Bragging Rights

quote:

Originally posted by soundsreal:
and sometime I'll relate my story of me and Renee Fleming....

There's no time like the present.

quote:

I could do with more of that :-)

...well

The events described took place in and around Plymouth, Devon. The final departure point for the Pilgrim Fathers.

Considering this was back in ancient times ( the early '60s ) there was a dearth of good sources for jazz recordings, all the big chain record shops were stacked with pop. A gentleman by the name of Peter Russell was our savior. He was a jazz musician who set up his own record shop. He was great, he had a mass of great LP's and would play anything you wanted there and then. Even when youre choice wasn't in play something good would be playing.

We haunted his store whenever we were able and he never kicked us out even though most of the time we couldn't afford a purchase and were just getting in the way. He was encouraging us to learn how jazz was done by the greats and had evolved across the decades.

I recall when John revealed he had bought a Baritone sax Peter played him some Harry Carney to illustrate what the instrument could be. John was transfixed I think and that was it he was off and running with the change of direction to mainstream. Us followers just nodded and did what we were told which was fine since we were having so much fun.

Of course Gerry Mulligan got played a lot by the patient Peter. Those experiences were responsible for my growing love of Jazz. I remember when I was away at Uni and in 1 room with a nice family I had an old Dansette record player:



and I crammed for exams to the sound of Charlie Parker, Miles, Ben and Coleman and Oscar Peterson along with Louis, Jack Teagarden and Kid Ory. I was quite even handed in my choice of jazz in those days and fortunately I somehow pushed enough Chemistry and Physics into my brain with musical help to get my BSc.

Ah well ..back to today

regards
geoff

I once sat next to Jewel on a long haul flight from the far east. Lovely kid, snores a bit though.

Heya Mike sounds like a great time down there, I know things start out great and get looser the later you go, but I tend to fade away at midnight, but I'd love some great local food, drinks and clubbing with you. I like the old geezers best, they have class youngsters can't match with all their bravado.

Geoff, great story and you ended up with the best sound system and collection of music. Don't regret that.

Geoff, I was a lowly gardener in paradise, Laguna Bch in the late 70s, I got to see art shows like Cristo, Theibaud, Diebenkorn, Bay Area Figurative, LA artists in Orange county and LA. And sitting on the toilet at a friend's who was down on his luck and health, he had a real Picasso print of man and woman, shall we say copulating..... the only other I would want would be the Minotaur. He had been an art dealer in NY and La Jolla. Not bad but he and others thought I was just a lowly gardener. but I had lunch watching the waves crash on the beach or rocks some great ocean front houses. I could walk 4 blocks down to a private cove, not a bad place to live in your late 20s.

Sarah Vaughn outdoors in Laguna, PF The Wall in LA around '80.

15 years later I was taking art classes and having the best time of my life in Santa Barbara renting a room from friends, everything I owned fit in the back of my toyota truck. Saw Paul Simon for the 3rd time, Joni Mitchell, Lyle Lovett at the County Bowl.

Still am in the City of Lost Angels decades later. I got to see last Bowl concert of James Brown, Krall, Costello, life is good in my little corner of a major city.

Well back to music, art and cleaning up my messy apartment.

quote:

Originally posted by mudwolf:
Heya Mike sounds like a great time down there, I know things start out great and get looser the later you go, but I tend to fade away at midnight, but I'd love some great local food, drinks and clubbing with you. I like the old geezers best, they have class youngsters can't match with all their bravado.

Geoff, great story and you ended up with the best sound system and collection of music. Don't regret that.

You comin' down here mudwolf?