Andrew White (1942-2020)

[felser]

12 minutes ago, sgcim said:

I remember hearing a Fifth Dimension tune a long time ago with a bass player cooking his brains out on "Aquarius (Let The Sunshine In") on a live performance  somewhere. I wonder if that was him? RIP, Mr White.

He did play bass on on this 1971 album (as did Wrecking Crew great Joe Osborne, don't know who played on what).  Referred to as Andrew "Muff" White, whatever that was all about.

[mikeweil]

On 14.11.2020 at 3:00 AM, JSngry said:

They did this one:

 

That's the band I saw perform! Didin't know about that one.

[clifford_thornton]

2 hours ago, sgcim said:

I used to see his Trane transcriptions advertised in DB when I was in HS, and I vaguely remember seeing some of them somewhere. I somehow got him confused with Anthony Braxton- did Braxton have a zillion transcriptions of Trane. also?

Zita Carno did as well; if Braxton did, they weren't published. Somehow it seems unlikely.

regarding the nickname "Muff," it's a distortion pedal for guitarists, though I suppose with Mr. White there would be other connotations as well.

[JSngry]

He was proud of his tongue. Do the math.

[clifford_thornton]

YUP.

[sgcim]

20 hours ago, clifford_thornton said:

Zita Carno did as well; if Braxton did, they weren't published. Somehow it seems unlikely.

regarding the nickname "Muff," it's a distortion pedal for guitarists, though I suppose with Mr. White there would be other connotations as well.

Thanks, CT, I guess I did have an early confusion between the two. White was playing wild even back with the JFK Quintet back in 1961. Switching to funk bass in the 70s was something I was never aware of before. Totally cool, wild dude. D.C. had an interesting scene going on, with super talented, creative people like Bob Bruno, Tandyn Almer and White living there. I emailed Bruno to see if he hung with White at all. Trane was Bruno's biggest influence. Ayler was also an intense influence on his both his painting and music.

He had recurring nightmares when he was a kid that involved images that he uses for his paintings, and sounds that he finally found in Ayler's music. His father was a talented composer/trumpet player, who left the family to become a film composer in Hollywood.

[felser]

2 hours ago, sgcim said:

 D.C. had an interesting scene going on, with super talented, creative people like Bob Bruno, Tandyn Almer and White living there. 

And Lloyd McNeill.

[JSngry]

Alto player named Maurice, last name I forget. A TRUE bebopper, serious player.

[bertrand]

Maurice Robertson?

DC still has an incredible scene. I used to go to 4-5 gigs a week. All over now.

[JSngry]

Yes, Maurice Robertson. Heard him in DC once ca. 1981, then again years later on a demo tape of somebody's that had gotten passed on. Excellent player, really spoke the language, native tongue type player.

[felser]

12 hours ago, bertrand said:

Maurice Robertson?

DC still has an incredible scene. I used to go to 4-5 gigs a week. All over now.

Buck Hill also, right?

[sgcim]

Bob Bruno got back to me about Andrew White and the DC jazz scene:

, I used to go to the Caverns by the time I was 15 in 1960. Andrew White was in the local group I saw all the time , the JFK Quintet.They were a great little band. I have admit that I liked the trumpet player, Ray Codrington ,more than I liked White on alto. It was a ticklish thing listening to him play the oboe. I liked that. I never met him though I was around there all the time,so much so that I played bass with Dolphy and Ray one afternoon. I also wqas welcomed into the Jazz Workshop in San Fransisco ,1965,by Billy Hart who occasionally played drums in the JFK.Walter Booker was a regular on the stringed bass

[mikeweil]

On 17.11.2020 at 10:42 PM, sgcim said:

 D.C. had an interesting scene going on, with super talented, creative people like Bob Bruno, Tandyn Almer and White living there.

Lloyd McNeill has already been mentioned. How about Eric Gravatt, Gene Rush, Steve Novosel?

[bertrand]

Steve Novosel is still very active on the DC scene. Gravatt worked as a prison guard and came back to music when he retired. I saw him with McCoy a few times, but it has been a few years. Not familiar with Gene Rush. A  great resource right here:

https://jazzmf.com/dc-jazz-encyclopedia/

 

 

Edited November 20, 2020 by bertrand

[clifford_thornton]

Now, wasn't Gravatt living in Minneapolis or at least that area for some time? 

I am pretty sure I saw him with McCoy at least once. 

[felser]

9 hours ago, clifford_thornton said:

I am pretty sure I saw him with McCoy at least once. 

I did, too.  Great, very underrated drummer.

22 hours ago, bertrand said:

Steve Novosel is still very active on the DC scene. Gravatt worked as a prison guard and came back to music when he retired. I saw him with McCoy a few times, but i has been a few years. Not familiar with Gene Rush. A  great resource right here:

https://jazzmf.com/dc-jazz-encyclopedia/

 

 

Gene Rush played (beautifully) on the incredible early Lloyd McNeill albums, 'Washington Suite' and 'Aisha'.  Not otherwise familiar with him.

Edited November 21, 2020 by felser

[sgcim]

On 11/19/2020 at 6:17 PM, mikeweil said:

Lloyd McNeill has already been mentioned. How about Eric Gravatt, Gene Rush, Steve Novosel?

On his website, Bruno mentions playing with Novosel, among others in DC:

" As his grandfather was very sick with cancer in 1964, he returned from L.A. to DC and in the summer of 1964 and played with Charlie Hampton and Harold"Philly" Chavis at "The Brass Rail" . Many nights they were joined by Buck Hill on tenor sax . It was that summer that Bob met bassist Steve Novacel ,who also would sit in with the band and experiment with two bass things

[mikeweil]

21 hours ago, felser said:

Gene Rush played (beautifully) on the incredible early Lloyd McNeill albums, 'Washington Suite' and 'Aisha'.  Not otherwise familiar with him.

Rush was on an Atlantic LP by Father Jack Herrera but played only one solo IIRC. You can listen to it on YouTube.

After recording with McNeill and White he alternated with Rene Koopman at the piano chair of the Hot Cotton Jazz Band which recorded ten albums in the 1980's. Nothing more in the Tom Lord Disco.

Edited November 21, 2020 by mikeweil

[Hardbopjazz]

RIP, Mr. White.  

[funkytonk]

On 11/20/2020 at 11:45 AM, clifford_thornton said:

Now, wasn't Gravatt living in Minneapolis or at least that area for some time? 

I am pretty sure I saw him with McCoy at least once. 

Yeah, and I believe he did some recording with the group Natural Life there.

RIP Andrew White. Besides Asante, he was on the unreleased Tyner BN session which eventually came out under the name Cosmos.

[mikeweil]

15 hours ago, funkytonk said:

Besides Asante, he was on the unreleased Tyner BN session which eventually came out under the name Cosmos.

Asante stayed unreleased at first, too. Recorded in 1970, issued first in 1974. 

[clifford_thornton]

Asante is an incredible album, perhaps one of Tyner's best.

[felser]

He was on quite a roll at that point, classic album after classic album from the late 60's to the mid 70's.