Crisp & Heady Jazz: Wayne Escoffery at KITANO in NYC

Wayne Escoffery played at Kitano 23 February 2011

A stellar birthday-anniversary- performance: Wayne Escoffery was playing at the Kitano Club in New York City. My husband and I were doing a weekend in the city, celebrating our anniversary and the publication of my new book AMERICAN WOMAN, ITALIAN STYLE.  My long-time friend and NYC fine art photographer, Susan May Tell, joined us.  How lucky for us all that we happened to be staying at the Kitano, our paths and celebrations crossed with Escoffery’s.

Escoffery is a very tall man- six foot four, at least– with a broad forehead and brows framing deep green eyes. His head is shaved. He  wears an earring. He is intense looking; handsome with a growl ( he’s got a side career in modeling: print and TV) . Before the set, when he entered the lounge to check on set up, along with him came a jolt of electricity. We knew we were going to hear something extraordinary.  He was dressed casually, in jeans and a blue shirt and blazer. His shoes held onto long strong feet and I thought, after hearing a few numbers, that his musician needed those strong feet to hold him firmly to the ground. His jazz is heady, cerebral,  “intellectual” , and swung us all out of our bodies into jazz heaven.

Inside his tunes, which pay homage to traditional jazz, I heard a bit of Monk, some Mingus,  Chick Correa, Dave Leibman.

Before he began the set, he

Would You Recognize the Violinist in Your Metro??

(This story has been floating around for a while; it’s a good one about recognizing an artist when you see/hear one.)    

 Washington DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx 2 thousand  people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.  After 3 mins a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 mins later the violinist received his first dollar

The Fiddle Case by Christine Palamidessi Moore

Preview review from Italian Americana, (academic journal)Spring 2009The Fiddle Case by Christine Palamidessi Moore. Boston:/IAP Press, 2008. 243pp.

The Fiddle Case

In this coming-of-age story two nineteen-year-old women set out across the country in the summer of 1972, searching for answers about siblings they have lost. Their initial goal is soon overshadowed by the trip itself, reminiscent of Thelma and Louise. What begins as an upbeat adventure evolves into a dark thriller as they try to return a stolen fiddle to a cult member. The plot has many twists and turns, taking us across landscapes from Boston to Berkeley. The language conjures up images that titillate the senses: “sex was like a swirling tornado of white light.” Music of the time pervades; it is the driving force behind the road trip. References to politics (Watergate, Vietnam), to music (Beatles, B.B. King), to something as mundane as cigarette brands (low-tar Salems in Kentucky, Virginia Slims in California) convey larger meanings of the cultural background. The alliance between Anna and Cindy is central; other characters serve to illuminate their personalities or carry the plot forward.

Palamidessi Moore paints a convincing picture of the contradictions that women faced with the new sexual freedom of the 1970s.

Levon Helm: Bending Time on the Road to Woodstock

My husband turned 60 this month. There was little celebration in our house; he couldn’t believe he was 60 and our daughter Ruby cried.  She wants time to stand still; for her parents never to get old. We had a quiet evening together and created an ode to our man on the dining room mantle. Interspersed between greeting cards and small pumpkins, we propped up photos of Matt as Aikido master, as BMW race car driver, as father, and husband. His expired driver’s license took center stage and we agreed he looked the same as he did ten years ago, except for the grey hair.  Matt is quite a handsome man.  Aikido and a macrobiotic diet keep him in very good shape. I promised him a party in December, after the reality shock eases off.

As a gift, Ruby gave her dad Levon Helms’s new CD, Dirt Farmer.  Helm is 68. Dirt Farmer won 2008 Grammy for best Comeback Album. In the 60s through the 70s and off and on in the 80s, Helm was drummer for The Band, a landmark rock music group that recorded their own albums and backed up Bob Dylan. Helm recently came out on the good end of throat cancer, having had experienced a miraculous

Badal Roy Was in Cambridge ( from 9/29/08)

WE SAW HIM ON SATURDAY NIGHT, SEPTEMBER 27

Badal Roy & Tablas

HE PLAYED SEVENTEEN ON THE TABLAS
1-2-3-4   / 1-2-3-4   / 1-2   /1-2-3-4   /1-2-3
THE MUSIC WAS WAS AMAZING!!!!!
Roy performed with Keyboard player Dave Bryant and Bassist Mike Rivard.  All outstanding jazz musicians.

But why, I wondered, was Roy sitting on the floor, out of eye, playing at Outpost186 in Cambridge to an audience of 30, most of whom were guys with long hair or no hair?

This musician deserves a huge spotlight.