[Dixielandjazz] Emailing: Red Sea Jazz Festival...8-26-31 028.jpg

Wed Sep 6 02:54:59 PDT 2006

Dear Tom,Steve,Bob,and all the rest of the guys !!
Goodonyas` ,Well done !!
I congratulate you all !!
Best wishes,
Ross Anderson,(N,M,J,Band, Australia)
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <tcashwigg at aol.com>
To: <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 3:00 PM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Emailing: Red Sea Jazz Festival...8-26-31 
028.jpg


> Hi Tim And All:
>
> We indeed had a lot of fun on and off stage, and Johnny Wilder is indeed a 
> cool cat and a guy that I had fun with, his attitude and piano playing are 
> excellent and he would be a compliment to ANY OKOM band that asked him to 
> play hands down.
>
> We asked Johnny if there was any tune he did not know, he replied yes, we 
> asked him what the tune was and he replied "I don't Know"
>
> We courteously omitted that tune from our repertoire for our shows. :)) 
> And he played all the others as if he had written them:))   Even the ones 
> we did not even tell him we were playing until 8 bars into them.   :))
>
> I have not met his gorgeous wife yet, but will make a note to keep her 
> away from Misur (Sic)  Barbone old Mr.; Sex Pot himself should she ever 
> venture on to a gig :))    Honestly folks  Steve is really having all the 
> fun he purports to have and is a perfect gentleman at all times, who 
> carries off this act very well on stage and off.   He does not personally 
> do anything romantic for me but  he does have a way to charm the ladies 
> into coming closer to the band stand.   Us younger guys will continue to 
> use him for Bait :))
>
> Quite honestly guys,  it really does not get much better than this show 
> turned out to be, truly magical music made by some very great cats at the 
> right place at the right time with the right attitude and the right 
> audience to receive it.   This folks is Real American Jazz at it's finest.
>
> Could we have been technically better with rehearsals, yes probably so, 
> could we have been technically tighter with charts on stage, probably, 
> could we have been better at improvisation, probably not, did we 
> communicate musically you bet, did we let each other breath, and express 
> themselves  yes we did and the outcome was truly magical for all of us as 
> well as the audience.  So far not one member has stated otherwise.   Not a 
> bad outcome for Pulling together Two guys with Eddie Condon Chicago style 
> influences, two guys with Lu Waters, Turk Murphy style influences, and 
> three guys with Traditional New Orleans/Rock/Soul influences for a magical 
> sound that turned on a great multi generational audience to OKOM.   And 
> Did Paul Grant come thru with Satchamo as promised by Steve Barbone, you 
> bet, he did, and in grand style, he walks softly but carries a Mean Horn. 
> :))    Now who was that that said on this list that Black Guys don't Play 
> Dixieland Music ?   Well Paul Grant does and with the best that ever was. 
> Thanks Paul.   I could swear I saw flames shooting out of his trumpet on a 
> couple of numbers, and if they did not they will next time, cause I have a 
> magician friend who knows how to make it happen :))   We will give new 
> meaning to the words "Hot Brass".
>
> And as for Buddy Apfel, well I have said for several years that bands that 
> used Buddy need to just turn him loose and let him play, because he has a 
> loot more to say musically than anybody has ever let him say that I have 
> heard him with,  Well we did just that and he is now a Tuba rock Star, :)) 
> And soon to be a Legend in his own mind :))   Thanks Buddy  ( P.S. did you 
> give them back the microphone out of your Bell where we taped it in  ?  or 
> do we now have an additional one for the band P.A. ??
>
>
> I could not be prouder of the contributions of each and every member of 
> the new Super OKOM group known as "The Ambassadors of New Orleans"   We 
> ain't cheap but we can be had :))   Catch us down the Road if you Can.
>
> P.S. I t will be a lot cheaper to book us for a Festival State Side than 
> waiting till next year to fly to Israel and hear our repeat performance at 
> Red Sea Jazz Fest .  :))    If they can sell 5-6000 seats for us in Israel 
> at $40.00 a seat  that should tell you Jazz Society folks that you have a 
> Headline Act even if you don't know it.   Do the math.  And those were 
> ticket sales to folks who had never heard of us,  it's all about Promotion 
> and marketing .   One Dixieland Band folks,  but a damned good one that 
> replaced the worlds most well established and recognized Name in 
> Traditional New Orleans Jazz.   Preservation Hall Jazz Band.
>
> Please do not relegate this great music to 80 to 90 year old audiences 
> folks, and continue to think that nobody outside of that age bracket will 
> like or pay to hear this music, take it out to the younger generations who 
> have never been exposed to it and simply watch what
> happens.
>
> It was also a shame that the guy running the Festival Jam session would 
> not let our esteemed friend list mate and colleague Elazar Brandt sit in 
> at the Jam session, I was not aware of this situation or I would have made 
> it happen, so very sorry Elazar, and it was a pleasure to finally meet you 
> and hang out.   Had I known the circumstances of you being denied, to that 
> jam session bandstand  I could and certainly would have corrected it to 
> make it happen, you could have had my Badge if that is what the 
> co-ordinator wanted to see.   I personally hate to see the local guys who 
> work hard every day of the year to make music be denied a chance to 
> participate with the strangers from afar.  It just ain't right.   If I am 
> invited back next year I will alter that situation I assure you, and all 
> indications are that we will be invited back.
>
> LET'S HOPE THAT ALL US OLD MEN LIVE THAT LONG :))
>
> Cheers,
>
> Looking forward to taking these guys to other wonderful events around the 
> world to let their fabulous talents be seen and heard, please, please do 
> not suppress this kind of energy and talent, but unleash it and share it 
> with the world they are indeed waiting and starved for great Entertainment 
> and Music like this.
>
> Tom Wiggins
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: julepjerk at surewest.net
> To: cellblk7 at comcast.net; dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com
> Sent: Tue, 5 Sep 2006 8:15 PM
> Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Emailing: Red Sea Jazz Festival...8-26-31 
> 028.jpg
>
>    As one who used to sit in on gutbucket with the (absolutely OKOM) Beez 
> Keez -
> John was the keyboardist for that band, and was one of the best 
> keyboardists I
> have ever heard.  Has a gorgeous wife, plays with high energy, has fun, 
> and is
> tolerant of an amateur like me (thanks, John, for all the help and 
> encouragement
> to show that gutbucket can be more than a  "plunk, plunk" instrument), his
> opinion is significantly important to me.
>
> The comments from the Red Sea Festival should be taken very seriously in 
> regards
> to keeping OKOM alive.  Youth responds to energy and spirit.
>
> At some future date, I would love to serve as a "marshal" to bring in an 
> OKOM
> band at such an event, as Tom allowed me to do in Sacramento at an event 
> St.
> Gabriel's performed.  (And they were marvelous, with Bob Romans
> participating...)
>
> Tim Eldred
> Roseville, CA
>
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