Paul Bley RIP

[soulpope]

A sad loss indeed .... RIP

[JohnS]

Very sad news.  A great pianist, composer and a personal favourite.  He was not a frequent visitor to the UK but I did get to see him live.  Even in a large hall his distinctive piano sound was very much in evidence.  RIP

 

Edited January 5, 2016 by JohnS

[king ubu]

Very, very sad! This hits me hard.

[paul secor]

Sorry to read today that the news of his passing was true. Paul Bley seemed to have led an interesting and full life, and seemed to have been true to himself throughout his musical life.

Thank you for all you gave us and left for us, Mr. Bley. You are missed.

[bluesoul]

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jan/05/canadian-jazz-pianist-paul-bley-dies-aged-83

http://ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/music/jazzblog/r-i-p-paul-bley

 

 

[bluenoter]

Now in progress: a 27-hour Paul Bley Memorial Broadcast on WKCR 89.9FM NY (but broadcast only; WKCR has suspended its online streaming).

R.I.P., Paul Bley

Edited January 5, 2016 by bluenoter

[brownie]

This one hurts  bad!  Keeping fond memories of several meetings I had with him. Listening to his recorded music....

[Stereojack]

12 hours ago, clifford_thornton said:

that site is an aggregator and not itself worth trusting. In other words, if you put in "Stereojack death hoax" it would come up with "Stereojack" in the place of "Paul Bley."

DAMN. Sad news.

Mea culpa. We live in an age when "news" travels fast, right or wrong. RIP, Mr. Bley

[alankin]

Paul Bley by Alankin

 

Paul Bley solo in Philadelphia in 2008....

Edited January 5, 2016 by alankin

[Cyril]

Sad news. RIP Mr. Bley
 

[Kevin Bresnahan]

From his obit: Pat Metheny told my colleague Doug Fischer some years ago that his life was changed by Bley’s All the Things You Are solo on Sonny Rollins’ 1963 album Sonny Meets Hawk. “When I heard Paul Bley’s piano solo, a whole new universe of harmonic possibilities opened up from me,” Metheny said. “All these decades later, I still of it as one of the greatest solos in jazz history.

Starting at 3:13

 

 

[JSngry]

12 hours ago, fkimbrough said:

...If you know what's going to happen, there's no reason to go to the gig ...

..."think of all the ways we could FAIL!" ...

...a crazy version of I Got Rhythm  where no one was sure whether they were playing the form...

Magnificent. Simply magnificent.

[LarryCurleyMoe]

NO!  Oh my, another of the very best has departed.  Paul's music was to me, always fresh, interesting, exciting, and brilliant.  R.I.P. MR. JOY!

[Guy Berger]

RIP Paul, and thanks for the amazing music

[corto maltese]

Thank you for the music, Mr. Bley.  

"Private memorial services will be held ... wherever you play a Paul Bley record." 

There will be many.

[Simon8]

Mark Levinson's post following Peter Hum's article (http://ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/music/jazzblog/r-i-p-paul-bley):

"Hard to believe Paul Bley has passed. Paul gave me a gig as his bass player (with drummer Barry Altschul) when I first came to NY at age 18 in 1965. A few weeks later he offered me a gig going to Europe on tour for 9 months! It was an amazing and life changing experience and education to know, travel and play with Paul for a few years. He was one of the most inventive and innovative musicians of all time as his recordings show. He could also be the biggest curmudgeon, meshugana and pain in the ass! After the turbulent years with Annette, it was good to hear that he settled down and found stabilty and happiness with Carol et al. Paul Bley and Bill Evans were the two main root inspirations for jazz pianists from the 1960's onwards. There is big chunk of Paul in Vanessa for sure. Vanessa, your dad's love is in your heart and with you always."

[Milestones]

R.I.P., Mr Bley, a fine contributor to the music.

[Balladeer]

Discovered Paul Bley with his otherworldly duo "Diane" with Chet Baker,
Later I realiised how early he began to play magnificent music by way of Fresh Sound releases.
Then I got back to later work on Steeplechase. It could go on this way forever. I´m not finished by far.
What an amzaing artistic cosmos. One of the last really great jazz artists has left this planet.
His music will remain. Thank you for that, Paul Bley!

[Van Basten II]

RIP, one of the finest pianist of his era,  he was in my book  the greatest Canadian jazz  musician alive, which brings the question, who now holds the title ?

[Kevin Bresnahan]

22 minutes ago, Van Basten II said:

RIP, one of the finest pianist of his era,  he was in my book  the greatest Canadian jazz  musician alive, which brings the question, who now holds the title ?

Renee Rosnes?

[JSngry]

Joni Mitchell.

[CJ Shearn]

damn, RIP

[Chuck Nessa]

May favorite memories of Paul are late night conversations in bars or coffee shops. He was a wonderful/probing conversationalist.

Paul, Cecil and Muhal are my favorite keyboard artists of the era. I have been lucky it know all of them. I have learned more than I can understand from all 3.

[Van Basten II]

2 hours ago, Kevin Bresnahan said:

Renee Rosnes?

Thought of her too  thought of Ingrid Jensen also, , , I like the idea of Joni though, a bit more famous although not technically a jazzwoman in the purest sense. but there is enough of a connection.... 

[srellek]

One of the very greatest. How many other musicians could have played with Charlie Parker and Evan Parker? Not to mention Ornette, George Russell, Lester Young, Lee Konitz, Marshall Allen, Sonny Rollins, Jimmy Giuffre, Jaco, and Chet Baker. His is one of the most fascinating bodies of work in all of jazz.

As a sidenote, I've always been intrigued by how Mr. Bley could reinvent his personal appearance along with his music. Look at five photos from different years and he looks like five different men.

A sad day. An amazing legacy.