparently angry words were exchanged between the two, and the planned run through was broken off. Driving Getz back to his hotel afterwards, Penny Tyler, head of the Jazz Institute of Chicago, which booked the fest, was concerned that the set might have to be cancelled, such was the enmity between Mulligan and Getz. She expressed this to Stan, who said, "Don't worry. I've played with the fagelah before, and I can play with him again."

I remember hearing this story when it happened.

[jlhoots]

BTW, the Village Vanguard ain't no cocktail lounge.

[Teasing the Korean]

BTW, the Village Vanguard ain't no cocktail lounge.

Tell that to audience audibly drinking during the recording, whose clinking glasses are at least as loud as Paul Motian with the brushes, at least on my copy of the double LP reissue.

[fasstrack]

Is anyone else fond of the last BE trio with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera? They played Toronto just a couple of weeks before Evans' death, and it was intense...

I heard them at the Vanguard on consecutive nights in '79, and they were intense. They played, as I recall, Up With the Lark and Gary's Waltz, among others. They were burning, though the tempos speeded up quite a bit.

or as Evans told his wife, "if Evan ever sits down at a piano, put a golf club in his hand."

at this late stage he was not happy in the music business, though a lot of it was classic depression, I think, mixed in with narcissistic tendencies; exacerbated (self medicated?) by drug abuse. He was also fond of playing, during his sets, the MASH theme: Suicide is Painless.

Yea, BE was a total mess towards the end. Andy LaVerne said he wanted them to let him die in the hospital.

They tried to create an image of a clean cut, professorial dude, but he was anything but...

The narcissistic side of him came out when he became obsessed with having a son and ditching his prostitute/junkie GF of many years (Elaine, who threw herself under a subway in reaction)for a young blonde who was good breeding material...

The funniest example of his ego came out on the live record he made with Getz.

Getz called a tune that they didn't rehearse for the concert (I forget what country), and Evans sat on his hands and shook his head when the bass player and drummer tried to keep playing with Getz. Getz was left playing all alone.

Where in the world did you hear that Ellaine was a prostitute?

[John L]

The Village Vanguard and other recordings with LaFaro and Motian are not even close to my favorite Bill Evans. In fact, one of the reasons why it took me a long time to become a fan of Bill Evans is that I only had the Village Vanguard recordings and accepted the dominant view that they are the pinnacle of his art. I even had the opportunity to see Evans at the Keystone Korner in 1980 (The Last Waltz) and elected not to go (ARGG!!!). Then I heard "You Must Believe in Spring," and that really turned my head around. Now I have come to appreciate and enjoy the recordings with LaFaro and Motian as well, but there are 30 or so Bill Evans recordings that are closer to my heart.

Edited November 17, 2014 by John L

[John Tapscott]

Is anyone else fond of the last BE trio with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera? They played Toronto just a couple of weeks before Evans' death, and it was intense...

I thought it was in the spring, maybe the long weekend in May. But no matter, I remember seeing the trio sometime that year in Basin Street, above the old Bourbon St. club. Crowd was noisy and it was uncomfortably hot weather wise; not sure they had the A/C on. Evans seemed a little perturbed or frustrated by the whole scene. But yes, it was intense. Evans must have known his time was short.

Edited November 17, 2014 by John Tapscott

[sgcim]

Is anyone else fond of the last BE trio with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera? They played Toronto just a couple of weeks before Evans' death, and it was intense...

I heard them at the Vanguard on consecutive nights in '79, and they were intense. They played, as I recall, Up With the Lark and Gary's Waltz, among others. They were burning, though the tempos speeded up quite a bit.

or as Evans told his wife, "if Evan ever sits down at a piano, put a golf club in his hand."

at this late stage he was not happy in the music business, though a lot of it was classic depression, I think, mixed in with narcissistic tendencies; exacerbated (self medicated?) by drug abuse. He was also fond of playing, during his sets, the MASH theme: Suicide is Painless.

Yea, BE was a total mess towards the end. Andy LaVerne said he wanted them to let him die in the hospital.

They tried to create an image of a clean cut, professorial dude, but he was anything but...

The narcissistic side of him came out when he became obsessed with having a son and ditching his prostitute/junkie GF of many years (Elaine, who threw herself under a subway in reaction)for a young blonde who was good breeding material...

The funniest example of his ego came out on the live record he made with Getz.

Getz called a tune that they didn't rehearse for the concert (I forget what country), and Evans sat on his hands and shook his head when the bass player and drummer tried to keep playing with Getz. Getz was left playing all alone.

Where in the world did you hear that Ellaine was a prostitute?

A former prostitute.

[Scott Dolan]

What is "good breeding material"?

[Larry Kart]

Fertile? Wide hips? No history of insanity in the family?

[JSngry]

Fertile? Wide hips? No history of insanity in the family?

And no bad teeth. Like one young lady told me when relating her rejection of a family-proposed suitor (she came from a culture where such things still are fairly common), "I'm not making a baby that's gonna maybe have a jacked-up grill".

[John Tapscott]

What is "good breeding material"?

I suppose we could always post some pictorial examples; however, they would likely be deleted by the mods.

Edited November 17, 2014 by John Tapscott

[clifford_thornton]

Fertile? Wide hips? No history of insanity in the family?

And no bad teeth. Like one young lady told me when relating her rejection of a family-proposed suitor (she came from a culture where such things still are fairly common), "I'm not making a baby that's gonna maybe have a jacked-up grill".

I like a good snaggle tooth.

Bummed that Helen Hunt got her grill redone.

[xybert]

Fertile? Wide hips? No history of insanity in the family?

And no bad teeth. Like one young lady told me when relating her rejection of a family-proposed suitor (she came from a culture where such things still are fairly common), "I'm not making a baby that's gonna maybe have a jacked-up grill".

I like a good snaggle tooth.

Bummed that Helen Hunt got her grill redone.

Murphy's law applies too, where you see 'genetically ideal' parents turning out some mutant looking kids, and some, uh, less conventionally attractive parents turning out some good looking offspring. I guess overall it's a safer bet to bank on the genes, but i laugh when people try to control their destiny in that regard. Appearances don't always tell the full story of the genes too: you might have had a rough life (poor nutrition, poor medical/dental care etc) but come from good stock; when you have kids and they're subject to a better environment the good genes flourish.

Also, cosmetic dentristy can mask the fact that genetically you come from a long line of busted grills. I'm sure i read somewhere that there's a place where cosmetic surgery is prevalent and there's a few surprises, looks wise, when the kids come out. Anyway, i'm rambling on...

[Big Beat Steve]

And no bad teeth. Like one young lady told me when relating her rejection of a family-proposed suitor (she came from a culture where such things still are fairly common), "I'm not making a baby that's gonna maybe have a jacked-up grill".

I like a good snaggle tooth.

[ejp626]

Fertile? Wide hips? No history of insanity in the family?

And no bad teeth. Like one young lady told me when relating her rejection of a family-proposed suitor (she came from a culture where such things still are fairly common), "I'm not making a baby that's gonna maybe have a jacked-up grill".

I like a good snaggle tooth.

[JSngry]

[sgcim]

What is "good breeding material"?

In the Pettinger book, it made him sound like he ditched Ellaine for a young, beautiful blonde who would be a good mother for his kid.

For Evan's sake I hope Larry and BE were right.

The Evans genes were totally fucked up.

The father was a serious alchie, Harry had been exhibiting schizophrenia symptoms when his wife dumped him and he killed himself, and BE........