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Still Funky After All These Years: Maceo Parker Wall Street Journal:
Still Funky After All These Years By JIM FUSILLI February 21, 2008; Page D7 Los Angeles When saxophonist Maceo Parker was in his early teens in Kinston, N.C., "I had to find out what's me," the now 65-year-old musician told me during a break last week in his current tour. "With everybody wanting to play jazz, I decided I'll play funky. It'd be nice if I could play like Cannonball [Adderly] or [John] Coltrane, but I'll just be really, really, really good at playing funky." And so Mr. Parker started his journey to become the funk sax player. In 1964, at age 21, he joined James Brown's band and soon his playing on alto, tenor and baritone sax became an identifiable part of Brown's sound -- in part because the singer frequently shouted out "Maceo!" on recordings and in concerts. From there, Mr. Parker joined George Clinton's eclectic, ultra-funky Parliament-Funkadelic groups, before returning to the Brown band in 1984. He began playing in Prince's New Power Generation in the late 1990s and worked in the studio with rock acts clamoring for his distinctive sax. "They say, 'Why don't we get that guy who did that James Brown stuff?" the ebullient and effusive Mr. Parker said of the musicians like Ani DiFranco, Dave Matthews, Jane's Addiction and the Red Hot Chili Peppers who have featured him on their discs. "The way James called my name, they think, 'He must be all right.' When they call me, they want me." And, since the late 1980s, Mr. Parker has been leading his own band too, mixing jazz and funk during countless concerts and on a dozen albums that form a body of work both mature and fun. Mr. Parker's latest recording finds him fronting not his own group but the Cologne, Germany-based WDR Big Band. "Roots & Grooves" (Heads Up) is a two-disc live set cut about a year ago: On the first CD, he plays and sings the music of one of his early heroes, Ray Charles. Mr. Parker ensures that the big band pays tribute to Charles's sax players -- including David "Fathead" Newman and Hank Crawford, who both had an influence on Mr. Parker's style. The second CD is pure Maceo Parker funk, including five of his compositions and Brown's "Pass the Peas." The disc explodes as Dennis Chambers, who also worked with Mr. Clinton, takes over the kit from the WDR drummer and, along with Rodney Curtis on bass, sets a deep groove that Mr. Parker gleefully, and characteristically, exploits. Joe Zawinul, the ex-Adderly keyboardist and co-founder of Weather Report, who has since died, recommended the WDR band to Mr. Parker's producers. Mr. Parker, in turn, suggested the Charles tribute. He said he enjoyed the temporary change of direction. "I experienced the big-band stuff in college," he said, "but I never longed to work with a Count Basie. Ray Charles, maybe. But having said that, it was great. I've always loved a lot of horns." While Mr. Parker is probably best known for his staccato bleats, melodic flourishes and impeccable timing over relentless percussion and modal vamping by keyboards and guitars, the horn sections in which he played often featured long, harmonically rich lines akin to the unison parts in big-band music. "That big-band sort of phrasing," he said, "I've always done that. That's me." It was King Curtis too, who also was an early influence on Mr. Parker, as was trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, whose music, Mr. Parker said, taught him that "if you play it right, intricate sounds simple." On "Roots & Grooves," Mr. Parker's compositions are performed with a kind of precision that seems contrary to the free-flowing funk Mr. Parker displays: If a big-band soloist is granted 24 bars, he needs to complete his statement before the band re-enters. But when Mr. Parker is running the show with his own group, the vamping goes on as long as he likes. "There's no written rules on how long or how short each tune has to be," he said. "I give a signal -- touch my head, do a turn or something -- and we move on." On Sunday night at the Roxy, here in Los Angeles, he conducted his powerhouse band with a series of unorthodox gestures -- in one he appeared to mimic a man bailing water from a leaky boat; in another, he looked like he was spinning a carnival wheel -- and his eight backing musicians responded. Mr. Parker allowed Greg Boyer on trombone and Ron Tooley on trumpet plenty of space to solo, but the show's best moments came when Messrs. Parker, Boyer and Tooley played knotty, smile-provoking lines together. In a lively mood, Mr. Parker, who wore a light-gray suit he'd drenched in sweat by the second number, donned a pair of sunglasses, imitated Charles's walk, and sang an affecting version of "You Don't Know Me." It gave way to "Uptown Up," a blast of funk that featured the horns and bassist Mr. Curtis, who turned in a remarkable night's work. The group made Paul McCartney's "My Love" a moving blues, and as if to indicate how well the horns know each other -- Mr. Boyer also plays with Prince, while Mr. Tooley backed Brown -- they tossed in a bit of the R&B chestnut "Compared to What" amid Mr. Parker's composition "Shake Everything You Got." What the horns played together embodied Mr. Parker's philosophy of making the challenging sound simple, as it often does on "Roots & Grooves." "I've been playing in front of strangers since I started in the fifth grade," Mr. Parker told me. "In the beginning it's all good -- your grandmother is showing people your picture and telling you how great you are. But when you go to the other side of town and they like you, you're onto something. By the time I started with James Brown, what was inside of me was longing to come out. I've been playing me for a long time." Copyright 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved  "Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive."
Dalai Lama | |
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Not still, but STAYS funky after all these years
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I should have gone to see him last Friday.
 I'm firmly planted in denial |
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cubic61052 said: Wall Street Journal:
Still Funky After All These Years By JIM FUSILLI February 21, 2008; Page D7 Los Angeles On Sunday night at the Roxy, here in Los Angeles, he conducted his powerhouse band with a series of unorthodox gestures -- in one he appeared to mimic a man bailing water from a leaky boat; in another, he looked like he was spinning a carnival wheel -- and his eight backing musicians responded. Mr. Parker allowed Greg Boyer on trombone and Ron Tooley on trumpet plenty of space to solo, but the show's best moments came when Messrs. Parker, Boyer and Tooley played knotty, smile-provoking lines together. I was in H'weird at The Whiskey to see a friend's band Saturday night. Just couldn't make a second journey for Maceo the following night. Walked down to The Roxy just to see who was there and noticed that Raul Midon had been there on the 14th. tA  Tribal Disorder
http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431 "Ya see, we're not interested in what you know...but what you are willing to learn. C'mon y'all." | |
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I'm going to check if he is going to be anywhere in the Atlanta area anytime soon....I would like to hear him.
Too bad you missed him...maybe some other time. I'm going to hear the World Saxophone Quartet with Oliver Lake this Saturday at Rialto...Oliver is one of The Professor's past aquaintances. "Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive."
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theAudience said: cubic61052 said: Wall Street Journal:
Still Funky After All These Years By JIM FUSILLI February 21, 2008; Page D7 Los Angeles On Sunday night at the Roxy, here in Los Angeles, he conducted his powerhouse band with a series of unorthodox gestures -- in one he appeared to mimic a man bailing water from a leaky boat; in another, he looked like he was spinning a carnival wheel -- and his eight backing musicians responded. Mr. Parker allowed Greg Boyer on trombone and Ron Tooley on trumpet plenty of space to solo, but the show's best moments came when Messrs. Parker, Boyer and Tooley played knotty, smile-provoking lines together. I was in H'weird at The Whiskey to see a friend's band Saturday night. Just couldn't make a second journey for Maceo the following night. tA some pics...   
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cubic61052 said: I'm going to check if he is going to be anywhere in the Atlanta area anytime soon....
Thursday 21st February House of Blues LAS VEGAS NV ----- Friday 22nd February Kuumbwa 320-2 Cedar Street SANTA CRUZ CA www.kuumbwajazz.org/ ----- Saturday 23rd February Fillmore 1805 GEARY @ Fillmore SAN FRANCISCO CA 94115 SAN FRANCISCO CA (415) 346-3000 or www.Ticketmaster.com or www.thefillmore.com ----- Sunday 24th February Portland Jazz Festival Crystal Ballroom 1332 West Burnside Portland OR 97209 www.pdxjazz.com ----- Tuesday 26th February Antone's 213 W 5th St AUSTIN TX 78701 www.antones.net ----- Wednesday 27th February House of Blues 220 Lamar Street DALLAS TX 75202 http://www.hob.com/venues...es/dallas/ ----- Thursday 28th February Republic 828 Sth Peters St. Warehouse District NEW ORLEANS LA www.republicnola.com ----- Friday 29th February Duke University DURHAM NC Tix $42 • $34 • $25 • $5* *Duke student ticket price from www.dukeperformances.org / 919-684-4444 www.dukeperformances.duke.../maceo.php ----- Saturday 1st March State Theatre 220 N. Washington FALLS CHURCH VA www.thestatetheatre.com/ ----- Monday & Tuesday 3rd & 4th March Dakota Club 1010 Nicolette MINNEAPOLIS MN www.dakotacooks.com ----- Saturday 15th March West Coast Blues Festival PERTH Australia Tickets and info from www.bluesfest.com.au ----- Sunday & Monday 16th and 17th March The Basement SYDNEY Australia Tickets $79 www.moshtix.com.au or 1300 GET TIX (438 849) +61 2 9251 2797 more details www.thebasement.com.au ----- Thursday & Friday 20th & 21st March The Corner Hotel MELBOURNE Australia Tickets: $79 www.cornerhotel.com or +61 3 9427 9198 ----- Saturday 22nd March Point Nepean Music Festival AUSTRALIA Tix from www.bluesfest.com.au Ticket Prices: Various ----- Sunday & Monday 23rd & 24th March Blues Fest BYRON BAY Australia tickets and more info from www.bluesfest.com.au ----- Thursday 27th March James Hay Theatre Town Hall CHristchurch NEW ZEALAND Tickets: $59 / $55 (03) 377 8899 ----- Friday 11th April Isle of Wight Jazz Festival Isle of Wight UK more details to follow ----- Wednesday 16th April Komedia BRIGHTON UK more details to follow ----- Thursday 17th April Stylus Leeds University Union LIfton Place LEEDS UK Tickets available from www.leedstickets.com, Www.ticketline.co.uk, www.ticketweb.co.uk, See Tickets 0113 2444600, Jumbo Records (Leeds), Crash Records (Leeds CATS (Leeds University Union). ----- Thursday 1st May Cheltenham Jazz Festival Main Stage Cheltenham Town Hall Imperial Square CHELTENHAM, GLOUCESTERSHIRE UK more details to follow ----- Sunday 4th Mary Norwich Jazz Festival NORWICH, NORFOLK UK more details to follow 0 [Edited 2/21/08 17:16pm] test | |
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Wow...awesome...thanks for the pics, PFunk.....
What? No dates in Atlanta? 
"Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive."
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i saw him back in october with his band and it was a great evening i loved his flute playing as well as the sax
i am tempted to go and see him when he is over in the uk next but all the dates are quite a distance from me so i think i will have to wait for the next time he comes to london With Love there is no Death | |
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