[Dixielandjazz] THE ARTISTIC GRIMACE

[David McCartney]

Maynard Ferguson comes to mind - a rather obscene grunt as
the tears the horn away from it's evil grasp on his chops.
Another, unnamed trumpetist in the Sacramento does it also.
The mighty heave! Nyahhh!-BOP!!!

A naive fan once told me I should smile more, like Liberace, I spose.
I did work on it because the rest of my band looked rather sullen
and lost. Dance with your axe! Depression does not sell music.
In the Blues, one is still among the living.

It's hard not to drool while playing a bass solo. It takes concentration
to remember to breathe at all and a guy can swoon in asphyxiation.
We had a trombone player, Mike H. who didn't blink during his solos.

When Brian Shanley swung, his left foot wagged from side to side
and you knew you were in the presence of grapenuts/ oops, greatness.

A bass solo will often be ignored - "casting pearls before swine", but
amplification, in moderation, helps, as does an entry that surprises.
If I blow a note, it is a great relief to laugh aloud and share the joy
of creation with the audience. They want to be involved anyway.

David McCartney
a standup kinda guy