Woodstock 16 - Paul Motian (Arlo Guthrie's Drummer) Take 2
I'm not a huge fan of Jazz. I appreciate the musicianship; but, appreciate a melody more. Yes, I have seen and enjoyed the likes of Miles Davis, Maynard Ferguson, Stanley Jordan, Maynard Ferguson, Wynton Marsalis, Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock (although, it was on the "Rock It" tour so, it was more hip hop than jazz), Tower of Power, Les Paul and, did I mention Maynard Ferguson (I like Maynard Ferguson and saw him thrice in concert). I also caught Miles a 2nd time. Additionally, one of my favorite albums is "Time Out" by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. However, at the base of all the above mentioned artists is a song with a melody as the basis for any improvisation.
When I saw the Paul Motian Trio 2000 +2 a few weeks ago at the Village Vanguard…
Woodstock 24 - Putting the "Sha" in Sha-Na-Na (Elliot "Gino" Cahn - Rhythm Guitarist)
Sha-Na-Na was formed in 1969 at Columbia University as the Kingsmen, a choral group. Rather than sing the traditional choral fare, the groupd decided to sing doo-wop music from the 1950’s. Due to the popularity of a band from Portland, OR who sang “Louie, Louie”, the band changed their name from the Kingsmen to Sha-Na-Na (taken from the refrain of “Get a Job” by The Silhouettes). As I mentioned previously (See Woodstock #17 – Sha-Na-Na), I had met two of the original members of Sha-Na-Na in December of 2008; however, at Woodstock there were 12 people in the band. As part of my research, I googled Sha-Na-Na and came across a Yahoo! group for Sha-Na-Na fans. The group consists of mostly women who talk about how cute each of the guys were/ar…
Woodstock 23 - Bob Arkin (Arlo Guthrie's Bassist)
Arlo Guthrie's performance at Woodstock is iconic. Michael Wadleigh used "Coming into Los Angeles" to show the drug use at the 1969 Woodstock Festival. You could hear how stoned he was when he told the crowd that the NY State Thruway was closed. However, Arlo had a terrific band with him. I already had the privilege of meeting Arlo (see Woodstock #3) and Arlo's drummer, Paul Motian (See Woodstock # 16 & Woodstock #16 Take 2). As Arlo' guitarist, John Pilla, died sometime during the 1990's, all that remains is bassist, Bob Arkin.
Bob Arkin is not as famous as his brother, actor Alan Arkin. Bob Arkin has never been a famous rock star. Bob Arkin is not a even a famous jazz star; however, he is a working jazz bassist in New York City. He is par…
Woodstock 20 (Take 2) - Edgar Winter
As part of my Woodstock quest, sometimes I have to make choices. With approximately 100 Woodstock musicians & former musicians left on the quest, sometimes more than one will be performing near me on the same night. July 16, 2009 was one of those occaissions. I had a choice of seeing John Sebastian, Mountain, and Creedence Clearwater Revisited (featuring Stu Cook and Doug "Cosmo" Clifford of Creedence Clearwater Revial at a free show at Asser Levy Park in Brooklyn's Coney Island or see Edgar Winter at a free show in Mohegan Sun's Wolf Den in Uncasville, CT. As the weather forecast called for thunder showers, I chose Edgar Winter.
Edgar Winter does sign autographs. I have seen them; however, when I made my attempts in March, I was in the wro…
Woodstock22 - The WoodstockMovie or 3/5 of Santana in 10 Minutes.
2009 is the 40th Anniversary of the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival. As such, all kinds of special events, have been planned. One such event was a screening in New York of the Director's Cut of the Academy Award winning documentary "Woodstock". The movie had been restored prior to its June 9, 2009 release on Blu-Ray and DVD. The screening of the restored version took place on June 3, 2009 at the Walter Reade Theatre in Lincoln Center. When I saw the add for the screening, it announced that the film's director, Michael Wadleigh, would be attending along with one of the Festival's organizers, Michael Lang, along with other special guests. For me, Michael Lang's attendance was worth the price of admission, as his was an autograph that I des…