Are you always in control? >That’s a great question:))) — Interview question by Sergio, from Black’s site. OK, a little more: “[D]rums and guitar suffer from serious technical sportsperson-like abuse, which can be fun, of […]
Category: very occasional quote of the day
VOQOTD: Erskine on Keltner and space
When you think of Keltner you think of these delicious, huge gaps, and when that backbeat comes down, it’s just sweet. And the reason it’s sweet is that it’s not filled up with a bunch […]
VOQOTD: Max Roach on what it’s about
“It’s not about comparative things: who’s the fastest, or… it’s not about that. It’s about someone who, when you hear them, you say, Oh, that’s Tony! Oh, that’s Miles! Ah, that’s John Coltrane! That’s what […]
VOQOTD: note to himself
Play at least ten minutes a day on the drum set. — Paul Motian
VOQOTD: Al Foster’s listening habits
From the Small’s interview archive: “He’s in it all the time. He’s listening all the time. He’s got kind of a small range of stuff he listens to over and over again: Monk, Bird, earlier […]
VOQOTD: bad wallpaper
“[Things that are] complex and busy and amazing all the time are kinda like bad wallpaper after awhile.” — Peter Erskine
VOQOTD: Dave on practicing
If you come to my house and walk into the room where I’m practicing, you’re going to hear me sound like I can’t play. That’s because I’m working on stuff that I can’t do so […]
VOQOTD: Stephen King
From Stephen King’s On Writing: If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There’s a musical parallel to that, and it […]
VOQOTD: the Blakey hang
“I used to play every night. It didn’t matter how much money I was making, I just had to play every night. When we’d get through playing at night, it was daybreak: 6:00. Then we’d […]
VOQOTD: Dave Liebman on rhythm
Eighth notes are the main denomination of jazz time, much like the penny is to the American dollar. Although one may not play only eighth notes, they still serve as the underpinning of […]
Very occasional quote of the day: Monk on rehearsing
“What do you want to do, learn how to cheat?”— Thelonious Monk That’s from Russ Musto’s 2006 interview with Ben Riley on Allaboutjazz.com— highly worth reading. Riley had just been asked to join the band […]
VOQOTD: Bruce Lee
“Before I learned the art, a punch was just a punch, and a kick, just a kick. After I learned the art, a punch was no longer a punch, a kick, no longer a kick. […]