Dear Friends,
The “feel good” week came crashing down yesterday. I had to do some serious lecturing to those little mfers. It was a day where I ended up taking away a total of 8 recesses. Four yesterday and four more today.
Time to break some spirits today.
Not really…but it might be time to call some parents.
*****
Had a really nice visit with Granny yesterday. I was a bit late getting there after a meeting that ran really long, but she was in good spirits, and we had a nice chat. I was there for over an hour, but it didn’t seem like that. It just flew by.
She was telling me about my great aunt Lois. It’s really sad that things have gone the way they have for her back in Oklahoma. I don’t know the whole story, but it sounds like she needs a lot of help and is not getting it. Her husband, Clarence, has the means to make life very easy on them, but they are, most likely, dealing with some pretty significant dementia.
I have a terrible feeling that something will happen that is not going to be good.
*****
Los Angeles tomorrow. Les Savy Fav. I am excited about it. Quick turn around and then come home to rock the hell out at the Yucca (fuck-a).
*****
As a bass player, you hear about certain famous bass players a lot. Early on in my days of playing, it was pretty often that someone would ask me about Jaco Pastorius. “Didn’t I love him,” they would ask or “He’s the greatest bass player of all-time” they would ramble on and on.
I would just sort of glaze over and say, “I have no idea.”
For me, there have been only a few bass players that I gave two fucks about. John Entwistle, Michael Cornelius, Steve Harris, Joe Albanese, and maybe Geddy Lee. There are others, too, that I love to watch and listen to, but those were my guys. Not a “Jaco” among them.
A few years ago, though, I was teaching music online to students in K-8th grade. I really enjoyed it, of course, and mainly it was fun because I was essentially a teacher/DJ. I would play all kinds of different music for the kids and explain why it was great.
One thing they loved was jazz. I’m no expert on jazz, but I do know what I like. I read a little here and there and with what I had learned in college, I knew enough to explain a few things to the kids and share my enthusiasm for different artists and groups.
In my reading, though, I kept seeing references to Weather Report and decided to take them for a spin. They fit with my unit on the 1970s and I noticed that Pastorius had played with them in the later part of the 1970s and into the early 80s. I decided to check out Heavy Weather and I was blown away.
The first track, “Birdland” is just kind of a cool trip. It felt instantly comfortable, although I don’t remember ever listening to it before 2020. It has a fantastic groove and when I played it for the kids, they liked it, but not as much as I did. The kids loved the standards from the 50s and 60s. This was a completely different animal.
After picking up the vinyl, I started throwing it on when I had the chance to have the house to myself. No one else seemed to dig it, so I don’t force it on anyone. Side one is so good. “Teen Town” is a Pastorius jam that shows why the guy was considered to be one of the greatest bass players of all time.
Beyond that, I don’t really know much about the record except that I love the way it sounds. I feel like I could probably geek out on it if I allowed myself to do so, but I never have. I just throw it on and enjoy it.
The opening of “Rumba Mama,” for example, is just so joyous. How could you not like it? I feel the same way about “A Remark You Made,” too. These guys were just doing something musically in 1977 that was so different from the other bands and records of that era that I love.
How can you not celebrate a happy accident like this. Finding a record that brings you happiness and all you have to do is just throw it on occasionally is a great thing.
*****
See you tomorrow.
AI has been watching Northern Exposure with me.
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