DownBeat May 1990 [antikvár]

on the beat HMi III -"'Pic;- GIMME SOME WAH-WAH by John Ephland ^^^^ ^^^^ racket down!" * " ^^H Okay, how many of you "kids" out there have ever heard those (dis)reputable words in connection with music? Chances are, if you've ever been a kid and in lo\'e with music, you've crossed swords with parents, dorm advisors, camp counselors. "Crossing swords" can be as sure a sign of health as getting straight A's or craving to be a foreign-exchange student. In other words, a love for loud music—leading to, among other things, differences of opinion—CJH represent a desire for creativity, expression, a sign of hope. Granted, I'm biased, having gone through an initiation of sorts in the '60s with musicians I still consider to be great and well worth listening to: Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page. John McLaughlin, B.B. King, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jack Bruce, Mike Bloomiield, Jorma Kaukonen, Jerry Garcia. And what, dear classmates, do all these cultural icons have in common? Sure, except for two, they're all graying; but more importantly, they're still kicking, and with the major musical instrument of our time: the electric guitar, Think about it. Ever since Elvis, the guitar has served as a call to arms—part sexual weapon, part flat-out tommy gun. Yeah, I know, Elvis played an acoustic guitar, but his style with it set the stage for just about every twangin' head-banger Jock Bruce with his love of a lifetime. we've come to love. (Pete Townshend comes to mind.) And I know rhythm has everything to do with rhythm & blues and rock & roll (this coming from a drummin' man), but that "shot of r&b" has just got to include an axe or two if it's gonna get those juices flowing, hearts pumping, tempers flaring. And as much as the keyboard has served as the creative springboard for most of Western civilization's greatest music, improvised and composed, that "get down and boogie" feel of the plugged-in sbc-string has done more for the spirit of successive generations than any other musical apparatus. Jerry Lee Lewis, you may be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but Chuck Berry's got you comin' and goin' with that often imitated, never duplicated June 24-July 6, 1990 at the % Skidmore ^^ College X Summer \ Jazz Institute titut^^ Enjoy two weeks of intensive jazz study with six of the world's finest jazz musicians/educators. This unique opportunity involves combo rehearsals, improvisation, theory, history & listening sessions, and instrumental master classes, each coached or taught by our distinguished faculty. You will also have the opportunity to attend the Newport lazz Festival in Saratoga, June 30 & luly 1. _Faculty ___ Dick Kaiz Ed Shaugtinessy Piano Drums Mill Hinion Buddy Baker Bass Trombone Don Mcnza Vince DIMariino Rccds Trumpet _Typical Dally Schedule_ Contact: Gerald Zaifuls, Director Office oi the Dean ol Special Programs Skiilmore College Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 1632 (Si8| 584 SOOO, ext. 2264 9:üü Combo Rehearsal 2:30 10:30 Improvisaiion/- Theory 4:00 12:00 Lunch 5:00 1:00 History/- Listening «:UU Master Class Instrumental Master Class Dinner Conceri Duck Walk. Singers? Well, yes, there was The Voice, dear Mr. Sinatra, and all subsequent voices, from Elvis to James Brown to Madonna. But please note: starting with Elvis and Buddy HoUy and continuing on with the likes of Prince, Sting, and Springsteen, there's always been a guitar to cuddle, a four- or six-string "racket" to augment the distinctive vocals of most superstars. Compare or Blue Eyes' impact with that of John, Paul, and George's. We're not just talkin' numbers here, but intensity levels as weU. Can you imagine the Fab Four sans guitars? Where would Mick be without Keith? In all fairness to the greatest crooner ever, without a guitar (and I don't mean a bossa nova guitar), you ain't got a prayer. Am I forgetting anyone? All right, all right! Superseding drum solos, trumpet blasts, and pianistic flair, the bastion of jazz has but one mouthpiece, namely, the axe of axes, the sax. Cecil Taylor notwithstanding, when the talk is revolution and freedom in jazz, names like Parker, Coltrane, Ornette, and Ayler first come to mind. Hell, when it comes to evoking sexual images, the sound of a saxophone wins hands-down. Having said all this, where would jazz be without the innovation offered up by such talents as Charlie Christian, Wes Montgomery, and Pat Metheny? Simply stated, the guitar speaks to and for many more music listeners when it comes to raw emotion. If you don't believe me, turn on your radio. Opposite classical music and talk radio, and right alongside the human voice, the guitar surrotmds everything from country & western to you know what. A voltaic footnote: What do Miles and Bob Dylan have in common? Among other things, their music was turned upside-down the minute they went "electric"; Dylan at the Newport Folk Festival in '65, Miles in '67 with guitarist Joe Beck. Without electricity, without those patented wah-wah, fuzz tone, and echoplex licks, Hendrix's guitar couldn't have played with as many minds as it did, his very persona oozing out and onto practically everything you and I have heard. And the buzz continues with MIDI sound controllers, active pickups, and wireless guitars, to name but a few bits and bytes. If a guitarist is worth his or her salt, he better be reaching those young, fertile minds even as he "disrupts" family households (in the good name of art, of course). Maybe Mick Mars (of Motley Crue fame) can't carry a tune like Les Paul or Jini Hall, but who cares? If Mick has reached but one searching soul, prompting him to move from "mere" air-guitar pyrotechmcs into music lessons, garage bands, and who knows what else, Mr. Mars has given that searcher a gift he'll treasure for the rest of his life. 6 DOWN BEAT MAY 1990