Around The World In 80 Blades - a shaving journal

[80blades]

Blade #38: Gillette 365 (continued)​

Round 2: RazoRock Old Type (HD handle)​

Well I’ve recovered now, and will be back onstage tonight, so a shave is needed!

As previously mentioned, this razor may well be a different animal than an actual ‘old type’ (a.k.a. single- and double-rings from the early 1900’s through around 1920) – I don’t have one to compare (yet!), but that is its inspiration. So, in keeping with the ‘giants of jazz piano’ theme, I need to look at some early greats.

The most obvious choice might be Jelly Roll Morton, who famously claimed (not without some merit) to be the ‘inventor’ of jazz, and wrote many of its earliest, formative tunes… but for various reasons I’m leaning in a different direction, towards a certain Thomas Wright “Fats” Waller, who was arguably just as important and has had a bit more of a direct influence on me.

Waller was many things – pianist, organist, composer, violinist, singer, and comedic entertainer – and a flamboyant personality to boot. He was as virtuosic as anyone, but managed to straddle the boundary between art and entertainment – in much the same way that the shows I play in myself do, so I’ve always felt a connection. In fact, the costume I wear onstage in my current production is inspired by his trademark style!

So, Fats it is! (The very chunky handle I’ve come to like best with this one makes it especially appropriate)

And I have to say, Fats delivered the goods! The 365 seems to suit it particularly well, and on the first pass they sliced through 3 days’ growth like it was nothing at all. The rest of the shave followed suit, eminently smooth and satisfying, with no weepers, hardly a whiff of alum sting and an instantly comfortable BBS result. Glorious! I think I could shave with this combination all year ’round… (ba-dum-crash)

For a photo background, I thought something sunny and floral was in order – you know, every honeybee, fills with jealousy… and all that jazz…

 

[80blades]

Blade #38: Gillette 365 (continued)​

Round 3: RazoRock German 37 slant​

Sometimes it helps, I find, to look at things from a bit of an oblique angle. The most obvious answer is not always the best, and the most direct path between two points is not always the most interesting one.

What the heck am I on about? Well, I needed a name for a slant razor, and I’ve got a bit of a theme of jazz pianists going on, so the obvious choice is the most ‘angular’ of them all: the one that never played the obvious notes, the ever-innovative, singular Thelonius Monk!

Now I’ve noticed that Monk’s strangeness has a tendency to outweigh his genius for a lot of people; I’ve heard musicians say things like, if you make a mistake, play it again three times but really loud – like Monk! These people have, frankly, failed to come to terms with what Monk was really doing. It’s beyond heavy, and his contribution to the jazz tradition, his place in the pantheon as it were, cannot be overstated. He was truly a giant of the instrument and of the tradition.

But, yes, he was also odd, unique, uncompromising, and sometimes (no doubt) difficult. His music isn’t always the smoothest ride, or the easiest to grasp. But once you learn to listen to his unique language, you realize that what he’s saying is both staggering and sublime. There is always method in his madness, and none of it is random.

Also, speaking as an afficionado of middle names (it’s an odd concept, really – a name that nobody calls you, which begs the question: what is a name for, if nobody uses it? It’s like an anti-name!), Monk’s middle name ‘Sphere’ has to be up there with the greatest hits. And it somehow suits the very round lines of the Bamboo handle I’ve settled on for this razor.

So, Thelonius it is – short for Thelonius Sphere Monk!

And I’m happy to report that today’s shave with the newly-named razor was probably my best ever with it; I think I’ve unlocked its mysteries, or at least a level or two. Perhaps, like a Monk tune or solo, there are layers upon layers to unpack! Anyway, it’s great.

And again, much credit must go to this quite wonderful blade, but this was an absolute delight from start to finish!

 

[80blades]

Blade #38: Gillette 365 (continued)​

​

Round 4: Apollo, 1950s?​

I’ve been a bit perplexed about what to name this razor. Despite living in Germany, I don’t have an especially powerful German influence in my life, and there’s not an obvious jazz pianist to link to the others in this little series – well, there’s Rainer Bruninghaus, whose work with Eberhard Weber was an early influence, but as excellent as he is, I think he would be surprised to be listed in the company of giants.

However, it’s a great little razor and it deserves a name, so – partly for reasons of symmetry with our next guest, as we’ll see in a minute – I’m going to go with the extraordinary Art Tatum! (A giant among giants, by any measure)

Nearly blind from birth, with very limited sight in one eye, his prodigious technique at the piano is the stuff of legend, inspiring and intimidating other musicians with exuberant, astonishing virtuosity. It is sometimes very difficult to believe there is only one person playing!

But it was not just showboating, or technique for its own sake; Tatum also “extended the vocabulary and boundaries of jazz piano far beyond his initial stride influences” (such as Fats Waller), and “established new ground in jazz through innovative use of reharmonization, voicing, and bitonality.” (Again, thanks Wikipedia!).

He doesn’t seem to have had a middle name that I can find any mention of, but to make up for that, he and I share a birthday! Art for the win!

In any case, the shave was quite pleasurable; it’s not the very smoothest razor in the fleet, but with a bit of careful manipulation of the ‘adjustable’ handle, it is quite possible to extract a very close and perfectly comfortable shave, especially with this marvelous blade in pole position. No blood, no irritation, alum sting barely perceptible! All quiet on the Western front!

Round 5: RazoRock Teck II (Baili BD191)​

While Tatum’s influence was inescapable for pretty much everyone who came after him, there is one pianist who especially felt the need to confront his legacy of extraordinary technique and innovation. And while he himself self-effacingly insisted that he never quite lived up to his idol, he became a legend in his own right, and was a force of nature both technically and musically.

And since this razor is *large*, with its outsize handle and wide, blade-tab-covering head, and has a particularly mild demeanor, it’s appropriate that it be named after the gentle giant of jazz… I am talking, of course, about the great Oscar Peterson!

Born in Montreal in 1925, his spectacular technique and control at the piano began to manifest early, and in his 60+year career he played with a who’s who of jazz, released over 200 records and won 7 Grammys. He was much beloved, and considered a national treasure in his (and my) native Canada.

So, Oscar shares a post with Art, and I think they would both be ok with that.

How was the shave? Superb! Oscar is, as mentioned, *especially* smooth, and even with a sharp blade like the 365 I think it would be a challenge to do oneself much harm; it also definitely needed all 3 passes to get to BBS, but get there it did, leaving not a trace of discomfort in its wake.

I think the 365 is still going strong, so let’s see what (or who) steps up to the plate next!

 

[80blades]

Blade #38: Gillette 365 (continued)​

Round 6: 1953 Gillette Tech ‘Featherweight’​

(aluminum handle and flat-bottom baseplate, nickel-coated brass cap, made in Germany?)​

I have to say, this jazz pianists theme has opened a bit of a can of worms for me, as there are *so many* that I really consider essential… And it’s such a good theme, and a good way to revisit some of those influences… so now that I’ve nearly run out of razors, I think I might just have to go back and rename a few from the first time around. And since, well, it’s my journal I guess I can make up the rules as I go along!

But first, we have a new contestant! It’s not quite exactly what I hoped it might be, but it’s still kind of nifty, and shaves a treat to boot! Super small, light and maneuverable, with a handle obviously based on the original modular ball ends from an early age (à la Lucy), but considerably shorter and perhaps a hair thicker – though the ball itself is smaller.

With its brass top cap considerably heavier than the aluminum parts, the balance is a bit head-heavy, though it’s all very light in the hand. I used the Amici brush for a change of feel, and the result (on the 6th outing for this excellent blade) was a most enjoyable shave! A nice sweet spot between efficient and mild… Smooth sailing, couple of very tiny weepers, bit of alum sting, no irritation.

And for a name: Horace! For Horace Silver, one of the founders of the legendary Jazz Messengers and a pioneer of the ‘hard bop’ style that grew out of bebop in the 1950’s, so it seems appropriate. Silver is probably most famous for ‘Song For my Father’, a celebration of his half-Brazilian heritage (his father’s name was originally Silva) and a beloved and much-played standard, but his contributions to the tradition are many, and deep.

And with that, it’s time to move on to a new blade, and also to circle back through the fleet to see what other jazz giants we can pay tribute to!

 

[80blades]

Blade #39: Gillette 7 O’clock Super Platinum (black)​

Round 1: Gillette New LC – ‘Lucy’…​

Let’s start things off for this blade with a classic, likely my oldest vintage razor, the venerable Long Comb. And, despite the alliterative allure of the name I gave it on the last outing (and my fond memories of a family dog), the first to be renamed in keeping with the Giants of Jazz Piano theme.

I think it’s got to be Jelly Roll, for Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe, known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton. Though he appears as a kind of quasi-villain in the popular film ‘The Legend of 1900’ which makes much of his assertion that he was the ‘inventor’ of jazz, “Morton’s accomplishments as an early innovator are so vast that he did not really need to stretch the truth”. (-Scott Yanow)

In any case, regardless of his apparent arrogance (quite possibly, as these things often go, a result of insecurity), his remarkable and rather colorful life story is well worth perusing. And, whether he ‘invented jazz’ or not, he was certainly one of its most important early figures, an indisputable giant of a pianist, composer and arranger, and simply can’t be left out of my little historical survey.

This was a good shave, a bit rough on last pass, as has been the case before (and perhaps appropriately given Morton’s somewhat abrasive character), but a satisfying result. I might use something gentler for the last pass along with this one in future, but it’s glorious on the first two.

That said, I realize the last few shaves with JR have been on fresh blades, which might be a bit unfair, and next time out I will try to use something broken in, tried and tested. I think this is likely a very good blade, but let’s see how it appoints itself over the next few rounds!

 

[80blades]

Blade #39: Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum​

Round 2: Gillette Slim (McVouty?)​

I’m tempted, since this was the first razor I named after a jazz musician, to leave the name as it is for now, even though there are other pianists whose contributions were arguably more important, and whose place in the canon more essential… But perhaps such restraint is unnecessary, as nothing is stopping me from giving a razor more than one name! I mean, it’s a bit absurd, but then again this whole thing is a bit absurd, so here we are…

Let’s add the legendary Bud Powell! A protégé of Monk, Powell became the quintessential bebop pianist, lauded for his technique and versatility as well as for the speed and sheer inventiveness of his ‘blowing’. Powell led a rather tragic life, struggling with mental health issues and addiction as well as racism, police brutality, hospital abuse and treatments of electroconvulsive therapy, eventually dying at 41 of tuberculosis and malnutrition.

Nevertheless, in his prime he laid down a formidable legacy of recordings and compositions that are an essential and indispensable part of the language and tradition of jazz, and his influence was and remains enormous.

So in light of his stature and significance in the art form, perhaps Bud should be the main touchstone for this razor, and McVouty (Slim Gaillard) can stay on as an honorable mention. Either way, I basically just call it Slim anyway

Anyway, the shave was excellent as expected, though I did end up with a bit more redness around the neck than I have had from this razor before. Trouble in paradise? We’ll have to see how things go next time. I have faith that this blade will come into its own eventually!

 

[80blades]

Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum, continued​

Round 3: Leresche 51 (Phénix?)​

Here is a razor that has yet to give me a shave that is not deeply and utterly wonderful. It literally surprises me every time, and I end up asking myself, how can it be this good? What strange alchemy of geometry and balance can be responsible for its superlative performance with any blade I throw at it?

Similarly, there is a pianist who never fails to leave me more or less gasping in awe at the singular perfection of his artistry: Ahmad Jamal.

Born Frederick Russell Jones in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on July 2, 1930, Jamal changed his name when he converted to Islam in his early 20s. He’s still alive and playing today!

“Jamal entered the world of jazz at a time when speed and virtuosic improvisation were central to the success of jazz musicians as artists. Jamal, however, took steps in the direction of a new movement, later coined ‘cool jazz’ – an effort to move jazz in the direction of popular music. He emphasized space and time in his musical compositions and interpretations instead of focusing on the blinding speed of bebop… These stylistic choices resulted in a unique and new sound for the piano trio… Jamal explored the texture of riffs, timbres, and phrases rather than the quantity or speed of notes in any given improvisation.” (thanks again, Wikipedia!)

He became quite popular, and was enormously influential, paving the way for a generation of pianists who brought a much wider range of influences to the tradition. One of these will get the honorable mention nod here: McCoy Tyner, whose work with John Coltrane (and on his own) was as influential as Jamal’s, developed a unique and innovative vocabulary including quartal voicings and pentatonic scales, and advanced harmony influenced by Debussy. His style was much more percussive and ‘attacking’ than Jamal’s elegant restraint, but between them they provide a powerful illustration of the enormous depth and complexity of jazz.

Today’s shave was everything I have come to expect from the Leresche, and was hoping for from the 7 O’Clock – simply sublime, and worthy of the namesakes I’ve chosen! Not much else to say – shaving, for me, doesn’t get much better than this.

 

[80blades]

Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum, continued​

Round 4: Gillette Flare-tip Rocket (‘Twiggy’…)​

Another absolutely divine shave, 10 out of 10! This blade has definitely come into its own now, and along with these classic razors is delivering the goods in style!

Speaking of style… Twiggy may have been a 60’s icon, but I haven’t seen any evidence that she played jazz piano… So, as I continue my theme, there is someone who simply cannot be overlooked, and whose contribution is impossible to overstate; a transformative genius who profoundly changed jazz piano and influenced all who followed him (including, obviously, myself!). I’m talking about Bill Evans.

Known for his cerebral, understated approach that was more considered and thoughtful than the flashy, virtuosity-for-its-own-sake style that was prevalent in much early jazz and bebop, Evans nevertheless had extraordinary control and precise technique. In addition to his profound melodic and harmonic genius, and a beautiful and musical touch on the instrument that is as instantly recognizable as Ahmad Jamal’s, this makes him an essential figure in the canon, a true giant of the instrument.

Of Welsh-Ukrainian ancestry, he grew up in New Jersey and his traumatic formative experiences (a troubled family situation and a difficult time in the army) were mirrored by later struggles with depression and addiction (his struggle with drugs has been described as “the longest suicide in history”). However, in the meantime, Evans played with many of the leading jazz artists of his time, and on a number of crucially important recordings, including Miles Davis’ Blue In Green, one of the most influential (and best-selling!) jazz albums of all time. In his own work he tended to focus on small-group improvisation and interplay, and brought new harmonic sophistication to the tradition.

Evans also offers an opportunity to address the elephant in the room. Are *all* the ‘giants of jazz piano’ black? (And, while we’re at it, are they all men?) Well, the short answer is obviously no, but the slightly longer answer is that, well, yes, the vast majority of the true titans have been. There are various reasons for this…

Jazz was, obviously, originally a black American art form, emerging initially in New Orleans in the late 19th-century from a combination of “the musical traditions of West Africa (rhythm, ‘feel’, blues forms) and Europe (harmony, variety of instruments)”*, incorporating church hymns, slave songs, field chants, ‘minstrel’ songs and cuban-style rhythms – and eventually, the instrumental and improvisational prowess that began to appear as the movement gained momentum. (* from jazzobserver dot com, ‘the origins of jazz’).

So jazz emerged from and was rooted in black communities, and while there are certainly examples of white bands and musicians quite early on, they were not really central to the tradition. Furthermore, racial segregation in America meant that for a long time, there was very little visible intermingling of black and white musicians (until there was, and while not the first prominent example of an inter-racial ensemble – we’ll come to that – it was still noteworthy when Evans worked with Miles Davis) – and for the most part the latter were simply copying and co-opting, rather than contributing.

Meanwhile, from within the rich musical world of black America, as we’ve seen and will continue to see, transformative geniuses and virtuosi sprang forth in remarkable numbers. The sheer vitality of jazz’s first half-century or so, the rapid development of style and complexity, and the explosion of creativity that even a cursory survey like this is confronted with, is really quite extraordinary.

But all things are more complicated than they first seem, and such a potent brew was never going to stay in one place for long. Things change, art forms evolve and flow into other communities (and across oceans!). Of course, jazz is a big subject and even a highly abridged history is well beyond the scope of this journal – not to mention rather off topic! – but suffice to say it is a rich and varied tradition and many people of many colors, shapes and sizes have played vital roles in its evolution.

(A discussion of *women* in jazz piano – of course there have been many! – will have to wait for another opportunity, but we’ll get there…)

Before we move on, since it seems to be a thing now, an honorable mention: the wonderful Dave Brubeck! Another iconic pianist whose exploration of unusual time signatures led to another of jazz’s most successful albums: 'Time Out', featuring the ever-popular 'Take Five'.

Which I think it is now time to do! (And I should probably get back to shaving at some point!)

 

[thombrogan]

The more you shave, the more I learn, @80blades

I think you’ll be into improvised straight razor shaving when I finally get told the full story of Django Reinhardt.

 

[80blades]

Well, you know, they say write what you know and all that! Glad the tangents are appreciated, let me know if I'm too far off-track! Anyway I'm a piano guy so Django, while an absolutely astonishing musician, is somewhat outside my sphere of expertise.

I tried a straight razor some years back, before I had any real idea what I was doing (I was still on cartridges!), and I think I made many mistakes (none life-threatening, thankfully!)... Overall I didn't get along with it all that well and I think I'm likely to stick with DEs for the foreseeable future, but you never know!

 

[thombrogan]

you never know

That’s absolutely true.

Figured all percussively-voiced stringed instruments were the same. Only pianists don’t go looking for left-handed keyboards and balk at the price nearly as much as bassists and guitarists.

 

[80blades]

Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum, continued​

Round 5: Gillette Tech ‘Owen’…​

This shave was on what would have been my father’s birthday, so it seemed appropriate to use his namesake razor! This was the best shave in quite a while with this old-timer, really close and smooth with no complications… Owen seems, like others recently, to like this blade!

To add an appropriate jazz piano name to the proceedings, let’s go with Earl, for Earl ‘Fatha’ Hines! Moving to Chicago in 1925 (from his native Pennsylvania, where he was born in 1903), he met the slightly older Louis Armstrong in the poolroom of the local Black Musicians’ Union, and they quickly formed a partnership that resulted in some of the seminal recordings of early jazz, including the transcendent ‘West End Blues’. From there he went on to lead his own wildly popular big band, which was the springboard for (amongst many others) bebop icons Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie.

His influence was enormous (he was Art Tatum’s favorite pianist, which pretty much says it all), and descriptions of his style – by critics and other musicians alike – are rapturous: “A whole orchestra by himself”… “consistent inspirational force”… “a giant of originality”… “No one can get that sound, no other pianist”… “the greatest piano player in the world”…

In his own words, and somehow neatly encapsulating the whole spirit of jazz (to me, at least!): “I’m an explorer if I might use that expression. I’m looking for something all the time. And oft-times I get lost. And people that are around me a lot know that when they see me smiling, they know I’m lost and I’m trying to get back. But it makes it much more interesting because then you do things that surprise yourself. And after you hear the recording, it makes you a little bit happy too because you say, “Oh, I didn’t know I could do THAT!””

From Wikipedia: Hines’ last show took place in San Francisco a few days before he died of a heart attack in Oakland. As he had wished, his Steinway was auctioned for the benefit of gifted low-income music students, still bearing its silver plaque: ‘Presented by jazz lovers from all over the world. this piano is the only one of its kind in the world and expresses the great genius of a man who has never played a melancholy note in his lifetime on a planet that has often succumbed to despair.’

For an honorable mention, let’s go with ‘Red’ – to reflect the red brass cap and handle on the Tech, and in honor of the great Red Garland! Red (née William) played with Miles before Bill Evans did (and he won’t be the last pianist associated with the great trumpeter and bandleader that will be mentioned here!), notably on a remarkable quartet of albums all recorded on two studio dates in 1956: Cookin’, Relaxin’, Workin’, and Steamin’. While not as transformative a figure as Hines, or as others we’ve considered or will in future installments, he was instrumental in popularizing the use of block chords in comping, and his cool, confident and swinging sound was widely copied.

 

[80blades]

Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum, continued​

I'm terribly behind on posting here, as things have been busy and of course as this unexpected jazz piano survey has taken a bit of research and planning... nevertheless, better late than never, and I'll try to catch up soon!

Round 6: PAA DOC ‘Tiny Tim’…​

What a wonderful shave! I used the Amici brush, for a change of pace, and tried the trick of loosening the handle a bit to make the razor a bit more efficient, as the manufacturer suggests… It worked a charm, making the first and second passes more efficient somehow also more smooth and enjoyable. I tightened it a bit for the final pass, which worked great and made for my most enjoyable shave with this razor for some time!

Riding the cap a bit and using less pressure below the neck also helped… I’m feeling like my technique has levelled up a bit recently and I’m getting more enjoyable shaves across the board!

To give this one a jazz piano name… I think it’s time for Erroll Garner, who was of notably small stature – but no less a giant of the instrument! Born in Pennsylvania in 1921, a twin and the youngest of six children. He was largely self-taught and never learned to read music, but had extraordinary ears and ability to recall anything he’d heard, and was playing professionally by his early teens – initially overshadowed by his older brother Linton, also a pianist, but in time of course Erroll achieved much greater fame.

My grandfather on my mother’s side, in addition to being a brilliant and prolific artist in many media, was also a self-taught jazz pianist; his childhood piano later became my own, and a few years ago I recorded a tribute to his and my mother’s paintings which have surrounded me all my life (if you search on BandCamp for ‘Painter Piano’ you should find it!). Anyway, Erroll Garner was apparently my grandfather’s favorite, and I can understand why. His impeccable swing and wonderfully sensitive ballad playing have few equals and he wrote numerous songs that are considered timeless classsics, notably ‘Misty’.

For an honorable mention, another physically diminutive musical giant – and also known widely for the songs he wrote, in this case as Duke Ellington’s principal creative partner and close friend – the wonderful Billy Strayhorn (who in fact went to the same highschool as Garner, as did Ahmad Jamal!). He wrote and co-wrote many songs associated with Ellington’s band – including the legendary ‘Take The A Train’ – and “provided harmonic clarity, taste, and polish to Duke’s compositions…. Strayhorn also often sat in on the piano with the Ellington Orchestra, both live and in the studio.” (Wikipedia).

Strayhorn was openly gay, deeply invested civil rights causes, and was a friend of Martin Luther King, Jr. In his autobiography Duke Ellington listed what he considered Strayhorn’s “four major moral freedoms”: “freedom from hate, unconditionally; freedom from self-pity (even through all the pain and bad news); freedom from fear of possibly doing something that might possibly help another more than it might himself, and freedom from the kind of pride that might make a man think that he was better than his brother or his neighbor.”

 

[80blades]

Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum, round 7​

Gillette Rocket 500 HD – ‘Ronnie’…​

This whole thing is starting to be something of an exercise in running out of superlatives, but I have to dig deep to report on this shave – it was just that good. As has happened a couple of times recently, I was kind of in awe the whole time, my mind struggling to process how a shave could be that flawless – and how the tools to achieve it were perfected so very long ago, and then lost to decades of crappy plastic cartridges (or worse, disposables) and 5-blade absurdity.

The Rocket is simply a magnificent shaver, and this blade was fully up to the challenge of delivering a magnificent shave, showing no signs of slowing down!

So to add a jazz name to Ronnie, who can we say the same about? Well, Herbie Hancock springs to mind! Herbie is kind of a jazz phenomenon, a living treasure, and he has made a career out of somehow repeatedly being in exactly the right place at exactly the right time doing exactly the right thing with exactly the right people. His first album as a leader in 1962 included the tune ‘Watermelon Man’, which catapulted him to the top drawer of jazz stardom… and in 1983, ever-adventurous and open musical spirit that he is, he transcended ‘jazz fame’ to become a legitimate superstar with the breakdancing anthem ‘Rockit’…

(See what I did there?)

In between (and since), he was a core member of Miles Davis’ second great quintet from 1964-68, continuing to contribute to subsequent projects while pursuing his own. Prolific, constantly changing and incorporating new forms and influences, he has been a force of nature in jazz for well over 60 years. I saw him in concert, in duo with his frequent collaborator and fellow jazz titan Wayne Shorter, and it was a simultaneously challenging and inspiring experience.

So there we have it – Ronnie is also Herbie. I’m sorry it’s all so silly but it is what it is!

And for an Honorable Mention: I’m going to go for the great Ray Charles! Not primarily associated with jazz since he made such a mark in other genres, principally gospel and R&B (and of course he was at least as famous for his singing as his playing), I feel he deserves a place in this list anyway. Since this is a long post already, and Ray’s extraordinary life has already been made into a major motion picture, I won’t explore it further here… but if you haven’t done so recently, I recommend re-watching the ‘Shake Your Tailfeather’ sequence from the Blues Brothers to remind yourself of how truly great, not to mention deeply cool, he was!

 

[thombrogan]

I’m feeling like my technique has levelled up a bit recently and I’m getting more enjoyable shaves across the board!

Love reading that. Congratulations!

See what I did there?

Absolutely witty. Especially as the reference was twist to open.

 

[80blades]

... Especially as the reference was twist to open...

Nicely done! Took me a couple of seconds, but I got there...

 

[80blades]

Gillette 7 O’clock Platinum, Round 8​

Ming-Shi 2000s ‘Big Leo’, Gillette Featherweight Tech ‘Horace’​

Very nice shave on 3 days’ growth. Used Big Leo on setting 6 for the first pass. Blade definitely showing its age and struggling a bit on the tough chin hairs, but got through them. Dialled it down to 2 for second pass, all good.

Name change: Randy! for Randy Weston, a somewhat lesser-known giant (literally, he was tall!) of mid-century jazz. Born in 1926 in Brooklyn NY, he was influenced by Duke and Monk and was well on his way to joining them at the apex of American jazz in the 1950’s, but became increasingly fascinated with the African roots of jazz and eventually relocated there.

I saw him live in Montreal once, with a group of Gnawa musicians from Morocco where Weston made his home for many years. It was an absolutely epic concert – the first half was solo piano, just Randy playing and telling stories, a seamless flow with no room for applause until the set break. Fascinating and deep, and the atmosphere was reverent; we knew we were in the presence of one of the elders…

Then the second half was like a wild party! The Gnawa musicians paraded around the theatre, everyone was dancing, and Randy kept wheeling his longtime collaborator and arranger Melba Liston onstage in her wheelchair so she could be part of the fun. To visit both these versions of the spirit of jazz in one concert was a rare privilege!

Honorable mention goes to: Abdullah Ibrahim (formerly known as Dollar Brand), a South African pianist, multi-instrumentalist and composer who, despite living in exile for 30 years, remains an ambassador for African jazz and is now rightly recognized as a national treasure in his native country.

For the third pass I changed to the Featherweight Tech for detail work, and because I only got one shave with it and wanted to take it for another spin. Very nice, though a few weepers did appear on the neck but I think that’s just part of it being time to change blades!

Honorable mention, alongside the razor’s namesake Horace Silver: the *other* Horace, Horace Parlan! Also associated with hard bop, he made the most of his partially-paralyzed right hand (from childhood polio) and built a style around it, playing with Charles Mingus on several recordings, amongst other collaborations!

 

[80blades]

Blade#40: Gillette 7 o’clock Green Permasharp (India)​

Well, we’ve hit the halfway point of this journey! (Well, once we get through this blade anyway). I didn’t promise it would be fast, but still this is a bit of a milestone.

​

Round 1: King C. Gillette ‘Mel’…​

Good shave, no issues. The KCG is not the kind of razor that I can get super excited about, but it’s solid and reliable, and seems to get along with the 7 o’clock pretty well (as a jazz musician, I don’t generally get along with 7 o’clock very well myself, at least not the one in the morning!). I feel like the blade is much like the last one, and might be the same blade – or in any case very similar, and probably made in the same factory.

I’m realizing that if I keep trying to summarize and do any kind of justice to each musician as I go along, I might never catch up with myself, so maybe I will try to tighten things up a bit…

Opting for a more direct association than the one that led to ‘Mel’, let’s go straight to Nat ‘King’ cole! Like Ray Charles, an argument could be made that Cole is better known as a singer and songwriter – and perhaps more so in peripheral genres including rhythm & blues, early rock & roll, easy listening – but he started out as a jazz pianist in the 1940s and, with his understated, consummately swinging style, deserves a place in the pantheon. Although his life and career were cut tragically short by lung cancer, he achieved enormous fame.

Somewhat less famous, but probably even more influential in the jazz world, our honorable mention goes to Teddy Wilson, whose longtime collaboration with Benny Goodman as a member of both the big band and the quartet (along with Lionel Hampton and Gene Krupa) is among the first examples of a racially integrated group in jazz. Wilson’s sophisticated, elegant style made him “the definitive swing pianist” (according to critic Scott Yanow), and as such he worked with a who’s-who of the jazz greats of his era.

​

Round 2: Fatip ‘Carlo’…​

Good shave, a bit distracted as I was doing a first-shave workshop with my son… A few weepers resulted (on my face, not his!), and a little irritation, but still a good result and enjoyable. I’m still feeling confident that the blade will come through!
Rename! McCoy! Borrowed from the Leresche, which will get a new HM next time around, and thus already discussed – but Tyner was an important and essential enough figure that he really rates a razor of his own, and indeed one of this calibre… so, Carlo and McCoy can share the honors.

Honorable mentions: Cedar Walton and Harold Mabern, both contemporaries of Tyner, both associated with the hard bop and, subsequently, post-bop schools. Of the two, Walton was perhaps the more experimental, while Mabern leaned towards soul jazz, but both are much revered.

A drummer colleague recently relayed to me a wonderful anecdote, from a fellow drummer who had once played with Cedar Walton. The story goes that at a certain point in the concert, he realized he had lost the form, and was somewhat astray. While he found his bearings and finished the set, he was mortified at having made such a blunder while playing with such a legend, and immediately went to apologize. Walton said something along the lines of ‘Hey man, there’s no room for perfection in my music!’

I rather like that sensibility!

 

[Alum Ladd]

Bravo @80blades!

Some of the best reports I have yet read on B&B!

Your light yet highly informed style interspersed with engaging and very informative notes about classic Jazz and R&B are a delight to read!

Thank you!

 

[flask28]

Bravo @80blades!

Some of the best reports I have yet read on B&B!

Your light yet highly informed style interspersed with engaging and very informative notes about classic Jazz and R&B are a delight to read!

Thank you!

Completely agree! I look forward to reading your posts.