[Dixielandjazz] RE: Nicholas Payton

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

Hi Folks:

I had the pleasure of meeting and hearing Nicholas Payton's group when we 
played the San Sebastian, Spain Jazz Festival together along with another great 
player Joshua Redmond.

We all did our concerts and then hit the clubs for the all night sessions two 
of which presented Joshua's Group, and Nicholas Payton and his Gumbo Band at 
the other until six a.m.

Nicholas is indeed a great player.

Personally I would love to see him stay with his roots and play New Orleans 
Jazz, his departure to more modern styles may work but I am afraid he will lose 
the wonderful audience he as gained the respect of and whom have come to 
expect him to play their kind of music.  I doubt seriously that many if any will 
embrace his new direction in music.

Many fine artists like Nicholas feel compelled to stay on the cutting edge 
and constantly seek the NEW TRUTH in music and often trade the well deserved 
large audience and fan base for an elite group of literati and end up playing for 
only other like minded musicians and professors.

Audiences outside the USA folks, like Traditional American Jazz, Blues and 
Gospel and embrace it as our only contribution to World Culture.  If it ain't 
broke don't fix it.  Personally I love playing on festivals with these kind of 
experimental acts, because every time they bore and lose an audience we gain 
one by playing the style of music that they can relate to without a Ph.D. in 
music theory.

Many countries that we play in are at least thirty years behind the USA in 
culture, while it is true that we are often the trend setters of the world, we 
must also understand that we change every six months because of our great media 
power and advertising marketplace.

We play in some countries that only have two or three radio stations and four 
or five Television channels including CNN.

This is why Louis Armstrong is still so popular all over the world, and most 
of the same folks have never even heard of Miles Davis yet.  Nicholas gained a 
great reputation in Europe because of his New Orleans style, now to desert it 
for electronic experimentation he may well find himself losing the wonderful 
market he has gained and earned the respect of as a great musician.


Entertainingly yours,

Tom Wiggins
Saint Gabriel's Celestial Brass Band
Ambasadors of American Culture