This past week in NYC I had some recurring problems with my alto clarinet. Back in the day jazz musicians might have been sleeping off the late night hit but I was out the door at 7am so I could take lady alto to my man Perry Ritter, a long time sax and clarinet […]
Several years ago I was selling reeds and valve oil at Sam Ash when suddenly Roswell Rudd was standing in front of me. I told him I knew Giuseppi Logan since I knew they had history. Roswell got serious, looked me right in the eye and without hesitation emphatically said that Giuseppi was a genius. […]
During the last two weeks of 2017 I was in southern Africa in communion with the Sun. Back here in the ice fortress of iron madness and temple of illusions it now seems impossible. All my dreams last night took place there where the sun reigns supreme. I have family in South Africa and Zimbabwe […]
When I was a kid in the 70’s I watched a lot of cartoons, and I of course watched Bugs Bunny countless times. One episode burrowed itself deep in my brain. In it, Bugs sang a song while he was mining giant carrots. The song haunted me all the way to 47 years old, when […]
Here at No Sound Left Behind, we have a special guest ladies and gentlemen. The first time I heard him play was at Pine Tree Elementary in 1978, when he took a solo during a concert when none was planned. Calamity ensued as his band director Mr.Napoli feared he would lose control of an ensemble […]
As survival gigs go, I have been able to make my way into places where I cross paths with total street people all the way up to cultural icons. At Sam Ash, I worked behind a counter that was not unlike a bar that served up reeds instead of drinks. The bar would enable me […]
Harvey doesn’t seem to have a need to discriminate between Conservatives or Liberals, the haves and the have nots, or people with different cultural backgrounds. Harvey wants to drop buckets of rain on everyone. Already a catastrophe, Harvey may be categorized as a natural disaster or by some an act of God. News agencies seek […]
Sleep deprivation or insomnia affects people in different, and personal ways. During my sleep process, I have endured sleep apnea since the late 80’s. My version as of late is my body forcing me awake to breathe several times a night as I ride a perpetual roller coaster of sorts between lucid dreams and the […]
One path through grief is to play music. Another one is to write. I have been called here to the page once more in an attempt to capture and hold onto that speck of light in the dark. The sun has been hiding behind the clouds this past week, and with good reason. Perhaps she […]
The first time I felt a genuine connection between my soul and music was given to me by John Coltrane. In my early 20’s while working the night shift at a supermarket, I found myself with nights off, being wide awake while the rest of the world was in slumber. One hot summer evening I […]
