[Dixielandjazz] Musical non-readers, can you add to the list?

[starwater_music]

> One more thing, about Buddy Rich not reading music... I don't buy it.
> There's a big difference between not being able to read, not reading well, 
> and  not
> wanting to read.

As far as Buddy not reading, I've heard that outside of drum technique and a 
fantastic sense of time, he wasn't really that technically knowledgeable 
about music per se. Admittedly I haven't explored this in depth and would be 
happy to hear from anyone who has and knows otherwise. However, hearing the 
recordings documenting his famous tirades that he visited upon his bands, he 
seems to be somewhat inarticulate in describing what he doesn't like about 
what the band is doing - if in fact they were really doing anything "wrong" 
so much as he just felt like purging some testosterone. Seems to support the 
notion that his technical knowledge was weak. Btw, if you've never heard 
them, you should look them up on the 'net, they're hilarious - though 
'prolly not suitable for young 'uns ears. Particularly when you hear him 
repeat some of his material on different occasions.

One of the Disney park bands I used to watch frequently - The Hollywood 
Hitmen, included some BR tunes in their repertoire and as part of their 
patter would refer to Buddy as "Mr. Sunshine" or things to that effect, a 
tongue-in-cheek inside joke that they knew would fly over the head of 99.9 % 
of the audience.

Robert Pulliam