Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Monday, December 30, 2013

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Monday, December 23, 2013

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

I'm leaving baby

How about a little Goodtar in you life

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Monday, December 16, 2013

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Bring back Nelson Mandela


In an age when it's nothing to carry a grudge against the waiter for bringing the wrong salad dressing it is hard to conceive of the personal wherewithal mustered by Nelson Mandela to subvert the memory of his oppression. And then to subsequently lead his people, and the rest of the world, out of the travesty of apartheid.

Yet here we are, safely tucked away in a world that opted out of a full scale South African race war by disemboweling centuries old racism. And I am not talking about outmaneuvering that bullshit racism practiced in America. South African racism was the gold standard for subjugating an entire majority of people with a viciousness that in hindsight seems like a lie somebody told to besmirch the humanity of the Boers.

Mr. Mandela took full advantage of the freedom that 27 years of incarceration afforded him in order to become the myth. And at the end of those 27 years fully embodying that myth to take on the role of leader and statesman with no more apparent effort than it takes to walk out to the curb for the morning paper. He became the liberator of his people and graciously carried that weight for the rest of his life.

Rest in Peace Madiba

Friday, December 6, 2013

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Saturday, November 30, 2013

Friday, November 29, 2013

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Monday, November 25, 2013

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Holding on

Ha ha ha, who are you kidding

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Friday, November 8, 2013

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Monday, November 4, 2013

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Friday, November 1, 2013

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Monday, October 28, 2013

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Ain't nothing in this life free brother

Some things are hard won, earned and internalized. Some arrive on the express train.

Sometimes you win friends and influence people, sometimes you hand out asswhuppins and make enemies.

And sometimes you play to a draw.

But even if you are always outnumbered always outgunned, you can still claim the victory. The trick is to have another token in your pocket so that you can play again.

Monday, October 7, 2013

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Friday, October 4, 2013

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Change

Makes you want to hustle

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

If you can't respect me

Respect yourself

Take the sheet off your face boy, it's a brand new day



Tuesday, October 1, 2013

W-E-F-U-N-K

Glozell, girl you need to quit, you could have been the featured video for the day but you don't have embedding enabled. So we will just have to go with my motto.


Make my funk the P-Funk
I want my funk uncut
Make my funk the P-Funk
I wants to get funked up
I want the bomb I want the P-Funk
Don't want my funk stepped on
Make my funk the P-Funk
Before I take it home

Monday, September 30, 2013

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Here we go again

I don't know but I don't want to get too deep

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Devotion

and deliverance, from the fruits of evil

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Friday, September 20, 2013

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Friday, September 13, 2013

Ya got trouble

right here in River City

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Compared to what?


I love the lie and lie the love
A-Hangin' on, with push and shove
Possession is the motivation
that is hangin' up the God-damn nation
Looks like we always end up in a rut (everybody now!)
Tryin' to make it real — compared to what? C'mon baby!

Monday, September 9, 2013

If ifs and buts were fruits and nuts we'd all have a merry Christmas

Are you ready for some football

Turn out the lights, the party's over



Sunday, September 8, 2013

It can't be like it was

They don't seem to be giving it up



Saturday, September 7, 2013

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

History didn't start on 9/11

Now which one of you sombitches has got the paper in your hand

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Me, myself and I

That's all I got in the end
That's what I found out
And it ain't no need to cry
I took a vow that from now on
I'm gon be my own best friend



Friday, August 30, 2013

What happens to a buttwhuppin deferred

Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore—
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over—
Like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
Like a heavy load

Or does it explode?

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Monday, August 26, 2013

The Eastern Rebellion is over


A busy week, so we did not have an opportunity to note the death of a jazz giant. Let us now rectify that by acknowledging the passing of Cedar Walton.

I didn't really hear about his passing so much as I noticed much more of his music being broadcast in rapid succession. I heard more Cedar Walton music in the space of an hour than you normally hear in a full week and I just suddenly came to an uh oh moment. Nobody had to say a word. But then again, what more fitting way for word of the passing of an intuitive jazz musician to spread.

Cedar Walton was not well known outside jazz circles, but inside the circle he was a giant. As a pianist composer, he was known for infectious boppish tunes. I always heard great similarity between the music of Cedar Walton and the music of Horace Silver.

Cedar Walton led the music the way I want it to go and he will be missed. I'm sure many were influenced by his music and will take up the charge that Mr. Walton so ably led for many years.

RIP


Thursday, August 22, 2013

Monday, August 19, 2013

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Monday, August 12, 2013

Confessin the blues

Well now baby, don't you want a man like me

You better think about your future

and forget about your use to be



Saturday, August 10, 2013

Thursday, August 8, 2013

If you really love me

Then I won't have to be playin around



Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Reach for it


George Duke could play anything.

He chose to play a lot of fusionist smooth jazz, but he had the chops to play chunky jazz when the mood struck.

And he could fonk it up with the best of them.

...cause the fonk sho will make it stank

RIP




Monday, August 5, 2013

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Saturday, July 27, 2013

You have the right to remain silent


Jurors should take due care to exercise this right vigorously.

At the conclusion of serving on a high profile jury it is easy to confuse the final convulsions of that service with your personal 15 minutes of fame.

It is not.

It is easy to confuse the deference afforded a sitting jury with actual power.

It is not.


Your illusion of power is over and you were never in control, any more than a child who decided to go on a skittles run, any more than an ignorant misguided fool authorized only by the authority that flows from a loaded gun who decided to get out of his vehicle to body check a young boy that didn't look right.

At the conclusion of your jury service you have the right to not be accosted by members of society regarding your service. On the other hand, shouldn't society have the right to not be accosted by jury members as well.

Further efforts to explore the inner deliberations of a disbanded jury is nothing more than pornography and can only sow heartbreak and regret.

For the love of God, all of you please STFU and disappear back into your mundane lives.


Friday, July 26, 2013

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Ain't nobody

black

You want to know what is really racists about this country?

That it allows a panel full of white people to go on national TV talking about having to talk to your black children about getting pulled over by the cops and what it means to be black and oh how hard it is to be black in America and what we need to do about it with nary a nigger in sight and nobody seems to think there is anything wrong with this picture.

I mean come on, were there simply not enough black people to go around to all the TV talk shows or did white folks really think they could appropriately speak to black condition.

If you really want to do something about racism in this country give the microphone to black people and then shut up and listen.

And that's what I think about that.


Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Please pardon me

You remind me of a friend of mine

Hope you don't mind, you look like a friend of mine
and its seldom you find...



Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Saturday, July 6, 2013

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Freedom sound


Think they will take the hint?

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Come on home

We have conclusive proof that dogs bark at squirrels and wolves howl at the moon.

Film at eleven.

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Do you have an appointment in Ghana

Maybe this will motivate them to get off their asses and quit living off the inheritance

Well played sir

Monday, June 24, 2013

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Monday, June 17, 2013

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Monday, June 10, 2013

Saturday, June 8, 2013

What did you think they were going to do with the Patriot Act

Everyone who was silent while they were passing and renewing the Patriot Act is now cordially invited to STFU.

However there may be a bright side to this thing. Since the government has all of this data, maybe they could make themselves useful and do something about all of the spammers and bootleg telemarketers who have figured out how to scam the do not call list.

Now that's something that might be worth losing some liberty over.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

One for Grew

The world is a less musical place in the absence of one of the greatest and most underrated jazz pianist. Mr. Mulgrew Miller departed this life last week and somehow I missed it.

I briefly heard one station make mention of a tribute to Grew, but in the haste of a busy workaday world I dismissed it as nothing more than folks starting to wake up to his greatness. Maybe, subconsciously I knew what they meant and I just wasn't ready to process it. Sadly, I must now acknowledge that Mr. Miller has passed from this life and no amount of self deception will change that. This blog would not be worthy of its namesake if we did not pause to acknowledge the passing of this great jazz lion.

I cannot tell you technically what it is that makes Mulgrew Miller such an enjoyable purveyor of this music but the proof is always in the listening. His playing had the uncanny ability to consistently remain sonically in the background while simultaneously always being front and center. Upon discovering that he was the pianist on a particular piece of music (and he was the pianist on quite a lot of jazz) my reaction would always be of course he is, who else could it have been. He made it sound easy but no one else has perfected that sound. He was almost single handedly leading the charge in finding the new sound of contemporary jazz piano and for me was the definition of what modern jazz should be. No disrespect to the many fine jazz musicians of the world. There are many great jazz piano players but there was only one Mulgrew Miller. And now he is gone.

Do yourself a favor and familiarize yourself with his music both as a leader and as a prolific sideman. You will actually hear what many other jazz piano players are trying to do.

The jazz community has two consistent and enduring tendencies that I have observed while indulging in this music. One is to have really great one syllable nick names for the best players; Satch, Byrd, Diz, Monk to name a few. And the second tendency is that we gain full appreciation for the great ones only after they have made their mark on the music and permanently layed out.

I think Grew can be added to the list on both counts. I hope I am around long enough to see Grew get his full measure of appreciation.

RIP Mr. Miller


Thursday, May 30, 2013

Monday, May 27, 2013

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Monday, May 13, 2013

Jazz is stupid

If they would just play the right notes

Saturday, May 11, 2013

How high the moon

Nat Cole & Mel Torme trading fours with June Christy bringing it home, how cool is that.

While Nat was a well known piano bad ass I did not know (or had forgotten) Mel Torme was a drummer.

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Faceless mindstate

In it without being of it

Monday, May 6, 2013

Stop trying to win


And start chopping wood, its gonna be a long cold winter

Saturday, May 4, 2013

Friday, May 3, 2013

Good morning starshine, the earth says hello


You twinkle above us
We twinkle below

Play them simultaneously



Thursday, May 2, 2013

Gloom despair and agony on me

Deep dark depression excessive misery

If it weren't for bad luck I'd have no luck at all

Gloom despair and agony on me

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Monday, April 22, 2013

Hopeless


They say I'm hopeless
as a penny with a hole in it

They say I'm no less
than up to head in it

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Thursday, April 11, 2013

I got it bad and that ain't good

Never treats me sweet and gentle
the way that he should...



Friday, April 5, 2013

You got to bottle up and go

Well, mama killed a chicken
She thought it was a duck
She put him on the table
With his legs stickin' up

You got to bottle it up and go

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Shotgun

So let me understand this. Every underpaid rent a cop is fully and duly authorized to bust a cap in your ass if, in his sole discretion, he doesn't like the way you are behaving. And while there might be some extra paperwork involved, nobody will say shit about it unless there is a video of it.

But let a brother try to draw a bead on your ass sneaking home for the holidays and its an outrage.

Where is all this concern when it really matters?



Friday, March 22, 2013

...and so, we look forward to the day

when we will leave you sombitches to yourselves to solve your own damn problems.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Friday, March 8, 2013

Casanova Brown

My name is clairvoyance, and its all too clear


Thursday, March 7, 2013

Try again

Its been a long time...



Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Just a sucka for love

Well alright you freaks

Give it up






Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Just put your lips together and blow

Looks like we're done here

Anybody need anything just whistle

You know how to whistle don't you...


Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Friday, January 4, 2013

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Visions

People hand in hand
Have I lived to see the milk and honey land ?
Where hate's a dream and love forever stands
Or is this a vision in my mind ?

The law was never passed
But somehow all men feel they're truly free at last
Have we really gone this far through space and time
Or is this a vision in my mind ?

I'm not one who makes believe
I know that leaves are green
They only change to brown when autumn comes around
I know just what I say
Today's not yesterday
And all things have an ending

But what I'd like to know
Is could a place like this exist so beautiful
Or do we have to find our wings and fly away
To the vision in our mind ?

I'm not one who makes believes
I know that leaves are green
They only change to brown when autumn comes around

I know just what I say
Today's not yesterday
And all things have an ending

But what I'd like to know
Is could a place like this exist so beautiful
Or do we have to take our wings and fly away
To the vision in our minds ?