text:
The musicianship on display in this video by Dave Holland on bass, Billy Kilson on drums, Steve Nelson on vibes, Robin Eubanks on trombone and Chris Potter, making a rare appearance on alto saxophone, his original instrument, is awesome to behold. Program music based around tonal points, chromaticism, motifs and riffs and rhythms. It's the way a lot of young guys hear the music these days. Stick around for Chris' solo beginning at 9:14 minutes. Charles Mingus must be smiling. The tune is Prime Detective.
Focused Profiles on Jazz and its Creators while also Featuring the Work of Guest Writers and Critics on the Subject of Jazz.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Monday, July 30, 2012
Bobby, Roger and The Animals
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
Ahmet Ertegun, one of the co-founders of Atlantic Records, was a big supporter of Rhythm and Blues music as well as a devotee of Rock 'n Roll in its fledgling years.
His brother, Nesuhi, produced Jazz recordings for the Atlantic label including the Modern Jazz Quartet's No Sun in Venice and Pyramid, John Coltrane's Giant Steps and Coltrane Plays the Blues, and a host of other Jazz albums by Milt Jackson, Mose Allison, Jimmy Giuffre and Shorty
Rogers, among others.
Ahmet always maintained that his involvement with the commercially lucrative Rock and R & B music enabled him to subsidize his brother Nesuhi's less-than-profitable ventures into Jazz.
One of his most successful forays into Rock was Ahmet's decision to record Bobby Darin's Splish, Splash. It was a record that would sell a million copies for the then, virtually unknown Darin.
Ironically, almost 10-years later, Darin, now and internationally recognized celebrity, would leave Atlantic and establish his own label [Direction Records] over a dispute with Ahmet and Arif Mardin [who had become Bobby's producer at the label in 1963] involving Bobby's fervent wish to record the music from Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley's Doctor Dolittle.
As recounted by Fred Dellar in his notes to Bobby Darin Sings Doctor Dolittle:
"Bobby Darin constantly re-invented himself. Initially, he'd been a teen idol, littering the charts with the likes of Splish, Splash and Queen Of The Hop. Then he opted to become the new Sinatra, fashioning songs such as Beyond The Sea and Lazy River for a whole new set of swingin' lovers. Once, Bobby even moved into R&B to cut an album of Ray Charles songs, using Ray's own back-up singers, while in 1966 he moved on yet again, linking with the contemporary folk field, and emulating the likes of Tim Hardin. After two critically hailed albums (If I Were A Carpenter and Inside Out) filled with material mainly penned by Hardin and John Sebastian, Darin decided that it was time for a change yet again. No-one was going to classify him, place him in some 'file under' category. It was time for a return to show-biz, a time to dust down the tux, head in a
Hollywood direction. But, being Darin, it would not
be a mere return to former glories. Nothing as easy as that. Instead, Bobby
decided to create a whole album based around his interpretations of a film
score. His choice for the project was Doctor
Dolittle, a musical penned by Leslie Bricusse, who'd previously
collaborated with Anthony Newley on The
Roar Of The Greasepaint - The Smell
Of The Crowd and Stop The World -I
Want To Get Off, the latter a Broadway hit that ran for 555 performances.
Doctor Dolittle, a movie that co-starred Rex Harrison, Anthony Newley, Samantha Eggar and Richard Attenborough, featured a score that had taken Leslie Bricusse 18 months to write. During that period he'd discarded 10 songs and constantly reshaped others. Darin, who'd earlier recorded Bricusse and Newley's Once In A Lifetime, heard the score and loved it. His decision to record it as a complete album pleased Arthur C. Jacobs, the film's producer who claimed: "When Bobby came to us and said he wanted to do his musical impression of Doctor Dolittle, we were flattered but felt that the musical content of our production was out of Bobby's usual style. I mean, in one scene Rex sings a tender ballad When I Look In Your Eyes to a seal! How would that sit with a chap who whirred and whirled with Mack The Knife? Bobby's reply: 'Lead me to it'."
Others were even more incredulous that Darin should want to record the score, his album producer, Arif Mardin, advising him not to go ahead with the project. But, after working on a fine set of arrangements with
Roger Kellaway, Bobby made that trip to Western
Recorders and shaped an album that has stood the test of time. …"
Roger Kellaway summed it up best when he
observed: "Bobby was a sensation to work with. He had the knack of knowing
exactly what was right for him."
See what you think as Bobby sings
Roger's arrangement of Talk to the Animals in the following video made with the assistance
of the ace graphics team at CerraJazz LTD and the production facility at
Our latest montage is set in HD images, a format we've returned after a long absence.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 7:00 AM Links to this post
Sunday, July 29, 2012
"Striking Up The Band" with the Kenny Clarke - Lucky Thompson Quintet
The Blue Note in Paris, 1960. Lucky Thompson on tenor saxophone, Jimmy Gourley on guitar, Alice McLeod Coltrane on piano, Pierre Michelot on bass and Kenny Clarke on drums.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 6:23 PM Links to this post
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Having "Cheese Cake" with Dexter, Sonny, Butch and Billy
Bring a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy a slice of Cheese Cake with Dexter Gordon and Company. If you are a Jazz fan, it truly doesn't get any better than Dexter Gordon on tenor saxophone, Sonny Clark on piano, Butch Warren on bass and Billy Higgins on drums. Dexter's Cheese Cake is based on the changes to tenor sax legend Lester Young's tune, Tickle Toe.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 7:37 PM Links to this post
Brian and Barbara
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
I have no idea if trumpeter Brian Lynch and vocalist Barbara Casini know each other or have worked together.
I doubt it because Brian is based in
and Barbara in New York , but given the international and
cosmopolitan flavor of Jazz in the 21st century, it's certainly is
possible. Italy
Where there is a relationship between the two, and what prompted this posting is that both have recorded terrific versions of the tune – You've Changed - Brian on his Bolero Nights, Venus Jazz CD [VHCD 1029] and Barbara along with the Jazz Orchestra of Sardinia, Paolo Silvestri conducting on Agora Ta, ViaVenetoJazz [CD VVJ 076].
Okay, I'll admit it; I've got a thing for Bill Carey and Carl Fischer's tune having featured two versions on a previous blog piece with interpretations by alto saxophonist Andy Fusco and the sublime, "Sassy Sarah Vaughan.
And early this month [July 7th], I spotlighted [bloglighted?] the version that Hammond B-3 organist Eddy Louiss recorded along with Belgian Guitarist Rene Thomas and drummer Kenny Clarke for Dreyfus Jazz [Dreyfus Disques FDM-36501-2].
The song's poignant lyrics assume autobiographical, heart-breaking proportions when one reflects on their long association with vocalist Billie Holiday. The themes of lost love, seeking love and unrequited love were a constant in Billie's brief and turbulent life [she died in 1959 at the age of forty-four].
What intrigued us about Brian Lynch's rendition of You've Changed is that it is done in the bolero style of Latin Jazz and has a corker of a solo by alto saxophonist Phil Woods. Brian also takes a fine solo as does pianist Zaccai Curtis.
And did you know that the
off the western coast of island of Sardinia has a fine Jazz orchestra? As you will
hear on the following video, it does, indeed, and for Barbara Casini's vocal
version of You've Changed, the
orchestra is under the direction of Paolo Silvestri who also wrote the
arrangement. Be sure and checkout the
fine trumpet solo by Giovanni Sanna Passino beginning at minutes. Italy
Posted by Steven Cerra at 7:00 AM Links to this post
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Joris Roelofs: "The Kids Are Fine"
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
"All around they see not rivals but mentors. Gravitating to living masters and young gurus, they talk not of themselves but of the greatness of others. As a result, their sound is pure, their language is concise. Although perpetually young-looking, they are the opposite of naïve. Their groove is light and precise and the smile in their eyes maintains a near-constant sparkle."
- pianist Aaron Goldberg commenting on Joris Roelofs
It's hard to imagine that someone who is only twenty-eight years old could already be so proficient in today's Jazz world.
Such is truly the case with Joris Roelofs who was born 1984 in
( Aix-en-Provence ), raised in France ( Amsterdam ), and plays saxophones, clarinet, bass
clarinet and flute. He began to play classical clarinet at the age of six, and the
alto saxophone at the age of twelve. Netherlands
For one so young, Joris has a considerable list of accomplishments and associations.
He was a member of the Vienna Art Orchestra from 2005-2010. Joris also plays lead alto in the Jazz Orchestra Of The Concertgebouw in the
. He graduated
in 2007 as a Master of Music at the Conservatory of Amsterdam. In 2001 Joris
won the Pim Jacobs Price. In
2003 he received, as a first non-American, the Stan Getz/Clifford Brown
Fellowship Award in the Netherlands , organized by the International
Association Of Jazz Education (IAJE). The IAJE also honored him with a "First Level"
price. In 2004 Joris received
the first prize of the prestigious Deloitte Jazz Award in the US , a Dutch Award for young musicians who are
just about to start their international carrier. In 2008 he was selected for
the Thelonious Monk International Saxophone Competition. Netherlands
Among others, Joris played with Brad Mehldau, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Christina Branco, Lionel Loueke, Joshua Redman, Chris Potter, Chris Cheek, Eric Harland, Lewis Nash, Aaron Goldberg, Greg Tardy, Ralph Peterson, Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Pete King, Sonny Fortune, Greg Hutchinson,
WDR Big Band, Ari Hoenig, Matt Penman, Alegre Correa.
He was recently asked by Brad Mehldau to perform with him at the Carnegie Hall in
and Sanders Theatre in New York . At age 16 Joris performed the famous
clarinet introduction of Gershwin's Rhapsody
in Blue for a TV show with the Orkest van het Oosten, and in that same show
was also featured as a soloist with the Jazz Orchestra Of The Concertgebouw. He
also recorded as a special clarinet soloist with the Metropole Orchestra with Laura Fygi (2004). As a leader
he performed several times at the North Sea Jazz Festival, Concertgebouw in Boston , Smalls Jazz Club in NYC, among other
places. Amsterdam
In October 2008 he did a European release tour with Ari Hoenig, Aaron Goldberg and Johannes Weidenmueller to promote his debut album Introducing Joris Roelofs. In 2009 and 2010 he did his second and third tour with Aaron Goldberg, Greg Hutchinson, Reginald Veal, Joe Sanders. Joris also plays in a trio with Jesse van Ruller and Clemens van der Feen, they released their album Chamber Tones and toured in
. Joris' new
CD Live
At The Bimhuis will come out the end of August/2011. As a sideman Joris
has been playing at a large number of international jazz festivals and jazz
clubs, all over the world. He
moved to Japan in March 2008. New
York City
Pianist Aaron Goldberg wrote these thoughts about Joris and Jazz in
for Introducing Joris Roelofs: New York City
remains an
artist-magnet. The intrepid flow in from everywhere, their paint brushes or
their saxophones on their back, often still searching for a place to sleep.
Some show up with a point to prove, and they are usually the first to attract
notice. On occasion others arrive with a different kind of special mission.
Instead of a moral to teach or an agenda to push, these brave selves search for
a lesson to learn. Tey are driven by the love of their art. New York
All around they see not rivals but mentors. Gravitating to living masters and young gurus, they talk not of themselves but of the greatness of others. As a result, their sound is pure, their language is concise. Although perpetually long-looking, they are the opposite of naïve. Their groove is light and precise and the smile in their eyes maintains a near-constant sparkle.
Perhaps they have some metaphysical guardian, a Vajravarahi [Tibetan Buddhist diety that helps free one from suffering and gain enlightenment through meditations] to help uproot the ego?
Or maybe their meditations just focus on the truly important: line and melody, mouthpiece and embouchure, narrative and harmony, and the rest follows inevitably. These are the true faithful. From the inside they may see only detours, but their paths are straight and their bearing upright. From the outside they glow like the enlightened. More importantly, they are a joy to listen to. Joris Roelofs is one of the rare arrivals."
With all of this by way of background, "The Kids" such as Joris, Aaron, bassist Matt Penman and drummer Ari Hoenig "are doing just fine" as you can hear for yourself on the sound track to the following video montage.
The tune is pianist Aaron Goldberg's The Rules which is an excellent example of the kind of tension-and-release, repetitive phrases and sustained tones can create in Jazz. Aaron takes the first solo, followed by Ari on drums with Joris's solo closing it out before the piece's "surprise" ending.
[BTW, if the music of Lee Konitz, Warne Marsh, and Lennie Tristano comes to mind while listening to Joris' quartet, your memory is a credit to modern Jazz history].
Joris Roelofs recordings are available as audio CD's and Mp3 downloads from a number of online retailers.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 7:00 AM Links to this post
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Red Norvo: The All-But-Forgotten Big Red One
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
"Red Norvo, …, presents an especially acute challenge to jazz historians. His various musical associations flew in the face of stylistic categories and conventions — perhaps ultimately to the detriment of his career. How else can we explain why this illustrious jazz veteran remained all but forgotten during the 1980s and 1990s, when other survivors of his generation were receiving honorary degrees and various accolades, and were venerated as important elder statesmen of jazz? Certainly one would struggle to find another jazz musician who had made his presence felt in so many different ways as Norvo….
Jazz history books have poorly served this master of many idioms; their rigid categorizations seem incapable of dealing with his chameleon career. Yet Norvo's skillful ability to navigate across artificial stylistic and racial barriers merits both praise and emulation."
Ted Gioia, The History of Jazz [pp. 84-85]
Fortunately, on behalf of all of us, based at Fort Riley, KS, the First Infantry Division – aka "The Big Red One" is still in existence and the music of Red Norvo – whom we shall refer to as the "All But Forgotten" Master Mallets Man – continues to live on through compact disc and other digital reissues of his recorded legacy.
For the most part, however,
Gioia is
correct is his assessment of Red Norvo's undeserved obscurity in Jazz lore,
especially considering his huge contributions to the genre as a musician, band
leader and composer.
Thankfully, there are lots more details to be found about Red's career in Richard Sudhalter's Lost Chords: White Musicians and Their Contribution to Jazz, 1915-1945, pp. 653-705. Here are Mr. Sudhalter's opening thoughts on Red.
"Otis Ferguson, whose commentaries on jazz and other lively arts for the mid-19305 New Republic can still surprise, wrote with particular insight about Red Norvo. 'A special conception of music' was
's verdict in a 1938 review. 'Balance,
restraint, clean ensembles and no tricks . . . And under a complete delicacy
of taste he had the urgent carrying beat without which music like this must be
sick or pseudo.'1 ["Red and Mildred," New
Republic, August 17, 1938]. Ferguson
No tricks. How better to describe a musical orientation, an aesthetic, of such utter purity? Just how pure, in fact, becomes clear with the realization that Red Norvo's way of playing music on the xylophone (or, as later, the vibraharp) had no recognizable precedent—and, once formed, it never really changed. From 1933, when he made his first records, straight through to the 1980s, when physical infirmity finally put an end to his playing career, his basic concept remained firmly, radiantly, in place.
Fashions changed around him. Ways of dealing with harmony, melodic lines, laying down a beat, and, starting in the World War II years, even the inner aesthetic of music-making underwent startling transformations. But Norvo's musical sensibility seemed equal to all of it, able to acknowledge and absorb everything without compromising itself.
'All his music is its own signature' was
's way of putting it—and that is a statement of
incontrovertible fact. It also places Norvo in the small and ultra-select circle
of jazz innovators, true originals." [p. 653] Ferguson
Through a recognition of his originality and genius, Red has also managed to find his way into Gunther Schuller's definitive The Swing Era: The Development of Jazz, 1935-1945 [pp. 513-527]. Mr. Schuller begins his treatment of Red and his music with the following observations about Red's significance to Jazz.
"One of the finest and most consistently creative musicians of the Swing Era – still quite active today incidentally – was Kenneth Norville, known to the music world as red Norvo. The fact that Norvo played the xylophone – in later years he played the vibraphone as well (or the vibraharp, as he preferred to call it) — in the early 1930s a highly unlikely candidate for a jazz instrument, makes his selection as a major soloist in this chapter all the more remarkable. But the fact is that Norvo accomplished for the xylophone what Coleman Hawkins achieved for the tenor saxophone: he took it from its vaudeville environment and single-handedly brought it into the world of jazz.
But Norvo was (is) more than merely a superior instrumentalist. In the thirties he was an influential force as an innovative soloist and a creative orchestra leader, that is to say, one who saw the jazz orchestra as something more than a vehicle for him to front, as Armstrong and Hawkins, for example, saw bands. For Norvo, a jazz orchestra was a collective instrument which through its style, arrangements, and compositions could make important contributions to the music. Norvo has been, through the years, an outstanding uncompromisingly creative improviser, and at times a startlingly gifted (though little appreciated) composer. 22"
[Footnote #22 reads: Norvo destroyed a whole series of early compositions, similar to his Dance of the Octopus (1933), because Jack Kapp, the head of Brunswick Records, in his great business wisdom, regarded such music as meaningless rubbish and tore up Norvo's recording contract. Given the caliber of Dance of the Octopus, this senseless decision can only be regarded as one of the great tragedies of American music.]
George T. Simon in the 4th edition of The Big Bands begins his five-page treatment [pp. 386-390] of Red's larger group with these words of praise:
"For real listening thrills, few bands could match the one that Red Norvo fronted during the fall of 1936. It was only a small band, ten musicians plus Red, and it wasn't a very famous one then. But the way it swung in its soft, subtle, magnificently musical way, insinuating rather than blasting itself into one's consciousness, gave me one of the most remarkable and satisfying listening experiences I have ever felt.
I use the word "felt," purposely, because this was a band with an underlying sensuous as well as musical appeal. Unlike swing bands that overpowered its listeners, this one underplayed its music, injecting into its unique Eddie Sauter scores a tremendous but subdued excitement—the sort of excitement one experiences not during the culmination of something great but in anticipation of something great. It would swing so subtly and so softly and so charmingly through chorus after chorus of exquisite solos and light, moving ensembles, always threatening to erupt while holding the listener mesmerized, until at long last, when he was about ready to scream "Let me up!" it would charge off into one of its exhilarating musical climaxes. There was never a band like it."
Although it does not appear to have been reissued on compact disc, Richard Gehman, the fine writer whose work was often featured in Cosmopolitan Magazine, wrote this excellent overview of the first thirty years or so of Red's career as the liner to the 1957 RCA Victor LP HI-FIve, The Red Norvo Quintet [LPM-1420].
It was the late James Agee, I believe, the poet and critic, who once declared in a review of
! that it was not necessary for him to see
the play because he knew in advance that it was terrible! This always seemed to
me to be criticism of the highest sort, for the critic was not permitting
himself to be influenced by any of the crass emotion that characterizes so much
on-the-spot evaluation we get these days; and for that reason I am happy to
report that I am now doing exactly the same. The Atlantic Ocean and the breadth
of the United States lie between me and the music enclosed in this sleeve, but
I do not have to hear it to know that it is superb, that it is characterized by
a bounce at once merry and gutty, that it is backed by a rhythm section that
swings as compellingly as the Page-Jones-Green trio did in the old Basic band,
that the soloists burst exuberantly from the ensembles and that the background
figures are as interesting as the solos themselves. I know, in short, that this
is jazz at its very best, for Red Norvo is perhaps the only jazz musician I
know who never delivers anything but first-chair goods. Oklahoma
He has been doing it for a long, long time, too. He was born
March 31, 1908, in , where show boats stopped and permitted
him to scramble aboard and get his first taste of the music he later was to
assist in developing into one of the few contributions this nation has made to
world culture. His sister and two brothers, all older, had driven their parents
crazy with noodling attempts at the mastery of various instruments, and when
young Kenneth declared that he wanted a xylophone, his father shook his head.
Red's name then was Kenneth Norville, by the way. He had a pony his brother
Howard had given him, and he loved it. Unfortunately, the pony couldn't
reproduce the sounds that were demanding expression even then; he sold it and
bought the xylophone and. to the astonishment of everyone in the family,
rapidly became proficient. A girl in Beardstown had organized a small band that
played church socials, school entertainments, and the like. She had a chance
to go to Beardstown, Illinois to audition for an agent and asked Red to
go along. His mother gave her permission and off they went. Red was around
thirteen. He was utterly terrified and accordingly quite relieved when the man
told the group to go back home and practice a little more. Chicago
Students of jazz—especially some new English friends of mine, who know every bloody fact about every Ace Brigode record ever made, including what hangers-on were in the studio at the time, how the weather was outside, and who fell down drunk — are going to deplore my next statement. I forget what happened to Red after that first
trip. I believe he simply returned to
Beardstown High and had every intention of going on to college. Then an agent
who had heard him in Chicago wrote him, asking him to come up to go on a band he was
organizing. It was called The Collegians. The boys wore blazers and, sometimes,
funny hats. They toured the Chicago Midwest, playing dances, fairs and other outdoor gigs, and then returned
to , where they disbanded. The same agent then
booked Red with Paul Ash, of Paul Ash and his Quality Serenaders fame. Ash
could not pronounce "Norville," for some reason; he said
"Norvo" so many times Red finally decided it was better to join it than
enjoin the leader. He used the name later when he went out in vaudeville as a
single. I wish I had seen him in those days: the stage xylophonist then wore a
full blouse, dark trousers and a sash. Some of them affected Mexican mustaches,
and they tap-danced in breaks. Occasionally American flags, Teddy bears,
streamers and other impedimenta miraculously appeared from their instruments.
Red went the route. He laughs and shudders when he recalls his act. Chicago
By then it was the summer of 1929, and Red's family wanted him to go to college. He had other plans. He played around
until autumn, then went to join Ocky
Wes-lin's band in Detroit . There Victor Young, who was working in radio in Minneapolis , heard him and hired him. Red was always
rather vague. He took the job with Young despite the fact that he had almost
simultaneously taken one with another band. The latter leader let him out, however,
and the Chicago period began. Chicago
There need be no mention here of what was romping in
in the early Thirties. Condon was there;
so were Mezzrow, Freeman. Tough, McKenzie, Sullivan and all the rest. Red never
played much with those boys—a xylophone was too heavy to lug around to sessions
— but he loved their music and was profoundly influenced by it, and they in
turn respected his. Condon later declared that Red was the only man he ever
heard who could make the xylophone sound civilized. Chicago
Then another influence entered his life: Mildred Bailey. Her soft, subtle voice and Red's delicate, rhythmic playing went together so well it was probably inevitable that they get married. Afterward they went to
and joined Whiteman. Red lasted a little
over a year. He felt buried in the band and decided that unemployment offered
more emotional satisfaction. Mildred continued to work with Whiteman. and Red
balled around New York with other transplanted Chicagoans. One summer he, Stew
Pletcher, Neil Reid and a few other boys were booked into New York , in a band ostensibly piloted by Rudy
Vallee. They took along a portfolio of Fletcher Henderson arrangements which,
on the first night, considerably diminished the crowd. On the second night the
manager informed them that he was short of cash and would be getting shorter if
those Bar Harbor, Maine arrangements kept up; the boys told him
what he could do and went on blowing. Fortunately, a few of them could fish,
which they did; Neil Reid could make pies, and there was an apple orchard
nearby. They existed on flounder and apple pie for the remainder of the
engagement and were finally sent fare to go home by Mildred. Henderson
Back in
, Red organized a small band and played
around 52nd Street. In 1936 he and Mildred formed the celebrated Mr. and Mrs.
Swing combination, which in my own private view was the epitome of the style and
attitude of the swing-band era that Goodman blew in. How they jumped, and what
soloists they were! Even Condon, who ordinarily cannot stand any band made up
of more than eight men, listened attentively.
There was Herbie Haymer on tenor, for example, and the wonderful
Fletcher on trumpet (Fletcher once told Red he would never play with anyone
else—and when that band broke up, he never did) and Hank D'Amico on clarinet, and Red's
gently phrased, softly pushing xylophone playing obbligatos behind Mildred's
sweet voice. Some band. Some marriage, too, characterized by then by various
scuffles and rows—to such a degree, in fact, that one day when Red was telling
me of some of the battles he and Mildred had had, Lee Meyers leaned over and
asked, "Who are you writing this for, Dick? Nat Fleischer?" They
finally broke up but remained close, even after Red married Eve New York Rogers, Shorty's sister.
In 1943 Red switched to vibes. He was the first of the old Chicagoans, with the possible exception of
Dave Tough, to recognize the importance of some
things Dizzy, Bird and the rest of the boys from uptown were doing. He felt
that vibes offered him a better chance to grow. He began to develop with
Goodman and Herman, and finally went out on his own again, first with a small
band and then with a trio. He and Eve moved to and settled down to bring up kids and
dappled dachshunds. Meanwhile he continued to work and study, and the results
are noticeable in his music. In the summer of 1956 he decided the trio was no
longer suitable for the expression of the ideas he had, and added a flute and,
sometimes, a tenor saxophone. This band is composed of Bill Douglass, on
drums; Bob Carter, bass; Bob Drasnin,
flute, clarinet and alto sax; Jimmy Wyble, guitar; and, of course, the Man himself.
It is substantially the same band that kept me going to The Castle, a California restaurant, every night of a three-week
visit I made to Los Angeles last October. It is a wonderful band—wonderfully swingy,
wonderfully subtle, wonderfully creative. I wish I could hear it right now, as
I write this, and I envy every fortunate buyer of this album the privilege of
hearing these numbers." California
A fitting conclusion to our brief visit with Red Norvo, one of the legendary figures in Jazz, can be found, perhaps, in these words from Richard Cook and Brian Morton's The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, 6th Ed.
"Though by no means a one-dimensional figure, Norvo held to a steady course from the early days of bebop to the beginnings of a swing revival in the 1950's and 60's. His technique is superb and prefigures much of Milt Jackson's best MJQ passage-work. The early trios are unquestionably the place to begin [Jimmy Raney [g] and Red Mitchell [b]; Tal Farlow [g] and Charles Mingus [b]], but there's plenty of good music later and newcomers shouldn't be prejudiced by the instrumentation. Norvo plays modern jazz of a high order."
You can hear Red's trio with guitarist Tal Farlow and bassist Charles Mingus performing Denzil Best's bebop classic Move on the following video tribute.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 7:00 AM Links to this post
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Nick Brignola: Roaring and Soaring on Baritone Saxophone
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
"He favored the big side of the horn, playing a hard-bop vocabulary with great power and command. … his virtues are a great sound, great time, smart tune selection, and a band that cooks at a great temperature."
- Richard Cook & Brian Morton, The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, 6th ED.
Having previously posted features on baritone saxophonists Pepper Adams [two parts], Serge Chaloff, Ronnie Cuber, Gerry Mulligan [four parts] and Gary Smulyan, the editorial staff at JazzProfiles thought it might be fun to spend a little time with the music of Nick Brignola.
As Jazz author and critic, Herb Wong has pointed out: "Although the baritone saxophone is his instant identification, Brignola has a masterful command of a veritable arsenal of a dozen woodwind instruments." In addition to Nick's work on baritone, I am especially fond of his work on soprano saxophone.
When Nick solos, the burners are switched on to maximum for as his counterpart on baritone saxophone, Gary Smulyan proclaims: "Nick doesn't just blow into the horn – he screams into it!"
As is the case with Smulyan, Nick started off as an alto saxophone/clarinet player.
"'A little more wind and you can play the same stuff.'
Maybe not one of the more interesting quotes in jazz history, but that remark — made by 'the guy at the music store' where aspiring alto saxophonist/clarinetist Nick Brignola went to get his alto repaired — changed the course of Brignola's musical life back in the distant '50s. See, the guy at the store didn't have an alto to lend Nick, so, since the baritone's in the same key, he laid the big horn on him.
'When I brought it on the gig,' says Nick, 'the musicians that were on the gig — well, I guess they just hadn't heard a baritone, 'cause they all wigged out. It was like. 'Oh, that's the axe you should play.'" [Lee Jeske, insert notes to Raincheck, Reservoir RSR CD 106].
In interviews, Nick ventured that he was "trying to showcase the baritone saxophone which I think is the horn that best expresses me" and added that what he was trying to do with his music was "… to make a statement, extending the range of the horn."
When you listen to what Nick can do on the baritone sax, there seems to be little doubt that he has accomplished his objective. The man is all over the axe and seems to take it wherever he wants to go – effortlessly.
This ease of execution on such an awkward instrument can lead to taking what Nick does on the baritone sax for granted until you stop and realize the complexity of the improvisations he is creating.
"When I start playing, swinging is automatic," Brignola notes, "and I like playing long interesting lines utilizing substitute chord changes."
Trombonist Bill Watrous says of Nick: "His ideas are unending … he is unflagging and his thrust is unbending."
Trumpeter Ted Curson observed: "Nick is a natural player. And lot's of people can get into what he's doing, but he doesn't sound like any other musician."
In his insert notes to Nick's L.A. Bound CD [Night Life Records NLR 3007] Dr. Herb Wong comments that "Brignola's solos are fiery and animated. … The character of his playing includes personalizing every note – whether the notes are part of a brief comment or an elongated musical essay.
A value judgment from Woody Herman adds a summary of interest. He has said on several occasions that besides the late Serge Chaloff [the vanguard bop baritone saxophonist of the early Herman "Herd" on the 1940s], he would cite Nick Brignola as 'the other dynamite baritone player' he has really dug in the bands that he has led over his 40+ year career as a bandleader."
With the help of the crackerjack graphics team at CerraJazz
LTD and the production facility at
StudioCerra, we have developed the following video tribute to Nick on which he
is joined by trombonist Bill Watrous, pianist Dwight Dickerson, bassist John
Heard and drummer Dick Berk in a performance of Horace Silver's Quicksilver.
And here is an audio-only performance by the same group of Kenny Dorham's Blue Bossa this time with Nick featured on soprano saxophone.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 8:59 AM Links to this post
Friday, July 20, 2012
Ella and Duke: A Musical Love Affair
© -
Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
According to the following insert notes by Alun Morgan to Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald: Live at the Greek Theater Los Angeles [Status DSTS 1013]:
"The night Benny Goodman played his first Carnegie Hall concert -
January 16, 1938 - turned out to be a momentous occasion in
many ways. After Carnegie Hall many went along to 's Savoy Ballroom to witness a "Battle
Of The Bands" between the orchestras of Chick Webb and Count Basie. Duke
Ellington was in the audience (and he was cajoled into playing some piano
himself) and that may well have been the first time Duke heard Ella Fitzgerald,
for she was Chick Webb's vocalist and on the threshold of her highly successful
career. New York
Over the years Duke and Ella became amongst the biggest and most important names in music but it took impresario Norman Grant to bring them together on record, for the first time, in 1957 for Ella's "Duke Ellington Song Book" 4-LP set. It was Grant who booked them to appear together at the 1966 Nice Jazz Festival and a few months later they were together again for a seven day engagement at the open-air Greek Theatre in Griffith Park, North Hollywood. The standard Ellington discographies list an appearance at the Greek on
24, 1966 but this
CD comprises previously un-issued material from concerts the previous day when
Duke opened the proceedings followed by Ella and her trio, then a closing
segment by Ella and the Ellington band."
As the music on the video tribute that concludes this piece attests, Ella and Duke were made for each other.
Scatting and Ella were also made for each other and unlike many vocalists who make what virtually amounts to sound effects when their scatting, Ella knew what she was doing.
She improvised on the melody of the tune and developed "lines" that flowed, fit and made sense. Many horn players admired the improvisations that Ella sang when she was scatting.
She was one of the very best at it because she wasn't just trying for the "effect."
Ella understood that what made scatting effective was understatement.
Which is why she didn't use scatting very often, preferring instead to rephrase the actual lyrics of the tune, especially in the form of rhythmic riffs to add extra punch and power to the music.
On our video tribute to she and "The Duke of Ellington," Ella sings Sweet Georgia Brown, a tune which
Ted Gioia describes in his recent published The
Jazz Standards: A Guide to the Repertoire [New York: Oxford University
Press, 2012]:
"The popularity of this … [song's chord] progression among jazz musicians is well warranted. The harmonies, which move leisurely from dominant chord to dominant chord, are ideal for supporting blues and funk licks of every denomination; and the final resolution offers a pleasant surprise since the tonic chord doesn't appear in the first 12 bars of the song, an opening that proves in retrospect to be a masterful exercise in misdirection. Finally, thanks to endless proselytizing by a world-famous group of itinerant basketball players [i.e.: The Harlem Globetrotters], the song is invariably recognized and greeted with enthusiasm by audiences everywhere, no matter how modest their jazz expertise."
Ella and the band do four choruses of Sweet Georgia Brown in an emphatic medium tempo that is interspersed with a little scatting and a lot of call-and-response interplay and rhythm 'n blues riffs. It closes with a cool tag which kicks in at minutes.
Posted by Steven Cerra at 7:00 AM Links to this post
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Max on Monk
Max on Monk
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
The "Max" in the title of this piece does not refer to the more obvious connection to Thelonious Monk – drummer, Max Roach – but rather, to one of the more original, urbane and erudite perspectives in Jazz writing, that of, Max Harrison.
To attribute to Max his comments about Monk in the opening sentence of the following essay "… his singular originality was enough to ensure a hostile reception" – would be to put the matter lightly as Mr. Harrison's musings always seemed to enflame passions wherever and however they were expressed.
Perhaps the strong reactions from some Jazz fans engendered by Max's opinions had to do with the fact that he generally knew what he was talking about and wasn't afraid to express his views very directly.
He's not always easy to read, but if one is willing to make the effort, one usually comes away from Max's essays well-rewarded with more knowledge and a totally different "take" on Jazz and its makers.
Here's a sampling.
© - Max Harrison/Jazz Journal, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
"If his singular originality was enough to ensure a hostile reception, it still is ironic that for many years comment on Monk centered around his supposed incompetence as a pianist. On his best days his public performances demonstrated, with a clarity which no recording ever could approach, that this musician was, in his highly individual command of the instrument and absolute control of his especial musical resources, as remarkable a virtuoso as, say, Earl Hines. The two transcendent techniques were, obviously, quite different, and in Hines's case the dazzling texture of his music, although shaped by an eminently characteristic melodic and rhythmic invention, was firmly rooted in the scale, arpeggio and chordal formations that have always provided the basis of tonal keyboard music.
In sharp contrast, Monk's pianism, strictly in accord with other aspects of his work, if it did not lead us to go quite so far as Andre Brassai, who wrote "awkwardness means greatness and lack of skill means talent and these things are signs of genuine creativity" (i), still had little connection with established conventions, and was of a purer, more directly musical order. His strength lay not in complex executive feats but in a deployment, at once sensitive and vividly incisive, of some of the basic elements of jazz: time, metre, accent, space. This is why, with minor exceptions like the Dutchman Stido Astrom, his influence was not on other pianists but on players of other instruments: the lessons he offered were purely musical, not arising of necessity out of the keyboard.
Certain of Monk's recorded solos, or sections of them, consist of rhythmic variations on the thematic line with shifting metres and evolving patterns of accentual displacement. When he first appeared, in the 19408, such a method seemed dangerously radical in comparison with the then usual system of basing improvised lines solely on the chordal harmonisation of the theme, not on the theme itself. That was because people who listened to Monk had never heard Jelly Roll Morton, and people who knew of Morton's use of motivic development wished to hear nothing of Monk. To both, of course, thematic variation was an essential process.
Much was made of Monk's harmonic innovations, and his pungent, hard-biting sonorities were the aspect of his language which aroused nearly as much adverse criticism as his playing. Yet this shows how right Stanley Dance, a tireless advocate of progress in jazz, always a friend of the latest development, was to complain of the jazz audience's frequent "inability to appreciate the joy of the musician in expression through harmonies rich and strange", of listeners' "narrowed sensibility which does not permit them to perceive, through its subtlety and complexity, the inner integrity of much of the later jazz" (2). Certainly in Monk's harmony, and perhaps more immediately than in his exceptionally subtle rhythm, we apprehend a needle-sharp intelligence which rigorously avoids the commonplace.
Yet however striking this music may be on rhythmic and harmonic planes, it is always informed and directed by the requirements of melody. If the melodic construction is often severe in its economy this is because Monk knew precisely what he wanted to say and how to say it, because he had full command both of his ideas and their means of communication. Thus is explained much of the immense temperamental drive and magnetic cogency of his finest work—again, not fully conveyed on any recording. In his most representative moments all effort was devoted to the true expressive aim, none wasted on mere decoration. Such control is an authentic sign of mastery, but naturally Monk could not bring it off every time; indeed, he was in the same situation as a sculptor for whom one false stroke could ruin the whole statue.
In fact it is misleading to discuss the separate aspects of Monk's work too much in isolation. All elements of rhythm, melody and harmony interact so closely that it is unrealistic to consider one without the others. Monk did not offer an assemblage of easily identifiable trade marks in the manner of a popular soloist: his improvisations are new wholes, not just accumulations of pleasing objects. He was, in short, a composer, not simply because he wrote many 'tunes', or even themes, but because the compositional mode of thinking is evident in everything he did. One instance is his accompanying of other improvisers, for, instead of providing the normal type of chordal support, he often set modified fragments of the theme beside—not behind—the soloist's line in such a way as to give extended performances a closer-knit feeling of thematic reference. A different illustration is his treatment of popular songs like Smoke gets in your eyes, where he abstracts and rearranges the components to a quite drastic extent.
Just as Monk's pianism was unusually direct in its musicality, so his recordings, for all their self-consistent idiosyncrasies, have a curious air of objectivity. Even when the choruses follow the conventional AABA pattern of four eight-bar phrases, they are in the tradition of 'compositions for band', like Morton's Cannonball blues or Bix Beiderbecke's Humpty Dumpty, rather than jazz versions of mere songs. As such, pieces like Epistrophy or Criss cross are altogether foreign to the world of popular music in a way that, for example, even masterpieces of transmutation such as Coleman Hawkins's Talk of the town or Charlie Parker's Embraceableyou can never quite be. And, with a few exceptions like the train piece Little roo tie-too tie, his works never attempt to establish a particular atmosphere, as does Mood indigo by Duke Ellington, or to suggest a specific place, like Tadd Dameron's Fontainebleau.
They are, rather, investigations of perfectly specific musical ideas, such as the minor seconds idea of Mysterioso or the diminished fifth ideas of Skippy, which arise out of his unusually acute awareness of the expressive weight of a given melodic interval or rhythmic or harmonic pattern (3). If, however, there remains, even in the most violent
passages, a kind of detachment, a feeling of objective exploration, it should not be imagined that all Monk offers is a series of abstractions. It is his achievement that in following such a path he created jazz which balances the rival claims of surprise and inevitability. Such music, to quote Brassai again, is "a rebellion against the misdeeds of a mechanised civilisation" (i), but also shows the artist, at an extreme pitch of technical and psychic tension, coming to terms with violence and disorder in the self and in the public world; indeed, that presumably is what its reconciliation of opposites is really about.
Monk's best jazz has, then, a more substantial intellectual content than most, and, while it would be naive to imagine that lessens its power to move us, this world is not the easiest to enter. The private, self-contained nature of his music, its strange, mineral toughness, make it hard to grasp, and help explain the disproportionate popularity of a relatively untypical piece like Round about . It may also account for undue emphasis on the humour in his work. A sharp wit, as ever manifesting itself in directly musical terms, is clear in such things as his caricature of Tea for two, with sophisticated bitonal harmony countered with deliberately stiff rhythms. But whenever we saw Monk at the piano he presented that admirable and, in the jazz world, rare spectacle of a serious artist wholly possessed by the urgency of the matter in hand, the creation of music. Humour was evident in his eccentric platform demeanour—away from the instrument—which, however offhand, clearly aimed if not to amuse then at least to disconcert. This may be regarded as a characteristically oblique comment on the social isolationism and outright rejection of the audience practised by other musicians of his generation, such as Charlie Parker. With typical parochialism, the jazz community believed the boppers' attitude to be unique, and uniquely reprehensible, while, as Monk's very dryness implies, it was a mild gesture compared, say, with the cubist painters' hermeticisation of content several decades earlier in protest against a commercialised academic tradition.
It is a deceptive simplification to say that we get the art we need and deserve, yet it may be that Monk was a little like the court jesters of old, who clothed their home-truths in just sufficient foolery. Whenever we saw him, the stiff-limbed, ungainly movements and bland smile appeared to be those of a buffoon, yet the harsh rhythms and acidulated dissonance of the music he played us said something altogether different (4)."
Jazz Journal, June 1961, as quoted on pages 28-31 of Max Harrison, A Jazz Retrospect,
: Crescendo
Publishing, 1976. New York
1 Andre Brassai: Graffiti (
, 1960). Stuttgart
Dance: 'Towards Criteria' in Jazzbook 1947 edited
by Albert McCarthy ( Stanley , 1947). London
3 Certain of these "specific ideas" are helpfully illuminated by some of Andre Hodeir's treatments of Monk themes, which are in effect musical instead of verbal commentaries. Instances are his variations on Mysterioso titled Osymetrios /and // (American Philips
PHM2OO-O73) and
his atomisation of Round
about (American Epic LN3376).
4 Further reading: Lucien Malson: Les Maitres du Jazz (Paris, 1952; rev. ed. 1972); Gunther Schuller: 'Thelonious Monk', Jazz Review, November 1958; Max Harrison: 'Thelonious Monk' in Just Jazz 3 edited by Sinclair Traill (London, 1959); Grover Sales: 'Monk at the Black Hawk', Jazz, Winter 1960; Nat Hentoff: Thelonious Monk—a List of Compositions Licenced by B.M.I. (New York, 1961); Nat Hentoff: The Jazz Life (New York, 1961); Andre Hodeir: Toward Jazz (New York, 1962); Wilfrid Mellers: Music in a New Found Land (London, 1964); Max Harrison: entry on Monk in Jazz on Record edited by Albert McCarthy (London, 1968); Jack Cooke: entry on Monk in Modern Jazz: the Essential Records 7945-70 edited by Max Harrison (London, 1975).
Posted by Steven Cerra at 3:44 PM Links to this post
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Jessica Williams – A Pianist with Taste, Touch and Temerity
© - Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
The editorial staff at JazzProfiles was prompted to put this piece together by the arrival of the correspondence that closes it.
I first "met" Jessica around 1980. This was back in the days when one could kill a few minutes waiting for a business appointment or a luncheon while perusing the local record store.
Usually privately-owned and operated, every community in southern
seem to have one and some of these
Mom-and-Pop stores even had a Jazz section. California
It was during one such diversions that I noticed an LP in the cut-out bin by Jessica Jennifer Williams entitled Orgonomic Music [Clean Cuts CC703]. On the back of the album sleeve was the following quotation by Wilhelm Reich:
"Love, work and knowledge are the well-springs of our life. They should also govern it."
I didn't know who Reich was, nor did I know anything about "Jessica Jennifer Williams" and the only musician in the sextet featured on the album that I was [barely] familiar with was trumpet player Eddie Henderson.
But what the heck, Philip Elwood of The San Francisco Examiner said of Jessica that she was a devotee of Reich's whose sentiments I agreed with, the LP was only a buck, so I gave it a shot.
Boy, am I glad I did. I've been listening to everything I can get my hands on by Jessica ever since.
However, it wasn't until 1992, thanks to a fortuitous business trip to
, that I had the opportunity to hear
Jessica in person as a part of pianist Dick Whittington's on-going Maybeck
Recital Hall series. San Francisco
I "stayed close" to Jessica's music in the 1990's thanks to my association with Philip Barker, the owner of Jazz Focus Records for whom Jessica made a number of recordings including her Arrival CD which has the distinction of being the very first disc issued by Philip's label [JFCD001].
Thanks to a tip from
Gene Lees in one of his JazzLetters, I was also
able to score one of the limited edition [1,000] Joyful Sorrow compact
discs that Blackhawk Records issued as her solo piano tribute to the late, Bill
It was recorded at The Jazz Station,
on Carmel,
CA September 15, 1996 on the 16th anniversary of
Bill's death.
Sadly, too, The Jazz Station in
is no more, but Joyful Sorrow endures as just about
my all-time favorite Jessica recording. Carmel
Thankfully, Jessica has subsequently released quite a number of solo piano and trio Jazz recordings, many of which are available as audio CD's and Mp3 downloads.
Jessica is a powerful and pulsating pianist. He music literally "pops" out at the listener it's so full of energy and enthusiasm.
She records many solo piano albums, a format which can sometimes be a recipe for self-indulgence and excessive displays of technique. But Jessica's music is always tasteful and informed. You can hear the influences from the Jazz tradition in her playing, but you also hear innovative probing and forays into her unique conception of what she is trying to say about herself and how she hears the music.
Her touch on the instrument is such that she makes the piano SOUND! It rings clear and resonates as it only can in the hands of a masterful pianist.
As Grover Sales, the distinguish author and lecturer on Jazz has commented:
"Jessica Williams belongs to that exclusive group Count Basie dubbed "the poets of the piano" that includes
Roger Kellaway, Sir Roland Hanna, Ellis Larkins, Jaki Byard, Bill Mays, Alan Broadbent, Cedar Walton, the late Jimmy
Rowles and of course, Bill Evans. All share in common a thorough working
knowledge of classic piano literature from pre-Bach to contemporary avant garde
as well as the classic jazz tradition from Scott Joplin to the present.
All developed an astonishing and seemingly effortless technique that enabled them to venture anywhere their fertile imaginations wished to take them. All take to heart the dictum of Jelly Roll Morton in his epic 1938 interview for the Library of Congress: 'No pianist can play jazz unless they try to give the imitation of a band.'
And for all of their varied influences from Earl Hines to Bill Evans and beyond, all are instantly identifiable—unique in the literal sense of this often misused word."
Writing in the insert booklet to Jessica's Maybeck Hall CD [Concord CCD-4525], Jeff Kaliss notes:
"It's all there in the first track. Within a few choruses, Jessica Williams shows her hand, or hands: the harmonies in seconds (hit way off to the side of the piano), the punchy attack, the dust-devils in the upper octaves, the nutty quotes. It's familiar Jessica, but she's got plenty up her sleeve for the rest of this remarkable entry in the Maybeck menagerie. …
She came to my awareness as a word-of-mouth legend, a Baltimore-bred genius whose history and personality were said to be as mysterious and unpredictable as her keyboard inventions. As soon as I got to hear her, I was into the reality of her spontaneous magic and not much concerned with the legend. …
[She] has remained a best-kept secret … commanding awe and quiet in the clubs she visited … [her playing] filled with energy and imagination."
One gets more about her sense of "energy and imagination" when one reads the following notes that Jessica wrote about herself and her music for her Intuition CD [Jazz Focus JFCD 010]:
"I'm occasionally asked where I studied to learn to do what I do; who taught me, what "tricks" are involved, what secrets enable me, how does the process occur... how does one "distill magic out of the air?" The truth is that there are no practice techniques, no miracle drugs, no mantras, no short-cuts to creativity. I tell them that I've played piano since I was four, that I've played jazz since I was twelve, that I've never taken another job doing anything except what I've always known I should be doing in this life: playing music. And maybe that's a part of the answer, if indeed there is one. It's about Castenada's
PATH, 's BLISS; you follow it no matter where it leads, and over
many years you learn to control it, channel it, allow it to happen. Campbell
You become the bow; the arrow is the gift. You never fully own it, just as you can never explore all of its depths, because it springs from the infinite possibilities within you. In this realm, your only ally, your only guide, is intuition. It is seeing instead of looking, knowing instead of believing, being instead of doing. It is Coltrane on the saxophone, Magic Johnson on the court, Alice Walker on the printed page; it is the primary intuition of "right-brained" activity, the birthing of idea into existence.
Perhaps it cannot be taught, but it certainly can be shared...and it is in the sharing that we all experience the best parts of ourselves. We instinctively intuit our organic truth; when we learn to live it, our planet could be paradise.
Your dreams are your sacred truth. …"
You can listen to Jessica's quite stunning pianism on the audio track of the following video tribute to her on which she performs Alone Together from the Joyful Sorrow Bill Evans tribute CD.
As to Jessica's temerity, let alone downright courage, it's all here in the following notice which she sent out recently to her fans.
I hope you'll heed and help Jessica in her time of need.
Dear friends, critics, fans, friends of fans, anyone who loves my music or at least has enjoyed it:
VIA PAYPAL or any credit
You can opt to send personal checks or money orders to
· Jessica Williams
PO Box 2391
Olympia, WA 98507
· email: email@example.com or email@example.com
· Please make checks payable to Jessica Williams
Every dollar counts and is deeply appreciated.
Every dollar counts and is deeply appreciated.
PAIN IS INTRACTABLE, AND 30mg daily of Vicodin
(NORCO) does very little to cut it. 35 YEARS AGO I had a disc surgery (a
Laminectomy, L5-S1) but many years of flying and playing music have taken their
toll. I am in DIRE NEED OF RADICAL SPINAL SURGERY. MY SURGEON IS DR RICHARD ROONEY
This is NOT a solicitation for help to pay for the surgery as I HAVE INSURANCE: This request for donations is for the time AFTER surgery, the 6 months to perhaps a year that I won't be able to play or perform. Instead, I'll be doing physical therapy, pain management, and recuperation.
Without a spinal operation I face trunk and leg paralysis, the possible loss of renal function, and constant intractable pain. If it progresses up the spine and reaches the thoracic and cervical spine, I will lose all movement or sensation in my arms and hands. I have moderate scoliosis which increases the possibility of this happening.
Fortunately I have medical coverage. This request for donations is for the time AFTER surgery. It may be a year or more before I can play again, or it could be months - I won't know until it's done.
My surgeon - http://www.polyclinic.com/richard-rooney-md-facs - has decided to do a lateral-entry cage-fusion of L5, L4 and S1. I have had other opinions but I've chosen the premier neurosurgeon in this state (WA), and my age - 64 - rules out fancy but still unperfected alternatives like Pro-Disc©. My surgery will be scheduled soon, probably for some time in LATE JULY or EARLY AUGUST of 2012. (I presently have an viral upper-bronchial infection, so we need to wait until that clears.)
I'll be in the hospital for about 10 days, and then recuperating for 6 months to a year. I feel very lucky and very secure to have chosen the great surgeon who will do the procedure, making it possible for me to get back to my life's work.
I am so happy I can give back through my music. The music that awaits is why I am here.
And THAT, friends, is why I'm asking for help. I know that the people who love my music are the kindest, gentlest people in the world.
But a lot of us tend not to be billionaires. I, for one.
I need your help.
I'm sure that the results will be positive. My surgeon is the best there is, an artist of neurosurgery. He loves my music. I have a lot of
Please make a donation of any size that you can afford. Each of you who makes a donation will get a signed copy of my newest CD for OriginArts - my personal favorite - Songs of Earth. And you'll get your name included in the drop-down "Life Savers Menu" on this donations page.
And if you ORDER MY CDs, that'll help too, and you can do that HERE. Every order and every extra dollar helps, as I can no longer play or pay the bills for a while.
Thank you from my heart, with peace, sanity, love, and freedom, Jessica
DONATE PLEASE!!! You can use paypal or any credit cards: go to
A message from good friend and fellow pianist and composer Richard Rodseth:
Dear friends,
Some of you have attended or played at house concerts I have hosted in my home. Some of my happiest
and proudest moments.
I was introduced to the concept by pianist Jessica Williams, and since 2005 she has enthralled listeners in my living room once or twice a year, most recently on March 17, her birthday.
I'm sorry to report that Jessica needs our help, and is not well enough to play for us at this time. It would mean a great deal to me if you would read her heartfelt request at the following link and support her if you can: http://www.jessicawilliams.com/donations/
Whether you purchase one or more of her wonderful CDs (which make excellent gifts), or are able to make a donation, you will have supported a wonderful artist who has touched many with her beautiful music.
Thanks so much, Richard - P.S. I apologize if you receive this message more than once. Feel free to share it with others.
Dear friends,
Some of you have attended or played at house concerts I have hosted in my home. Some of my happiest
and proudest moments.
I was introduced to the concept by pianist Jessica Williams, and since 2005 she has enthralled listeners in my living room once or twice a year, most recently on March 17, her birthday.
I'm sorry to report that Jessica needs our help, and is not well enough to play for us at this time. It would mean a great deal to me if you would read her heartfelt request at the following link and support her if you can: http://www.jessicawilliams.com/donations/
Whether you purchase one or more of her wonderful CDs (which make excellent gifts), or are able to make a donation, you will have supported a wonderful artist who has touched many with her beautiful music.
Thanks so much, Richard - P.S. I apologize if you receive this message more than once. Feel free to share it with others.
MRI/DICOM scans of my
L5/L4 compression/degradation and my scoliosis and disc deterioration here:
For removal from this list, click here:
I wish you happiness, wisdom, peace, and above all, HEALTH. Stay well and love each other, Jessica
Posted by Steven Cerra at 11:38 AM Links to this post
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Borrego Springs?
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Borrego Springs?
September 30, 2011, 03:53:34 pm »
Thinking of taking the 2551 & my bicycles out for the Borrego Springs Century in the middle of Dec. There appears to be 1 good RV park (Palm Canyon?) unless you also want to golf in which case I would guess you'd go to what folks refer to as "The Springs". With the Anza Borrego right there I would imagine I would have a myriad of activities to keep me out of trouble.......? Anyone been in the area?
Re: Borrego Springs?
Reply #1 on:
December 14, 2011, 03:37:38 pm »
We're heading out tomorrow morning & happy that in-laws & their Safari will be joining us (they haven't been feeling well lately). Thinking about taking Box Canyon Rd to Mecca from the I-10 just past Chiriaco summit instead of going all the way to Palm Springs. Cuts off ~60mi & looks real interesting but wish I could get up-to-the-min road conditions - just had 3 days of rain & the word "canyon" concerns me (have also seen some pics where the rd appears to go across or thru a sandy wash!). Will be staying @ Palm Canyon RV Park, right near the Anza Borrego State Park & we're planning on visiting Julian for some cider & pie on Friday.
Will post the obligatory trip report &, hopefully, pics...
Re: Borrego Springs?
Reply #2 on:
December 14, 2011, 06:01:15 pm »
Safe travels and lots of fun! Can't wait to see your pics and hear your stories.
Re: Borrego Springs?
Reply #3 on:
December 22, 2011, 01:52:29 pm »
Borrego Springs Century Ride & Trip Report
The Long story short: this is an area & ride you should put on your calendars.
Long story: Arrived in Borrego Springs w/RV via the geologic wonders of Box Canyon (~5mi west of Chiriaco Pass off I-10) on Thu. Set up quickly in the back-in site @ Palm Canyon RV CG just before the light rain showers started & had a great dinner of pasta/chicken w/in-laws in their RV. After a delicious breakfast on a rainy Fri morning @ the CG restaurant (no kidding! I had an asparagus, cheese & mushroom scramble!) DW & MIL attended the farmers market in DT Borrego Springs (@ Christmas Circle) & came away w/some excellent green beans, avocado tamales, peppers & a persimmon. FIL, step-son & I worked on FIL's elec issue in his RV which turned out 2B a simple main cut-off switch. All 5 of us then headed up into the hills for the lovely little town of Julian. Incredibly, we ran into snow upon entering the town but that did not deter us from having a wonderful lunch (w/fresh hot cider - of course!) & stocking up on their infamous apple cider awa an apple pie to take back to the RVs. Of course, the ladies somehow managed to find some trinkets & gee gaws to bring home for friends & relatives before we headed back down hill. Re-gathered for appetizers in our RV, than had dinner in the folk's unit (kind of like a nomad "progressive" dinner). Sat I rose early & walked down to Borrego Springs HS to work the Borrego Springs Half Marathon & thereby earn my free entry into the Century ride the next day. The marathon folks appointed me T-Shirt Czar & I attacked the chore w/relish (even though we ran out of smalls - the people rejoiced!). Spent the rest of the day putzing around the RV CG, getting the bike equip & nutrition ready & soaking in the spa.
The Ride:
Woke early on Sun & had a light breakfast awa pre-ride drink before hopping on the bike & heading for the registration area (again, @ Christmas Circle). At least 3 other folks from the CG were also in the ride but I only got to chat w/1 of them (Debbie - camping in a tent). Just prior to announcements @ 8:00a, I decided to shed the jacket to my team car (DW) & simply went w/arm warmers, leggings & glove liners (forgot the actual bike gloves - there's always something!). Went out @ the start w/lead group & quickly decided (w/input from my HRM) that was a mistake as even they started to split up on individual breakaways. Let another decent group pass (they were passing quick!) before settling in for the slight uphill climb to Hwy 78 (a lot like 9 mile hill in Rio Verde, AZ) for the turn-around. Did I mention that the last 300 yds or so prior to the turn around were a bit more steep than just "slight"? Passed the 1st rest stop & still couldn't seem to latch onto anyone on the way back into town but was able to keep a decent pace & got the avg up to ~16 as I made the turn toward Salton City. Here's where the Google course map faked me out a bit. I was anticipating a gradual climb w/short (1/4mi) 3% grade near the turn around. What I failed to see were the numerous "rollers" of indeterminate grade scattered all the way in between. I was consistently riding w/2 ladies (one on a tri bar, the other maintaining a brutally fast cadence) & we wd ea pass the other depending on the layout of the rd (you guessed it! They passed me on the uphills!) but we were definitely not riding together. Not sure what that was all about as I'm fairly certain I used deodorant that morning. Kept thinking I saw CG mate Debbie & called out to her a couple of times. When I saw her @ the CG later that night she rode in w/blue jacket on (the person I was calling to had a black jacket on - oops). Went past another rest stop & started thinking about doing the entire 63mi w/o stopping as I seemingly had enough water & nutrition to get me through. Extremely cruel placement of the turnaround on the San Diego county/Imperial county border, @ the bottom of a hill!! Lots of riders stretched out now but very few working together. One gentleman shot across to me from a rest stop on the opposite side of the street & asked (yes, he actually asked!) if he could ride my wheel until he caught his buddy. I said sure but I didn't believe he could ride that slow. Passed a 3rd rest stop & shortly approached the 3% grade but going downhill this time - nice! As I made the turn to loop around the town I noticed a couple of riders behind me so I sat up & cruised until they caught up & for the 1st time in the ride was working w/other riders. That lasted for ~5mi as they turned off onto what, in hindsight, turned out 2B the "short" loop. I continued through the orchards, past the last rest stop (I was pretty proud of myself by now) & into the residential neighborhoods. The legs were glad to make that last turn past the RV CG I was staying at (where was my cheering support team?) & downhill for the last mile to (you guessed it) Christmas Circle. Wow! All in one sitting, so to speak. I recorded 66.6mi (that's what I get for taking the "long" loop) @ 15.03mph avg; a couple of over-max HRs (near the start) AvgHR in the good range, & ~2900 cal burned off. Index & ring finger tips were a bit numb, maybe from not having proper gloves or maybe the temp or maybe both, but that passed quickly. The post race goodies consisted of PB/banana sandwiches, some infernal protein bars, and Apple Crumble Pie (from Julian!) w/ice cream! Even though it was barely 55 degrees outside, that pie & ice cream tasted great! Support team showed up to drive me home or it wd've been a 1mi uphill climb back to the RV. That's what they're paid the big bucks for!
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Last night I stood outside the Media Operations Center in the darkness and quiet of the night. It was nearly 2:00 a.m., and I was all alone. It was my first experience of solitude, peace and prayer since arriving at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, two days earlier.
So far the whole experience of being here has, at times, been overwhelming. The schedule is full. Walk to the courtroom at 8:05 a.m. Attend the morning session of court from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Grab a quick Subway sandwich, which was preordered in the morning. Return to court or watch the proceedings via closed circuit television from the media center. The whole time I am bombarded with information. The prosecution and defense present meticulous legal arguments. Sometimes the judge asks questions of clarification to better understand the arguments; at other times he aggressively rejects what he identifies as flawed reasoning. Meanwhile all eyes are on the five defendants, accused of plotting the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Reporters record every detail of their choice of clothing, headdress, length of beard (and even its color!), general mannerisms and especially their responses – sometimes in Arabic, sometimes in English – to the judge's questions.
To add to this barrage of information, the press corps is trying to convey the experiences and information in an interesting manner and as quickly as possible. Until I spent a day in the Guantánamo media center, I did not realize how much Twitter dominates how we communicate with each other and even report the news. Everyone is tweeting, reading tweets and talking about the best tweets being passed around. This reporting occurs before, during and after the hearings, and for some, late into the evening. It is exciting, intense and exhausting. I am quickly learning through experience that it is simply impossible to report every interesting detail. Choices must be made.
This is a glimpse into my first 60 hours at Guantánamo Bay. I came here with the hope of learning more about the prison camp. In such close physical proximity to the 166 detainees for the first time, I hoped to pray "with" them and for them. But, at this point, I have not even been close to the prison camp; it is located on the far side of the base. On the base the press corps moves within a tightly restricted space in Camp Justice. I go the media center, I go to court (escorted by military personnel) and I go to the residential tents. Bright orange barriers and chain-link, razor-wire fences inhibit any free movement beyond Camp Justice.
Back to the late-night solitude – my first experience of interior tranquility since arriving at Guantánamo. I stood outside, alone, and faced the direction of the prison camp. I prayed "with" and for the detainees. I recalled some of their names, especially Yusef Abbas, Saidullah Khalid and Hajiakbar Abdulghupur, the three Uighur men who remain in custody. I tried to imagine ten years of imprisonment without charges or trials for the vast majority of the detainees. I also remembered Salim Hamdan, who was convicted in a military commission in 2008, only to have the conviction vacated just yesterday by a U.S. Court of Appeals. The court ruled 3 to 0 that Mr. Hamdan was unfairly prosecuted ex post facto, meaning he had been charged with crimes that did not exist at the time of his arrest.
Family Members Speak
As I prayerfully reflected on my day, however, my attention shifted to another visceral experience of suffering – that of family members who lost loved ones in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
A few hours earlier I sat in a room with nine family members and only five members of the media. The family members graciously agreed to respond, on the record (and on camera), to some of our questions. Reporters asked for their reactions to decisions of the court, especially those favorable to the defendants. "Disgusting" and "ridiculous," family members responded. One woman, who lost her son in the Pentagon, said, "To me these cannot be human beings; they are devils."
Two particular women, who each lost a child in the attacks, expressed how faith has carried them through the darkest days. At the same time, however, they dismissed forgiveness as impossible. "No way." I asked if it were possible even for their personal healing. "No." A mother later explained, "The death penalty cannot even bring justice. They deserve to die. They deserve as much pain as can possibly be inflicted up them." I sensed so much pain and suffering in that room. (I will write about the interview in greater depth later this week.)
At 2:30 a.m., much later than I anticipated staying awake, the night-duty soldier walked outside, and I shared my experience of listening to the family members. I expressed my hope that the family members would be able to, at some point, experience at least partial healing and freedom. While I cannot understand what they have endured for the past 11 years, it is my faith-inspired hope that the deplorable actions of 9/11 and the loss of their loved ones would not control their lives ad infinitum. A better life is possible. In fact God has promised "a new heaven and a new earth" in which God "will wipe every tear from our eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain" (Rev 21:2, 4). This is what I shared with the soldier.
She responded, "Only God is perfect. Religion is imperfect, and so are we. I wish we could all just get along." I acknowledged the truth of her statement. And then another experience from the day came to me.
Shared Humanity
During the morning session in the courtroom, I noticed a military policeman (M.P.) talking with Ramzi Bin al Shibh, one of the defendants in the 9/11 trial. Mr. Bin al Shibh was seated in his chair, so the M.P. knelt beside him during the exchange. It was a friendly exchange, and it concluded with both men happily nodding in agreement. Then the M.P. moved to Walid bin Attash, another defendant, and likewise knelt beside him. It appeared as if the M.P. was helping coordinate something that required input from both defendants. After the conversation, both men smiled and nodded and the business of the court continued uninterrupted.
Now, at first look, this might appear to be an insignificant exchange. But let's remember the context. The government claims that Al Qaeda committed an act of war against the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, in which the defendants are implicated, and that this war between Al Qaeda and the United States continues to this day. It is also important to remember that the defendants are not shackled while in court. They remain seated for the proceedings, but their arms and legs are allowed to move freely about. (Actual freedom of movement, not surprisingly, is significantly offset by the presence of about four M.P.'s for each defendant, seated against the left wall of the courtroom.)
For these reasons I looked at the exchange between each defendant and the M.P. with delightful amazement. Both parties were agreeable and pleasant. Whatever needed to be clarified or arranged among them appeared to have worked out. I did not notice any tension or ambivalence in them. The M.P. did not approach the defendants with any sign of "attitude" or abrasiveness. And the defendants, in return, showed no disrespect, and certainly no threat of violence. In fact there existed a certain level of trust and cooperation – even if it was simply functional. The men expressed their humanity and dignity to each other. For me the exchange was a sign of the kingdom, a sign of what's possible. They were not engaged in battle, but kind to each other. War between groups or persons is not permanent or inevitable. "A new heaven and a new earth" is God's plan, and it is emerging in our presence by the activity of the Holy Spirit.
Now 3:00 a.m., the soldier strongly identified with this hopeful story and shared one of her own. Characterizing herself as a "lover of history," she described the Christmas Truce of 1914 (featured in the 2005 French film Joyeux Noël). German and British soldiers, on the frontlines of World War I, spent Christmas with each other, and then couldn't fire on each other the next day, she explained. What began as separate caroling in each side's trench cautiously merged into a joint celebration of Christmas. It was another expression of shared humanity amid the horror of war. "That one night could have ended the whole war," the soldier said.
Perhaps she and I also participate in this "story of peace" and shared humanity. Over the years I have advocated for the closure of the Guantánamo prison (as my favorite bright-orange t-shirt declares) and for U.S. detention and interrogation policies to conform to basic fairness. Beyond her name I don't know much about the soldier that I talked with at three o'clock in the morning, but I do know that her job is to assist in the continuing operation of the military commissions, which I reject. But we do not reject each other as persons. We recognize our shared humanity. I witnessed this, however briefly, between the 9/11 defendants and the M.P. And it is my hope that, however heinous the crime, the family members of 9/11 victims and the 9/11 defendants will likewise recognize dignity and humanity in each other.
Luke Hansen, S.J.
Thanks you, Luke, for this very moving recounting of what has to be a very confusing setting. It's always difficult for me to see through rigid procedural situations to what is really going on.


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Hopped-up in Boston
A garage door creaks open to find the first rays of sun after being closed up for what seems like an eternity. The anxious car owner rolls his ride outside and fires it up for the first time after being worked on during the snow-filled winter months, sparking a new driving year to life. If it's the end of March you can be sure that the best way to kick off the show season is to head to the Seaport World Trade Center in Boston, Massachusetts, to check out the World of Wheels. Celebrating its 40th year, the show was the perfect way to shake off the cobwebs and take in an adrenalin-fueled weekend filled with big horsepower, vibrant colors, and an abundance of chrome. This year the show was packed to capacity with well over 200 of the area's most scorching hot rods, customs, muscle cars, restos, and motorcycles. While walking through the event your senses were consumed by plenty of dramatic rides laid out in numerous large displays, as many of them competed for the Pilgrim Award for the first time being shown in Boston. This year there were plenty of fresh builds from well-noted builders as well as individual owners, including Competition Specialties, Wilson & Steely Kustom Coachworks, Xtreme Restorations, Bruce Comboni, and Fred Morrison, to name but a few. While cruising through the show it was easy to check out many of the latest offerings from Chevrolet Performance, as well as those from Summit Racing, Meguiar's, Town Fair Tire, TREMEC, and others.
Once again custom legend Gene Winfield returned with his Chop Shop, this time lowering the lid on Chris Darque's 1959 Cadillac with the help of his fellow members of the Kingpin's Car Club. See, when Winfield rolls into town he really sets up shop, complete with a recreation of his famous building's exterior to make the experience complete. By the end of the weekend the Caddy rolled out into the night with a whole new attitude. If that wasn't enough you could have also checked out a reet spread of hop-ups in the Motorama area spotlighting traditional hot rods and customs, spun by the vintage pin-up contest, and stopped to view the Wild, Wild Horses exhibit celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Ford Mustang. Another returning noteworthy focal point of the event was the excitement generated by the numerous celebrity appearances throughout the weekend. This year lucky visitors had a chance to meet WWE superstars Sheamus and Shawn Michaels, as well as Rick and Kelly Dale from the History channel's American Restoration. It was a perfect weekend to welcome the rodding season, get together with old friends, and even meet some new ones. Special thanks to the Lug Nuts Car Club who were the hosts for the show. You can check it all out at www.autorama.com.


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Redesdale Arms Hotel3
High Street, Gloucestershire, GL56 0AW
Price FromView Rooms
- Very Good
- 240 guest reviews
"Although the hotel is in the town centre, our room was quiet. Food was locally sourced and excellent. One little niggle was that the extract..."
"Especially helpful staff..."
"Location was brilliant, right in the centre of Morton in Marsh. Was also very pleased with room, it was more like a flat. Bed was Superking..."
"Stunning hotel. Room overlooking the courtyard was more than adequate in size. Lovely big shower. Tea/coffee facilities (with teapot and caf..."
"Poor quality cooked breakfast, breakfast not freshly cooked, had been standing for a while resulting in a soggy and overcooked breakfast...."
About the hotel
The award winning 34 bedroom Redesdale Arms Hotel sits at the gateway to the Cotswolds in the High Street of the historic town of Moreton-in-Marsh.
Steeped in history and dating back to around 1650, constructed of mellow Cotswold stone with a heavily oak beamed interior, the Hotel has been totally refurbished over recent years and has the benefit of 11 new boutique rooms completed in the spring of 2012. The Redesdale Arms Hotel is conveniently situated and within walking distance of a mainline railway station with direct links to London and only a short car ride to Stow-on-the-Wold, Broadway, Bourton-on-the-Water, Chipping Camden and many more local tourist attractions.
The Hotel is also perfectly situated for those travellers with business in the Cotswold area. There is free wi-fi throughout the Hotel with hard wire connections within many of the rooms.
Parking is available within the Hotel with additional parking directly outside which is freely available.
Family rooms are available and a complete array of differently styled rooms to suit all our guests. The Hotel allows dogs in the bar area but not in the rooms and we are a complete no smoking Hotel within all rooms.
We offer a mixture of doubles, twins and junior suites with sofa beds. Each room is equipped with the features you would expect in a three star Hotel, plus personal touches found only in a privately owned business. The rooms are spread between the original main house, dating back to 1650, and to the rear of the building in the original stable block or courtyard. We have several ground floor rooms and one that is purpose-built and wheelchair friendly. Two of our rooms feature whirlpool baths and many have spacious walk-in showers. The existing rooms also have the charm and feel of a traditional Cotswold Inn. All have the modern features of Digital TV, CD players and new king-size beds.
The restaurants at Redesdale Arms have been awarded an AA Rosette every year since 2007; the menus here are a blend of modern international cooking and traditional British favourites, making use of the finest local ingredients including Cotswold meat and locally grown vegetables in most of the dishes, as well as local game and fresh Cornish seafood in the daily specials.
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Facilities Show/hide
- Main
- Hotel Non-Smoking Throughout, Disabled Facilities, Cots available, Tea/Coffee making facilities in each room, Hairdryer in each room, Telephone In Each Room, Limited Hours Room Service, Wake Up Call Available, Ground floor bedrooms
- Parking
- Car parking available onsite, Car Parking Available Offsite
- Business
- Wi-Fi Available, Wi-Fi Available In Public Areas, Wi-Fi Available In Rooms
- Dining
- Restaurant, Bar
- In Room Entertainment
- TV, Radio
- Accessibility
- Disabled Access Bedrooms
- Leisure
- [Channels] News, [Channels] Music, [Channels] Childrens
Useful Info Show/hide
- Between 15:00 and 00:00
- By 11:00 hours
- Up to 16 years old
- The price shown is based on the occupancy and dates you have searched for. Prices and availability are subject to change based on the arrival date, number of nights and occupancy searched for. All prices are inclusive of all local taxes.
- Pets are not allowed
Customer Reviews
Our reviews are from genuine LateRooms.com customers. We verify that the customer has stayed before leaving a review.
Very Good
94% would recommend it to a friend
Customer service
Food quality
Room quality
Quiet town centre hotel with excellent food
Although the hotel is in the town centre, our room was quiet.
Food was locally sourced and excellent. One little niggle was that the extract...
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Very pleasant stay
Especially helpful staff...


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Oh, how we loathe the word "exclusive." For those of us on the editorial side, it's become a bit of a joke. But when a U.S. carrier uses it, it means someone else is probably getting the short end of the stick. In this case, it's anyone not AT&T, which is boasting in a promo video that it's got the "exclusive" on a 64-gigabyte version of the HTC One. (For what it's worth: The storage sizes aren't what's new here — AT&T announced all that back in February. It's the "exclusive" part that's new.)
That means if you were hoping for the larger storage options on T-Mobile or Sprint, you might not get it, at least not at first. That said, the vast majority of "normal users" (chances are if you're reading this that isn't you) will never come close to hitting that 32GB limit. So, there's that. If you're holding out for a Verizon variant of the HTC One, we'd be willing to bet that 64GB might still be on the table, though. That's up to Big Red, though.
Meanwhile, we still don't have pricing or availability. So in the meantime, be sure to check out our full HTC One review, and swing by the ever-exciting HTC One forums!
And check out AT&T's promo video after the break if that's your thing.
Source: Youtube; via Droid-Life
read more


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A few weeks back Desiree Spinner Events ordered a hoopla of colorful valentines cupcakes to be used in a photoshoot. I must say, when I heard they were going to put them on a table I couldn't of imagined THIS! So so beautiful, and just goes to show how creative you can get with these little guys.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Desiree Spinner Events photography
Posted by Kumquat Cupcakery at 7:23 AM
1 comment:
- Desiree said...
aww thanks:) I know it sounded crazy right?! It looked amazing!
- May 3, 2011 at 12:51 PM
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One call. Red does it all! 302-629-3001
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