ep1str0phy Posted July 19 Report Share Posted July 19 It's Bobby Bradford's birthday today - he turns 90. I'm certain that his music means plenty to everyone on this board. Bobby's longevity - and his continued creative excellence - more than merits celebration. (I've had the good fortune to know and play with Bobby for a number of years now, and he's one of the sharpest and most astute musicians I've ever met - and a deeply kind, generous, and funny guy.) In recognition of the moment, I thought I'd paraphrase an anecdote that Bobby always tells me to share (I'm recounting this from memory, so apologies for any minor inaccuracies) - Ornette's free jazz quartet only convened twice. Any information to the contrary is apocryphal. The second occasion was a performance in the midwest. The band was comprised of Ornette, Steve Lacy, Bobby, Don Cherry, Jimmy Garrison, Charlie Haden, Billy Higgins, and Ed Blackwell. The performance never happened. It was advertised as a "Free Jazz" concert (read: Free Jazz, like Free Chicken Nuggets, rather than "Free Jazz"), which fostered confusion among the audience. The band was customarily paid upfront for engagements of that nature, and the miscommunication about the advertising caused some issues with the promoter. Long story short, the band never took the stage and they went straight home. Subsequent articles played up the alleged "free jazz performance" as a source of controversy, but it was all pantomime on the part of the local music media. There was no controversy because the music never happened. An amusing wrinkle: Ed Blackwell didn't have drums for this gig. When he arrived at the airport, all he had were rhythm logs. (He played these on Shepp's The Magic of Ju-Ju.) Ornette was livid. Someone - whether the promoter, Ornette's manager, or whomever - called ahead to see if any local drummers were willing to lend Blackwell a kit. When the band arrived for the gig, three different drummers were willing to lend their gear. It was an honor to have those cats in town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted July 19 Report Share Posted July 19 Proof that only the strong survive!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted July 19 Report Share Posted July 19 (edited) A wonderful human. And this demonstrates my admiration - from 1971 and from 2014 Edited July 20 by Chuck Nessa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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