A recent Facebook exchange with drummers Brooke Sofferman and Eric McKinley Thompson regarding the recent release of certain Miles Davis recordings from his performances in France 1963-64 prompted me to revisit another track that caught my attention some time ago.
I look forward to checking out these new discoveries, however it seems some of them might have appeared on an earlier collection that Columbia re-released around 2007-2008 as well.
I remember this as I was studying with Terry Clarke in Toronto at the time and he played me this particularly interesting and previously unreleased version of Bye Bye (the theme) recorded in Antibes circa. 1963 (originally part of the concert released as Miles in Europe).
Check out this extended version of their set closer which features a brilliant solo from Tony Williams, including moments of him improvising over Ron Carter's walking bass line:
I thought that was pretty hip when I first heard it and it still blows my mind today!
Anyways, here's a few more great Tony Williams solos for some inspiration:
Hey does anyone know how I can watch this documentary Tony Williams in Africa (1973) ???
A few days late here with this blog post as I've been preoccupied lately, finishing up an impending grant application due imminently (fun times...)
The great Roy Haynes passed away last week at the age of 99 and I just wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the legacy of this great musician.
Roy Haynes was a prolific jazz drummer who's career spanned decades, playing with the likes of Louis Armstrong, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Sarah Vaughn, John Coltrane, Chick Corea, Stan Getz, Pat Metheny and so many, many more.
Haynes, affectionately know as "Snap Crackle", was an icon who lifted the bandstand with his uncompromising and unique style and personality, on and off the drums.
Lenny White has often referred to the Magnificent Seven, a distinguished club of the greatest of the greats that includes Kenny Clarke, Max Roach, Art Blakey, Philly Joe Jones, Elvin Jones, Tony Williams and, of course, Roy Haynes. Haynes was the last of these Titans among us and now he's gone. I feel a great sense of duty to up hold the high level of musical integrity that these artists set for the rest of us.
I was fortunate to see Haynes perform on numerous occasions, notably with his Fountain of Youth and Birds of a Feather bands. Probably my most memorable memory of hearing Roy play was a mind-blowing duet with Kenny Garrett on Charlie Parker's My Little Suede Shoes at the Blue Note in New York City circa. November 2001 (sitting in the front row, in front of Haynes' glittering Yamaha drums of course, with my friend and bassist Solon McDade).
I also shared a brief 60 second elevator ride with Roy Haynes at an IAJE convention when I was 18 years old. I knew he was going to be at the conference so I kept my CD liner notes to Now He Sings, Now He Sobs in my back pocket in case I had the opportunity for an autograph. The liner notes were well worn, crumpled and bent out of shape by the time I stepped in that elevator but Mr. Haynes kindly obliged and I got my autograph.
I distinctly remember when and where I was when I first heard Roy Haynes on record. After I heard his intro to Solar from Question & Answer with Pat Metheny and Dave Holland, played over loud speakers in my high school band room, I was hooked. I've never heard or played the drums the same since then.
Thank you Mr. Haynes for your lifetime of music.
Here's a few articles that have been making the rounds lately:
Thanks for checking in and there's lots of interesting and compelling things to check out in this instalment of The Monday Morning Paradiddle, my more-or-less monthly jazz drumming variety column.
But first I just wanted to give a quick shout-out to a few amazing drummers I heard in Calgary last week during the JazzYYC Canadian Jazz Festival including Fabio Ragnelli with guitarist Jocelyn Gould, Louis-Vincent Hamel with the No Codes quartet and local Andy Ericson with Chris Tauchner's piano trio.
4. Colleen Clark interviews Gregory Hutchinson and Peter Erksine for the Percussive Arts Society in advance of their upcoming clinics at this year's annual PASIC convention in Indianapolis.
5. John Riley's offers these fantastic lessons, part of JP Bouvet's amazing new on-line lesson platform The JP Bouvet Method:
6. Stanton Moore sits down with legendary New Orleans rhythm Master (aka The King of Treme) Shannon Powell:
7. Questlove interviews Cindy Blackman Santana:
8. Jason Tiemann offers yet other great lesson, this one on how to develop a concept of soloing on the drums that is informed and guided by melody, rather than relying exclusively on playing licks:
9. Quincy Davis continues with his wonderful and always informative YouTube series Q-Tips (in particular, check out his incredible brush lesson):
10. Jazz at Lincoln Center's Obed Calvaire featured by SFJazz:
11. The 80/20 Drummer interviews Clarence Penn:
12. Antonio Sanchez and his Yamaha Drums:
13. Thanks to Loren Schoenberg who took the time to put together these fantastic pieces featuring:
Shadow Wilson
Art Blakey
Art Blakey and Percy Heath
Max Roach
14. An interview with Kyle Poole:
15. Cymbalholic founder and visionary Chad Anderson interviewed by cymbal wizard Timothy Roberts:
16. A couple of episodes of Trading Fours from Drummer Nation with Brian Nation, Adam Nussbaum, Ed Soph, Billy Drummond and Harold Jones:
17. Billy Drummond shares his beautiful Gretsch Ridgeland snare drum:
18. Johnathan Blake with Chris Potter, Brad Mehldau and John Patitucci:
19. What am I listening to these days?
Miles Davis "Miles Smiles" - Tony Williams (drums)
Donald Byrd "Mustang" - Freddie Waits (drums)
The Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra "The Definitive Thad Jones, Vol.2" - Mel Lewis (drums)
William Parker & Hamid Drake "Piercing the Veil" - Hamid Drake (drums and percussion)
Alan Jones "Spirits" - Alan Jones (drums)
Jim Hall "Live!" - Terry Clarke (drums)
Pat Metheny "Bright Size Life" - Bob Moses (drums)
20. And today's Final Word goes to Al Pacino (via Bobby Sanabria):
"Well, because somehow I felt as though my life was saved by acting. Because I knew that I could do something. Look at Buddy Rich, the drummer. My god. Three years old he was on those drums. I was at Carnegie Hall listening to him at a Frank Sinatra concert. He went on before Frank. I said, “I don’t want to hear a drummer, I want to hear Frank,” you know? A drum solo? And it was one of those great moments in my life! Because when he was finished and he took his two sticks — he just left you with the silence. And everyone in that house, I mean everyone, stood up and started screaming! I found myself screaming! So Sinatra comes out afterward, and he looks at the crowd and he says, “See what happens when you stay at a thing?”
I was recently listening to the latest album from the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra featuring the exceptional drumming of Obed Calvaire and, in particular, his composition Between Max and Ti-Roro caught my attention.
Apparently the Haitian drummer known as Ti Roro (or Tiroro) was a formative influence on the drumming of Max Roach, when Roach first heard him around 1939.
Here's a couple of interesting pieces to check out to that effect:
"Baillargau Raymond, known as Ti Roro, was a Haitian drummer known for bringing the artistry of Haitian Vodou ritual drumming and other traditional Afro-Haitian drumming styles to the stage and to recording studios. He was an international performer who influenced jazz musicians, in particular, Max Roach. His year of birth is estimated to be 1915. It is widely believed that he died in 1980, probably in Port-au-Prince. Ti Roro's performances and collaborations can be found on solo recordings and in work for such artists as orchestra leader Issa El Saieh, singer Guy Durosier, and dancer Jean-Léon Destiné."
Hey! I am now officially part of the percussion faculty at the Mount Royal University Conservatory in Calgary, Alberta and currently accepting drum set students of all ages and levels of experience.
Contact the Conservatory or myself directly and let's get to work!
Jason Tiemann is a killing New York City based jazz drummer and he's been compiling and sharing these excellent instructional videos on his YouTube page.
These are all very useful concepts and patterns to work through. What I really appreciate is that, in addition to being well explained and articulated, these come straight from the source and they are demonstrated by a great drummer who is the real deal, someone who's done his homework and regulary plays with a great informed sound, feel and a deep sense of swing with many of the world's greatest jazz musicians.
I'm still on cloud 9 these days, following my Max Roach tribute concert a few weekends ago at Congress Coffee. Thanks to everyone who came out.
Studying and researching the music for this epic gig lead me to this incredible Max Roach concert recorded in Norway circa. 1977 featuring Cecil Bridgewater (trpt), Billy Harper (tenor saxophone) and Reggie Workman (bass).
In particular, check out the free-wheeling 20 minute version of "It's Time!":
I would also like to draw your attention to a portion of the interview at the very end of this footage.
Specifically, listen to Roach's very eloquent, articulate and inspiring answer that he gives to the interviewer when asked to describe "the history of Jazz music":
As Sonny Rollins said so profoundly in the recent Max Roach documentary The Drum Also Waltzes, "Max was Heaven" and I think these videos illustrate this perfectly.
Thanks for stopping by today and here's the October 2024 edition of the The Monday Morning Paradiddle, your one-stop on-line jazz drumming variety column.
But first, just a couple of brief advertisements:
I am reluctant to advertise these on Facebook these days due to all the ridiculous fake profile t-shirt scams going around (!) but rest assured that these are indeed legit and I still have a handful of the classic black Four on the Floor black t-shirts left in stock if anyone is interested.
But once they are gone, they are GONE and it will very likely be a very long time before I have any more printed (if at all...) so don't miss out and get yours today!
These shirts are still available in small, medium, large and xxl sizes (sorry folks, all the xl sizes are gone!) and are lightweight premium fitted 100% cotton tees. I am also told that they are very comfortable : )
The shirts are $30 each (+shipping)
If you are interested in purchasing one, please drop me a line at fouronthefloorblog@gmail.com or reach me through social media and I'll set you up asap.
It's Time!
Hey, if you happen to find yourself in Calgary, Alberta this coming week, don't miss my upcoming tribute to Max Roach happening on Saturday, October 12th at Congress Coffee www.congresscoffeeyyc.com
I will be performing a mix of solo drum set repertoire made famous by Max Roach. I'll also be performing several of Max's iconic compositions and music associated with him from over the course of his career with Chris Tauchner on keyboards and the percussive force that is Raul Tabera on percussion.
I'm really looking forward to this one and make sure to reserve your seat in advance as seating is limited.
The Monday Morning Paradiddle - October 2024
1. Fantastic columns and commentary from Vinnie Sperrazza's Substack Chronicles including:
Johnathan Blake has been a busy guy these days (which is no surprise, of course, because he's such a fantastic musician!) and here's just a few examples of the wonderful music he's been making lately including recent gigs with:
Terell Stafford
Chris Potter, Brad Mehldau and John Patitucci
a new trio recording with pianist Kris Davis and Robert Hurst
and Blake's own group featuring Donny McCaslin and Scott Colley
My previous post that I shared featuring Ken Micallef's insightful conversation with Billy Drummond was really well received after I posted it earlier this month. Thank you Ken and Billy for dropping all this wonderful knowledge and to the rest of you out there for all your feedback and enthusiasm. How lucky are we to have access to Billy's extensive knowledge of music shared with us like this? Well, you can never get enough of a good thing in my opinion when it comes to good music and lucky for us, Ken Micallef has uploaded yet another two fantastic instalments of his conversation with Billy Drummond.
All in favour of Billy Drummond hosting a regular podcast like this, please raise your hand...
In any event, and as always, when the Masters speak, we listen.
As drummers, "rhythm is our business" but it's certainly not an exclusive club!
Thanks to the people at SF Jazz here's a fantastic piece in which bassist Dave Holland shares his concepts dealing with time meters and rhythmic structures:
I am really excited to finally present this project next month in my hometown of Calgary, Alberta. This year represents the 100th anniversary of Max Roach's birth and since he's one of my biggest influences and a major reason why I even play the drums, it seemed fitting that I perform something to honour his legacy.
For this upcoming performance in October I'll be playing half of the concert solo and the other joined by the creative force that is Chris Tauchner on keyboards. My good friend, Cuban percussionist and heavyweight rhythmatist Raul Tabera will also join us a for a few numbers.
The solo repertoire I'll be performing will be my interpretation and a mix of Max's iconic solo pieces (including The Drum Waltzes, Conversation and Drums Unlimited, among others) as well as some of my own Max Roach-inspired solo drum pieces that I've been developing and exploring over the last few years.
The concept of performing solo drums is one that has intrigued and challenged me for a number of years. Last year I performed solo for a project with a solo contemporary dancer and this upcoming gig is the next step towards even more of this kind of thing. In addition to Max Roach I've also checked out and been inspired by solo works from the likes of Andrew Cyrille, Milford Graves, Gerry Hemingway, Beaver Harris, Pheeroan Aklaff, Ted Poor, Fransisco Mela, Billy Martin, Antonio Sanchez, Matt Wilson, Mark Guiliana and many more. So there's lots of material to work from and the sky is the limit. I'm hoping to record this music and further perform it in the future as well.
My duets with Chris Tauchner are somewhat inspired by the many iconic duets that Roach performed over the course of his lengthy career with artists such as Cecil Taylor, Abdullah Ibrahim, Randy Weston, Mal Waldron, Archie Shepp, Anthony Braxton, Clark Terry and, of course, Dizzy Gillespie (a personal favourite of mine...)
The repertoire we are going to play will be drawn from different points in Max's career as a composer and from artists that he collaborated with (of which there were many!). We'll also play a few of my originals that definitely feature the drums in the spirit of Max Roach (hopefully he would have dug them...)
Anyways, I'm really looking forward to this gig and hope you can check this out if you find yourself in Calgary in October.
I hope you all had wonderful Summer holiday and now that September is upon us it's time to get back to work and back on saddle over here at Four on the Floor.
Today's blog post features some wonderful work from Dr. Colleen Clark and the Avedis Zildjian Company featuring Clarke's research of the evolution of the ride cymbal pattern.
There is a ton of great and well researched information here and I encourage you all to check this out:
In this lesson series, Zildjian artist Colleen Clark provides a historiographical and musical analysis examining the jazz ride cymbal pattern, from its inception on woodblock, small accessory cymbals, hand cymbal mechanisms and brushes through what becomes known as the modern-day ride cymbal pattern. This research examines a wide array of drummers and bandleaders, with the objective of identifying the earliest recordings of this important addition to jazz drumming, and popular music history while analyzing the ride cymbal pattern’s evolution through definitive recordings.
Welcome back and here's the Summer 2024 edition of the Monday Morning Paradiddle my more-or-less monthly jazz drumming variety column.
This will be my last post before I take a break for remainder of the summer months.
But first one last advertisement before I take my leave...
I have a handful of the classic black Four on the Floor t-shirts left in stock. Once they are gone, they are GONE it will very likely be a long time before I have any more printed (if at all...) so don't miss out and get yours today!
These shirts are available in small, medium, large, x-large and xxl sizes and are lightweight premium fitted 100% cotton tees. I am also told that they are very comfortable : )
The shirts are $30 each (+shipping)
If you are interested in purchasing one, please drop me a line at fouronthefloorblog@gmail.com or reach me through social media and I'll set you up asap.
The Monday Morning Paradiddle - Summer 2024
1. Thanks to Will Chernoff who interviewed me for his podcast series Rhythm Changes
Keep up the great work Will!
2. The Practicing Drummer podcast featuring Colleen Clark
This is a blog about jazz, jazz drumming and all things unrelated. Thanks for stopping by!
A Bit About Me...
Jonathan McCaslin was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan. Jonathan began playing the drums at the age of nine. He progressed through the Regina Lions Junior Band and the music program at his high school, Campbell Collegiate, soon developing a passion for playing the drums and jazz. Ultimately, Jon's interest in music led him to enroll in the Jazz Studies program at McGill University, graduating with distinction in 1999.
While at McGill Jon had the opportunity to study with some of the finest jazz educators in the country including Gordon Foote, Kevin Dean, Jan Jarcyzk, Chris McCann, Andre White, Michel Lambert and Dave Laing. He also attended the prestigious summer jazz workshop presented by the Banff Centre for the Arts in 1997, where he performed with Canadian jazz greats Hugh Fraser, Don Thompson and Kenny Wheeler.
Jon has also been fortunate to have performed with many of Canada's jazz elite including Charlie Biddle, Brian Hurley, Louise Rose, Alaister Kay, Mart Kinny, Gary Guthman, Mike Rud, Hadley Caliman, Greg Clayton, Chase Sanborn, Andre White, Tilden Webb, John LaBelle, Kevin Dean, Dave Turner, Ralph Bowen, Don Thompson, Dionne Taylor, Jim Vivian, Kelly Jefferson, Ian McDougall, Brad Turner, Jim Brenan, The McGill Jazz Orchestra, Jeff Johnston, Lorraine Desmerais, Steve Amirault, Hugh Fraser, Chucho Valdes, Kieran Overs, The Altsys Jazz Orchestra, Pat LaBarbera, The Regina Symphony Orchestra and The Montreal Jazz Big Band.
In the spring of 2002 McCaslin completed his Master's in Jazz Studies at McGill University where he studied jazz drumming, improvisation and composition.
In January 2003 Jon released his debut CD, “McCallum’s Island”. Featuring his quintet, the CD contains an exciting collection of McCaslin’s original compositions, featuring himself and his band. The release of this CD was followed by a twenty-day tour of Western Canada, performing to enthusiastic, capacity audiences. During March of 2003 Jonathan was the recipient of a fellowship from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and attended the “Betty Carter Jazz Ahead” residency in Washington, D.C. Along with twenty other distinguished young jazz artists, McCaslin was featured with such jazz icons as Terence Blanchard, Carmen Lundy, Winard Harper, Curtis Fuller and John Clayton.
McCaslin’s quintet performed at the 2003 edition of the Montreal International Jazz Festival and was nominated for the General Motors Grand Prix du Festival (awarded to the most outstanding Canadian group). From 2004 until 2006, Jon toured North America, Asia and Europe with the high-energy, critically acclaimed music production troupe “Barrage”. Featuring a cast of seven world-class fiddlers and a four-piece band, this dynamic show featured high-energy music and fiddle traditions from around the world set to upbeat choreography and movement.
In 2015, Dr. McCaslin received his Doctorate through the University of Toronto and completed his dissertation on the conceptualization of contemporary melodic jazz drumming. He is currently based in Calgary, Alberta where he maintains a busy performing and teaching schedule across Canada.
