Dizzy and Queens

[Brad]

This week’s real estate section of the NYT has an article about Dizzy’s life In Queens, one of the five boroughs of NY. 

For Dizzy Gillespie, Queens Was the Place to Be and to Bop

[Dan Gould]

Thanks for posting this Brad, I also saw Allen comment on it on his FB feed which warned me of such gems as

Gillespie, together with Charlie Parker, is largely considered a pioneer of the rebellious jazz style that diverged from mainstream swing jazz’s emphasis on orchestrated productions and collective harmony. Instead, it ushered in an era of artistic experimentation that better reflected the realities of Black urban life and the talents of Black musicians.

 

This piece continues the tradition of the NYT proving it knows nothing, institutionally, about jazz anymore.

[JSngry]

That's not totally wrong per se, it's just woefully incomplete and terribly cliched.

But hey, it's NYC real estate. Bullshit seems built in. 

[Brad]

Yes, I saw Allen went crazy on it. 

[medjuck]

So with the Louis Armstrong House being there (Corona) is  Queens the "jazz trumpet corner of the world"? 

[AllenLowe]

you betcha, that article disgusted me, was complete and offensive crap; as I posted on Facebook:

"the New York Times continues its assault on American culture. In an article on jazz musicians who lived in Queens (and it never even mentions people like Percy Heath who not only lived there but whose house, as I recall, was a place where a lot of younger people were welcomed to what became a very friendly hangout; and, while saying how important it was as a place for Dizzy never mentions that he left it for New Jersey) they write:

'Gillespie, together with Charlie Parker, is largely considered a pioneer of the rebellious jazz style that diverged from mainstream swing jazz’s emphasis on orchestrated productions and collective harmony. Instead, it ushered in an era of artistic experimentation that better reflected the realities of Black urban life and the talents of Black musicians."

 

What? Never heard of Dizzy's big band, Gerald Wilson's, Woody Herman's, Boyd Raeburn's, Tadd Dameron's, all which used, can you believe it, Orchestrations? (hey, remember Birth of the Cool and GIL EVANS). And really, did Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, Count Basie, Lester Young, Duke Ellington, et al not reflect the realities of black musicians and black talent in the 1940s? Collective harmony? What's that?'

 

Cultural atrocity part 2, courtesy of that NY Times article:

"Jazz clubs were in Harlem. But jazz musicians lived on the tree-lined streets of Queens. While white musicians skedaddled to the suburbs, Black jazz virtuosos sought solace in the neighborhoods where their racial identity was welcomed."

 

What what what? Where did Sonny Rollins live? Jackie McLean? Andy Kirk Jr? I think they lived in Harlem, correct me if I am wrong. And I am certain there were many more who lived outside of Queens. Monk didn't live in Queens, but I guess he didn't reflect black talent (see below).

And remember BROOKLYN? Max Roach, Duke Jordan and more. This is not exactly my area of expertise but then, I don't write for the Times.

And, maybe she is right, but tell us which white players "skedaddled to the suburbs" - is Bill Crow out there? It is true that Al Haig, as Curly Russell told me, went home to Nutley New Jersey after their Bird gigs were finished. But who else? I don't know and I suspect this writer doesn't know either."

Edited January 8, 2024 by AllenLowe

[Dan Gould]

I haven't gone looking for verification but didn't Stan Levey also live in NYC?

The whole "white musicians skedaddled" out of town is just hopeless wokery run amok.  

It should also be noted that this writer is just a couple of years out of Yale and with a degree in Applied Mathematics.   And this being run in the Real Estate section made it even less likely any editor would have a clue about the problems with it.

[sgcim]

Thank God I've been spared the Sunday NYT for the last few weeks, while my Sunday visitor is out of the country. I'm also thankful they don't let you read it online unless you're a subscriber.

I might have missed it, but was this the first year that they left out the category of music for their best books of 2023 issues in the Sunday Book Review?