I have got rare Bill Dixon, Alan Silva and other gems for bartering!

Thanks,

Kevin

One small point, however. I played guitar at Bennington with Bill from 1974 through 1980. If Bill wanted to break every guitar in America, he never mentioned that to me.

He did make throw away my pick. I had to develop a strong and fast right thumb to produce the lines and rhythms Bill required without the clicking he despised.

My recollection is that not many of his students during those years were guitarists.

As for “guitar jockeys,” I wouldn’t know about that. Can’t really see how one could play a guitar while riding it. Sounds painful.

I tried to get him a grant but failed. I remember visiting him in his Bennington office. It gave him job security and the prestige of academia gut it was frustrating.

Why, you my ask? Most of his students were trust fund cases and guitar jockeys. This made it a handful to set up fun student ensembles.

I well recall the edge of rage in his booming low voice when he said “If I had my way I”D BREAK EVERY GUITAR IN AMERICA!!!”

His early half release on Savoy SVY10794 is available and wonderful with a composition entitled “Winter Song 1964″.

It is a septette with George Barrow, t sax, Ken McIntyre a. Sax and oboe, Howard Johnson, tuba and bari sax, Dave Izenzon and Hal Dodson on basses and Howard McCrea, drums. The other part of the cd involves some comparably impressive work by Archie Shepp who sounds better than ever having recovered fully from a lip tumor and he’s doing stunning work with Tauregs in Paris for his own label Archieball.

Now try to find work by Laurence Cook. He’s worked with Bill for years a magical allegorical drummer who is on Wraparound, the first Joe Morris recording and he can also be found on Bobby Naughton dates.

I second Shannon’s appreciative comment above–the mood I’m in.

And please add my local jazz music site to your list–KSDS fm or jazz88online.org in San Diego.

I’m adding you to my bloglines. Wonderful place for the writer who seeks inspiration and the appreciator of music in all of us.

Kathy

You’re right, it was an oversight on my part not to include Considerations in my post. It’s cause I don’t have it! My friend Andrew played it for me once, and it killed me, but I couldn’t write about it without being tortured by its absence. So great thanks for putting a bit of it up here!

And I also was at that Grimes/Dixon duo gig at the Stone last year. Beautiful, indeed. And I never thought of it in terms of a hip hop or dub influence, that’s an interesting take.