Sonny Rollins and Philly Joe Jones play Surrey With The Fringe On Top, duo, on Sonny’s record Newk’s Time. This has got to be the purest essay on bop drumming ever.
Category: daily best music in the world
Art Blakey in ’85
Here’s video of Art Blakey playing in 1985. I saw him in Eugene, Oregon during this same tour, when I was a senior in high school. He played impressively loud— he had this heavy ride […]
Daily best music in the world: Headhunters
A complete set by Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters, with Mike Clark on drums, recorded in 1974. For most of the time I’ve been a drummer, there was no opportunity to see things like this— actually the […]
Daily best music in the world: Paul Motian Trio / Lisbon ’86
We’re very lucky. When I was first getting into this group around 1989, the only way to see them was to fly to New York, or catch them at a festival in Europe or maybe […]
Daily best music in the world: OH S___
In writing about playing the drums, you tend to focus on what is definable. You write the things you can say for sure, and you don’t write about things you can’t. That can give people […]
Daily best music in the world: Breezin’
Here’s something very great: Harvey Mason playing Breezin’, written by Bobby Womack, on George Benson’s album of the same title in 1976. As far as I’m concerned there’s really no higher artistry in drumming than […]
Daily best music in the world: Puddles Waterworld tribute
Last week I got to see Puddles Pity Party, a one man show with video accompaniment, by a depressed clown who happens to be an amazing singer. After a lengthy setup where he attempts to […]
Daily best music in the world: Bulgarian singers
h/t to Ralph Hardimon for this one.
Daily best music in the world: India
I’ve listened to this so many times it’s like classical music; just realized I haven’t listened to it in several years:
Daily best music in the world: Spirit of ’86
Funny how dramatically the zeitgeist can change in a few years. Did you know that fusion was actually a serious thing, for many years? Until Wynton Marsalis hit us with his thing in the mid […]
Daily best music in the world: end of the 80s with Bill Frisell
Another of my all time favorite records, Is That You? by Bill Frisell, with Joey Baron on drums. It’s lightly flawed with an in-your-face overprocessed drum sound, produced by Wayne Horvitz, but whatever. It’s not […]
Daily best music in the world: crash course in rock & roll
Here’s a playlist I put together for one of my new students, a 5th grader who is talented and motivated, but hasn’t heard a lot of music yet. Hopefully this will help get him hooked: Track list […]