[Dixielandjazz] Bean and Body & Soul

[Stephen G Barbone]

On Oct 11, 2009, at 6:44 PM, Marek Boym wrote:

> Hi Steve,
> Don't you think one should listen with one's own ears, not those of a
> Ted Goia or a Tom Moon?
> Bean's solo is a masterpiece, and the comparison to the ODJB sax
> player is probably intentionally provocative, but I still prefer other
> versions (the Lester Young's one that has been mentioned in this
> context on the list, for example).
>
> But at least, this time you allow others to have different opinions.
>
> Cheers
>
>> Not worth the salt but fun. I still prefer sax player in ODJB to
>> Hawk, talk about advanced.
>>> I'll explain later.
>>>
>>
>> Opinions are what makes horse racing.

I always thought that others should listen with their own ears and  
have stated that fact many times. However, when discussing a seminal  
solo like Bean's Body and Soul, Ted Goia and Tom Moon point out to   
those who do not understand what Bean was doing musically, exactly why  
that solo is so important to real jazz musicians, I felt it worth  
sharing their knowledge.

I could care less whether fans like or dislike the solo. However I  
care very much about educating some folks who diss the solo for no  
reason other than their ears are not ready to hear what he was doing.  
The simple fact is that musically, in jazz, this solo was close to the  
very creation of a new way to improvise harmonically and every jazz  
musician worth his salt understands that.

Perhaps you should argue on the merits of what Goia and Moon said,  
rather then on a minor point  about one's own ears. Obviously, if  
one's ears do not like bop, one will not like Bean's solo. And to  
some, it will sound old fashioned. Etc., etc., etc. But that was  
really not the point.

Cheers,

Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband