By Walter Price

What still bothers me as a jazz fan is how our modern jazz giants or contributors are overlooked until they pass away or have grown to an age that they can barely play their instruments. It still saddens me to no end the death of Tony Williams. Once he did pass away, the accolades, the tributes, the awards, and the dedications followed. I just think Tony didn't get his due tributes while he was alive and there are others that should be honored today before an unexpected death or a head full of gray hair.

Now I'm not trying to diminish the tributes to the jazz legends that are continually getting their deserved props like Sonny Rollins, Tito Puente, Elvin Jones, etc. Jazz and musical giants like them should be paid homage to continuously. What I would like is that some contemporary jazz giants get some honorary tribute while they are living and have a fair amount of chops left in their musical bodies. The controversy and debate will be who deserves such tribute as contemporary jazz masters or legends. Well of course I have some ideas who some of these contemporary legends should be which should bring out the collective ire, disgust, and "are you nuts" in my e-mails.

First, the passing of Tony Williams brings to mind the classic quintet he worked with in the 60s with Miles. Ron Carter, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock are appreciated, but imagine if each one of these guys was to leave us unexpectedly, then the jazz community would really appreciate their greatness. These guys through, performance, song writing, immense musical output have just been contemporary jazz "gods" in my book. Oh, I know they have put out some less than notable albums, performed less than noteworthy on nights, and have dabbled in other genres of music, but I think they should start being super appreciated today than tomorrow in the jazz world.

Okay, that might not get your blood boiling, but how about if I suggest such crossover, fusion, pop jazz bandits as David Sanborn, Stanley Clarke, Grover Washington Jr., and Pat Metheny. Don't worry I'm not worried about the slings and arrows of the cyber outrage of these picks, but I have good reasons with little space to debate. I just feel that just because these artists are basically known for their so called "smooth" or "pop" jazz output doesn't mean these guys are not giants or monsters on their instruments and their musical output. All the guys above could kill in acoustic or electrical environments. They have all put out a body of work the past 3 decades either through albums, performance, or accompaniments that are noteworthy and are distinguishably outstanding.

Two more jazz contemporaries I don't particularly care for because my personal biases are Wynton Marsalis and Keith Jarrett. I think we should give these guys their proper due like them or not, one cannot deny the immense talent, musical output, and their continual keepers of the flame of classical jazz. Nevertheless Wynton will probably be doing a Standard Time Vol. 99, The Music of Wynton Marsalis dedicated to himself later this year along with his 100 other CDs he is putting out.

I say we start doing this or we can just keep on with our tiring Duke, Coltrane, Miles, Monk, Bird, Louis tributes until later generations 100 years from now will be recognizing the Hancocks, Shorters, or Carters of our time! Oh I forgot again, the Jazz industry can't make trends or transcend normalcy, it must keep the status quo!

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