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David Bazemore

About Me

My Jazz Story

I love jazz because... the music thrills and does something wonderful to me, and there are so many different forms, from blazing hot to cerebral and stimulating that it HAS to be a part of my musical experiences. I was first exposed to jazz... when I heard the album "Swiss Movement" recorded live at Montreau in 1969: Les McCann, Eddie Harris, Benny Bailey, Leroy Vinnegar and Donald Dean. Prior to that I was a rock and blues fan, but this was a revelation which changed me forever. Not long after that was the Cannonball Adderly Quintet's "Country Preacher" recorded live in Chicago at an SCLC Operation Breadbasket event. Julian and Nat, Joe Zawinul, Walter Booker and Roy McCurdy. IMHO two of the greatest jazz recordings of all time. I met Derek Douget and his band recently. They are exquisitely talented young keepers of the straight ahead flame. One of the best show I ever attended was... Roy Haynes at age 83 plying like someone 1/4 his age. Amazing! How about being a few feet away from Pharoah Sanders at Keystone Corner in San Francisco, among many others at that great venue, including Rahsaan Roland Kirk playing 3 saxes at once. The first jazz record I bought was... "Swiss Movement" mentioned above My advice to new listeners... if you love music, Jazz is so varied now that there's got to be something you'd like, so be adventurous! I'm a performing arts photographer and videographer, and Jazz is one of my favorite things be called upon to record. You can see some examples here: http://davidbazemore.com/portfolio/music/