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Trumpeter Dave Douglas Interviewed at All About Jazz...and More!
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All About Jazz
Since first leaping onto the scene as a member of John Zorn's Masada quartet, trumpeter Dave Douglas has emerged as one of modern jazz's freest thinkers, with a seemingly endless flow of ideas. Over nearly 20 years, he's created an almost unparalleled number of memorable groups, including Keystone, Charms of the Night Sky and Tiny Bell Trio, in addition to a number of forward-thinking one-off projects like Witness (RCA/Bluebird, 2001). A lot has happened since All About Jazz spoke with ...
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Interview: Burt Bacharach (Part 5)
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
What's it like to write a song with Burt Bacharach? Well, I can tell you from firsthand knowledge that it's amazing, because we did just that during my visit to Burt's home in September. Just before I left for Los Angeles for the Wall Street Journal, I asked myself what thrill I could experience with Burt that readers would dig. When I had interviewed Jerry Lee Lewis, I had him to show me how he runs the keys with his ...
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Interview: Burt Bacharach (Part 4)
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
The story goes something like this: Driving home from ice hockey practice, Mike Myers flipped on the radio and heard The Look of Love by Dusty Springfield. When it was finished, the comedian said to himself, “Where have all the swingers gone?" He also must have realized that the movie it was for,Casino Royale, was a jape of the James Bond series. Then and there he conceived the Austin Powers character. Enamored by the song's composer, Myers cast Burt Bacharach ...
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Interview: Burt Bacharach (Part 3)
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
As long-time readers of this blog know, one of my favorite songs is Alfie. I love the rising and falling melody, the challenging lyrics and the song's big build. I've posted on the song in the past here and here. I'm sort of torn between Cilla Black's version and the one Dionne Warwick recorded. Black's has that nervous breakdown thing going, that edge, while Dionne's is as smooth as suede. So at Burt's home, when I mentioned how much I loved ...
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Interview: Burt Bacharach (Part 2)
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
Pulling into Burt Bacharach's driveway a few weeks ago in Los Angeles, I looked in the open garage. There, parked neatly, was a relatively new white Jaguar XJ12—exactly the kind of car I had imaged Burt would drive: Sporty, comfortable, powerful and, once upon a time, English-made. Entering his ranch-style home, I waited in his music room for a few minutes before he arrived. Naturally, his walls were covered with photos of celebrities and musicians. There was even one of Burt ...
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Interview: Burt Bacharach (Part 1)
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
What lingers most after you have spent quality time with songwriter Burt Bacharach is the sound of his voice. In my Wall Street Journal profile last week, I describe it as shearling-soft. Burt's voice still has traces of Queens, N.Y., but it's plenty soothing and assuring. And the way he releases words in a sentence is a bit how kids let out string when flying kites. He seems to like to hear the rhythm of words and how they sound ...
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Interview: Kat Anderson
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
The week of December 11 will mark a special day in Motown history. Fifty years ago, the two-year-old label had its first No. 1 Billboard pop hit. Earlier in 1961, Smokey Robinson had the label's first No. 1 hit on the R&B chart. But a No. 1 pop hit was a big deal, showing that Motown could crossover and connectwith white teens. The group that pulled off that landmark recording was the Marvelettes and the song was Please Mr. Postman. ...
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Youth and Grace
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Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
The past few days, Rifftides has been unavoidably concerned with deaths and with musicians aged 80 or older. Am I the only one ready for an infusion of youth? Grace Kelly, born in 1992, may not be an elected representative of the talented teenagers in jazz, but she gets the nod here because for several years she has been playing well and developing steadily, and I just saw her new video, and it made me feel good. See if it ...
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