Yeah, I know it's past it's prime but it still gets MY juices flowing. No doubt about it; playing with some guys you're on the same page with plus feeling comfortable with your instrument......just nothing like it. I've been following this guy for years and always loved his funky style. This is the type of thing we do, just not quite as well......well maybe on a couple of tunes . May not be your cup of tea but I think you'd have to say that these guys can play. Anyhoo, listen with big speakers or good phones, otherwise you'll miss the gist of it.

Russ, dust off that that jazz guitar, rub some Ben-Gay on those fingers and come on down. I've got two good horn players......we can do this, baby. Heck, we may even let you do a slow vocal ('What are you doing....the rest of your life') if there are any 'honeys' in the house .

Anyhow, check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9sJ-PDQYpA&feature=related

chas

Cgiles,

These guys are not your typical "SELF TAUGHT" musicians. OK? If they are, they are what is known as geniuses. You can bet the house with the toilet connected to it that what I state here is fact. Too many scales, blues, pentatonic, lydian, dorian etc. for self taught. This has traces of “Julliard” or it’s equal. I can’t even pronounce all of the scales they’re playing. Maybe Scott or “The Captain” can help us out with the technical names of the scales and how to pronounce them.

The wife just ran out of the house and wanted to know “what in the hell was I doing.” She caught me in the pick-up getting ready to roll over my Buescher Tenor. I came real close this time. Maybe tomorrow morning when she’s not keeping an eye on me.

I prefer tenor sax over alto, however I've never heard an alto sax man play as much in the lower register as this guy does. Most play in the upper register and I don't enjoy the high sounds all night long. I could listen to this guy all night.

If you and your band can play like this let me know. I will rob a bank fly to where you're located and all I want to do is sit-in for maybe 3 tunes a night. OK?

I’ll be surprised if you get any negative comments on this. If you do, don’t pay it any mind. Whoever finds something wrong with this “anything” they are either deaf or tone and rhythm deaf. Ha ha!

I love “Jazz Funk.” Really, I like anything that’s done musically well. Man how can you not like “Friends In Low Places.” It even has diminished chords here and there.

Good post. I listen to lots of Jazz with earphones while falling to sleep. I’d just let the CD play without the earphones, but it would drive the wife nuts, and just one who is nuts is enough for any family.

Boo, this is pretty much ALL we play in the clubs we play. They're all jazz clubs or clubs that feature 'jazz night' one or two nights a week (plus a 'blues night' and even a 'country night' but strangely, no 'rock night'). Usually it's just organ, guitar, and drums if it's a weekday with sax and vocalist if on the weekend.

I've been playing this stuff (we called it 'fatback' back in the day) for as long as I can remember....or at least since the heyday of the organ trio/quartet (think Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Groove Holmes, Jimmy McGriff, Don Patterson, Shirley Scott, and countless others). We all played out of Philly and Atlantic City (Groove went to San Francisco), and we all knew each other. There were some absolutely phenomonal organ players that no one ever heard of (sort of like New Orleans). I could tell you stories that would make you actually salivate for the 'good ol' days'. I guess the best thing about them is that we were all YOUNG. Oh well. Glad you enjoyed the clip. As I'm sure you know, the nice thing about playing at jazz clubs is that 1. you don't need to 'play it like the record' 2. you don't have to pack the dance floor (just keep them drinking ) and 3. you can play the same 50-75 tunes for an entire career....just play them differently every night.

Also Boo, want to try some tunes with beautiful structure and killer changes......try Monk's 'round midnight, Benny Golsons 'I remember Clifford', the Beatles 'Yesterday', and our own Capt Russ's 'What are you doing the rest of your life' (he didn't write it, just played the hell out of it).

chas

Chas,
I do "Round Midnight" around the house, Harlem Nocturne (with all of the original licks). Lots of guys play it but leave off much of the licks that make it a great tune.

I do "Mood Indigo" and many others that I put in BIAB. There's also a Fake Book for BIAB with close to 1000 tunes. I've learned many of them.

The problem is where I live I have to do the POP stuff. Can you imagine a guy with denims, a plaid shirt and scuffed up cowboy boots requesting "My Romance," "My One And Only Love," "Darn That Dream," "Perdido." Ha ha!
I can get by if I stick with "Night Train."

Chas not trying to find fault or put you on the spot, but is your group pretty tight like this group you posted? I've heard groups play the chart very tight after playing it many times. However, sometimes the improvisation lacks.

These guys are blowing free and on spot just like Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins, and Coltrane use to do. Only these guys didn't do the "Funk" charts, but no one blew freer and swung any better than Dex and the boys.

And I bet this group you posted doesn't play the same solo over and over every night. That is very hard, not to play the same improvisation over and over. To be spontaneous is hard playing night after night. You start playing the same licks over and over. I've done some 5 and 6 night gigs in the 1800's. I think in trying to prevent this from happening, and trying to keep up, caused a bunch of alcoholism and drugs in my day. And especially in the "Hey Day" of Charlie "Bird" Parker, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins and the list goes on and on. These were geniuses.

So are the guys you posted Julliard graduates or just plain geniuses too? that's an excellent post. put up an other like it.

Oh! I almost forgot. It sounds like they had the best experts with the best acoustics and gear to do the recording and video. Man these guys are really working hard with their axes too. I need to give another listen

That's fantastic. What awesome playing. I can listen to this over and over and never get tired of it.

Boo, I play with several different horn guys and occasionally a different drummer (our regular drummer's wife is a very prominent local singer and when she gigs he always defers to her - she works with piano and upright bass). With a horn-augmented organ trio, the secret to sounding 'tight' is a killer 'pocket' drummer combined with a good organ-type bass line. Also, try to have a (well-rehearsed) ensemble part that allows you to EXPLODE out of the break for your solo. Sure, it's pandering to the crowd but hey, it works. Other tips....stay off the mic, jazz audiences hate that. You're supposed to entertain them with your playing, not your talking. The only exception to that was James Moody who probably could have been a stand-up comic if he hadn't been such a musical genius (Moodys Mood for Love is still one of the most recognizable jazz tunes of all time).

Ok, enough jabbering. Go back and practice those scales .

Nigel, yeah, there's something 'organic' about watching guys like that play. You can sense that they're in it soley for the music. Thanks to guys like Pierre, Tony Monaco, Joey Defrancesco, and a few others, this art form continues to remain viable.

chas

Jimmy McGriff used to play a 1990s XB3 too, its a bit hard sounding but a great instrument and very good to see one still being used as it should be. Thanks for the link, some very tight musicianship.

Not only viable, this is the pinnacle of musicianship. This is what every musician should aspire to, even if they can't reach it. But just trying to will improve our performance skills. This is music performance at its very best. I love it.

I heard Joey Defrancesco live a little while back opening for Steely Dan. Both were a musical treat.

chas ... thank you, thank you, THANK YOU !!!
nuff said ...

... except when are you going to get a vid cam like Gary's and post some of your group's stuff on here ?!?!?

I just finished watching the YANKEES take another game from the mets, and then tune into S-Z to hear this ... what a GREAT night !!!