Columnist Izzy Feldman is unable to continue this interview due to illness and therefore we have enlisted cellist Kay Sherman to fill in for him. We wish Mr. Feldman a speedy recovery and hope to see him back at his post soon. Jazzbeat Staff Kay: Mike, I know that you have a new CD coming out called "Float Like A Butterfly" and let me say that I have heard it and it is SUPERB! I have played it several times and that is testament to the greatness of any CD. One which brings it back to you several times for repeated listens. Many of today’s CDs I play once and never listen to again as they gather dust on my shelf. Many of them after a period of time I have either given away or thrown in the trash. In the producer’s notes the statement, "The future of contemporary bebop is bright and Mike Longo is one who is leading the way" is made by Bob Magnuson. What would you say to someone who claims that there is no such thing as "contemporary bebop" any more than there is "contemporary ragtime", the point being that bebop was superseded by other forms of jazz as early as the 1950s? Mike: My comment is that they would be simply incorrect. They would be looking at that statement from a journalistic point of view in which the term bebop is a noun denoting a period of time or an era after World War II to the 1950s; Bob Magnuson is a musician and musicians would be using the term as a verb, meaning bebop is a way of playing…an action so to speak. For example the term "swing" could be viewed as a noun as in "The King Of Swing" as it was used to describe Benny Goodman during a certain time frame of American musical history. But when you say to "swing" like Count Basie’s band, the word is used as a verb and musicians are still swinging -- or trying to -- today. Your question denotes an unawareness of what bebop actually was and is and how it influenced all of the "jazz that superseded it" that you mention. In fact it is still influencing jazz as we speak, which is evident if one has an accurate understanding of jazz. Just look at what the kids are learning in the schools teaching jazz. Students are not transcribing Charlie Parker solos so they can go back to living in 1948. An analogy to "Contemporary Ragtime" is not exactly accurate for more than one reason. The most obvious one is that nobody that I know of is attempting to evolve from it. This does not make its existence impossible however. Let us suppose a musician experimented with playing stride piano with the "ragged time conception" used in Ragtime, but was using 20th century interval harmony instead of the 19th century diatonic harmony that was used originally. This would in fact be "Contemporary Ragtime". Furthermore the stride pianists such as Willy the Lion Smith, Fats Waller, Claude Hopkins, Dick Welstood and the likes were playing music that could be viewed as evolving from Ragtime. Let's suppose that the present New York Philharmonic made a new recording of the Beethovan 9th. Would that not be considered a "contemporary recording" of the 9th symphony? All in all this would just be a silly comment from someone who doesn't understand jazz and is looking for something to say to create the impression that they do. Kay: Could you give us your explanation of what you feel bebop actually was and is? Mike: Sure. It is not just a "style of music" as some people refer to it. It began as a "concept" that had no precedent since it represented an organic change in music, and not just jazz either. It was a new language that altered the concept of musical time and rhythm and produced a different set of physics in terms of touch on an instrument. I recall an incident in the 70s when I was playing at a university with Diz in concert and a young man in the audience yelled out, "Play some bebop"! We were playing a funk rhythm and Dizzy got angry and stopped the band. He said, "Young man, bebop is a "concept"! Everything we are playing is bebop!" This idea is what eludes many people. Even though some journalist may have used the term "Cool Jazz" to describe what Miles did in the 50s, it does not mean that Miles was not still coming from bebop. His time conception is what made it bebop, as well as his touch. Because he was playing modal tunes instead of diatonic tunes had nothing to do with the concept of bebop being "superseded". While I was with Diz we were playing modal tunes as well and even some of Miles’ tunes like "So What". Does this mean that during those moments Diz abandoned his bebop concept and was playing "contemporary cool jazz"? Give me a break! It has been my observation that many people labor under a common misconception that being adept at one form of art, automatically transfers over to other forms of art, making them "authorities" in a field where they may be only in possession of a shallow and superfluous understanding. Kay: That is very interesting and provocative. Can you elaborate further? Mike: An example would be musical charlatans quoting philosophical statements from Albert Einstein to explain what they are doing with their music. Kay: What do you mean exactly? Mike: The point I am trying to make is that Einstein was a known genius in the area of physics. His history will show that he, in his own words, was totally baffled by music and frustrated by his inability to master the violin. Yet you will find musical charlatans quoting him to rationalize their own inadequacy instead of quoting a musical genius like Stravinsky. The point being that both of them were probably right within the context of their own expertise, but expertise does not transfer over to other fields. Kay: Yes, you find this with some journalists who, although they are very gifted writers, will make ridiculous and absurd statements about music. Mike: Getting back to our discussion of bebop being superseded by other forms of jazz, all one would have had to do was talk to the musicians who were so called "superseding" bebop. I happened to be in the presence of Miles and Dizzy together in the early 70s when Diz’s group and Miles’ group were playing opposite each other at the Village Gate. It was a 3 week engagement, and every night Miles would come on the stage during our set and sit in on a tune. We did 9 weeks of this all together because we also did it at the Club Baron in Harlem for 3 more weeks and then back at the Village Gate again for another 3 weeks. Miles, when he was around Dizzy, acted like he was with his father or mentor -- like Dizzy was a hero to him. I also saw Monk act the same way around Dizzy. It was the musicians who played the music that were evolving from bebop rather than superseding it. For example Kenny Durham, Lee Morgan, Miles, Clifford Brown and many other trumpet players were all following in the path that Dizzy opened to them, yet none of them sounded like Dizzy nor did any of them sound like each other. They would all say they were playing bebop and learning from Diz. You see, bebop has got to do with HOW you play rather than WHAT you play. That is what I meant by saying it was a "verb". Then we get to John Coltrane who was at one point a member of Dizzy’s big band. Because he expanded the harmonic language and was using scales and modes did not mean that he still wasn’t rooted in the bebop school. That is evident in his time conception and his touch and tone. As Miles once said of himself, "I am a branch on the tree, but Dizzy is the trunk". Trane once made a reference to Dizzy by saying that Dizzy seemed to be able to get to this "joyous place" every time he played and then commented that he was still searching for that. Then we get to "free jazz" and Ornette Coleman. Can anyone honestly say that Ornette was not influenced by Charlie Parker? Give me a break! Even the term "bebop" was something coined by journalists not necessarily by musicians. The term "Modern Jazz" would be more accurate in my estimation. Jazz requires experiential knowledge rather than intellectual knowledge. There are great jazz writers who understand this and have this type of knowledge about jazz. There are others who do not, however, and are simply stating theories without reality. (To continue, please scroll up to the column on the right)

Kay: There are some that would argue that your new CD could only be considered "contemporary" from the standpoint that it was recorded in the 21st century rather than back in the ‘50s when bebop was first conceived. How would you respond to such an opinion? Mike: Again, this would be based on someone viewing the term "bebop" as a style of music rather than a musical concept that can engulf any approach one might take. There are stories of Charlie Parker being able to sit in with country and western bands while playing his concept. Who can forget the memorable recording sessions Dizzy made playing with an Argentine Tango Orchestra. Furthermore I would ask anyone who is of the opinion you put forth to ask contemporary young musicians, who are at the forefront of their generation, what is influencing their music and see if the word "bebop" comes up. It would be very foolish indeed to assume that someone like Roy Hargrove was not influenced by Lee Morgan or Woody Shaw, etc., who were products of that school . Kay: Listening to your ‘CD is a joyous and toe tappin’ experience, and I am a musician and I can tell you or anyone that it is absolutely a 2007 and beyond experience. For one thing, your tone on the piano is vibrating in the "here and now", and every musician that I have played it for has remarked that you are doing something with the time and rhythm that they can’t understand but is absolutely beautiful. Even though, as you say, your music is rooted in what might be considered a "bebop concept" what you are saying with it is as contemporary as it gets. Critic John Gilbert, who not only has a track record as a jazz journalist but has also worked as a professional jazz drummer, sums this up in his review of "Float Like A Butterfly" from a recent edition of ejazznews. Here are his comments. It seems like ages since I've gotten a true jazz recording. This one is a joy to listen to and you can take it to the musical bank of your choice. Mike Longo, influenced by Dizzy and Oscar Peterson, with whom he studied, is true to the art form and then some. Swing is prevalent, his ideas flow and his sense of melody and rhythm are magical. Mike: Well these are very kind words indeed. It brings to mind the question of what actually makes any music "contemporary"? Kay: This is a very interesting question and I would very much like to hear your answer to it. Mike: Well I would have to say that it actually does have something to do with when it was recorded. Because it is rooted in a bebop conception does not mean that it automatically uses the language and mannerisms of the forties. It simply means that the underlying principles of music that began developing at that point are present in it and are being used to make a contemporary musical statement. A good example of what I’m trying to convey here can be made by comparing the music of Brahms and Beethoven. Even though Brahms lived 60 years after Beethoven and didn’t have the same mannerisms or dress code, it is unmistakable that the tradition of Beethoven is alive in his music. As further criterion of the word contemporary being applied to music, I would have to say that an important factor would be whether or not the music is resonating with the people who are living in contemporary times. Kay: Well, testament to this factor towards your new CD can be found in the John Gilbert review as well as my own observation of enthusiastic audience reactions at your concerts from a wide range of age groups present, and particularly young people. Mike: Again, thanks for the kind words. Kay: In your liner notes you recall being turned on to becoming a jazz pianist by hearing Oscar Peterson, with whom you studied, play the tune "Tenderly". You have dedicated this CD to him and recorded "Tenderly" as a tribute to him. You have also included chestnuts like "Laura" and tunes by Dizzy, Freddy Hubbard and Monk. What would you say to someone who assumes that it would be appropriate to conclude, because of these factors, that your playing on this CD harks back 50 + years. Mike: The idea that because a musician plays a piece that was written in the 50s it is "appropriate" to assume that his playing is dated is preposterous. What comes to mind is the phrase, "it taint what ya say, it’s the way howcha say it". (Laughter) It would be tantamount to saying that how someone plays something is insignificant. For example, some artists are able to take an old standard and literally breathe new life into it through their interpretation while at the same time providing young people with a wonderful musical experience that they might not have had otherwise. It also becomes relevant to examine why artists choose repertoire for a CD in terms of what they are trying to accomplish with that particular recording. Kay: What exactly were you trying to accomplish with this CD? Mike: To give something. Honestly, my intention was to create a musical experience that would fill the listeners with overwhelming feelings of joy and happiness. Choosing a tune like "Laura", for instance, is because it still remains a hauntingly beautiful melody today, and I have stated it with contemporary harmony and counterpoint. Frankly, some of the music that is popular today is not is not conducive to being performed naturally by a jazz piano trio. Like I wouldn’t choose a hip hop tune over a tune like "Laura" simply because it is popular today. For one reason I would not know how to make a piano say things like "bitch and mother f----r" (Laughter) Kay: In view of your comments, here is a quote from the John Gilbert review about your rendition of "Tenderly". "Tenderly" was one of Charlie Parker's favorite tunes and Longo and company give this chestnut new and delightful meaning with their interpretive powers. Wormworth's drums are right on timewise with no extraneous clutter, just a perfect adjunct to Longo's brilliant solo. Paul West's bass lines add much to the overall effect. Here now is Gilbert’s comments on your rendition of Laura. The haunting melody of "Laura" is painted on a palette of musical colors by Longo that display his talents beautifully. Gilbert’s review of your recording concludes this way:   This record is like finding a gold piece in the jazz marketplace. It gets no better. 5 Stars (To be continued in the next instalment)

Artist's Perceptions (We at Jazzbeat wish the public to know that the opinions expressed in this column are strictly the opinions of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Jazzbeat nor the artists and producers of jazzbeat) "Cutting Edge Critics" and The Process of Elimination. I am starting to find it comical now to read criticism that uses terms like "nothing new here" … "ground breaking"… "cutting edge" … "pushing the envelope" and on and on. It has become the litany of a certain segment of the jazz journalist crowd. Most of it is presented as praise for the "free jazz" movement or criticism of the "mainstream jazz" players. It is not up to anyone to tell musicians how they can play a musical instrument in a free society but to criticize musicians because they do not play a certain way borders on asinine in my view. This is exactly what the type critic who puts down players who swing because they are not "cutting edge" in their view is. It was pointed out in a recent interview, with a contemporary jazz musician, that most of these type critics would not be able to sing which part of a tune a musician like Monk would be in if you stopped a recording in the middle of one of his solos. I’m reasonably sure this would be true with about 99% of this crowd. The point being that they are unable to hear musical content and are only reacting to sound effects from a subjective perspective. This is based in the silly assumption that abstract and weird=modern. Although I am of the belief that it is not what someone does that makes it art but how well they do it, I can’t help but notice that much of what these critics praise as "ground breaking" has been sounding the same since the 1960’s. Since I have been to many of these types of performances which seem to start with a string instrument bowing or plucking a tremelo out of time followed by a percussionist sounding chimes or cymbals which lead to pecking punctuations on a snare drum. What inevitably follows next is a horn of some kind running beatless statements of melodic patterns based on synthetic type scales or runs with a high degree of emotional energy accompanied by clusters and runs on a keyboard instrument blending with loud tom tom rolls and furious cymbal crashes. Eventually this subsides back to the soft sound effects from the beginning which fade out to silence. This is usually followed by exclamations of "whew!" from audience members trying to show each other that they "got it" and "understand and appreciate the latest stuff." I’ve seen and heard this so many times over the past forty five years that it is starting to resemble, for me, a bad joke. While these types of atmospheric passages definitely have their place in music, I personally find a whole evening of it rather boring. Sometimes one of these escapades can last for an entire one-hour set. Now, I don’t tend to suggest for one minute that this music or the people who play it have no right to exist. Nor do I suggest that people who like it or support it have no right to do so. I only have a problem when these types make suggestions to the effect that other types of music should cease to exist and that anyone who isn’t in their camp is just "not with it". This, to me, is ludicrous in view of the fact that many who embrace this direction have tremendous holes in their musicianship and musical development.

I recall one famous jazz master referring to this type of music as "playing tennis without a net". I was told that Duke Ellington was once asked why he hadn’t embraced "free jazz". His answer, according to the story, was that he didn’t want "to go that far back". If the story is true I can see the logic in a statement like that. For some reason, over the past thirty years or so a process of elimination has been applauded as an evolutionary step forward by many. For example we have one musician claiming to have freed jazz from the shackles of harmony. This would be tantamount to eliminating harmony and harmonic progression from jazz. This would be going back to a time, in music, before these things had developed. How is that a forward step? Eliminating form? The development of form in music started simply with related fragments and motifs and eventually evolved to large architectural forms. How is eliminating the logic of form a step forward? It seems like going back to a time before it had developed. In fact the more that this elimination process continues the closer we will get to a time before we even had music, or back to silence. This has even been attempted to pass as music in a piece "composed" by John Cage, the poster child for this movement in the classical field. Next we have those who fall into the camp of what is now termed "The European Invasion". This is the crowd who resents being rejected by American audiences "who are rooted in swing and blues based music". This is understandable in view of the fact that the musicians who are saying this are those who have never figured out how to swing or play the blues. Oh, of course, they will claim that they have but when they attempt to demonstrate this all you will hear is the cliches they have picked up from imitating recordings of people who can swing and play the blues. Again, a process of elimination is in effect here. We have people eliminating swing and blues from jazz, which in reality takes us back to the time before we had jazz. Now the alleged statement from Duke Ellington starts to make even more sense. There is something far more sinister in this idea however since it appears to be an elimination of African American influences that gave birth to the music we came to know as jazz. How convenient! The very thing that has eluded them for so many years they now want to eliminate as they hide behind the cliché that "that is the way black musicians play". This, however, is simply a more subtle form of racism in which black people are viewed as "creatures of a different species" instead of "a person just like myself". One might examine the concept that this very attitude is what has caused them to be unable to swing and play the blues. It might also cause them to notice that there are actually some European musicians who do swing and play the blues and who are being shamefully ignored by people from both continents and who, I might add, are not people who embrace the "different species" concept. Now this brings me to a point that seems to be overlooked by much of today’s jazz community in general. The attempt to eliminate form and harmony from jazz or to eliminate swing and blues from it is also bringing about the elimination of something far more important to the future of jazz. It is shamefully bringing about the elimination of the audience for jazz. How sad! Izzy Feldman

Pianist / composer Mike Longo was Dizzy's pianist and musical director from 1966 until 1975 on a full time basis. From 1975 until Dizzy's death in 1993, Mike performed with Dizzy sporadically about thee to four times a year. He also continued to write for Dizzy's various groups on several occasions. During the last days of Dizzy's life, after he was sent home from the hospital, Mike would go to Dizzy's house in Englewood N.J. and practice with him twice a week in an attempt to help Diz regain his chops in hopes of eventually being able to perform again. Of course this was never to happen and Dizzy died on January 6, 1993 of pancreatic cancer. The two remained close friends and musical companions until his death. Mike has had many marvelous experiences with Dizzy during his lifetime. Some of them provocative musical ones and some very funny life experiences. In our next series of postings on Dizzy, we will be hearing some of these from Mike Longo. DorothyDavis Business Manager CAP records. ____________________________________ The next day the management called Joe Glaser’s office to complain as this is the office that booked us. They, in turn, called Lorraine Gillespie and told her what her husband had done. Everybody was in an uproar. Diz was not a drinker per se. He would tie one on maybe every three or four months or so but when he did it was an extremely hysterical experience. He also could not hold his liquor. After 3 cognacs he was a blithering idiot! The rest of the gig went pretty smooth up until the last night which was New Years Eve. I remember the bass player had cut out from the gig during the middle of the week. We went by his room at the motel and he was gone. He didn’t give Dizzy a notice or anything. He just split. Diz got Al McKibbon to replace him for the rest of the gig and everything was going smooth. I recall on Christmas Eve, Moody and I were going back to the Motel after the gig. The motel was about 5 miles from the Century Plaza where we were playing. I guess, because it was Christmas Eve and it was 2:00 A.M., no cab drivers were on duty outside the club and we couldn’t find a ride. We decided to walk the 5 miles. Moody had his tenor, alto and flute to carry so I carried his alto. There we were on this hyway at 2 o'clock in the morning on Christmas Eve walking back to the motel and we were really feeling sorry for ourselves because we could see people’s homes with Christmas trees in them and we were having no Christmas at all. I recall Moody saying, “what the hell are we doing here Mikel? It’s Christmas Eve and we’re three thousand miles away from anybody we know and can’t even find a hot dog.” Both of us felt like crying because, as I said, we were feeling sorry for ourselves and we were also hungry and couldn’t find anyplace to get anything to eat at that time of the morning. We went back to the motel and stayed up all night. About 7:00 A.M we went out to look for something to eat. It was Christmas morning and the only thing we found open was a Taco Bell. We went in and much to our surprise we found only one other person in the place. It was Karim Abdul Jabbar! He was still Lou Alcindor back then and he had just started playing with the Lakers. He was lamenting the same thing about being away from home on Christmas and he couldn’t find anyplace to eat just like us. It was rather comical I recall. The final night at the Century Plaza was New Years Eve and of course the joint was jumping. I recall all of us were happy the gig was over because it was an up tight week for all of us. (To continue scroll up to the top of the column on the right)

Most of the band was in a jovial mood because it was New Years Eve and the gig was over and we were going to Japan the next day so we were partying. There used to be a couple of airline stewardesses who were like Dizzy Gillespie groupies and they had come to the club that night to be with us on New Years Eve and so it was party time for the Dizzy Gillespie Quintet. The band was really cooking that night and everybody was in rare form. It was 1969 and everybody back then was into some sort of substance abuse and Dizzy’s group was no accept ion although nothing heavy other than mild stuff like pot was tolerated by Dizzy. I recall finishing the first show and standing at the bar feeling no pain when Diz walked up. He had had a couple of cognacs by now and was into one of his devilish moods. He had a pill container with a bunch of Amil Nitrate capsules crushed in it. Back then everybody was into Amil Nitrate which was for heart patients. If you inhaled the fumes from one however, you would get this rush kind of high like being on an instant LSD trip which lasted for about 30 seconds. Diz had about ten of them crushed inside of this pill container. He walked over to me to say something and this elderly gentleman was sitting next to me at the bar. He was a rather up tight and very wealthy white guy. He saw Dizzy and said something to the effect that he liked the music to Dizzy. Dizzy, who was feeling no pain at the time, opens up the pill container with the Amil Nitrate in it and says to the guy “thanks! Smell this....” Needless to say, the man smelled it and I got out of there fast. The last thing I saw was this guy turning red with a look of fright on his face. I remember thinking “no wonder they call him Dizzy...this guy is crazy!” We all went back to the hotel and partied after the gig and since we had an early flight the next morning to Japan, we just stayed up. By the time we went to the LA airport, Dizzy was totally wasted. This was his pre- Bahai days because after he became a Bahai he gave up all forms of intoxication. He was still a “wild man” during this period though. We arrived at the airport about 7:00AM and I was in a cab with Dizzy. While unloading the cab, a stretch limo pulled up behind us and this African American guy about six foot four gets out. Apparently he was a chauffeur for a wealthy client who was in a wheel chair. He gets out of the limo and sets up a wheelchair on the sidewalk. It was one of those electric powered ones. He was setting it up for his client and then going to help the disabled man out of the limo and into the chair. Diz gets out of the cab and of course he is drunk and he sees the wheel chair on the sidewalk. The chauffeur had walked around to the other side of the limo to get some luggage out when Dizzy gets into the man’s wheel chair and drives off! He rode in this electric wheelchair all the way down to the gate! I of course was on my knees on the sidewalk laughing. I couldn’t believe what he had done. About 10 minutes later there were several policeman and airport security people surrounding us at the gate. When the chauffeur saw it was Dizzy he exclaimed “Aw Diz! You crazy bastard! I been a fan of yours all my life!” He then told the police that everything was all right it was just Dizzy Gillespie up to his antics. The police left and Diz gave the chauffeur an autographed photo and everything was cool. We poured Dizzy on the plane and split. So there Oscar Peterson! There is the story!   (all material in this column is protected by US copyright) © 1998 Consolidated Artists Publishing ___________________________________ In 1968, after Martin Luther King was assassinated, Dizzy embraced the Baha'i Religion. For those of you who wish to investigate this we have included some information as well as links. The Bahá'í Faith The Bahá'í world-wide community includes more than 5 million men and women from over 2,100 ethnic groups and almost every nationality, economic class, trade and profession. There are significant Bahá'í communities in 235 countries and territories, of which 174 are organized as national or regional affiliates with approximately 17,000 organized local communities. Some, but by no means all, of the basic principles of the Bahá'í Faith are: - The oneness of mankind, - Independent investigation of the truth, - The common foundation of all religions, - The equality of women and men, - Elimination of prejudice of all kinds, - Universal compulsory education, - A spiritual solution to economic problems, - A universal auxiliary language If you would like more information about the Bahá'í Faith, click on the following web sites: The Bahá'í World, The Bahá'ís Magazine, Soc.Religion.Bahai Home Page.

Back to JazzBeat Homepage