Into the jazz heartland
By William Claxton. Excerpt from the book 'William Claxton. Jazzlife'
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Most surprising was the Duke Ellington Orchestra performing from midnight to four AM in the lounge of one of the big hotels, not in the showroom - an odd sight, wonderful as they were to hear. I spoke with Duke, and he lamented the fact that his acclaimed orchestra had been relegated to the bar scene where no one except loyal fans ever bothered to leave the gaming tables and slot machines to listen.
When we arrived in Detroit it seemed that jazz was everywhere, and all of it was modern, post-bop music. I wanted to shoot some local musicians against a background of a typical Detroit automobile-manufacturing center of the world. So Joe rounded up the alto saxophonists Charles McPherson and Ira Jackson, bassist McWilliam Wood, and trumpeter Lonnie Hellyer. I shot them in ties and jackets in front of Ford's Rouge River Plant, presumably called the Rouge River because the industrial waste dumped into it had colored the river red.
Joe and I spent some time with pianist Barry Harris and baritone sax player Pepper Adams. We photographed a group of blues musicians in front of Joe Battle's Record Shop on Hastings Street, then had a fantastic evening with J.J. Johnson, Freddie Hubbard and Albert Heath, who were playing at a private birthday party for a local politician. I guess the most astonishing person we met in Detroit, or anywhere for that matter, was Roland Kirk (he hadn't yet changed his name to Rahsaan Roland Kirk). He was blind and managed to play three saxophones at once: the manzello, stritch and tenor. Kirk was remarkable, for not only did he play well, he managed to be a comedian and storyteller during his show.
Again we visited New York City (the "Apple"). Gerry Mulligan showed me the spot in Central Park where he had rehearsed his big band when he could not afford a rehearsal studio. Up in Harlem we visited with Mary Lou Williams, who had just opened her used clothing shop for the Bel Canto Foundation, an organization formed to aid needy musicians and their families. I met a young actor named Ben Caruthers at a party, Ben had just appeared in the John Cassavetes film Shadows, which co-starred my friend dancer Lelia Goldoni. Ben was now trying to learn to play tenor saxophone. Ben looked so much like a real and handsome jazzman holding the instrument that I wanted to photograph him. I took him and his girlfriend downtown to Times Square and shot him as a street musician. Before we were through, I was approached by three different policemen, all of whom said that if I didn't have a photo permit, I would "have to get out of there" or hand over a ten or twenty dollar bill. Luckily I had a few dollars in my pocket.
Page [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Page [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Most surprising was the Duke Ellington Orchestra performing from midnight to four AM in the lounge of one of the big hotels, not in the showroom - an odd sight, wonderful as they were to hear. I spoke with Duke, and he lamented the fact that his acclaimed orchestra had been relegated to the bar scene where no one except loyal fans ever bothered to leave the gaming tables and slot machines to listen.
When we arrived in Detroit it seemed that jazz was everywhere, and all of it was modern, post-bop music. I wanted to shoot some local musicians against a background of a typical Detroit automobile-manufacturing center of the world. So Joe rounded up the alto saxophonists Charles McPherson and Ira Jackson, bassist McWilliam Wood, and trumpeter Lonnie Hellyer. I shot them in ties and jackets in front of Ford's Rouge River Plant, presumably called the Rouge River because the industrial waste dumped into it had colored the river red.
Joe and I spent some time with pianist Barry Harris and baritone sax player Pepper Adams. We photographed a group of blues musicians in front of Joe Battle's Record Shop on Hastings Street, then had a fantastic evening with J.J. Johnson, Freddie Hubbard and Albert Heath, who were playing at a private birthday party for a local politician. I guess the most astonishing person we met in Detroit, or anywhere for that matter, was Roland Kirk (he hadn't yet changed his name to Rahsaan Roland Kirk). He was blind and managed to play three saxophones at once: the manzello, stritch and tenor. Kirk was remarkable, for not only did he play well, he managed to be a comedian and storyteller during his show.
Again we visited New York City (the "Apple"). Gerry Mulligan showed me the spot in Central Park where he had rehearsed his big band when he could not afford a rehearsal studio. Up in Harlem we visited with Mary Lou Williams, who had just opened her used clothing shop for the Bel Canto Foundation, an organization formed to aid needy musicians and their families. I met a young actor named Ben Caruthers at a party, Ben had just appeared in the John Cassavetes film Shadows, which co-starred my friend dancer Lelia Goldoni. Ben was now trying to learn to play tenor saxophone. Ben looked so much like a real and handsome jazzman holding the instrument that I wanted to photograph him. I took him and his girlfriend downtown to Times Square and shot him as a street musician. Before we were through, I was approached by three different policemen, all of whom said that if I didn't have a photo permit, I would "have to get out of there" or hand over a ten or twenty dollar bill. Luckily I had a few dollars in my pocket.
Page [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
William Claxton. Jazzlife
Hardcover + CD, 29.1 x 40.7 cm (11.5 x 16 in.), 696 pages
$ 200.00
$ 200.00
The sights and sounds of American jazz
The Ramsey Lewis Trio at Chicago's Loop. Eldee Young (bass), Ramsey Lewis (piano) and Isaac "Redd" Holt (drums).
(c) William Claxton