Recap 1: Feel the Need/Make a Difference

There's nothing like playing with other musicians that makes you want to just play. The inspiration that springs forth from other people makes me want to write and play music all day. Sorry I haven't been on in a while. I wanted to make sure I had something to write about and had enough to fill up the space. Now, I have a lot to write about. Maybe, too much...Anyway, let's start from November.

We started recording and it has been an amazing experience. First off, let me say "Thank you" to the members of the Chris Hodges Band. I'm glad to be surrounded by so much living talent. We get along well in real life so naturally things just work out musically. By "living talent" I mean that when we play, it's not just sequenced music, organized into a specific mold. We start playing, and anything we play evolves on the spot, becoming so much more than what we originally intended, be it on purpose or by mistake. Eric Ward on set is awesome. He does great work. Probably the best drummer I've ever played with (sorry P.J.). Rusty Firth on guitar. He's just awesome. He never ceases to amaze me. And of course, Chris Hodges on bass....do I even need to say anything? Without him, this probably wouldn't happen. We (He) are the only ones really all that active in jazz in the area from what I can tell. I've heard of groups having gigs in the surrounding areas (Dothan or Montgomery, if you can consider that "surrounding area") but usually after the fact...I mean, besides the groups on campus. Most of the stuff I hear about now is coming out of Birmingham. In fact, we are making history (technically...hopefully) with this recording. We may be the first jazz group to have an album to come out of Troy without any official affiliation with the campus, i.e. TUJE, TUSB, etc. Our last session will be coming pretty soon and with that, the release of a yet-to-be-named album....I wonder where the release party will be?

On a different subject, 2 weeks ago, I was provided the opportunity to play with a man by the name of Raymond Reach. You may have heard of him. If not then go here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Reach). Yeah, "That" Ray Reach. The gig was for ThyssenKrupp, one of the world's largest steel producers. They were opening a new factory in Calvert, Alabama (yeah, I had to look it up too). It is one of the most advanced steel factories on the planet. It cost something to the tune of 5 million dollars to build. It will provide hundreds of thousands of jobs in the U.S. and help to bolster U.S. and German relations. There were representatives from the White House and Germany with full blown Secret Service detail. They even wore sunglasses...inside....at 9 o'clock....at night....yeah, I had no idea. I was just going to play a gig. Mind = Blown. I'm glad that I could be a part of something that actually effected so many lives on a global scale. I didn't find all that out until half way through the gig.

Before that, I was amazed by who I was playing with. Now, to drop a couple of names. Mart Avant of the Tuscaloosa Horns on Trumpet. Wow! He's top notch! An 'A' class musician and I got to sit right next to him. P.J. Spraggins on set. He picked up on everything...everything, like he knew the future...but just of what we were playing at the time. Carlos Pino on guitar....yeah, so apparently this dude is just out of this world on guitar. Richard Moten out of Louisianna on upright bass. The name sounds kind of familiar, right? He's a relative of Bennie Moten....jaw on floor. By the way, he's beyond excellent. Larry Wade on alto and clarinet. Just killer. Last but not least, Dave Amaral on Tenor and Flute. Stellar! What an awesome group of people! I felt very out of place. After a while, I finally settled in and started playing like I had some sense though. I also have to give a shout out to Casey Farris on Bari Sax. He's a hell of a reader and a driver. Thanks!

So, after all these mind-blowing experiences in the last month, I was kind of shocked. After a drought of not performing, I experience so much, with so many talented professionals, I can't help but wonder what I can do next? I want to go places and play now. I've always wanted to but just never did. I think I'm ready to go out there and do something. I was talking with Dave Amaral at the ThyssenKrup gig. He asked me what my "day gig" was. I told him that I worked at a restaurant. He immediately told me,"You need to get in a band!"....I'm kinda already in one but I know what he means. I need to do something with this...or die trying...sorry, I had to.

Jaco Pastorius

I seriously doubt there is a single electric bass player who don't know who Jaco Pastorius is. Whether or not you play (or even dig) jazz, you have to give Jaco his props! His first album, Jaco Pastorius, is, as Pat Metheny put it, "...without question the most auspicious debut album of the past quarter century..." and, along with Word of Mouth, is a study on what can be done with an electric bass, expanded harmonies and a big band.

One great but relatively unknown project of was an instructional video called Modern Electric Bass [VHS]. You can now get it on DVD, too. along with exercises and the like, it includes some really great jams with John Scofield and Kenwood Dennard. I can't even begin to count how many times I've watched that video (I have it on VHS even though I no longer own a VCR). This was my introduction to the energy of an improvisational performance and Scofield and Dennard blew my hair back every time I saw it. Remember, this was mid 90's and the internet was ssslllllooooowwwww and unreliable so this type of media wasn't readily available.

Here is a clip from the video where the dream trio plays one of Jaoc's most popular tunes, The Chicken. Enjoy.



I put together a list of esential Jaco recordings. Check them out and let me know what you think!

Jazz without Leaving the House

One thing that makes things difficult as a jazz musician in a small town is the limited (if any) chances to see/hear live jazz and it can be hard to “feel” your way through band leadership and stage management/presence without it. So, what I wanted to do was give some resources for musicians and, at the same time, maybe give newbe listeners some places to explore jazz without having to drop the money on going to a show that they may or may not like. I want to start with video; then we'll move to audio.

VIDEO

Probably, no, definitely, at the top of my list for online jazz is the live feed from Smalls Jazz Club in NY, NY. After the flash intro, the schedule will load and you can click a link on the left to go to the “Live Video.” If you’re not diggin’ the cats that are playing or can’t be in front of a screen when it comes on, you can go to the audio archive and listen to past performances of many of the artists. Seeing musicians you look up to play/lead WHILE the are actually on stage doing it can be an invaluable resource.

Another great place to stream great videos is Jazz Corner’s JazzVission. There, anyone can upload footage of any group playing jazz. There are videos of bands at private parties, showcases, and any other performance situation you can fathom.

Of course, we all know about YouTube but many don’t really know just how much you can find on there. One particular channel, Jazz Video Guy , ran by Bret Primack has a steady flow of great jazz videos. You can also find him at All About Jazz, another great site for jazz videos and audio.

AUDIO

Back in December,Jason Parker (@1WorkinMusician), a jazz trumpeter/blogger (and helluva nice guy) from Seattle wrote a blog called “10 Jazz Resources You Should Follow on Twitter” which covered some of these (along with several different ones). While the following is not focused on Live jazz, they do give you access to live tracks. But hey, studio tracks are important, too, ya know.

My main source for internet jazzphonia is last.fm. You can listen for free, it has iPhone, Droid, and Xbox 360 apps, and it can keep up with everything you play on all your devices. It makes suggestions and lets you stream music from your own library so you can have it when you aren’t by a hard drive.

AccuJazz (@accujazzradio) has an awesome selection of jazz channels. You can pick or experiment with different types all day.

Another is Curt’s Cafe. Curtis (@curtjazz) provides a great selection and now has a blog and a Youtube channel. His blog reviews albums and makes great suggestions for your listening pleasure.

The internet can bring pretty much anything you need straight to you. Don't be afraid of that search engine; USE IT. There are so many great things to read, watch and listen to. This list is just what I use on a regular basis. If there is something you use, comment it below OR email it to me and I may add it to this blog.

I miss coffee

Hello internet jazz/music junkies! It's been a while since I've written anything on the internet and decided it was time to remedy that. Lately, I've been trying to keep my ears to the ground, so to speak, trying to absorb all that I could musically. In the process, I have renewed my itunes account, mostly thanks to @redraspus (check out his web page and twitter. impressive). Through this I have acquired a lp that I am truly impressed and amazed by. Maurice Brown released a cd recently named "Cycle of Love". I'd call it jazz fusion but that wouldn't attempt to describe it accurately. I'd say it's r&b - jazz...maybe?. It's definitely worth a listen. I'm not gonna review the whole thing here though. It just proves that there is a lot out there and you just have to be looking for it. Fortunately, that particular recording just kind of fell into my lap.

Anyway, the reason I'm on my quest for any form of inspiration is because I've been trying to "evolve" my sound. In trying to become a better performer, I can't let myself get bored or comfortable so I push myself to listen to something different everyday. Itunes, youtube, facebook, twitter, last.fm, pandora; these are all means to an end. The end being me learning something and applying it in performance. I hear some musicians say,"I want to get better but I have no idea what to practice now. I have reached my limit here, or with this particular instructor. I'm the best I'm gonna be." That's just wrong. First, don't stop pushing to be better. Go out and find something that challenges you. Go out and find someone that sounds way better than you and ask them questions until they tell you to go away or until you've learned all you can. I learned something earlier this year. As soon as "you" say that "you can't", you won't. It's a defeatist state of mind. I get down on myself all the time. You wouldn't believe how many times a day I say that I suck or I need to be practicing right now. It's okay to kick yourself sometimes as long as you believe that you can always do better. I like to keep it modest too. I'm not the "I'm totally better than you" type. I'm more like the "I'm gonna be as awesome as I can be" type.

Also, I think I learn even more in the time where I'm not practicing physically. I practice in my head a lot. It's that thing that trumpet players do when they're fingering there notes on trumpet, without a trumpet. It's kind of sad...and awesome at the same time. It's the time where I don't have to think about holding my horn. It's when I want to hold my horn and do something about the notes pouring out of my head. It's when I hear something and I want to play it but I'll have to wait until I get home. Yeah, I'm a little obsessed with music. It's tragic because I haven't been able to practice as much as I want lately. I just started a job and things are starting to get busy. I'm just going to have to wait for things to settle down a little to get back into a groove.

Wow, this post went all over the place. Next time I'll try to keep it simple and to some kind of point.

Bill Evans

Ok, so there are about one hundred million reasons (give or take) why you need to know about Bill Evans. His re-harmonizations of standards and work with extended chords is phenomenal. There is no doubt that he changed the way jazz was played by pianists everywhere.

I’m no pianist but Evans’ music has been a big influence on me. I can listen to his music all day (literally) and never get tired of it. One of my all time favorite tunes is How My Heart Sings off the 1962 album of the same name.

Below is a list of what I consider the top 5 Bill Evans tunes. I hope you dig them and explore more of his music.




Seeing him in action is pretty awesome, too! Click here find some video footage.

We're Back!

Back towards the first of the year, I started a website which housed a directory of local jazz musicians, venues, reviews, an events calendar, and anything else that had anything to do with jazz in and around Dothan, AL. It was complete with blogs on local artists and their projects and post from a Troy based jazz trombonist, Matrin Sager. This time around, I plan to expand the list of active bloggers and have local and national guest writers.

Several months later, after struggling to find event listings and musicians miscontruing my intent with the website, I took it down. The only problem with that is I love jazz. I want people to know when and where jazz is happening so they can get out and support it. I want it to thrive in this area and I want people to be exposed to it.

Please let me know if there is a jazz show out there that you don't see on my calendar. Also, if you are a venue or event planner and have live jazz from time to time or a musician who would like to be listed or featured, please email me at dothanjazz@gmail.com.

Welcome!

In our little corner of the world, jazz is like a struggling life form on a strange planet. The jazz that is here, most people don't know about. Why is this? Well, advertising is expensive so venues rely mostly on word of mouth which, I'm sad to say, usually comes too late for many to plan and, in many cases, the right people don't even hear about it to spread the word at all! That's where this blog comes in. I am going to list local jazz venues, musicians, and events and provide a place for area musicians to promote their art.

It will be a little bit before the blog hits it's stride but be patient and check back often. Better yet, subscribe to the feed or follow my Blogger account. Hopefully, this will blossom into it's own website and maybe, eventually, become part of a bigger entertainment news outlet. There is a learning curve but I will master it as quickly as possible.

If you have a jazz gig, band/artist, event, venue, or anything else, please email me at djazz@christopherhodges.com or find me on Twitter (@CHodgesmusic). I look forward to meeting local jazzers and hearing some great local music.

Good Things, 

Chris