[Dixielandjazz] Leonard Feather

[Richard Broadie]

Hi Bill.  Your description below very well describes the Leonard Feather
that I knew over many years and would forever be hesitant to call a friend.
In many instances his writings indicated that he considered black jazz
musicians to be inherently superior to whites.  What we used to call a
"Crow Jim" attitude. Dick
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bill Gunter" <jazzboard at hotmail.com>
To: <JackleeT at aol.com>; <JimDBB at aol.com>; <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 11:30 AM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Leonard Feather


> Hi listmates,
>
> Jim Bebee wrote:
>
> >  Leonard Feather was a despicable person.
>
> to which Jack Tracy wrote:
>
> >I would find it difficult to describe someone as "a despicable person"
> >unles
> >I had known him.
> >
> >Did you know Leonard?
>
> This raises some points. First, the question "Did you know Leonard?" would
> imply that you would have to meet the man personally to claim he was
> despicable. There are myriad writings and anecdotes about Feather which
> enable us to know the man without actually meeting him. We can base our
> attitudes toward people in the public arena on this material. In a sense,
> all of us who read Feather's writings "knew" the man.
>
> Secondly, the claim he was a despicable person may be a bit subjective. In
> Feather's mind I would think he viewed himself as one who calls 'em as he
> sees 'em without regard for others opinions and/or attitudes. I don't say
> this as an apology for Feather but simply how people's perceptions may
vary.
>
> Finally, I did know Feather to a small extent and I'd like to submit an
> anecdote here. I told this story before on the DJML a number of years ago,
> but the Feather thread has come around again so I'll tell it again.
>
> A number of years ago I was the publicity director for the Sacramento
> Dixieland Jubilee (now called the Jazz Jubilee). I got the bright idea one
> year that it would be good to invite Feather to the Jubilee and give him a
> hotel room and buy him a couple of meals. The plan was he would be so
> impressed with how wonderful the festival was and what a great group of
guys
> and gals we all were he would just naturally go home and say nice things
> about us in his next column. I ran the idea past Bill Borcher (then
> executive director of the festival) and he said "If you think it's
> worthwhile, go ahead" and so I did.
>
> Feather accepted the invitation and came to Sacramento. I picked him up at
> the airport and drove him to his hotel. I took him to a nice lunch and we
> chatted about jazz, musicians, festivals, what a great column he wrote
(?),
> and generally what a great guy he was (?). I bought him a few more meals
as
> the festival progressed and we seemed to ge getting along fine.
>
> Then he went home.
>
> His next column came out and he talked about how poor most of the bands
were
> and accused us of racism!  This happened to be the year that Joe Liggins
and
> the Honeydrippers appeared along with DeJan's Olympia Marching Band.
>
> I recalled saying something to Feather about the small amount of black
bands
> available. I indicated that most black bands were not playing dixieland
(and
> we were the "Sacramento DIXIELAND Jubilee"). Feather recalled that comment
> in his column and said that "it didn't wash" and he cited a New Orleans
band
> called "The Dirty Dozen."  We were, of course, familiar with the Dirty
> Dozen. We considered them but they demanded waaayyyy to much money and
that,
> added to the fact they really didn't play dixieland, kept us from booking
> them.
>
> I'll leave it to you to decide whether or not the Jubilee (or any trad
jazz
> festival for that matter) is "racist" but I'll submit that before such a
> claim is made one should look a little more deeply. To accuse trad jazz
> musicians and those who promote trad festivals of denying participation to
> blacks is like accusing the democratic party of bias because you don't see
> many republicans in their ranks. Maybe that's not an exact analolgy, but
> it'll do until I can think of a better one.
>
> In summary, I think it was shoddy for Feather to make the accusation of
> racism against the Jubilee. If he didn't like the bands he heard so be it.
> He certainly had a right to his opinions and I certainly wouldn't fault
him
> for that. But the Racism charge was uncalled for and I considered it
> vindictive and hateful. I learned after that experience that Feather had a
> long history of demeaning white musicians while claiming that all jazz of
> any value was a product of black musicians. This is certainly evident in
> much of his writings.
>
> I don't think Feather was despicable, but I do think he had an agenda to
> which he adhered throughout his journalistic life and, as a result, it led
> to a certain mean-spiritedness, shoddy scholarship and reportage.
>
> Respectfully submitted,
>
> Bill Gunter
> Sacramento Traditional Jazz Society
> Past president and Jubilee publicity director
> jazzboard at hotmail.com
>
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