[Dixielandjazz] Sounding like somebody else.

[Scott Anthony]

Last weekend up in Seattle, I played 3 jobs with Bob Schulz and the Frisco 
Jazz Band. We sounded a lot like Turk in the '80s to me, but it definitely 
was not intentionally trying to copy the sound of the Murphy band. We just 
happened to have 3 guys from the Salty Dogs - Mike Walbridge on tuba, Kim 
Cusack on clarinet and Tom Bartlett on trombone - which was the band Turk 
said was his favorite and 3 other former members of the Murphy band, so it 
is no wonder we sounded like him. - Ray Skjelbred on piano, Bob Schulz on 
cornet, and Chris Tyle on drums, but played cornet for a few months with 
Turk. I was the only one who was not an alumnus of either band! However I 
heard Turk's book repeatedly over 8 years, 5 nights a week while doing 
intermissions.

I guess my point is that "sounding like" does not equate with copying and we 
were definitely collectively "speaking with your own voice."

Not to "toot our horns" too much, you can hear the band last weekend on 
youTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMb8BRMEEWc

I'll put more selections up later today.

Scott Anthony


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Steve Barbone" <barbonestreet at earthlink.net>
To: <santh at pacbell.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Thursday, September 20, 2007 7:12 AM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Sounding like somebody else.


> Jim Kashishian jim at kashprod.com wrote (polite snip)
>
>>To add a detour in this thread:  how about all these followers of Turk,
>>Bechet, Wild Bill, etc., that purposely take on the sound of their heroes?
>>It's already been done, so why try to do it again?  I prefer taking the
>>slight hint of a hero & developing it along with your own style.
>
> Amen. The last thing any jazz musician should be know as is the world's
> foremost clone of Bix, Louis, or whomever.
>
> Isn't speaking with your own voice what "jazz" is all about?
>
> Unless, of course, you are finding that a money making niche can be had by
> sounding exactly like Benny Goodman, or Glen Miller, or other ghosts which
> will help you draw the remaining old folks to the venue in hopes of
> regaining their lost youth. <grin>
>
> But like a copy of the original, is it art? Or even "jazz"? <grin>
>
> Cheers,
> Steve Barbone
>
>
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