The JAZZ CULTURE
In These Pages‐Review 1‐3 Barry Harris Interview 3 ‐6 England Event‐J. Watson 7‐8 How To Make a CD that May Outlive You J. Magnarelli 9‐10 "The Unforgettable Hamptons" An Emmy Winning Film about the Hampton Family Jazz Heritage 10‐15 Danny Mixon, Pianist at the Lenox Let's Link 16 Lounge, with Lisle Atkinson, bass, info@newyorkjazzproject.com George Gray, drums, James Stewart, info@thejazzculture.com saxophone/flute
REVIEW
The Danny Mixon Quartet Caught The Danny Mixon Quartet Friday June 29, 2012 at the Lenox Lounge. Danny Mixon, piano, Lisle Atkinson, bass, George Gray, drums, and James Stewart, Tenor Saxophone and flute. A high energy combo, the first song was a trio performance, “Once I Loved,” by Jobim, a bright boss nova played on top of the beat, Mr. Mixon playing brief countermelodies with impeccable time and an optimistic sound. Mr. Atkinson used arco, inventing melodically, and the drummer and pianist seemed to have an excellent relationship, looking at each other often, ending the song on a chordal cascade and vamp. Mr. Mixon always makes the melody prominent with fine articulation. “So What,” a Miles Davis standard followed with Lisle Atkinson The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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playing the melody with a full bodied sound, spare but rhythmic articulation, in the cool style. The saxophone player, Mr. Stewart, started with a four note simple motif, using call and response concept, and influenced by the modal concept of the cool school, George Gray, drums, Lisle Atkinson, sometimes honking and bass, James Stewart, saxophone screeching in short rhythmic drives starting from the bottom of his register to the top, often two triplets followed by a punctuated long tone. The pianist Mr. Mixon played three to four note motifs in short rhythmic combinations, sometimes accenting the upbeat, alternating with bluesy phrases, rolling triplets ending with a quarter note. Mr. Mixon’s style could be described as “hard bop with modal tinge,” sincere and heartfelt. This was followed by a fiery well constructed solo on drums by Mr. Gray, using the full set, with a tasteful use of the bass drum as well .
“Solar” was next by Mal Waldron. A pretty song, where the tenor player bent and twisted the intonation on long tones to good effect, playing mostly in his middle upper register. Mr. Stewart has his own sound, a kind of lyric tenor sound playing for the most part with an almost straight tone. Mr. Mixon made a strong statement with an impressionistic sound, using some bluesy rolls in the right hand, with excellent articulation while complementing the melody. The quartet then played “Tune Up” by Sonny Rollins at about 300=quarter note. Mr. Stewart phrased his 8th notes with a triplet feel, with a fast chordal approach ending in long tones, finally accenting the upbeat by getting on top of the furious tempo. Mr. Mixon played intricate melodies, feeling the slow under the fast, capturing the joy of the song, while Lisle Atkinson played a pretty countermelody on bass. The drummer Mr. Gray luxuriated in this tempo, constructing a dynamic solo with a masterful feel, with an interesting display of stickwork on the side of the high hat. The combo ended on a rousing roll of the drums 2
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and a long tone from the tenor saxophone
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“Summer Nights” a beautiful ballad by Miles Davis, was played by Mr. Mixon using the articulation of a singer, only a little more crisply, going down the keyboard on a bluesy refrain and ending in a high trill, with lovely counterpoint played by Mr. Atkinson. Mr. Stewart switched to flute on this number, where his phrasing was more staccato. Mr. Mixon and Mr. Atkinson wove an intricate tapestry behind the soloist, chording with dramatic Greg Bandy strokes and framing Mr. Stewart’s delicate tone. drummer/listener Going home, Mr. Mixon testifying in high bluesy phrases restating the theme in passionate style, ending in a diminuendo.
JAZZ HERITAGE
Barry Harris' Early Days JC: When did you first hear jazz? Barry Harris: There was jazz in the schools. I had a music teacher in elementary school. I took up clarinet in intermediate school, about 13. We had the big band in the intermediate Barry Harris teaching school that played like, the “9:20 Special.” I played in that band. I liked to dance. Nobody taught me to dance. All of us danced. Just about everybody had a piano at home. Wasn’t no television. I learned a piece of church music, was the first piece I played. My mother, Mrs. Harris, played for the church. I lived in back of the church and I went to church every Sunday. [Where we lived] was part of the building where the church was, a Baptist. I lived in [the city of] Detroit. I knew Tommy [Flanagan], we The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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took classical piano from the same teacher, a Mrs. Dilliard. He went to Northern HS and I went to Northeastern HS. We were in a recital together. A preacher taught us all piano, Neptune Holloway. Earl McKinney--[somewhere there’s a picture of] little kids at a recital place and we all took from him. I played the “Revolutionary Etude.” At the age of four I played the piano and I knew what I wanted to do. JC: How did you learn to solo? Barry Harris: I knew when I went to the Westside, some of the players [like] Willie Metcalf, Clarence Beasley, pianists, could solo better than me, so when I came back, I got the blind girl Bess Makras, [who] had a machine that slowed up things and I borrowed that machine and I learned to solo from that machine. They [Willie and Clarence] were a little bit older than me. I just found out I was older than Tommy Flanagan. He always thought he was older. [I’d go to] Tommy Flanagan’s dances--him and Will Davis, another pianist--and I would look over their shoulders and steal as much as I could. JC: Did you have to pay to get into the dances? Did your mom give you the entrance fee? Barry Harris: I worked around a car repair shop. I was the inner tube repairman. When the inner tube blew out, I changed tires. And I worked as a soda jerk in a drugstore. I lived right across the street from it. JC: Were there juke boxes in the drugstores? Barry Harris: [Yes but] I had no money to waste on no juke box. JC: How did you learn songs? Barry Harris: I never was a good (sight) reader. I can learn a piece good, but it takes me time. I never heard of that in my life. Write out your own personal voicings. That don’t mean a thing. Look at the sheet music. I learned with my ear, sheet music, a lot of things, watching people. You all think of voice leading. You 4
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got to grow into something before you use your own voicings. They don’t know how to play “I Got Rhythm.” You voice it a million ways because there’s a million ways to play “I Got Rhythm.” You play whatever your hand falls on. Every time I ever played I played stuff I never played before and it works because I know the basic right stuff. This is not a prefabricated thing where you do the same things all the time. Music is free and beautiful. I don’t have to sit at the piano to write music, I could write it on the bus or sitting in the park because I know about music. JC: Did you ever get together with a bass player, say, to memorize tunes? Barry Harris: I had a trio. I must have been pretty young. Grey McKinney was my bass and John Evans was my guitar player, and my wife and her sister and some other ladies they had a trio. We had a lot of things going on. I wrote trio things for the singers. We just learned how to play together, learned about music. I was in the Northeast HS orchestra. I played bass fiddle. We played classical music. We had little dances in the school, a bunch of us that were jazz musicians. Most people loved dances. JC: What about Betty Carter and Barry Harris in Y Sheila Jordan? Barry Harris: Betty Carter used to come to the dances outside the school. She sang Sarah Vaughan songs. Sheila was in a group with two men. They scatted and sang Skeeter [Spight] lyrics. JC: In Detroit, who was an idol when you were a kid? Barry Harris: We had an alto player named Cokey,(name was Kenneth something) he was the greatest as far we were concerned. We were surrounded by good musicians so we learned to play good, right. We were kids and we just played jazz, that’s all. The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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JC: Did you play the Graystone Ballroom? Barry Harris: I played the Graystone Ballroom because it was a ballroom. I sat in with Bird at the Graystone Ballroom. I think it was a “C blues.” JC: When did you first hear Bird? Barry Harris: A long time when I was very young. I fell in love with that music, that was my love, don’t ask me why, don’t ask me how I knew. Singing those melodies, ahh! (sings Billie’s Bounce) cause that’s the way we were. Bird’s music was legible. The first record I slowed up, Bud Powell was on it. Web City. I remember that, it was Sonny Stitt, Fats Navarro, that was the first solo I learned, Bud Powell. I met him in New York. Joe Henderson took lessons, Paul Chambers to learn to play the bass, James Jamison the bass player from Motown, Charles McPherson, Lonnie, Yusef, we used to rehearse every week, that’s when I made up the rules. Frank Foster taught us a lot, me and Pepper and bunch of us. Johnny Griffith, from Motown, Kirk Lightsey, Hugh Lawson. I was always practicing I did not hang out like other people, I wasn’t a football, basketball, or baseball player. A lot of people came to Detroit and stayed so they could study with me. I cannot say the rules I thought up came from Bird and Diz. I made them up so Yusef, Kiani and myself--so we could practice good. After I made up those rules, I could hear things better. I could hear Bird better. I never had perfect pitch, it’s almost as if I made up the rules thinking of Bird. JC: You made up certain scales? Barry Harris: I made up four scales. The Major 6 to diminished scale, minor 6 diminished, dominant 7 diminished, and dominant 7 flat 5 diminished scale. JAZZ CULTURE NEWSLETTER, seen in Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan,
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ENGLAND EVENT
GIG REVIEW by John Watson
Band: Dave Lewis' 1 Up. Venue: Pizza Express Jazz Club
Soho, London, UK. Sunday, 17th June 2012 Dave Lewis is an experienced and versatile sax player on the London scene. One John Watson, Pianist, Arranger, night he can be found performing Musical Director, Singer with a big band playing Dizzie Photo: Max Garr Gillespie transcriptions, and the next with a rock or blues band. However, last weekend I caught him performing with his own band Dave Lewis’ 1 Up at Pizza Express Jazz Club Soho (just a street away from Ronnie Scott’s). Before we go any further; some of my American friends laugh when I mention “pizza” and “jazz” in the same sentence. However, Pizza Express has been putting on live jazz since the 1960’s and continues to host gigs in several venues in London and across the UK. The Soho venue is in the basement of the main restaurant and holds about 100 people. Back to Dave Lewis’ 1 Up: the band opened their set with a Crusaders’ piece entitled "Stomp and Buck" (rather suitable as Dave cites the Crusaders as one of the main inspirations for the band). The band was then joined by vocalist Polly Gibbons in the first of several originals by Dave Lewis and Fi Carrioll entitled "Turn It Around." Polly’s husky voice perfectly suited the line-up whether on funky numbers or more sensitive ballads. Sean Hargreaves was an unobtrusive but very supportive accompanist on both grand piano and electric (Wurlitzer). Sean studied briefly with the late, great Oscar Peterson. Mike Outram (electric guitar) played some amazing solos and bassist Neville Malcolm got the The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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chance to shine in "East Coast Strut" ( another funky Lewis original). American drummer Rod Youngs certainly kept the energy going and was perfectly complimented by percussionist Pete Eckford. I was seated near Pete and couldn’t help noticing how he never over-played and yet got it just right for every number (like a first take in the studio). As for the leader of the band; Dave moved effortlessly from funk to ballad to blues. Talking of which, his solo in "Dr. Feelgood" really brought the house down. I asked Dave what were his personal influences and he listed Joe Henderson, Hank Mobley, Stanley Turrentine and Junior Walker as saxophonists he admired. If you would like more information on Dave Lewis' 1 Up go to: http://www.davelewis1up.com/ and for more information on live music at Pizza Express go to: http://www.pizzaexpresslive.com/ Line-Up: Dave Lewis (tenor sax); Polly Gibbons (vocals); Sean Hargreaves (piano/el. pno.); Mike Outram (electric guitar); Neville Malcolm (el. bass); Rod Youngs (drums);Pete Eckford (percussion) Set List: "Stomp and Buck" (Crusaders); "Turn It Round" (by Dave Lewis & Fi Carroll - title track from previous album); "The Further You Fall" (by Dave Lewis & Fi Carroll); "Take A LIttle Time" (by Dave Lewis & Fi Carroll - original)" Dr. Feelgood" (Aretha Franklin); "Hurt Inside" (original);"Deep Underground" ( by Dave Lewis and Fi Carroll); "The Thrill Has Gone" (B.B. King) "It's A Real Motha For You" (Johnny 'Guitar' Watson); "East Coast Strut" (original - great bass solo from Neville Macolm); "Love Gives"; "Ain't It True"; "Rock Steady" – Aretha Franklin .
QUOTATION:
"Practice a Million Hours." -Junior Cook, Saxophonist "You can't take offwithout a launching pad." -Lonnie Hillyer, Trumpeter
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BARRY HARRIS JAZZ WORKSHOP I ROMA Sept. 17-21, 2012 Info:A APA TUSO
@HOTMAIL.COM Tel.: +39 3393383139
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How To Make a CD that May Outlive You
by Joe Magnarelli
My Old Flame:
Songs: My Old Flame, I’ll Be Seeing You, Highbridge, eracism, The Duke, Blues for ‘Skee” (Dennis Joe Magnarelli Irwin), When Your Lover Has Gone, Bilbao, McChesney Park. With Quintet & 16 Strings. Quintet Personnel: Joe Magnarelli, T, Jimmy Wormsworth, D, Rick Germanson, P, David Wong, B, Dick Oatts, S, Peter Bernstein, G, Vince Cherico, D, Wilson “Chemo” Corneil & Daniel Sadownick, Percussion. Arranger: Marty Sheller. Released in 2010. My Old Flame, a recording with strings, was about a two year process. Being a fan of Clifford Brown with Strings, and of course Charlie Parker with strings, I had imagined myself in that context for many years. But, actually thinking about making it happen started in 2008, I have a good friend who plays violin, Efrat Shapira, she started turning me on to the Emerson String Quartet, and Bartok string quartets, and she was encouraging me to do something with strings. My Old Flame was a project that took about two years to complete. I was studying ( and still am) out of orchestration books at the time, 2008, and was putting some 'pads' down on paper to a couple of my favorite ballads. I realized then that my own writing would not be ready for many years. That's when I called Marty Sheller, my friend, and someone I had worked for in the recording studio. A great orchestrator and composer, and very well known in the The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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Latin jazz genre. I also thought a cd of just ballads was not what I wanted, [and] Marty agreed, so we included 2 of my originals, and, Marty did a great thing with Dave Brubeck's " the Duke," making it a Cha-Cha. Overall I think there is a good variety of moods on the cd. I contacted violinist Genice Grice, the wife of my good friend Tony Reedus. She helped organize the string players, since I knew only a couple, and we did the date all in two days with one day of rehearsal. Marty's writing is so beautiful, he created beautiful settings for all the tunes. We had the easy part, just play and have fun. The months preceding the recording, I spent a lot of time practicing, and memorizing the string parts. Not only did I feel more connected at the date, but I learned so much about orchestration. It was a learning experience, producing, contracting, playing and composing. See JoeMagnarelli.com
JAZZ HERITAGE
“The Unforgettable
Hampton Family”
Director of Emmy Award Winning Film Talks About Hampton Family
Dawn Hampton & Julie Cohen, holding an Emmy Award 1 0
Part I: Note: The African American territory bands from the 1920’s-60’s disseminated jazz throughout the Midwest. There were Caucasian territory bands but not primarily in that section of the country. There were a few integrated bands like The Sweethearts of Rhythm. In the 1920’s, territory bands travelled by station wagon with another vehicle
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behind. There were 900 dance bands in 1924, providing jobs for 7,200 musicians. The Hampton Family Band has produced 80 years of musicians, spanning blues, swing, bebop. The father, Deacon Hampton, was a self taught musician. The mother Fans live it up at Dawn Hampton's birthday party, dancing to the Laura played piano. “The strains of George Gee's Swing Unforgettable Hampton Orchestra Family” breaks away from many commercial films in the past, in which scripts portrayed African Americans only in subservient roles and not depicting their contributions to history. Director Julie Cohen, an experienced prize-winning documentarian, shared the story of the making of “The Unforgettable Hampton Family:” Julie Cohen, Director [JC]: “I did not know her [Dawn] well when I started the project. I had earlier done a documentary about Frankie Manning and in the course of doing that I saw great footage of the two of them dancing together, and then I saw Dawn as one of a number of people who danced at Frankie’s memorial service. And [Dawn] made a grand entrance as only she knows how to do and seemed like such a remarkable person… “[Then] I went to a workshop she made on bhangra [dance] and Dawn was so entertaining on that I knew she would make a wonderful interview. I had not known until that point about her wonderful siblings and the family band they had together as children, and in fact, [that] a number of them had gone on to great musical careers separately. On You Tube, I was able to find footage of her sisters in Indianapolis, Aletra and Virtue, (who had passed away by the time I started the project) on piano and bass duets. They were extraordinary performers and it was quite unexpected to see women in their 90’s play the bass with such verve and style…I was not aware that her brother was Slide The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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Hampton the prominent trombonist. That and her own family story seemed like a strong basis for a film. I was also producing for a New York audience, and Dawn had spent had own her history performing in Greenwich Village, and that opened the door to an interesting world that I hadn’t known about -the Gay music scene in 60s and 70s, of which she was a major part. Dawn Hampton dances at Swing So we spent some time trying to 46 recently find a fan of hers from that era, that we could interview alongside her. There were three big sit down interviews, one with her and (her brother) Maceo, (one with) George Gee, and one with a fan of hers from Greenwich Village scene, Freeman Gunter. Dawn is the sort of person who has a skill for interacting with others, so she was good to interview. “I guess it was sort of Dawn in some ways (who) suggested the theme in a couple of interviews; in terms of crediting, really, all of the success, both in terms of public recognition, but also in terms of personal satisfaction, tying [that] back to her extraordinary father, (Clark Deacon Hampton) and his attitudes towards his own life and family. Despite coming from extremely difficult circumstances, having almost no money and being African American at a time when that would raise huge barriers to education, professionally, [in] almost every area of life, even without any formal education, [Deacon Hampton] had an agenda that he put forth himself for his wife and kids. ‘I have a plan of how my kids are gonna make it in this world, through becoming performing artists.’ [Deacon Hampton] he did not take the time to let the kids grow up, he just—‘One way we would lift the family out of poverty would be through performing, that is one way whites are able to accept blacks, that would be a way that I can provide for my family and they can provide for themselves.’ 1 2
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“The father [Deacon Hampton] had extraordinary talent, but the kids did not necessarily have it. Slide said he was not innately talented, [it was that] he worked hard [at things] that seemed to come easier to his other siblings’ pure musical talent. “Dawn has extreme musical talent; now she does her whistling and teaching dance, but she was a great singer, saxophone player, [doubled on] other instruments, the kids had more than one, [so they could spell each other]. Her real talent is as a Dawn Hampton performer, which is evident from the fact that although certain parts have dropped out of her performing, due to thyroid problems in the 60’s, as she grew older, singing was not an option, but it was easy for Dawn to shift to teaching and dancing. Her stage presence was her skill, captivating the audience onstage. And that goes back to her father who was teaching her and Maceo (closest in age) how to do vaudeville performing. “[He taught them that] In front of an audience you have to give them a full entertainment experience, and she has a great talent for public speaking. [for example,] Since the film came out she and I have done some Q&A’s. She is really good at that, she really understands how to talk about things that would be of interest to an audience. She stands up and gestures with her hands until people really do give her a standing ovation; [or] the way she dresses.” “Dawn has a complete understanding of performance magnetism and entertainment. [It is] Not just an act. I have done a number of documentaries about performing artists, and it isn’t uncommon [for a person] to be a great performer onstage, but when the show is over or the camera turns off, the person is not one who loves interacting with people. The Jazz Culture, VI:1
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“But Dawn has the same personality onstage that she has under the camera. She is very interested in other people, which isn’t true of many people who have star qualities. Every time I see her, she asks about my husband and about Alex Lowther who was the editor and field producer on this project. I was impressed with her on all kinds of levels. She has a huge following, and a lot of that is that people love her. She is very loveable and she has an attitude towards life where she is not going to let things get her down. Seven to eight months ago(?)she was having a problem with sciatica. She said from the start, ”I’m going to get better.” And she feels a lot better now. JazzCulture: Did you travel a lot to make this film? “Julie Cohen: Yes I travelled but not too much…Herreng, the dance camp in Sweden she goes to in the summer. ..Alex spent a week in Herreng shooting that. I also went to Chicago to film a number of members of the next generation, nieces and nephews, grand nephews, who carried on the legacy and become music performers so I was eager to meet a group of them and most live in Indianapolis or Chicago. Other than that it was [made]mostly [in] New York. “The footage of Dawn’s older sisters, who had already passed away when I started the project -- fortunately WFYI (in Indianapolis) had covered them pretty extensively. A few years earlier on the occasion of their doing an album, WFYI had filmed them doing the album and had a sit-down interview. WFYI licensed it to us for a reasonable cost. They gave me the field tapes to watch and pick out and the sisters [Aletra and Virtue] were terrific in their own right and shared Dawn’s attitude of enthusiasm. And like Dawn they put a fair amount of cheekiness and even dirty jokes [into their act], something you don’t always expect from a 90 year old woman. They [the sisters] always put on matching outfits. Dawn’s clothes are one of a kind things. .. but her sisters … I think one of them can sew. They have hats with Treble clefs symbols, they had a great sense of style. The nicest part of watching the film with Dawn is seeing how strongly she reacts to seeing the footage of her sisters talking and performing. 1 4
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“There were several pictures of the full family playing at an early age, and one taken when they were teenagers and young adults and two or three people that played along that were not in the family. That was when Dawn was a saxophonist. It’s obviously a real help when a family has saved newspaper clippings and a number of people in the Hampton family were great at that. Dawn had scrapbooks and clippings and so did Maceo and a couple of her nephews. Piles of stuff that was extremely valuable, nice that they had pictures of their dad. "Maceo played trumpet, and was one of the most talented [musicians]. Although as an adult he became a minister, he told me the story of during the period when they were playing side show entertainment at circuses, that because of his dad’s commitment to educating not only the family, but whatever other children he met on the road, teaching math, history and English. [He was] teaching young black children to read, [reading] from Booker T. Washington and Frederick Douglass. Maceo told the story of a group of locals coming and try to lynch him [Deacon Hampton]. They were able to thwart that attack because circus friends, mostly white, decided they wouldn’t stand for this, and stood guard at night to prevent people coming to attack Deacon Hampton. The attackers were unsuccessful. "The family members have such strong stories and were such great interview subjects, particularly Dawn, [with] a lot of clear memories and stories to tell. This family is really extraordinary. Without being famous (with the exception of Slide), people are unfamiliar with their story. There was so much good material and recordings, [so] I was very optimistic that it would come together as a story that was very entertaining, but has a lot more to it as well. “Plans for The Unforgettable Hampton Family? [ I would] like it to be seen as much as possible. In February, 2011 it aired in New York and in February 2012, it aired nationally, on PBS stations[ throughout the] country. [In] most of the country it aired, through one of PBS’ national distribution services, and so many stations got to see it. It has shown at some film festivals as well. I The Jazz Culture, VI:11
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know Buddy Steves, (Myron Steves, Jr.) the Houston businessman and dance aficionado who funded the film, has shown it to the dance fans who gather for a Lindy Festival every year… [in] national lindy events and [he has also] has spread the word to the swing community, which is something I also had not been so aware of until I did the film about the Hamptons and the earlier one about Frankie. "I often do documentaries about people in their 80’s and 90’s because they have a lot to tell. I actually make a lot of documentaries about a lot of different kinds of people, and sometimes I don’t maintain the relationship after the fact, [but] with Dawn I really, really love her on a personal level, not just as the subject on camera, [but as] the type of person you’d like to spend time with. Dawn is interesting on all kinds of levels, and given her life, I am always impressed by how much she is interested in others. [She is] really a fun, thoughtful person. [With] Dawn, I always have fun at a big event or visiting her at home in the village. “ See DawnHampton on Facebook.com Let's Link/Musician Correspondents
We remember Dr. Frank Foster: Listen to his Nippon Lament
See LafayetteHarris.com, Lionellehamanaka.com, Lionelle Hamanaka,Publisher
Clarence Banks, Count Basie Trombonist, Private Lessons, Clinics, call 917-428-6746 1 6
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Photo: Brian McMillen
See RickStone.com
KuniMikami.com@CD Baby‐"Hamp's Boogie"