JSngry Posted December 3, 2004 Author Report Posted December 3, 2004 I am indeed happy that Frank Hewitt's music is striking others as it has struck me (and I'd imagine that Luke Kaven is more than happy). Sometimes I hear something that strikes me, and nobody else hears what I hear. Doesn't change my mind, . but it's still more fun your enthusiasm can is shared. I'm in one of those periodic "tight" phases financially right now, which is why I haven't yet gotten the new one. But when the money loosens up, that' going to be one of, if not the, first thing I order. Quote
lkaven Posted December 5, 2004 Report Posted December 5, 2004 I am indeed happy that Frank Hewitt's music is striking others as it has struck me (and I'd imagine that Luke Kaven is more than happy). Sometimes I hear something that strikes me, and nobody else hears what I hear. Doesn't change my mind, . but it's still more fun your enthusiasm can is shared. Hi Jim, I wish Frank were here to read the nice things you and others here have had to say about his music. Those who have read my remarks, especially in the liner notes to Not Afraid To Live, know that I am angry. The jazz establishment destroyed him OF ALL PEOPLE. That's a sickness, and it should speak loud and clear. The arrival of you and other sophisticated listeners suggests that the sickness isn't necessarily fatal. Jim, it is probably true that you hear things that many others don't. One of the difficulties in getting Frank's music across is that many people underestimate his ability at first, and tend to write him off too quickly. And here's the spiral: the judgment of many people is clouded by the fact that he wasn't famous, and tacitly, they will believe that if he wasn't famous, then he probably wasn't all that...end of story. And this is a truly malignant thing among record collectors, who often mistake the history of jazz with the history of recordings. The alternate view we were afforded at Smalls was illuminating. Hearing Frank a few hundred times, all questions were asked and answered over time to our satisfaction. This is the real evidence. That is why it is funny reading the occasional snide reviewer (Brian Priestly, are you reading this?) who purports to tell us anything about Frank. These are the reviewers who were remiss in their field to not avail themselves of the evidence when it was there to be heard. We should turn the lens back on such people once in a while. There is more Hewitt material. At the moment, I'm restoring my first recordings of him done in closed session at Smalls in October 1996 with Ari Roland and Jimmy Lovelace. [Had to extract them from an aging DAT.] Some of my favorites of all his recordings are in this bunch. This was an interesting period, and it is interesting to hear what he does with tunes that have somewhat unusual changes, like Lazy Bird, Conception, Monk's Mood. Next out will either be that or a live record. Thanks for your support, Luke Quote
JSngry Posted December 6, 2004 Author Report Posted December 6, 2004 ...this is a truly malignant thing among record collectors, who often mistake the history of jazz with the history of recordings. Amen. Quote
Uncle Skid Posted December 13, 2004 Report Posted December 13, 2004 Up, because I just heard this for the first time and I'm experiencing the same enthusiasm. Gotta go play it again. Up once again, as I'm hearing this for the third time now, and it just keeps getting better. Gotta go play it again, indeed! Quote
Bright Moments Posted December 31, 2004 Report Posted December 31, 2004 i ordered both hewitt cd's and just finished listening to the first. this is some real good stuff! thanks jim for the recommendation! B-) Quote
kh1958 Posted December 31, 2004 Report Posted December 31, 2004 You talked me into it. I've ordered both from CDBaby. Quote
Clunky Posted January 7, 2005 Report Posted January 7, 2005 Eventually received my copy of Not Afraid To Live after too many weeks of waiting on the post. Wonderful toppling paino style, up tempo numbers especially different from the norm. Hewitt's liberties with the "Night in Tunisia" theme are extraordinarily bold and cheeky but it's a great ride. He certainly can play even if it's like no one elses conception. Top stuff Roll on Vol. 3 Quote
JSngry Posted January 7, 2005 Author Report Posted January 7, 2005 (edited) People be likin' the Frank Hewitt it seems. Glad to hear it. Edited January 7, 2005 by JSngry Quote
kh1958 Posted January 7, 2005 Report Posted January 7, 2005 People be likin' the Frank Hewitt it seems. Glad to hear it. Count me in the dumb category, as I now recall looking at the line-up at Smalls and seeing the name Frank Hewett, not knowing who he was, and passing on the opportunity to see him live. Quote
Nate Dorward Posted February 17, 2005 Report Posted February 17, 2005 FWIW I just put the piece I did on We Loved You on my website-- http://www.ndorward.com/music/hewitt_welovedyou.htm & sent in a piece to Cadence on the one with Hayes (so it'll take about 2-4 months to appear, most likely). Quote
relyles Posted February 17, 2005 Report Posted February 17, 2005 FWIW I just put the piece I did on We Loved You on my website-- http://www.ndorward.com/music/hewitt_welovedyou.htm & sent in a piece to Cadence on the one with Hayes (so it'll take about 2-4 months to appear, most likely). Nate, How did you like the second hewitt disc? I preferred Hayes' drumming, but I am undecided on which disc I like the most overall. Quote
JSngry Posted February 17, 2005 Author Report Posted February 17, 2005 Finally got the money flowing again, and have had NOT AFRAID TO LIVE for about a month now. Find it to be darker in mood, and equally compelling. Still a very distinctive story being told here, one without any bullshit and/or sugarcoating going on. I think the albums have been released in the proper sequence, if you know what I mean, but I would not be without either. And I DO eagerly look forward to hearing anything else that remains. I'm sold on Frank Hewitt. I'm wondering - did Hewitt get a chance to record w/a horn player (outside of the Impulse thing)? Luke mentioned a Clarence Sharpe thing somewhere. Sure would like to hear these two guys together if it ever happened. That would be a dose of concentrated reality. Quote
lkaven Posted February 18, 2005 Report Posted February 18, 2005 I'm not aware of any recordings of Frank with C Sharpe. I don't think he's anywhere in the C Sharpe tapes that I have (which, by the way, we're just starting to transcribe and edit now). I agree with you, that would be something powerful...besides being musically extraordinary, it would be a big shot across the bow of the jazz establishment. I do however have a single recording of the Frank Hewitt quintet, or one incarnation thereof, recorded on one of the weekly Saturday 3AM gigs. This one has Chris Byars on tenor, Mike Mullins on alto, Ari Roland on bass, and Jimmy Lovelace on drums. [Other versions of this quintet included Charles Davis, Joe Magnarelli, Zaid Nasser, and William Ash in front.] Frank has a lush comping style behind horns which you don't entirely hear on any of the other sessions. I also have a Mike Mullins session from the same day that we recorded the Hewitt/Roland/Rosenfeld trio sides. [believe it or not, part of this session is stuck on a dead hard disk, and I've been waiting for years to find someone who can retrieve it. If you know of anyone who would be willing to volunteer to perform a recovery, I'd be glad.] The quintet date will probably be the next one out, because everyone agrees it is a very hot set, and the most fitting tribute to the late Jimmy Lovelace that I have. There's a fair amount of trio material remaining. Some of it is live, and some of it is in closed session at Smalls. None of it deviates from the quality of the regular band on WLY. Nate, I didn't think the "Not Afraid to Live" title was melodramatic (and I suspect you aren't very committed yourself to that characterization). I have him on film saying that during the session, and it came off in retrospect as unexpectedly prescient, especially the "not afraid to die" part. I put it in as a reminder, and a very strong one, that playing jazz like it really matters is a very bold and risky thing to do, something that gets mostly forgotten these days. I'm not sure it even makes much sense to those outside New York who didn't bear witness to Frank's days living in the cooler as a daily reminder of the fucked-up and backwards values in this world. Really and truly, he was not afraid to live and play under the worst circumstances imagineable rather than compromise. I'm saying to many (nobody from here) with this title: you are complacent cowards, afraid to live your lives to the fullest. Luke PS -- I have a special announcement in another thread that you'll all like. :-) Quote
Joe Posted February 18, 2005 Report Posted February 18, 2005 Really looking forward to your Clarence Sharpe release, Luke. Thanks for the update. Quote
Bright Moments Posted April 15, 2005 Report Posted April 15, 2005 i ordered both hewitt cd's and just finished listening to the first. this is some real good stuff! thanks jim for the recommendation! B-) finally got to listen to "not afraid to live." excellent!!!!!!!!!! i liked it even better than the first one! Quote
Soul Stream Posted May 24, 2005 Report Posted May 24, 2005 Saw Frank Hewitt got a nice 1 page article in the new JazzTimes with Sonny Rollins on the cover. Nice article. Remember Jim taking about him and returned to the thread. Ordered "Not Afraid To Live". Looking forward to it. Nice to see his playing has finally achieved some success. Too little too late to be sure. But, aside from these Small's guys taking interest...seems like we would have never had heard any of this. Quote
Clunky Posted July 13, 2005 Report Posted July 13, 2005 The quintet date will probably be the next one out, because everyone agrees it is a very hot set, and the most fitting tribute to the late Jimmy Lovelace that I have. There's a fair amount of trio material remaining. Some of it is live, and some of it is in closed session at Smalls. None of it deviates from the quality of the regular band on WLY. ← any update,??? I feel the need for more Frank !! Quote
lkaven Posted July 19, 2005 Report Posted July 19, 2005 any update??? I feel the need for more Frank !! ← Here it is; it's in press now. Distribution picture is changing a lot right now, I hope for the better. But it puts the street date for this disk up in the air. I hope it will be out in October. I had been recording Across 7 Street on Fri, Sat, and Sun nights on this weekend, and on Saturday and Sunday nights, I arranged with Frank, Ari, and Jimmy to tape their sets. The Saturday night (8/21/99) is the quintet date, which appears in entirety here. It was the 3am hit. Packed house every weekend. They quieted for the recording, and became very responsive. I recorded the Hewitt trio the next night (8/22/99), and that will be on a subsequent release. It is interesting to have the two side by side to see both the consistency in Hewitt's playing, but also the degree to which his mood could change from one night to the next. Luke Quote
JSngry Posted July 19, 2005 Author Report Posted July 19, 2005 Greatly looking forward to it! How would you describe Hewitt's comping for horns? Quote
lkaven Posted July 19, 2005 Report Posted July 19, 2005 Greatly looking forward to it! How would you describe Hewitt's comping for horns? ← A thick carpet of chords! Quote
JSngry Posted July 19, 2005 Author Report Posted July 19, 2005 How about rhythmically? Was he pretty stabbing & percussive in his comp or more level? Quote
lkaven Posted July 19, 2005 Report Posted July 19, 2005 How about rhythmically? Was he pretty stabbing & percussive in his comp or more level? ← I'd say more lyrical, as though he were playing a complete part with melody on his own. The soloist really has to jump in with both feet or else Hewitt would outplay them. Luke Quote
ghost of miles Posted July 19, 2005 Report Posted July 19, 2005 Jim, thanks much for this thread, and Luke, thanks for your thoughts and updates. I'm ordering both Hewitts today and will order the quintet date when it comes out this fall... one more reason to love the autumn. Quote
Clunky Posted July 19, 2005 Report Posted July 19, 2005 Jim, thanks much for this thread, and Luke, thanks for your thoughts and updates. I'm ordering both Hewitts today and will order the quintet date when it comes out this fall... one more reason to love the autumn. ← you'll love them both, my appreciation has only grown with time and I return to these two special discs often Quote
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