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What are you listening to?
- Thread starter paydepst
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Dave Brubeck "Live with the LSO", a CD I received today. Take Five is my favorite song of all time and I probably have 30 Brubeck/Desmond versions of this song from 1959 thru their reunion CD in 1976. I also liked this symphony version and wanted to hear the almost 16 min Brandenburg Gate (another favorite), so when i found the CD on ebay for under $5 (amazon sellers were asking almost $30), I couldn't pass it up.
I haven't listened to Brecker in a very long time. I listened to this entire album a couple of times over the last few days. This may be my favorite Michael Brecker album. It just hits all the right notes for me, no pun intended.
Will I be banned if I say Christmas songs?
You all should be okay with Bing, or Nat King Cole, right?
Full disclosure: I can listen to these year round!
You all should be okay with Bing, or Nat King Cole, right?
Full disclosure: I can listen to these year round!
Ultra Mundane by the Tragically Hip
Love this line:
To feel as welcome as a sneeze in a motorcycle helmet
Love this line:
To feel as welcome as a sneeze in a motorcycle helmet
Of course. I'm a huge fan of some of the bands he's played in. Pat Metheny, Steely Dan, Mike Mainieri, Dave Holland. I think he was playing with Steely Dan when we saw them at the Beacon Theatre a few years ago. I have to say that Brecker and Lenny Pickett are probably my two favorite modern day sax players. So sad that Brecker was taken from us at such a young age.
I saw Chris Potter with the Dave Holland quintet at the Norwich Playhouse, a tiny room. The atmosphere was absolutely electric, Robin Eubanks was on incredible form and Dave Holland had this huge smile on his face from beginning to end. I kept thinking about the connection back to Miles Davis and his famous quintets, it really was an amazing experience. Funny thing, I could barely remember a note of the music afterwards!
There really is nothing like seeing some amazing musicians in an intimate environment. My first time seeing music in a small club was when I was 15. My friend and I (we both were learning how to play drums) went into NYC and saw John Scofield play in an acoustic quartet at Beefsteak Charlies in the Village. They had a small room in the front that was set up as a jazz club with tables. This was back in the mid 1970s and they let us in, telling us we could not drink any alcohol. It was Scofield and Billy Hart on drums. I don't remember who was playing double bass and the grand piano. But it was an amazing evening. It was so good, we went back to see them a second time with a slightly different lineup. I was hooked. Sure, I've seen the arena shows but I've long outgrown that kind of thing. For a number of years I didn't see much music in clubs after my son was born. But as he got older and was showing an interest in music and playing an instrument (electric bass), I turned him onto the music I listened to. And then I started taking him into the city with me to see shows at The Blue Note (Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea and Steve Gadd), Iridium (Narada Michael Walden, Brand X, John Patitucci, Mike Stern, Felix Pastorius) and the Jazz Standard (Lenny Pickett). We are going to go see Kenny Barron, Buster Williams and Jeff "Tain" Watts at the Vanguard during his Xmas break. Nothing like sitting a few feet from the music giants. It affords an opportunity to interact with them on occasion.
One time we were seeing Elvin Jones' band at the Vanguard and we would always get there early to be first on line so we could pick the best seats to see the drums. We were sitting literally right in front of his drums. He came out before the set and banged these brackets into the riser in front of his bass drum spurs so it wouldn't creep while he was playing. During his set he knocked one out of the stage and his bass drum started creeping. I was close enough to put my foot up and hold his bass drum in place for the rest of the set. He was super appreciative and we got to chat with him a bit. You can't do that kind of thing in an arena or large theater. Gotta love it.
Awesome experience. Thanks for sharing that brother!
Since Christmas season starts in September, I'm usually a grinch by December, until I hear Darlene Love.
Pandora 'Sentimental Lady' channel.
I'm totally with you on the arena thing but then I've never been a huge fan of live music. I've been a music lover since before I could talk but I have a problem with crowds and struggle to concentrate on things in unfamiliar surroundings. I can't read in public places either.
On one of my rare outings I went to see Max Roach and Cecil Taylor at the Barbican, London. I think it's normally a classical venue, far too big and the whole thing was a big disappointment. But before we went in, Han Bennink was in the foyer playing a snare drum and hi-hat with brushes, like an indoor busker, completely unplanned. I thing Pete Beresford was with him. It was way better than what we'd bought tickets to see.
Listening in private with my Audio Technica headphones is absolute bliss. I had one of the first generations of Sony Walkmans when I was very young, maybe 6 or 7 and I've never found anything to beat that feeling of there being nothing else but the sound of the music, no distractions, just total auditory immersion. Perfection.
What a powerhouse. Let's not forget Garth Hudson on organ. Chest Fever is classic but really never got much air time. The sound leads me to Deep Purple.
Interesting. My wife and I used to argue about this topic. She much prefer music recorded in the studio. I much prefer live recordings. My biggest issue with the large venues is the lack of intimacy but I also have issues with claustrophobia and sometimes my mind will convince me that if there is an issue like a fire, it will be difficult getting out. When that happens I have panic attacks. In fact, this can happen in the smaller venues as well. Several months ago I met a childhood friend and we went to The Blue Note to see some music. I can't even remember who we were there to see. But I remember everything else. Normally I am very attuned to the time and making sure I get on line early to get that great seat. But this time I wasn't. We got there long after the doors opened and all the good seats were taken. We ended up sitting at one of the back tables against the wall opposite the stage and we sat in the last two seats against the wall. When we chose the seats no one else was seated at the table. But then the seats started fill up. I was on one of the inside seats and when all the seats were filled, there was literally no room to get out without making each of the three people between me and the aisle get up because each chair was literally up against the chairs of the table next to us. I started to have a panic attack and just said to my friend, "I have to get up now." He seemed to sense my issue and didn't question me. I have been to the Blue Note many many times and never have felt that way before but this time the seats were insanely tight and close to one another. I hate the Blue Note. And there is no way you can tell me that arrangement isn't a fire hazard. Anyway, I've had other panic attacks but not in jazz clubs or music venues. But I still love seeing live music. This Friday I'm going to see Christian McBride at the Vanguard. I've been there many times but not recently. I'm hoping that the seating is as I remember it and I will make sure we get there early for good seats. And it will be along time before I see a show at the Blue Note again. If I do though, and I encounter the same situation, I'm going to complain to management, and if they do nothing, I'm going to call the NYFD and complain of a fire hazard.
As for auditory immersion I hear you on that too. When I was a teenager back in the mid 1970's I had an Aiwa version of the walkman that played cassette tapes. This thing had insanely great sound. I went everywhere with it. I still miss it because I feel the clarity is better than my iPod. And speaking of which, I refuse to buy into Apple's "pay for everything" approach at personal music. I still have my iPod Video v5.5 which I believe was the model that has the best sound and I will buy another used refurbished one if it ever conks out on me. I take that with me when I travel and it is hooked up in my car so I can listen to my entire CD collection. Bottom line, music is an amazing escape from the insanity of today's (and tomorrow's) world. Essential for me. As you said, perfection.
“Messiah” by Georg Friedrich Händel, with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Sir Georg Solti.
