The saw was played by Roy Brooks who was more familar as a drummer with the lkes of Woody Shaw but who later suffered from some quite severe mental health issues. There was a live set by a quintet he led in 1970 that got some terrific reviews when it was released. Not a name too familiar to me. I thunk Michael Myers is a horror film character, not genuine artist. Not my thing, I am afraid.
I think I would find it difficult to watch someone play a saw having watched the Reg Prescott sketches that the late Kenny Everett use to do. It did make me think whether SA would be more accepting of a saw as a "found" instrument in Improviseg Music as opposed to a vehicle for jazz expression ? I have to say that I have seen the likes of Hermeto Pascoal play a kettle but tend to find these quirky use of instruments a bit irritating. Years ago I saw the English pianist used squeaky toys in a set with the Italian Instabile Orchestra at a gig in Basingstoke. A bloke behind me made a comment that it was better than hearing someone playing Horace Silver material at an earlier concert he had been. I walked out after the first set.
Picking up on Max Roach employing a "turntable"like sound, from recollection he did make a comparison between Be-bop and Rap insofar that both were radical forms of Black expression that sort to seperate Afro-American culture from the safer white norms. He was sympathetic to Rap and Hip-hop which part of me can understand whereas another part is perplexed that a drummer who was so important in freeing up the beat in jazz would admire a style of music with the sense of phrasing / rhythm / beat is so predictable, I would have thought that the "social" element was right up his street whilst I would be surprised if the musical element really offered the same challenges as playing with Bird, Monk, Taylor and Braxton.
I think I would find it difficult to watch someone play a saw having watched the Reg Prescott sketches that the late Kenny Everett use to do. It did make me think whether SA would be more accepting of a saw as a "found" instrument in Improviseg Music as opposed to a vehicle for jazz expression ? I have to say that I have seen the likes of Hermeto Pascoal play a kettle but tend to find these quirky use of instruments a bit irritating. Years ago I saw the English pianist used squeaky toys in a set with the Italian Instabile Orchestra at a gig in Basingstoke. A bloke behind me made a comment that it was better than hearing someone playing Horace Silver material at an earlier concert he had been. I walked out after the first set.
Picking up on Max Roach employing a "turntable"like sound, from recollection he did make a comparison between Be-bop and Rap insofar that both were radical forms of Black expression that sort to seperate Afro-American culture from the safer white norms. He was sympathetic to Rap and Hip-hop which part of me can understand whereas another part is perplexed that a drummer who was so important in freeing up the beat in jazz would admire a style of music with the sense of phrasing / rhythm / beat is so predictable, I would have thought that the "social" element was right up his street whilst I would be surprised if the musical element really offered the same challenges as playing with Bird, Monk, Taylor and Braxton.
Comment