A very exceptional warm, considerate person, who is sadly missed. I really feel it when good people who give so much pass away far too early. Forever in our thoughts, Mr Roy Hargrove. From the UK
Heroin and opioids in general are the worst drugs because they somehow trick your mind that it’s no big deal. It seems so benign, you feel so good and can still function. You play better as a musician you are in a better mood etc. it’s only once you run out for that first time and you get sick so you realize you’re stuck. Would you rather have the worst flu you’ve ever had in your life or snort a minuscule amount of some powder and feel like $1mil bucks. This proves that drugs/musicians have always had this relationship. I think the best way to warn someone is to simply never do it in the first place because the results are certain, it will start off like heaven and wind up in living hell.
Rest in Peace. One of the member´s of legendary band Robert Glasper Experiment has passed away. Your smile, your music the human casey Benjamin will be truly missed. I´m watching the band in germany, ..i´m totally shocked about this news.. At this night at the concert he gave me a good feeling..like the hole band. I will remember this..very good feeling.
Rest in peace my friend.. I will always remember Casey walking the halls on LaGuardia HS with that big ole saxophone he had an infectious smile😊 He will truly be missed
So very true Kenny! The Heart tells the truth about you and Heart is Truth good, bad or indifferent. Singing or playing from the Heart or spirit connects with other people's hearts. God looks on the heart man looks on the flesh! God Bless You and love your music!
What I don't get is why is what Kenny Baron says, quote, "Music today is more from the head and not the heart", unquote, is all of a sudden "the biblical truth", when this very fact has been observed by many musicians for decades already. As a matter of fact, contrary to what Mr. Baron's comment, within the last ten years, I've noticed that the younger generation of musicians are more about playing the music that appeal the the emotions and the heart, rather than the pseudo-creative, cerebral, musical gibberish that's been prevalent for too long before. These kids today seems to value music, over the so-call creativity values. I've been observing this in New York, Stockholm and Copenhagen. I really appreciate that. Because, I've noted that "creativity" and "originality", tends to be overrated when it comes to music. Creativity and originality are commodities in the music industry. So, that should put things into perspective. Creativity and originality is a matter of fact. You can't avoid being creative and original. Both values are inevitable. So, we certainly don't need to practice creativity and originality. But we must always practice music, that is, is we want to stay mentally focused and physically fit for performance. So just because it's creative and original, doesn't mean that it's good music. Needless to say that this is with all due respect to Mr. Kenny Barron.
I appreciate Mr. Barron’s brilliant artistry and have the utmost respect for him as a musician, but it isn’t at all fair to make these generalizations about an entire generation of musicians, especially without naming names. Who, specifically, are these young players that he is referring to? For some context, Miles Davis and many of the other musicians who came to prominence in the bebop era where similarly dismissed by the older generation of swing musicians at the time, who said that bebop was all intellect and no soul, and that the solos were academic and not singable.
The music was more emotional because previous generations got to be less traumatizedthan us. They had family and community. We can't make the emotional music that came from previous generations because we don't have the same experience & we have a much colder world to play to and play from.
Mr. Barron is right… I have been thinking for a while that the music is not melodic, no blues and not memorable tunes that can be played by others and recorded like music written by Horace Silver, Monk, Freddie Hubbard, etc.
wow... all about the music.. yes sir. I remember listening to Jimmy Smith recordings with Kenny Burrell. Jimmy could take a 5 minute solo. Kenny kept the groove strong and Jimmy always had new places to go soloing
I was once a heroin addict. I was well known among my clique of drug users for a strict adherence to having a wake up shot. Too many druggies have zero self control. . Nothing beats getting up in the morning, getting high, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper lol.
just a few thoughts ... 1.the scene is definitely a lot different these days as Benny points out in this 11 year old video ... 2.the jazz audience "then and now" (alternate title lol) is not large enough to support but a small % of those pursuing a career ... 3. thus even many of the masters Benny refers to sought refuge in teaching jobs ... 4.these days the educational institutions are pumping out so much new talent each year that it far exceeds the demand ... 5. teaching positions are no longer a dependable backup as more and more students come to realize they can't use an unmarketable skill/degree to pay the bills ... 6.still art was not invented as a job/occupation in the normal sense so mainly those with the passion, stamina and good fortune will carry jazz forward in spite of everything
