DownBeat 1995 (nem teljes évfolyam) [antikvár]

THE BEAT Branford On 'Hiatus by Frank Alkyer ranford Marsalis has bolted The *TomghtShow WithJayLeno. Good for Branford. Unfortunately, that will probably be the last sour note on the possibility of more jazz being played on the late-night talk show. Shame on NBC. For the record, Marsalis is on hiatus "for personal reasons," according to an announcement in early November. But don't really count on him returning. Behind the scenes, NBC executives were unhappy with his recent media comments condemning orders to play more pop, less jazz. At the same time, Marsalis appeared to tire of the "show biz" aspects of the gig. He seemingly wants to be a musician, not "Rochester to Jay's Jack Benny," as he joked when he took the gig in 1992. Jazz guitarist Kevin Eubanks is scheduled to take over the Tonight Show Band while Branford is expected to hit the road under the guise of Buckshot LeFonque, his jazz/ rap-driven, dance-crazed alter-ego. So, that's it. All that's left to do is bury the whole sorry-assed memory of jazz exposure that could have been, had NBC had the foresight—not to mention the spine—to let great musicians play great music on national television. But before we do, there's a bit of unresolved business. In the October issue of Down Beat, in an editorial titled "We Was Robbed," we asked readers to write in asking NBC to quit cutting back on the band's playing time and let them play more jazz. We received some 50 letters—less than the "hundreds" we hoped for—all supporting Branford and the band. They will be forwarded to NBC, but here are a few choice quotes: • "Is a single NBC executive whipping the life out of The Tonight Show, or could this be a team effort?"—Shawn McGrcw, fiothell, Wash. • "I am a senior in high school and a very avid jazz fan as well as player. In the suburban city that I live in, some of the only exposure li jazz comes from shows like The ToniuhtShow. Toconforni tjnly Marsalis: on leave from The Tonight Show a small set of music is to destroy the foundation that our society is built on: freedom."—Geo// Brouhard, Rochester Hills, Mich. • "Branford is gorgeous and I want to see more of him."—Amber Enbey, Houston, Texas. • "Jazz—the crown jewel of African-American culture—just look how she Is being treated. Shame!"—Andrew Mouat, Riverside, Call/. • "It's pretty obvious that NBC has forced Branford, et al., to imitate the predictable pop of Paul Shaffers CBS outfit in an effort to compete with Letterman. This strategy has certainly backfired with the students and faculty with whom I've spoken."—Tim Hays, department 0/music chairman, Elmhurst College, Elm-hurst. III. • "Please think what would have happened if some other acts were boxed in and not able to flex some creativity, for example, the Beatles, Miles Davis, Monk. What the hell! Let it roW."—Richard Stanton, Musical Accents, Grass Valley, Cali/. • "It is infuriating, as well as embarrassing, to have to witness first-class artists demoted to the role of performers in a minstrel show."—Nancy Tobin, Wellesley Hills, Mass. • "Top 10 reasons why Letterman's Late Show is kicking the crap out of Leno's Tonight Show: 10) It's creative; 9) It's unique; 8) It's unpredictable; 7) It's im-provisational; 6) It bops; 5) It swings; 4) It bebops; 3) It's funky; 2) It's cool; 1) It's }azzy\ "NBC. you should look into these qualities of jazz. Luckily, you have a jazz master amongst you. NBC. let Branford do his thing!"—yiw^v Arroyo, Chicago, III. Thanks to everyone who responded. And best of luck, Branford. DB DOWX BEAT January 1995 Volume 62-Nuniber 1 Publisher: Kevlo Maher AatoGUTC Publisher: Frank Alkyer eoitorul directoh: Frank Alkyer m«n«qino Editor: John Ephland Associate Editor: Ed Enrjgh! DESIGN! Betsy Bowron/Komerska Production Manaoer: Becky Williams Circulation Manager: Elaine Rizleris Circulation Assistant: Ginger Glese • • • President: Jack Maher Contributors Austin—Michael Point: Boston—Fred Bouchard. Rank-John Hadley; Chicago—John Booz. Aaron Cohen, John Corbett. Jim OeJong. Ron Heard. Dave Heiland. An Lartge. John Litweiler, John McOonough, Paul Natkin, Howard Reich; Detroit—Michael Nastos; Los Angolos—Fred Shust«, Zan Stewart. JoselWoodard; Miami—JacKSohmer New York—Robert Baranello, Larry Bimbaum, Ten Bk>om. Larry Blumenfeld, Michael Bourne. Enid FarOer. Eugene Holley Jr Jim Macnie. Howard Mardel. Mitchell Seidel. Kevm Whitehead. K. Leander Williams. Ohio—Elame Guregian: New Orleans—Bill Milkowski North Carolina—Owen Cordle; Philadelphia—Jon Andre.vs. John Oiliberta Russell Woessner; Portland—Ke,.-! Ellsworth; San Francisco—Stuart Bnnrn. Michael Handler, Dan Ouelkette Robin Tolleson: Washington, D.C.—Geoffrey Himes, Willard Jenkins. James T. Jones IV, 81II Shoemaker: Germany—Hyou Vielz; Great Britain—Bnan PnesUey. Chris Sheridan: India—Vinod Advani. Niranjan Jhaven; Italy—Ruggero Stiassi; Japan—Shoichi Yul; Netherlands—Jaap Liideke: Norway—Randi Huitín: South Africa-Don Albert: South America—Max Seligmann: Sweden—Lars Lystedt. Editorial, Administration ft Advertisino Offices 102 N. Haven St. Elmhurst. IL 60126-3379 (708) 941-2030 Fax: (708) 941-3210 Advertismo Sales Kevin Maher (708) 941-2030 East Coast AoviRTtsNM Sales Bob Olesen 720 Greenwich St. New York, NY 10014 (212) 243-4786 (> DOWNBEAT JANUARY iwr.