#elmo hope ensemble

[fuchsiaswingsong]

Elmo Hope Ensemble - "A Night In Tunisia"

Elmo Hope - piano Lawrence Jackson - trumpet Freddie Douglas - soprano saxophone John Gilmore - tenor saxophone Ronnie Boykins - bass Philly Joe Jones - drums

[brokehorrorfan]

4K Ultra HD Review: Flatliners

While the 2017 Flatliners reboot proved to be dead on arrival, the 1990 original still has life in it. Director Joel Schumacher (The Lost Boys, Batman Forever, Batman & Robin) brings the candy-colored visuals with which he was synonymous to a medical school’s gothic architecture. He and cinematographer Jan de Bont (Die Hard, The Hunt for Red October) use neon blue lighting as a bad omen, while warm colors are reserved for more uplifting emotions; a stark contrast to the reboot's glossy, modern science fiction aesthetic.

In the film, ambitious-to-a-fault medical student Nelson Wright (Kiefer Sutherland, The Lost Boys) convinces four of his brightest classmates - pragmatic atheist David Laccio (Kevin Bacon, Tremors), the brooding Rachel Mannus (Julia Roberts, Pretty Woman), womanizer Joe Hurley (William Baldwin, Backdraft), and the humorously bookish Randy Steckle (Oliver Platt, Lake Placid) - to assist him in a reckless experiment in the pursuit of scientific advancement and fame.

With the aid of his friends, Nelson is clinically dead for one minute “to see if there’s anything out there beyond death” before being resuscitated. It miraculously works, leading them to attempt to outdo one another by going longer and longer before being revived. Although they return in fine physical health, they begin to suffer from nightmarish visions in which physical manifestations of those they wronged in the past come back to haunt them - literally.

Flatliners never quite achieves the full potential of its ingeniously simple premise, although it's not difficult to understand why Peter Filardi’s (The Craft) well-researched spec script caused a bidding war before selling to Columbia Pictures for $450,000. It becomes a tad redundant, but like the characters in the film, a desire to glimpse at the afterlife sustains viewers' intrigue. The compelling story is bolstered by the star-studded cast, kinetic direction, and hyper-stylized visuals.

To make the film more dynamic, Schumacher and de Bont smartly opted to shoot it as if it was an action movie. Schumacher also moved the story from its original setting of Boston to Chicago. On-location filming lent the city's baroque architecture and gritty aesthetic, while Eugenio Zanetti (Last Action Hero, What Dreams May Come) adds salient production design.

Although more of a thriller than a horror movie, Flatliners' genre elements are strong in the visions that the characters experience once revived, occasionally bringing to mind the likes of A Nightmare on Elm Street. But at the core of the story is drama - exploring themes of karma, atonement, and redemption - with a rather life-affirming message. The emotionally resonant score, composed by James Newton Howard (The Hunger Games, The Sixth Sense), traverses between the film’s exploration of beauty and horror in the afterlife.

With all five actors electrifying the screen in the primes of their careers, the ensemble cast feels like an extension of the brat pack. (Sutherland jokingly referred to the film as The Breakfast Club Dies and St. Elmo's Funeral.) Sutherland is as perfectly arrogant as he was in his previous Schumacher collaboration, The Lost Boys. Roberts had already filmed her breakout role in Pretty Woman but it hadn't come out yet (it would release five months prior to Flatliners). Bacon credits the film with reviving his career, as he had a string of underperformers following the success of Footloose.

The supporting players include child actor Joshua Rudoy (Harry and the Hendersons) as the boy who haunts Nelson and Hope Davis (About Schmidt) in her film debut as Joe's fiance, along with Kimberly Scott (The Abyss), Patricia Belcher (Jeepers Creepers), and Beth Grant (Donnie Darko) in small roles. Although not on camera, screen icon Michael Douglas served as a producer on the project; the first effort from his Stonebridge Entertainment.

Flatliners has been newly resuscitated in 4K from the original negative, approved by de Bont, for Arrow Video's new 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray editions. The 4K UHD disc features Dolby Vision and Lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 surround audio options. Schumacher and de Bont were already a perfect pairing, but Arrow's flawless restoration allows their bold visual palette to really shine.

Critics Bryan Reesman and Max Evry contribute a new audio commentary in which they dissect Schumacher's work and examine Flatliners in the context of its contemporaries (which made me eager to double-feature it with Jacob's Ladder). Schumacher passed away in 2020 and the cast members were not available for interviews, but Arrow tracked down a variety of crew members for new, in-depth interviews, offering several rare perspectives that are likely to give viewers a new appreciation for the production.

Filardi details the experience of selling his first movie, being on set during the production, and seeing the final product. De Bont and chief lighting technician Edward Ayer provide a fascinating breakdown of the visuals, with De Bont discussing his approach while Ayer explains how they pulled it off. Howard, orchestrator Chris Boardman, Zanetti, art director Larry Lundy, costume designer Susan Becker (True Romance, The Lost Boys), and first assistant director John Kretchmer each give their unique insight into how they added to the tapestry of the film as well.

The theatrical trailer and an image gallery are also included, alongside a 35-page booklet (exclusive to the first pressing) featuring new writing on the film by historians Amanda Reyes and Peter Tonguette. Reyes provides a historical overview of near-death experiences and how they compare to Flatliners, while Tonguette explores the film's surprising spirituality. The release carries new artwork by Gary Pullin, with the original poster on the reverse side.

Flatliners is available now on 4K UHD and Blu-ray via Arrow Video.

[jasmine-cottage-uk]

Aziraphale/Crowley prompt: one of them is hiding a secret talent from the other Can be as innocent or smutty as you like ;)

Back in September, the week before I got married and started grad school, I had the immense hubris to ask for fic prompts, and we all know how that went. Well the wedding is over and I dropped out of grad school so I’m now finally getting round to these. 

Darling @ineffably-effable - it took me a while to sort out what exactly the secret talent would be, but I hope you enjoy!

-----

“I’m back! What have you been up to?”

Shit. Aziraphale’s voice reverberates up the stairwell and into the sitting room above the bookshop where Crowley has been whiling away the afternoon, quite moodily, on his own. As footsteps indicate Aziraphale is ascending the staircase to the flat, Crowley stands, frantic. Had he not been so distracted, had he not been so focused on the task at hand he might’ve remembered that he could miracle the evidence of this away, but instead, like a proper dunce, he shoves the trappings of his activities under a couch cushion, rearranges the soft throw in such a way that it almost masks the fact that the cushion is now on a sharp angle.

“Did you hear me, I asked what you’d been–” Aziraphale stops as Crowley spins around and runs a hand through his hair, breath ragged. 

He places his hands on his hips in a fashion that he quite hopes communicates that he is extremely casual. “Oh, hi. Hello. I’m uh, just, shh, uh, hanging out.”

“My dear,” Aziraphale starts, voice laced in concern. “You seem winded. Are you quite alright?”

Crowley can feel his ears going warm and pink. These human bodies have a mind of their own. Defective, that’s what they are. “Yep. Just… peachy.”

“Oh, peachy? Now I know you’re up to something.”

Damn. He wasn’t sure when he had started adapting an Aziraphale-esque vocabulary when stressed, but it was the worst kind of give away.

Aziraphale’s eyes narrow, then land (very annoyingly) on the couch behind Crowley. He takes three steps, closing the space between them. He leans past Crowley for the blanket and Crowley, in desperation, launches a plan that is sure to be failsafe.

Placing his hands firmly on Aziraphale’s biceps, he pulls him in for a kiss. There is something a bit frenzied about it at first, Crowley’s tongue searching Aziraphale’s mouth, teeth nipping the sensitive flesh of Aziraphale’s lower lip in the way he knows his angel loved. 

Aziraphale melts into him, releases the smallest moan, and Crowley could almost forget that this (while being extremely nice) is a tactic, a strategy, a–

“Aha!”

“No!”

The bastard has beaten Crowley at his own game, slipped from the kiss and shoved his hand deep into the recesses of the couch. The blanket lies on the floor, discarded. In Aziraphale’s triumphant outstretched hand, he holds a ball of grey-blue yarn and two metal knitting needles entwined in a half finished project. It was about 18 inches of a simple ribbed scarf, and Crowley has been working on it every single time Aziraphale has left the apartment for about a week.

“Oh,” says Aziraphale, bringing the knitting to his chest and running his other hand down the demon’s arm. “Crowley.” His face goes soft like when he sees a very new baby. It’s unbearable.

-----

In the early nineties (1990s, to be clear) Crowley had created the must-have toy, strategically released in the months before the Christmas season. He liked to describe it as high concept, and he was terribly proud of it. Tickle-Me-Elmos? That had been Crowley. Furbys? All Crowley. Parents throwing fists in department stores, little Billy or Sally screaming bloody murder on Christmas morning because Santa hadn’t procured the one thing they had asked for. Bloody brilliant if you asked him. 

He had taken a break from the toy beat for a few years – quit while you’re ahead, you know – until he had a stroke of genius.

Fidget spinners.

Within the week something that hadn’t existed the month before was in the hand of every child. They were truly annoying and Crowley was impressed at his own brilliance.

Colour him surprised when it got back to him that they were, of all things, helpful. Apparently there were children that used them to help focus in school. Just needed something to do with their hands, was all. A discrete fidget spinner improved the classroom for all. That hadn’t been the point of course but humans were thoughtful, creative. His intention didn’t really matter once they got their hands on his work. 

Curious, he bought a spinner from a pound shop. A surprisingly heavy, metal contraption that made a pleasant whirring sound when it spun, pinched between his fingers. He found himself slipping it into his pocket when he left his flat, pulling it out when he was stuck in traffic, when he went to the movie theatre, when he was waiting for Aziraphale in the park. Lo and behold, having something to do with his hands soothed his constant nerves. He liked the ongoing and even humm, the moving of his fingers in repeated patterns.

But he got tired of the spinner eventually and went to the internet for alternatives. A YouTube video featuring a sunny lady named Brenda who lived in New England extolled the virtues of knitting, and so quietly, alone in his flat with his phone propped up for instructions and his television on a rerun of the Golden Girls he had seen maybe two hundred times, Crowley taught himself to knit.

-----

“You knit,” says Aziraphale, voice liquid warm and tender.

“Stop it,” Crowley responds, chest tight. He makes a useless grab at the knitting but Aziraphale takes a step back, holds it away.

“Don’t be embarrassed, my darling.” Aziraphale examines the beginnings of the scarf, rubs the soft wool between the pads of his immaculately manicured fingers. “This is very nice. When did you learn to do this? It’s excellent work for a first crack at things.”

“Don’t,” groans Crowley, uselessly. He’d be found out now, Aziraphale would never stop talking about it. He collapses back onto the couch, defeated.

Secretly of course, he loves this. Aziraphale’s excitement at the things Crowley does, the nice things, the thoughtful things, the things very unbecoming of a demon that lit him up in Aziraphale’s eyes. But he couldn’t be seen to like it, could he? He had a reputation to maintain.

“Where did you learn to do this, love?” Aziraphale sits beside him, still holding the scarf as if it were a holy relic.

“Internet,” Crowley grumbles, crossing his arms.

“How marvelous.” He hands the knitting back to Crowley, and smooths his hand along the demon’s leg, as if to say there, there. “You’ll have to make something for me when you’re up for it.”

Crowley looks at the hand on his leg, considers the angel it belongs to. He had loved him forever. Since the world was made. “I already made you something,” he says, pushing himself to standing.

In the closet there were boxes of Crowley’s things. Things he had brought to Aziraphale’s flat when he finally stopped paying for rent on the place in Mayfair. He’d never gotten around to unpacking them, because what did he need anyway, other than Aziraphale? 

Crowley unearths the box he’s looking for. An opaque plastic bin with a lid. Aziraphale hovers over his shoulder, curious as could be. With a dull pop, the lid comes off, revealing a packed mess of cable knit scarves, several pairs of woolen mittens, and a fair isle sweater that Crowley had knit and undone so many bloody times to make the pattern just so. They are all in Aziraphale’s colours. Beige and light blue and camel. 

“Oh,” breathes Aziraphale, something of reverence in his voice. “My dear boy.”

-----

They are at a coffee shop when the barista handing Aziraphale his cocoa quirks her head to the side and says “I like that scarf you’ve got on. Looks cozy.”

She is maybe just making polite conversation, angling for tips, but Crowley doesn’t care because the look on Aziraphale’s face is transcendent. Brighter than the sun, than twin stars, then any stupid lit up thing Crowley can think of.

Aziraphale brings his hand up, touches the ribbed scarf that does not go with the rest of his ensemble, and says “Thank you, my dear. My husband made it for me. He’s very talented.” His eyes flick to Crowley, mischievous and proud.

Crowley musters up a less than minor miracle to keep the all too human blush from rising to his cheeks. “Come on, angel. Let’s get you home.” He offers his arm to Aziraphale, and drags him back in the direction of the bookshop.

[druid-for-hire]

UNSWAYED PT. IV

(pt. i) (pt. ii) (pt. iii) (pt. v) (epilogue) (askblog)

this update consists of a bit of the trek back to hadestown and the workers’ revolution that lasts the summer until persephone’s return in the fall, and being granted the chance to leave at last--to leave for real.

thank you so so much to all my friends @supercantaloupe​, @unholy-boi​ (who helped write the Riots sect), @damondaunnodyke​, & @s-aint-elmo

persephone has left again and sets to repairing the world up Top after the hurricane, now that she’s helped the lovers.

orpheus and eurydice are... on the exodus from the Beyond. it’s a long road--it’s a long walk. takes a week or two.

kampê slinks into the shadows and hides, bitter, among the smokestacks. she hurts and she fears. hades will come for her, she knows, but she knows this place far better than he--that man barely checks up (hence how her grip on the place has gotten out of control), hasn’t been there for all of the rearrangements and updates in centuries. she knows where to hide. he will not find her in her domain. this is her darkness.

the imagery of the Exodus is very much akin to/inspired by the same Exodus of the movie Prince of Egypt. u kno that one?

looks like this, yeah, but like... obviously without the fish, because the walls aren’t made of ocean in this au, they’re just rock

and orpheus and eurydice leading the pack, shadowed looks of determination on their faces

again: this is where Promises (But Sadder) happens

as eurydice takes orpheus back to the main parts of hadestown, she notices too many things: his legs tremble, his hands shake, he breathes just barely too hard and clears his throat and coughs too much; and as they talk about the small things to fill some of the quiet, orpheus asks “what’d you say?” too often

(it’s hearing damage babey!)

of course, no one is spared from the hardships of hadestown. but she... does not like seeing those scars on orpheus

this long walk is also the time they tell each other everything that happened to them since they last saw each other

reminder: orpheus is still weak & kinda sick! and it’s a long walking journey. and everyone’s tired. sometimes they all sit down and camp for the “night” or something. 

the beyond’s not been kind to him; he’s pale as a corpse, with sunken eyes and hollow cheeks, looks as dead as he feels

(really, all the other workers from the Beyond don’t look much better)

it’s kind of a spooky sight when they stop for a few hours and he lays down to take a rest. the state he’s in...

and eurydice is a fairly good singer--nowhere near on orpheus’ (former) level, but good, and she probably sings him small tunes here and there just for the two of them, to relax and comfort and what have you

@axolotlbeans: at some point they stop for the “night” and orpheus collapses; eurydice, who’d been singing, gathers him in her arms and says, "Orpheus, you're shivering; is it cold or fear?"

and he interrupts her, burying his face into her neck and softly rasps "Just keep singing" in the smallest, weakest voice 

when they arrive. it is... a lot.

the long train of people is... heavily distracting. and they seem to come out of nowhere--a lot of hadestown wasn’t even aware there was a Beyond ‘till orpheus got banished, and then they didn’t know the name or what it was, just that he got banished somewhere. even the foremen turn to see; everyone’s sort of like. uh. what the hell is going on? and work sort of stalls out a little bit

eurydice and orpheus go straight to hades and present their demands to let them go. let them all go. blah blah blah some other stuff it probably sounds fairer than that, i don’t have the brain energy to outline all their demands specifically

by the slightly edited words of my good friend supercanteloupe:

let us go, eurydice demands, and hades just laughs, jailbirds like themselves don’t get their freedom so easily. get back to work, songbird, and don’t let the foreman know you’ve been slacking. and all of the rest of you... you’d better return before you’re made to return.

they go, but they’re not done, not by a long shot.

they don’t go back to work.

orpheus cannot sing, but he is still a poet, and the workers have their voices too

the bristling unrest of Hadestown begins to develop into protests, and the protests turn into riots.

orpheus can craft all the words eurydice needs to say with her spirited and powerful voice, to hit every point to cause uprisings and to stab every point to whittle hades down

hades notices things are beginning to go wrong. machine malfunctions, damaged, outright broken; strikes, sit-ins. rolling blackouts. eurydice and orpheus come back and back, with more and more workers, the ones they led out from the beyond and the ones from the factories and mines, always to demand: let us go. 

and hades grows only more calloused and bitter. you failed your test, you don't get second chances. Players who break the rules are banned from play. 

and every time they turn back, back to their increased workloads and their stricter overseers and their hope now stretching thin, and their anger growing more

ok back to me writing: but enough pushing, and even the overseers are beginning to turn.

the furies, infamous guardswomen and union busters, are doing their best to do damage control. and they are fierce. they are vicious, nearly (but not quite) as bad as kampê, and there are three of them--but then there are only three of them, and they cannot possibly control every single instance of revolt when the ball gets rolling

eurydice and orpheus are now the leaders of rebellion, and both of them are marked for banishment. they have to run from god-king hades and stay out of the unrelenting sights of the Furies.

(and this also means they can’t work or the foremen still on hades’ side might turn em in. so they catch a break and a nap, finally, jesus christ)

but.

there is trouble (For hades) in the fact that kampê has practically gone missing. no matter how many are sent to the Beyond, now there is no one to stop them from just... making the trip back. sure. it takes a long time. about a week or so of walking, but they just... come back.

hades takes notice. hades visits the Beyond for the first time in so long and tries to find her, to no avail. the Beyond is far changed than when he last saw it and he does not have the time to spend to find her--he cannot step away from his children for more than a few hours, lest something go wrong again. this is just another inconvenience on his long, long list.

@lookoutitsregan: “they're legally allowed to leave after 15 minutes”

orpheus and eurydice will be dealt with by himself, and so they run--avoid him as much as they can, hide under his radar

by the words of unholy-boi: hades will not let go of his empire so easily. the building pressure only makes him clench his fists tighter, bend his back further, push further to his own breaking point (and towards everyone else’s). 

he’s more likely to go down screaming that he isn’t, more likely to cling hard and furious to his city, push his workers into the dirt and further lose persephone in the process, the further this goes, the more against him, the more likely he is to furiously, dangerously fight back. 

as summer turns late, hadestown doesn’t soften like hades may have had it for persephone in years long since past, hadestown turns from city to warzone

ok back to me again

for the songbirds: there’s the riots and them narrowly escaping hades like all the damn time while he pushes everyone else to their limits

and yet they refuse to be pushed and usurp their foremen as fast as he reinstates things

revolutions usually have unifying symbols of a sort, and the many isolated revolts do eventually coalesce into this all being an outright revolution--a workers’ movement, if you will.

the red carnation. though they don’t have it, they all remember seeing in orpheus’ hand before he was banished--the one solid sliver of the aboveground anyone saw in a long time

@s-aint-elmo: the red carnation becomes their symbol--though they don’t have it, they paint it in hidden alleyways and abandoned factory walls. they have red paper flowers and red cloth tucked into pockets and tool belts

or the red of some banner that waves in the acrid smoke-wind of hadestown’s false air fronts

flowers, painted and made and substituted, are cropping up all over hadestown, and in increasingly more obvious spots. life is blooming in the underground for the first time in so long

OH ALSO, another fun layer of symbolism with the red cloths:

in the staging of actual hadestown, when orpheus sings "and they're gonna bend their branches down and lay their fruit upon the ground; the almond and the apple, the sugar and the maple" the ensemble is on the tables, reaching over eurydice like tree branches in a sort of ^ formation; on "almond" and "apple," the first two layers pull out and dangle white cloth, but on "sugar from the maple," the dude at the top dangles a red one and drops it into eurydice's hands

so there’s that!

also being the bounty of spring above...... rejecting the underworld. some shit like that

in a musical there’d definitely be a sort of revolution song

like uhhh... Why We Build the Wall II. it’s Different this time. it’s not about the circular logic of the wall, it’s about rebelling against the order hades has set for them

There’s so many lines that can be drawn from elsewhere in the musical to be inserted into this

Why do we build the wall, my brothers, my sisters?

He said the wall would bring us peace, the wall would keep out the enemy.

mister hades set us free to work ourselves into the ground. a lot of souls have gotta die to make the underworld go round.

why are we digging out own graves for a living, if we're free tell me why we can't even stand upright?

some sort of rebellion/callback against “who are you to think that you can hold your head up higher than your fellow man?”

i’m gonna count to three, and then i’ll raise my head, singin’, one, two--!

(except they probably finish the count in this one)

also, because i am weak for really great chords being belted out by a big chorus and hearing every voice part slot together, because this is a revolution song with lots of people i think it should have that

everybody 👏knows 👏the 👏walls 👏have 👏ears 👏

thank u supercanteloupe & s-aint-elmo for ur additions on this

the fates’ voices still carry on the wind, hadestown’s false air fronts of stale and acrid air, but orpheus and eurydice have since learned to turn their backs to it

ALSO? Flags

with the revolution coming to span A Really Big Chunk of hadestown, most likely more than half, there’d probably be people putting up flags and banners

i’m just like, inspired by the imagery of the flag raisings in wwii and post-9/11, and also i’m thinking of les mis/french revolution in general not gonna lie

sure, the Furies are union-busters and come after any sign of revolution, but every revolution is a fight against something. there’s always blood spilled, what different is this one?

they can’t be everywhere at once and they’re not like the Fates--they get tired, they’re not omnipresent and omniscient, the people are not powerless

the flag is supposed to attract attention, the point is to be loud

and by god, they are screaming

this is what a steel mill looks like at night. hadestown was sort of already in a hazy blaze, but combo this with a revolution in its midst, with fighting and fire, and... well, it’s a mess

and through all the flames are the carnations blooming, painted and carved on walls and smokestacks and pathways

(it’s very poetic)

(tumblr will kill this post if i link to the source directly, so. photo taken by DragonWolfACe @ deviantart)

hermes still ferries on the train, but the schedule is all out of whack thanks to the strikes and riots turning the systems upside down. he witnesses plenty of the mess that hadestown has fallen into, and the fight the songbirds are fighting

he relays as much news as he can to persephone

(thanks @damondaunnodyke​ for helping write this bit w/ seph)

persephone... worries

she already snuck underground to help them once and a hurricane ravaged the Top for her absence. the songbirds have escaped, and now have to fight this fight for themselves--she can’t go back down to help them, because she has to bring the summertime to the Top, and she refuses to be the cause of another storm

so she’s stuck aboveground. 

and she’s uhh. stressing. drinking. worrying.

everyone can tell there’s something off, but she doesn’t want to dwell on it, insisting that everyone else should just focus on the good times. let me tell ya something that my mama said to me...

she tries to not stress--there’s nothing she can do right now, why worry, you know? unless she wants to get more gray hairs than she’s already got

but during one of those celebrations she almost says “let the poet bless this round!” before catching herself, remembering that she’s... not there

a lot of people give her a glance; why’d she stop?

but she picks herself back up again, only a moment's falter, and just toasts to life and summer

the end of summer.

the revolution rages on. it’s not calmed down--the very opposite, in fact, more ferocious than ever

(and thanks unholy-boi for basically writing this bit for me HBGFHG)

persephone knows something is wrong when the train isn’t early--isn’t on time, but in fact late to pick her up. the summer has stretched on longer than it should, and in some ways, that is just as dangerous as the winter going on for too long

hades has been getting ready to bring her home. it takes browbeating and strongarming to get the trains running, far too late for his liking.

at last the train comes for her, and when it is hermes who offers his hand to bring her onboard, she knows that things in the underworld are bad--an inferno, dangerous if not dire, and she wonders if the songbirds are still alive, or if they’ve gone and the revolution still rages without them

hades aches for his wife, but he dares not step away from hadestown for a moment. he’s become obsessed and absolutely determined to quell, to crush this rebellion

hades is breaking, but refuses to bend, hades has refrains where he refuses to sing but slips into poetry and catches himself halfway through, hades is breaking, he puts in people he believes he can trust and they turn on him out of desperation, hades is running out of places to desperately hold and he is breaking. hadestown is oblivion. hades is wearing a crown that mangled his head.

persephone steps off of the train, and is taken aback by the state hadestown is in

 the people feel her breeze in, and it is some relief, but the can’t tell how this will change things. if it’ll make things worse, if it’ll make it better

people ask for her aid; but she’s too busy looking around, trying to find the songbirds (after getting confirmation that they’re still alive) who are still hiding

and she finds them. she sees orpheus and eurydice (orpheus, who hades so clearly saw himself in, and eurydice, who she sees herself in) still fighting, still in love.

she sees hades’ mercilessness to the boy he sees himself in. she sees eurydice’s unending determination (in contrast to her own grown apathy) 

and she’s reminded of times before. song or no song.

she decides that this cannot keep going, and hades will keep going farther and farther until he fucking self-destructs at the end of his fall and she wants to catch him before that happens

hades raises his fist against his people, persephone takes his hand and she starts singing. the old song. holding his hand. protecting the people. 

la, la la la, la la la 

and he realizes what he’s doing, as music swells, as the rest of hadestown, quietly, starts to join her in singing. as her warmth, her natural warmth, surrounds him, and he smells flowers and feels pollen and sunlight, and he--

well, the ice around his heart starts to crack, and the iron starts to melt

she catches him before he breaks

His Kiss, the Riot is... different

more emotionally charged, i think, because of the fight he’s been fighting for so long, so fiercely and ardently. he’s much more emotionally compromised, stressed and strung out and now everything’s been turned on his head

he can’t just let them go, but he can’t make them stay. he definitely cannot make them stay. and if the songbirds leave, they will take almost all of hadestown with them

it’s not like... Hellfire Notre Dame levels of dramatic. it’s still quiet, dark, and brooding, but hades is. more of a mess, really

but he comes to his conclusion all the same

that’s about all i got on this. i just wanted to make a note. i thought it was important

the task is given: they can walk, but eurydice must walk in front, and orpheus must follow behind. she must not turn behind to see if orpheus is following--if he has not collapsed, and she will not be able to hear if he has. if she turns, she may return above, but her lover will return to hadestown. 

it’s given to eurydice instead because while she might be harder to instill doubt in, she’s as much susceptible to loneliness as any other. she may have been alone for so long, but she is desperate to not be alone again. and orpheus is still weak--still sick, and she fears he might give out before they reach the top, as much as he assures her he’ll be fine

and if they fail, well, they keep the poet, who was damned to hell anyway--a sentence is stronger than a contract

(Also, this is now Wait For Me III (the first being Orpheus on the way to Hadestown; second being Eurydice trying to find Orpheus; this is the third) and it is HUGE and GRAND, as the climax of the revolution. just as big, if not bigger than the bway version’s

(tho as per usual it’s tinged with sadness because of the circumstances, and the fact that, if this were staged, orpheus would be the only one not singing)

and then... doubt comes in

eurydice walks the path to the surface

hermes' warnings echo in her head, all the same he gave to orpheus in the normal timeline

it's cold

the fates badger her and bleed into her thoughts, systematically unwinding her confidence as she marches on through the dark

one foot after the other, she tells herself

after so long of turning her back to the wind, to the fates, she has learned to keep her head on straight

orpheus is not sturdy, especially now, but he is not so weak to fail on a walk like this--long, but simple, and upon even ground

he is there, she tells herself. he is strong enough to keep up.

his heart is strong enough. it has to be.

hades lied to everyone in the underground--hades lied to make hadestown, she thinks

hades...

just this once--

she chooses to believe he didn't lie to her.

(pt. i) (pt. ii) (pt. iii) (pt. v) (epilogue) (askblog)

bonus:

[theloniousbach]

A Listener’s Journal, #22: The Piano Trio in the 1950s

As I reminisce about my 50 years of hearing music, I go back even further, another five years or so, to a huge one.  The Oscar Peterson Trio (with Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen) opened (?!?!) for the New Christy Minstrels (@#$%*@) at UMKC where my Dad taught.  I was drawn to the music and ended up sitting behind the PA column onstage (I felt at home and I was a cute enough kid).  It was magic. The Canadiana Suite was an early album and Ed Thigpen gave me some drumsticks I have to this day.  And, piano-bass-drums is my basic unit, my entry point.  Miles is a formative hero, but perhaps because of that, I've been slow to get to know other trumpeters.  Tenor is the horn I know best but it's not necessary.  Piano-bass-drums is enough, thank you very much.

Bill Evans with Scott LaFaro and Paul Motian is a pinnacle, sure.  I also gravitated to Peterson, but he was already Oscar Peterson with album after album of great playing when I started buying him. Until this exercise, I never heard him (or Ahmad Jamal or Errol Garner) do the things that commanded that level of attention.

So I started with the three "Amazing" Bud Powell albums, then went to the Jamal at the Pershing album, then Garner By the Sea, and, a great new fine, a collection of Oscar Peterson recordings from 1949-1951 with Ray Brown or Major Helley. Garner was, I arrogantly thought, flashy and commercial, though the complete By the Sea release and another archival concert plus Christian Sands revival efforts prepared me for this exercise.  Jamal's influence on Miles won major points, but I didn't explore much beyond a Greatest Hits (on Impulse) album--but he seemed slighter some how even if what I was supposed to listen for was precisely the spaces. The Bud Powell I had was at the Massey Hall Concert (okay, he's the pianist you call for such a gig) and with Mingus at Antibes when that band intriguingly didn't have a pianist unless it was Charles himself.

All this to say, they were revered names but I didn't (and still don't) know them in all the subtleties I know Evans.  Or Monk.  He is in a category all his own, except I should do a different but similar exercise with Monk, Elmo Hope, Herbie Nichols, and possibly Sonny Clark.  And I'm not going to get to Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones, and Cedar Walton.  I've got a fair sense of the trio work of Miles' pianists Red Garland and Wynton Kelly.  So this project can happily metastasize.

For now, pianists known more, if not exclusively, for trio work than accompaniment and therefore for burning the format on our/my ears. One last digression though is about Art Tatum who is a huge influence on these men.  My folks had a two record set of him playing solo versions of gems from the Songbook.  They were overwhelming Chopinesque ornamentations and all of them have those chops and deploy them in lieu of the horns.  But Tatum tires me out.

Powell, particularly on the relatively early Amazing albums, ain't shy about calling attention all he can do, but if he's the bebop pianist, the one who could play on Parker at that level, I hear that level of melodic invention.  And melody is what I'm gravitating to in Parker's playing and bebop chords are means to that end and not ends in themselves.  These are shortish pieces given recording conventions of the time, so there is a concision that polishes it all too.  Powell has more than enough power and speed, but I'm struck how it simply adds to the heft of playing.  Part of that heft is the bebopper's, certainly Parker's, grounding in the blues. As with all these players, the Great American Songbook is another key jumping off place, a rich lode to explore.  Powell, particularly here when there's promise not its tragic loss, is so inventive, so compelling.  He certainly played in larger ensembles, so he stands slightly apart from these others.  But I think that's true of his piano work too and his influence is broader than the piano-bass-drums ensemble.

Garner, on the other hand, is almost the quintessential piano trio leader.  He has chops and ideas to carry a band.  There's lots to listen to and I do disavow the flashy/commercial snap judgment, but I do think his impact is on pianists than the music as a whole.  He is flashy and winning.  The detail to explain away is "Misty" which is one of the most compelling and oft recorded standards.  With this exception and Jamal's "Poinciana," these men are not known as composers.  But, if we just immediately elevate "Misty" to the Great American Songbook then he--and one strong thread of the genre, think Bill Charlap--is a stylist and champion of these tunes.  Together, they contribute to a popularity that is too easy to dismiss.  I have though dismissed him and so welcome this exercise that will put him in play when I want to get back to some basics.

I expected to hear lots of overlap of tunes with Jamal, but they just make different choices from the standard repertoire.  I don't read too much in which Gershwin or Porter each chooses--and it's not that I prefer Jamal's choices.  But, I simply prefer Jamal's approach and see a wider influence than Garner has.  It's not just Miles, but that space just opens up possibilities.  With the band, Israel Crosby and Vernell Fourier have room that Garner doesn't allow Eddie Calhoun and Denzil Best (interesting that all of them, except Best, are better known for their work in these bands than elsewhere).  There's a "Cherokee" where all three lead an uptempo verse, but each chorus slows into lush ensemble playing.  Throughout there are gorgeous chords and fluid lines that build often slowly.  He/they show us nifty facets of these treasured tunes.  If "Misty" confounds my notion of Garner as an interpreter, not a composer, then "Ahmad's Blues" makes the assertion that Jamal (and Garner too) are not as bluesy as Powell or certainly Peterson.  But I think that's mostly true--and I like how Jamal lets tunes unfold without the drive of a blues shuffle.

As I've said, Oscar Peterson had a wonderful impact on my very young ears  His trio had a huge sound and an insistent often bluesy pulse.  He could hit big chords, block or trilled arpeggios, to culminate a solo or part thereof, that knocked you back.  Yes, there was Tatumesque flash but that drive was always present and kept things going and focused.  What makes the "Debut: Clef/Mercury Duo Recordings 1949-1951" set such a treasure is that it was all there at the beginning, including when Norman Granz just happens (yeah right) notice that he's in the audience at a Jazz at the Philharmonic concert and asks him to play, thus getting around work permits (Peterson was from Toronto).  The chords, the fluid ideas, the taste (he too is all over the Great American Song Book--and had I not found these recordings I might well have written about late 1950s collections of "Oscar Peterson Plays the Songs of [Tin Pan Alley Composer]."  I will still happily explore them too, but this will be my go to Peterson for a long time.).  It's the proper mix of flash and taste. 

Much as I appreciate Powell's edge, Oscar pulls that back a notch but just brings more ideas to the table than Garner.  Jamal is for a different mood, but it's a mood to indulge.

I want to relook at Parker in terms of melodic invention and Powell will be part of that deepening of what I can absorb from bebop.  I can see other explorations of the piano-bass-drums ensemble in formation (Nichols/Hope/Clark or Garland/Kelly or Tommy Flanagan, maybe Horace Silver (I don't even know if there are trio albums), 

But I'll be spending much more time with Peterson's duo and Songbook albums and Ahmad Jamal across the decades.(he has a wonderful very recent solo album "Ballades" that was an impetus for this little exercise).

[myhahnestopinion]

THE AARONS 2018 - Best TV Show

I stated last year that 2017 was the year Peak TV broke me, with too many shows spread across too many services, with many more on their way. 2018 was the year I learned to let go of the fact that I will never be able to watch every show, and to just be content with all the great shows I was able to catch. Here are the Aarons for Best TV Show:

#10. Barry (Season 1) – HBO

A simple premise that could initially be dismissed as prestige TV’s over-fascination with anti-heroes mixed with Hollywood’s over-fascination with itself, Bill Hader’s dark-comedy about a hitman who moves to LA to pursue an acting career quickly develops into a complex examination of post-war PTSD, a deconstruction of television tropes, and, simultaneously, just one of the funniest shows of the year. With veteran comedic talent like Henry Winkler and surprising break-outs like Anthony Carrigan to bolster a firing-on-all-cylinders Bill Hader as the titular character, Barry says “Yes, and…” to every opportunity to mix its hilarity with harrowing content to pitch-perfect results. While the premise, which feels dangerously close to slipping into Dexter territory by season’s end, may end up unsustainable at this level of quality, for now, Barry is a sure-fire hit, man.

#9. Dear White People (Season 2) – Netflix

More than weathering the backlash to its misnomer title, as well as the political climate that feeds into that backlash, Dear White People channels all that rage, frustration, misunderstanding, and fear into an oft-livid, oft-cathartic, and always witty season of television. Funny while never losing its firm focus, the most amusing aspect of Dear White People is perhaps the absolute joke it makes of the idea “diversity of thought” is mutually exclusive from “diversity of people” through the deft writing of its exceptional ensemble cast, who take turns shining in episodes that range from a groovy neo-noir mystery to an emotionally-eruptive bottle episode, culminating in an intriguing cliffhanger that suggests Dear White People has plenty left to address.

#8. Daredevil (Season 3) – Netflix

Just as Wilson Fisk clawed his way back up to being the King of Crime throughout the third season of the superhero drama, Daredevil clawed its way back up to the King of the Marvel-Netflix collaborations (and back onto this list following its nod all the way back in the 2015 Aarons) with a storyline based on the acclaimed “Born Again” comic-book run. While the show continues to have significant failings (including, most egregiously, the literal fridging of a female character in this latest batch of episodes), it’s easy for viewers to become blinded to them thanks to the chemistry of its main trio of friends, its renewed fixation on weighty thematic content, and, of course, its impressive fight sequences, including most notably the now-requisite one-take fight sequence that takes the form of an expansive prison riot this go-round. While the series has now been cancelled, solace can at least be found in the fact the show underwent such a creative rebirth before its untimely demise.

#7. American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace (Season 2) – FX

Ryan Murphy’s anthology series may have been working with less well-known true-crime material in its second outing, but the resulting exploration of the sinister systemic forces that influence such shocking stories is no less resonant. True-crime has several difficult hurdles to clear to not feel like cheap exploitation, and American Crime Story strikes the right balance to its appropriately disturbing portrayal of the heinous acts by framing them through the devastating impact they have, not only on the direct victims, but on the whole of a society more concerned with reinforcing homophobic power structures than with the pain and horror such structures produce. The season’s reverse-chronological structure not only makes for compelling storytelling, but seems perfectly suited for the way in which the series traces the sins of America’s modern day to the crimes of its past, creating impactful television.

#6. Supergirl (Season 3b-4a) – CW

Supergirl’s continually-increasing confidence and complexity has sent the series soaring to new heights with its pointed fourth season, which distills its obvious real-world political influences into an effectively universal rumination on the insidious nature of bigotry, the trials of public perceptions, and the necessity of hope. It remains to be seen whether Supergirl can stick the landing with its lofty ambitions, which deserve appreciation regardless, but grounding its dynamic superhero storytelling in the inspirational performance of lead Melissa Benoist, as well as a further push for inclusivity with the introduction of television’s first transgender superhero Dreamer, makes for television that is quite super, girl.

Hey, it’s my awards show. Let me pun.

#5. Better Call Saul (Season 4) – AMC

Better Call Saul’s fourth season appeared to reach a breaking point in regard to its overlap in cast, stories, and timeline with its parent show, it’s an aspect that could be read as a significant flaw or as the greatest strength of a great season. It’s easy to lament the loss of the quirky lawyer comedy the show was in its earlier episodes, but this mourning is perhaps reflective of the soul-wrenching moral descent of Jimmy McGill, spiraling harder and faster in wake of last season’s tragic ending. It’s painful in all the right ways watching the excellent cast lead their characters to fates both known and unknown, making for a momentous (and still endearingly offbeat) season of television that recalls the finest moments of Breaking Bad, but just might be arguably better.

#4. BoJack Horseman (Season 5) – Netflix

In a series renowned for its gut-punches, the underlying message of BoJack Horseman’s fifth season might be the most difficult to grapple with: No amount of regret, good intentions, or tragic backstories excuses BoJack or entitles him to a happy ending. But that’s no reason not to continue to seek healing. Netflix’s animated adventures of anthropomorphic animals continues to be one of the most important and affecting examinations of toxic relationships, mental illness, and the cycles of abuse in art. The fifth season’s added meta-narrative allows the show to deconstruct the uncomfortability of its own representations, and the toxicity in its own fanbase. At a time when questions of abuse and reconciliation not just in Hollywood, but everywhere, rage in our cultural consciousness, BoJack Horseman provides a powerful way to grapple with these issues… and make them digestible through its quick-witted wordplay, visual gags, and general horsing around, as always. 

#3. Legends of Tomorrow (Season 3b-4a) – CW

If you were to travel back in time to just a few years ago, it would feel unbelievable how big the CW’s interconnected superhero universe has become... and that DC’s Legends of Tomorrow would lead the pack in quality. However, the once middling show really went the extra mile in spicing things up. Sending a talking, telepathic gorilla back in time to kidnap a young Barrack Obama? Combining elemental energies to form an enlarged Tickle-Me-Elmo rip-off named Beebo to take down a Time Demon? Having your Time Demon played by classical actor John Noble, and then having an episode in which the characters travel back in time to the set of the Lord of the Rings movies to record the voice of John Noble, playing Denathor, playing himself in order to trick a character into believing that John Noble’s John Noble voice is in fact the voice of John Noble’s Time Demon character?? It’s hard to believe that these episodes exist in any show, let alone all of them (and so much more) in one. This zany energy, accentuated by a game cast and an embrace of its misfit nature, reflected in the character’s diversity in both backgrounds and powers, have allowed the show to finally rightfully claim the title of legendary. 

#2. Atlanta (Season 2) – FX

Much like the last entry on this list, it’s impossible to know what to expect when one sits down to watch the latest episode of Donald Glover’s uncanny comedy Atlanta, which, when it first appeared on this list two years ago, was aptly described as like a never-ending Christmas. Whether banding together its group of rising comedic talent (including Zazie Beetz, Brian Tyree Henry, and Lakeith Stanfield) or spinning them off into their own madcap adventures, Atlanta continued to surprise and stupefy in style in its sophomore outing. Once again weaving insightful socio-economic commentary into sitcom premises cranked up to ten and funneled through an idiosyncratic vision, Atlanta’s quality remained as lush and bold as evergreen lantana.

That one’s not really a pun, but, again, this is my awards show, so no one can stop me.

AND THE BEST TV SHOW OF 2018 IS...

#1. The Good Place (Season 3) – NBC

When The Good Place began, it was met with a caution concerning its long term sustainability, but in its now third season, the show’s penchant for blowing up its own premise at every opportunity can be clearly seen as the confident strokes of a long-gestating story. Even within its absurd afterlife of bizarre predilections and oddball characters, the show never loses sight of its stirring humanistic core, which found new resonance in an inspirational third season premise that provides hope and happiness in the seemingly most dire of circumstances. While, as of this writing, it remains to be seen in what ways the show might again radically alter its make-up heading into the confirmed fourth season, but, based on the bonzer quality of the entire show thus far, it might be time to start considering that we’ve all been in the Good Place this whole time.

NEXT UP: THE 2018 AARONS FOR BEST TV EPISODE!

[uncannyvalley-fic]

Last One Standing, Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“Um, not that we’re not thrilled to be part of… whatever this is,” Ember says as the hipsters lead the way out of Ace of Cups, “but you haven’t really told us who you are.”

The tallest one stops, and the others, as though they were beads on a string, crash into him.  He whirls around. “My goodness, you’re right!  I am Enos DuFray, and I am the leader singer and lead guitarist of the band, and we are called Barstow & Daughters.”

Ember scans the group. “... and daughters?”

“Yeah, none of us have daughters,” the guy with the gold-rimmed glasses says.

“We got the name out of a band generator on the internet,” Bowler Hat adds.

“I hear all the best bands do,” Ember says.

In short order Enos introduces the rest of the band: Keegan (Bowler Hat), Gustav (gold-rimmed glasses), Downton Abbey (a skinny guy with a British flag tattoo and a handlebar mustache), Elmo (wearing shorts with suspenders), and Jefferson City (whose entire outfit, including the scrunchie around his man bun, is navy).

“And you are?” Downton Abbey says, leaning in while he twirls his mustache.

“Oh!  I’m Ember, and this is Mr. Zephyr,” Ember says.

“And apparently, we’re your new roadies,” Mr. Zephyr says dryly.

“Awesome.  First order of business is to get our truck up to the fairgrounds,” Enos says.

“You guys… can’t drive?”

“No,” Gustav says.

“None of you can drive?” Ember repeats.

“How did you get to be fully-functional adults?” Mr. Zephyr asks, incredulous.

“Hey, man, there are plenty of places with expansive public transit systems,” Jefferson City says.

“Of course,” Mr. Zephyr allows.

“Uh, well, okay.  Where is your truck?” Ember asks.

“It’s down some dirt road,” Enos says.  He turns around and points. “Over… there.”

“We’ll go… sort that out,” Ember says, looking at Mr. Zephyr, who nods in agreement.

They walk for a bit in the general direction Enos pointed, away from Ace of Cups and over a ridge just beyond the park, making their way down a small hill into the forest beyond.  There’s no truck - and no sign of any dirt road -, but Ember stops short as he sees what’s in a small clearing below town.

“Is that… a spaceship?” Mr. Zephyr asks, panting just a little as he comes up behind Ember.

“I think… I think it is,” Ember says, and they stand there, mouths open, staring at the giant spacecraft in the middle of a newly-cleared area of the forest.

Jo takes a chocolate chip cookie from the catering table and wanders over to look at the giant bracket posted listing all of the bands and the configurations for the “battles,” and, not for the first time, thinks how absolutely seriously Beckett seems to take something so mundane as a series of concerts by nobody bands.

Nobody bands with wild names.  Jo has never heard of any of them, but their names are things of beauty.  The first match-up is between In Meat and The Alpine Fertility Squad.  After that, Orion and the Force Abroad goes head-to-head with Gray Silk Blowtorch.  The names devolve from there, going long into the night, ending with the final pairing of Barstow & Daughters and Leaping Adam and The Absent Justification.  She notes with some satisfaction that the ABBA tribute band Leon’s a part of doesn’t perform until the next morning, when she’ll be back at work.  She doesn’t want to miss Leon’s performance.

From one of the stages comes the sound of an out-of-tune violin, and Jo cranes her head to look at the band.  She isn’t sure if it’s In Meat or The Alpine Fertility Squad, but whoever they are, they sound terrible.

When her cookie’s gone, Jo brushes off her hands and starts patrolling again.  She catches sight of Levi and GaaP every now and then; GaaP seems to have made herself an honorary security guard, and her face lights up as she talks to Levi, bouncing along beside him.  Levi, to his credit, seems genuinely pleased to be walking and talking with GaaP.

Jo makes her way around the field, seeing nothing that needs to be handled by someone in a security role, and is about ready to head back to the VIP tent for a bottle of water when she hears an angry chorus of voices.  She turns towards the sound of a rising argument, weaving through speakers, chairs, tents, and other assorted equipment, and rounds a corner to see two groups facing off, arms waving and voices irritated.  As far as she can see, there’s no actual fisticuffs, but judging from the way the (so-far) verbal combatants are squaring off, it might not be too long before a real fight breaks out.

“Excuse me!” she says loudly, walking directly into the middle of the spat. “What’s going on here?”

Her presence seems to break the flow of the fight, and all of the yelling individuals fall silent.  At last one of them, a tall, statuesque woman with a hawk-like glint to her eyes, says, “Just a bit of a misunderstanding.”

Before Jo can query as to how a “misunderstanding” turns into a yell-fest, a short man in what looks like a majorette costume barks out, “Oh, yeah, Juliet?  It was a misunderstanding that you stole our bass player?”

“Hey, I didn’t hear him put up much of an argument,” the hawk woman - Juliet - replies, holding up both of her hands.

“You drugged him!” the majorette man spits.

“We gave him two bottles of Heineken.  Don’t be such a drama queen, Paolo,” one of Juliet’s band-mates, a similarly tall man in obscenely short lederhosen, says, rolling his eyes.

“And where is he now?” Paolo demands, spreading his arms wide as his voice rises dramatically. “In prison!”

“Not because of the Heineken, you moron,” Juliet says. “He was dealing meth - something he started, by the way, when he was with your group.”

“Okay, let’s take a bit of a time out here,” Jo says, waving her arms to motion the two groups a little further apart. “Obviously tensions are running high.”

“You can say that again,” Paolo mutters.

“Is there some way we can resolve this matter?” Jo asks, looking from Juliet and Lederhosen Man to Paolo.

“You can find us a bass player,” a woman standing next to Paolo says.

“Okay, see, now, that’s progress,” Jo says. “I think there’s a bulletin board over by the food booths where local musicians are posting their numbers and information for any of the bands to contact them for help.  Why don’t you start there?”

Paolo nods begrudgingly.

“Is there anything you need?” Jo asks, turning to Juliet.

“Just for these guys to leave us alone,” Juliet says.

“Don’t you need a bass player too?”

“No - Morrow can play bass too.  We used to be a bass-heavy band, now we’re just bass-light,” Juliet answers.

“Oh.  Uh, well, great.” Jo scans the groups. “I don’t want to have to eject either of these bands from the competition, so keep it together, okay?”

Everyone gathered around her nods a bit sheepishly.

“Awesome.  Get in touch with the security staff if there are any more issues.”

Jo waits until she sees both bands disperse before she leaves the area.  She sees Levi and GaaP moving towards the far-off stage at the end of the event grounds and turns to make her way back to the front of the field to start patrolling again.

Behind her, the out-of-tune violin starts playing “Musetta’s Waltz.”

Mary and Leon arrive at the Battle of the Bands (and Pancake Breakfast) a little after four in the afternoon.  Leon’s quickly swept up into the joyous embrace of his fellow ABBA tribute band members - three adorable older ladies in similarly eye-catching spandex jumpsuits - and Mary’s left on her own.

She takes a leisurely stroll around the festival, hoping to catch sight of Jo or any of her other friends.  Instead she sees ensembles of all kinds preparing themselves for performances.  An all-trombone quintet rehearses in a quiet nook, a band that seems to be made up entirely of pairs of twins is practicing dance moves with their instruments to the tune of “Ignition (Remix)” and what looks like bad KISS cosplayers are strumming their mandolins with all the fire and fury of Viking warriors.

Then she catches sight of a group practicing under a small tent rather than on one of the stages, as though their performance isn’t coming up for awhile.  It’s not their music - generously layered acapella - or their outfits - pastel knee-length dresses - that causes Mary to take a second look.  It’s the fact that all of the members of the ensemble are ghosts.

She approaches cautiously, but none of them are paying her any attention.  They’re too focused on their arrangement of “Exes and Ohs.”  She stays a short distance from them, and softly asks Clearwater, “What’s up with that?”

“What, you think ghosts can’t like pop music?” Clearwater asks.

“No, that’s not what I mean,” Mary says. “I’m just confused as to how they managed to… organize themselves.”

Clearwater thinks on that. “We’ve seen ghosts do some remarkable things before.”

“And everyone seems to be treating them like they’re human,” Mary says, noticing a stagehand talking to a member of the ensemble at the side of the practicing singers.

“World’s a weird place,” Clearwater says. “Maybe that guy’s a geist.”

Mary snorts at the near-pun of “guyst.”

The stagehand moves away, checking something off on a clipboard, and Mary continues to watch the ghost girls sing and twirl and two-step-shuffle.  They’re surprisingly good.

“Clearwater, are there any… spells or artifacts that would cause a group of ghosts to seem corporeal?”

“Sure, I bet there’s lots.”

Before Mary can ask any further questions, she hears a voice from behind her. “Mary!  You’re here!”

She turns to see Jo striding towards her, and smiles. “Hi, Jo.  How are you?”

“Ready for a break,” Jo says. “You want to have a girls’ night?”

“That sounds fantastic,” Mary says. “Just you and me, or do you want to invite GaaP and Clementine?”

Jo resists the urge to roll her eyes at the suggestion of Clementine and merely says, “That would be great.  GaaP’s been following Levi around all day, so I’m sure she’ll have lots of great stories to share with us.”

“We’ll get some wine and Chinese food and put on a silly movie,” Mary says.

“Are we going to braid each other’s hair and paint our toenails?” Jo asks with a smirk.

“If the spirit moves us,” Mary says, grinning.

Clementine, her hands still raised in preparation for some sort of attack, turns around slowly.  Standing in the locker room, staff raised like a spear about to be thrown, is the woman she saw outside Ace of Cups.  She’s slender, pale, dark hair brushing her shoulders, clad in a puzzling ensemble of a tunic under a vest, leggings, and some sort of burlap-looking arm wraps.  She sports leather bracelets and a wide leather belt and leather boots that are, to Clementine’s eye, absolutely luscious.

“Okay, so, you’re definitely not with that hipster band,” Clementine says.

“Sorry, what’s a… hipster?”

“Oh, sweetie, I wish I didn’t know,” Clementine says. “Um, could you possibly… lower your weapon?”

The woman jumps, seemingly unaware that she was still holding the staff to Clementine’s throat, and brings it down. “Sorry.  I just… everything here is… new.”

Clementine tilts her head.  There’s something about the woman’s posture, the lines of her face, her voice, and her general appearance that’s incredibly familiar. “Have we met?”

“No, I’m pretty sure I’d remember meeting you.”

“Are you from Beckett?”

“What’s Beckett?”

“Here.  It’s this town.  This incredibly bizarre town.”

“Oh.  No, I’m not from here.”

“Are you here for the Battle of the Bands and Pancake Breakfast?”

“I don’t know what that is.”

“Did you escape from one of the cults on the outskirts of town?”

The woman shakes her head.

“What do you know?” Clementine asks, a little frustrated.

The woman shrugs. “I don’t know.  I think I hit my head when I landed.”

“Okay, so, what’s your name?”

“I don’t know.”

Clementine sighs. “Yeah, of course no one who just walks into this town is going to be normal.”

She holds out her hand. “I’m Clementine.  It’s nice to meet you… whoever you are.”

The woman shakes her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Clementine.”

“We need to give you a name,” Clementine says. “It’s weird not to have a name.”

She thinks. “How about… Jane?”

“That’s not my name.”

“I know, but you don’t have a name.”

“I’m fairly certain I have a name.  I just can’t remember it.”

“Well, I can’t just take you out of here and introduce you like ‘This is nobody, she has no memories and also dresses like a bag lady.’”

The woman frowns. “What’s a ‘bag lady’?”

Clementine sighs again. “Do you remember any names?”

The woman thinks about this. “I think there was a woman I know named… Amy?”

“Perfect.  You’re Amy.”

“No, I’m not.  I know someone named Amy.  I think.”

Clementine throws up her hands. “You’re impossible.”

“I’m very possible.  I’m standing here.”

Clementine’s phone lets out a chirp, signaling an incoming text message.  She pulls it out. “Oh, great.  An invitation to a girls’ night.  My friends will know what to do with you, okay?”

“You have friends?” The woman raises an eyebrow.

“Yes,” Clementine says, a bit testily. “Is there a problem with that?”

“No,” the woman says, cracking a bit of a smile. “You seem difficult.”

Clementine prepares an angry retort, but the woman continues, “I think I like that.  I think I’m a bit like that too.”

[thephilosopheroftheboudoir]

Elmo Hope Ensemble

Groovin’ High

from the lp Sounds from Rikers Island

[blackkudos]

Donald Byrd

Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture "Donald" Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter.

A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was best known as one of the only bebop jazz musicians who successfully pioneered the funk and soul genres while simultaneously remaining a jazz artist.

As a bandleader, Byrd is also notable for his influential role in the early career of keyboard player and composer Herbie Hancock.

Biography

Early life and career

Byrd attended Cass Technical High School. He performed with Lionel Hampton before finishing high school. After playing in a military band during a term in the United States Air Force, Byrd obtained a bachelor's degree in music from Wayne State University and a master's degree from Manhattan School of Music. While still at the Manhattan School, he joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, as replacement for Clifford Brown. In 1955, he recorded with Gigi Gryce Jackie McLean and Mal Waldron. After leaving the Jazz Messengers in 1956, he performed with many leading jazz musicians of the day, including John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Thelonious Monk, and later Herbie Hancock.

Byrd's first regular group was a quintet that he co-led from 1958 to 1961 with baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams, an ensemble whose hard-driving performances are captured "live" on At the Half Note Cafe.

Byrd's 1961 LP Royal Flush marked the Blue Note debut of Hancock, who came to wider attention with Byrd's successful 1962 album Free Form, and these albums also featured the first recordings of Hancock's original compositions. Hancock has credited Byrd as a key influence in his early career, recounting that he took the young pianist "under his wings" when he was a struggling musician newly arrived in New York, even letting him sleep on a hide-a-bed in his Bronx apartment for several years

"He was the first person to let me be a permanent member of an internationally known band. He has always nurtured and encouraged young musicians. He's a born educator, it seems to be in his blood, and he really tried to encourage the development of creativity".

Hancock also recalled that Byrd helped him in many other ways: he encouraged Hancock to make his debut album for Blue Note, connected him with Mongo Santamaria, who turned Hancock's tune "Watermelon Man" into a chart-topping hit, and that Byrd also later urged him to accept Miles Davis' offer to join his quintet.

Hancock also credits Byrd with giving him one of the most important pieces of advice of his career – not to give away his publishing. When Blue Note offered Hancock the chance to record his first solo LP, label executives tried to convince him to relinquish his publishing in exchange for being able to record the album, but he stuck to Byrd's advice and refused, so the meeting came to an impasse. At this point, he stood up to leave and when it became clear that he was about to walk out, the executives relented and allowed him to retain his publishing. Thanks to Santamaria's subsequent hit cover version of "Watermelon Man", Hancock was soon receiving substantial royalties, and he used his first royalty check of $3000 to buy his first car, a 1963 Shelby Cobra (also recommended by Byrd) which Hancock still owns, and which is now the oldest production Cobra still in its original owner's hands.

In June 1964, Byrd played with Eric Dolphy in Paris just two weeks before Dolphy's death from insulin shock.

Electric Byrd

By 1969's Fancy Free, Byrd was moving away from the hard bop jazz idiom and began to record jazz fusion and rhythm and blues. He teamed up with the Mizell Brothers (producer-writers Larry and Fonce) for Black Byrd (1973) which was, for many years, Blue Note's best-selling album. The title track climbed to No. 19 on Billboard′s R&B chart and reached the Hot 100 pop chart, peaking at No. 88. The Mizell brothers' follow-up albums for Byrd, Street Lady, Places and Spaces and Stepping into Tomorrow, were also big sellers, and have subsequently provided a rich source of samples for acid jazz artists such as Us3. Most of the material for the albums was written by Larry Mizell.

In 1973, he helped to establish and co-produce the Blackbyrds, a fusion group consisting of then-student musicians from Howard University, where Byrd taught in the music department and earned his J.D. in 1976. They scored several major hits including "Happy Music" (No. 3 R&B, No. 19 pop), "Walking in Rhythm" (No. 4 R&B, No. 6 pop) and "Rock Creek Park".

During his tenure at North Carolina Central University during the 1980s, he formed a group which included students from the college called the "125th St NYC Band". They recorded the Love Byrd album, which featured Isaac Hayes on drums. "Love Has Come Around" became a disco hit in the UK and reached No. 41 on the charts.

Beginning in the 1960s, Byrd (who eventually gained his PhD in music education from Teachers College, Columbia University in 1982) taught at a variety of postsecondary institutions, including Rutgers University, the Hampton Institute, New York University, Howard University, Queens College, Oberlin College, Cornell University, North Carolina Central University and Delaware State University. Byrd returned to somewhat straight-ahead jazz later in his career, releasing three albums for Orrin Keepnews' Landmark Records, and his final album Touchstone, a quintet.

Byrd died on February 4 2013 in Dover, Delaware. He was 80.

Discography

As leaderTransition Records

Byrd Jazz (1955) – also released as First Flight (Delmark)

Byrd's Eye View (1955)

Byrd Blows on Beacon Hill (1956)

The Transition Sessions (2002 compilation)

Prestige Records

2 Trumpets (1956) – with Art Farmer

The Young Bloods (1956) – with Phil Woods

Verve Records

At Newport (1957) – with Gigi Gryce

Up with Donald Byrd (1964)

Columbia Records

Jazz Lab (1957) – with Gigi Gryce

Modern Jazz Perspective (1957) – with Gigi Gryce and Jackie Paris

Blue Note Records

Off to the Races (1959)

Byrd in Hand (1959)

Fuego (1959)

Byrd in Flight (1960)

At the Half Note Cafe (1960)

Chant (1961)

The Cat Walk (1961)

Royal Flush (1961)

Free Form (1961)

A New Perspective (1963)

I'm Tryin' to Get Home (1964)

Mustang (1966)

Blackjack (1967)

Slow Drag (1967)

The Creeper (1967)

Fancy Free (1969)

Electric Byrd (1969–70)

Kofi (1969)

Ethiopian Knights (1971)

Black Byrd (1973)

Street Lady (1973)

Stepping into Tomorrow (1974)

Places and Spaces (1975)

Caricatures (1976)

Elektra Records

Thank You... for F.U.M.L. (Funking Up My Life) (1978)

Donald Byrd And 125th Street, N.Y.C. (1979)

Love Byrd (1981)

Words, Sounds, Colors and Shapes (1983)

Landmark Records

Harlem Blues (1987)

Getting Down to Business (1989)

A City Called Heaven (1991)

Other labels

Byrd's Word (Savoy, 1955)

Jazz Eyes (Regent, 1957) – with John Jenkins

New Formulas from the Jazz Lab (Vik, 1957) with Gigi Gryce

Jazz in Camera (Sonorama, 1958) with Barney Wilen

Jazz Lab (Jubilee, 1958) with Gigi Gryce

Live Au Chat Qui Peche (Fresh Sound, 1958),

Jazz in Paris: Parisian Thoroughfare (Gitanes, 1958)

Jazz in Paris: Byrd in Paris (Gitanes, 1958)

Motor City Scene (Bethlehem, 1960)

Out of This World (Warwick, 1961)

September Afternoon (Discovery, 1982; rec. 1957) – with Clare Fischer and Strings

Touchstone (2000) Pepper Adams, Herbie Hancock, Teddy Charles, Jimmy Cobb

As sideman

1955 George Wallington Live At The Bohemia (Progressive 1955 Prestige 1970)

1955 Kenny Clarke – Bohemia After Dark (Savoy)

1955 Cannonball Adderley – Discoveries

1955 Oscar Pettiford – Another One

1955 Hank Jones – Quartet-Quintet (Savoy)

1955 Hank Jones – Bluebird – one track only

1955 Ernie Wilkins – Top Brass (Savoy)

1956 George Wallington – Jazz for the Carriage Trade

1956 Jackie McLean – Lights Out! (Prestige)

1956 Hank Mobley – The Jazz Message of Hank Mobley (Prestige)

1956 Kenny Clarke – Klook's Clique (Savoy)

1956 Art Blakey – The Jazz Messengers (Columbia)

1956 Art Blakey – Originally

1956 Rita Reys – The Cool Voice of Rita Reys

1956 Elmo Hope – Informal Jazz (Prestige 1956, Elmo Hope The All Star Sessions - Milestone CD)

1956 Phil Woods – Pairing Off (Prestige)

1956 Jackie McLean – 4, 5 and 6 (Prestige)

1956 Gene Ammons – Jammin' with Gene (Prestige)

1956 Horace Silver – Silver's Blue (Epic)

1956 Hank Mobley – Mobley's Message (Prestige)

1956 Hank Mobley – Jazz Message No. 2 (Savoy)

1956 Art Farmer – 2 Trumpets (Prestige)

1956 Paul Chambers – Whims of Chambers (Blue Note)

1956 Phil Woods/Donald Byrd – The Young Bloods (Prestige)

1956 Horace Silver – 6 Pieces of Silver (Blue Note)

1956 Hank Mobley – Hank Mobley Sextet (Blue Note)

1956 Doug Watkins – Watkins at Large (Transition)

1956 Sonny Rollins – Sonny Rollins, Vol. 1 (Blue Note)

1956 Kenny Burrell – All Night Long (Prestige)

1957 Kenny Burrell – All Day Long (Prestige)

1957 Gigi Gryce/Donald Byrd – Jazz Lab (Jubilee)

1957 Art Farmer/Donald Byrd/Idrees Sulieman – Three Trumpets (Prestige)

1957 Lou Donaldson – Wailing with Lou (Blue Note)

1957 Jimmy Smith – A Date with Jimmy Smith Volume One (Blue Note)

1957 Jimmy Smith - A Date with Jimmy Smith Volume Two (Blue Note)

1957 Art Taylor – Taylor's Wailers (Prestige)

1957 Gigi Gryce – Gigi Gryce and the Jazz Lab Quintet (Riverside)

1957 George Wallington – The New York Scene (Prestige)

1957 Various Artists – American Jazzmen Play Andre Hodeir's Essais

1957 Kenny Burrell/Jimmy Raney – 2 Guitars (Prestige)

1957 Kenny Drew – This Is New (Riverside)

1957 Hank Mobley – Hank (Blue Note)

1957 Paul Chambers – Paul Chambers Quintet (Blue Note)

1957 The Gigi Gryce/Donald Byrd Jazz Lab – At Newport – One side of LP which also features Cecil Taylor (Verve)

1957 Gigi Gryce/Donald Byrd – New Formulas from the Jazz Lab

1957 Gigi Gryce/Donald Byrd – Modern Jazz Perspective (Columbia)

1957 Sonny Clark – Sonny's Crib (Blue Note)

1957 John Jenkins – Jazz Eyes (Savoy)

1957 Oscar Pettiford – Winner's Circle

1957 George Wallington – Jazz at Hotchkiss (Savoy)

1957 Red Garland – All Mornin' Long (Prestige)

1957 Red Garland – Soul Junction (Prestige)

1957 Red Garland – High Pressure (Prestige)

1957 Lou Donaldson – Lou Takes Off (Blue Note)

1957 Art Blakey – Art Blakey Big Band (Bethlehem)

1958 John Coltrane – Lush Life – one track only (Prestige)

1958 John Coltrane – The Believer – two tracks (Prestige)

1958 John Coltrane – The Last Trane – two tracks (Prestige)

1958 Johnny Griffin – Johnny Griffin Sextet (Riverside)

1958 Pepper Adams – 10 to 4 at the 5 Spot (Riverside)

1958 John Coltrane – Black Pearls (Prestige)

1958 Michel Legrand – Legrand Jazz

1958 Dizzy Reece – Blues in Trinity (Blue Note)

1958 Art Blakey – Holiday for Skins (Blue Note)

1958 Jim Timmens – Gilbert and Sullivan Revisited

1959 Mundell Lowe – TV Action Jazz!

1959 Jackie McLean – Jackie's Bag 3 tracks (Blue Note)

1959 Thelonious Monk – The Thelonious Monk Orchestra at Town Hall (Riverside)

1959 Chris Connor – Ballads of the Sad Cafe

1959 Sonny Clark – My Conception (Blue Note)

1959 Manny Albam/Teo Macero – Something New, Something Blue

1959 Jackie McLean – New Soil (Blue Note)

1959 Walter Davis Jr. – Davis Cup (Blue Note)

1962 Duke Pearson – Hush! (Jazztime)

1963 Hank Mobley – No Room for Squares (Blue Note)

1963 Jackie McLean Vertigo - released 1980 (Blue Note)

1963 Hank Mobley – Straight No Filter – released 1986 (Blue Note)

1963 Hank Mobley – The Turnaround (Blue Note)

1963 Jimmy Heath – Swamp Seed (Riverside)

1963 Herbie Hancock – My Point of View (Blue Note)

1964 Eric Dolphy – Naima

1964 Eric Dolphy – Last Recordings / Unrealized Tapes

1964 Dexter Gordon – One Flight Up (Blue Note)

1964 Cal Tjader – Soul Sauce (Verve)

1964 Solomon Ilori – African High Life

1964 Duke Pearson – Wahoo! (Blue Note)

1965 Dexter Gordon – Ladybird (SteepleChase)

1965 Wes Montgomery – Goin' Out of My Head

1967 Stanley Turrentine – A Bluish Bag

1967 Sam Rivers – Dimensions & Extensions

1967 Hank Mobley – Far Away Lands (Blue Note)

1977 Gene Harris – Tone Tantrum

1978 Sonny Rollins – Don't Stop the Carnival (Milestone)

1993 Guru – Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1

1994 Various – Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool

1995 Guru – Guru's Jazzmatazz, Vol. 2: The New Reality

1995 Ahmad Jamal – Big Byrd: The Essence Part 2

Wikipedia

[jazzworldquest-blog]

USA: Promising Young Bassist Fabrizio Sciacca Makes His Recording Debut As A Leader With Three New York Veterans On "Getting’ It There"

Promising Young Bassist Fabrizio Sciacca Makes His Recording Debut As A Leader With Three New York Veterans On "Getting’ It There"  

Sciacca performs lesser-known 1960s/1970s gems and three newer pieces with pianist Donald Vega, drummer Billy Drummond and tenor-saxophonist Jed Levy.  

 A bassist with a large tone and a swinging style, Fabrizio Sciacca makes his official debut on Gettin’ It There. Born in Italy and based in New York since 2015, Sciacca is on his way to becoming an important part of the New York jazz scene. For his debut, Sciacca formed a quartet with three impressive jazz artists (pianist Donald Vega, drummer Billy Drummond and, on three songs, Jed Levy on tenor) to perform his tribute to Ron Carter, Levy’s “Lonely Goddess,” the standard “A Nightingale Sang In Berkley Square,” and pieces by Sam Jones, Sonny Clark, Elmo Hope, and Andrea Domenici. The memorable program begins with the leader’s bass bringing in Sam Jones’ “One For Amos,” an infectious medium-tempo blues that showcases the trio. “Lullaby In Central Park” by Italian pianist Andrea Domenici (who, like Sciacca, moved permanently to New York) is a sophisticated ballad that features Vega at his most creative. Levy makes the group a quartet on Sonny Clark’s boppish “Zellmar’s Delight,” a lesser-known obscurity well worth reviving. Sciacca considers Ron Carter to be one of his mentors so he dedicated “For Sir Ron” to the bassist. The original features Sciacca and Vega who works regularly with Carter’s trio. “A Nightingale Sang In Berkley Square” is given a laidback and thoughtful treatment. Levy’s moody original “Lonely Goddess” precedes the closer, Elmo Hope’s hard bop swinger “One Second Please.” Fabrizio Sciacca, who is from Catania, Italy, began on electric bass and piano when he was 13. In 2011 he won a scholarship to attend the Berklee College of Music in Boston. During his four years at Berklee, he studied with such teachers as John Patitucci, Danilo Perez, and Victor Bailey, and performed with a variety of ensembles in many venues of Boston, such as Wally's, legendary jazz club where even Charlie Parker performed. After graduating in 2015, he moved to New York, studying with Ron Carter and earning a Master’s Degree in Performance and Composition from the Manhattan School in 2018. Now, with the release of the consistently enjoyable Gettin’ It Here, Fabrizio Sciacca’s career is off to an impressive start.  

Fabrizio Sciacca Quartet - Gettin' It There (Self Produced) Street Date: September 1, 2019 Sax: Jed Levy, Piano: Donald Vega, Bass: Fabrizio Sciacca, Drums: Billy Drummond UPC Code: 888295910255

via Blogger https://ift.tt/2KzFKE2

[topbeautifulwomens]

#Kathy #Najimy #Biography #Photos #Wallpapers #celebrities #fashionistas #instamodel #modelphotography #muas #peace #photo #redcarpet #soul #sunrise

Before entering TV and film, Kathy Najimy already had an extensive action experience and has continued adding her stage credits until recently. She was a member of the feminist theater group Sisters On Stage for five years and soloed in “It’s My Party,” her one-woman show. She also was a 4 year resident of director of the Emmy Award-winning New Image Teen Theater, and has directed the Off-Off Broadway plays “Don’t Get Me Started” and “I Can Put My Fist in My Mouth” as well as the Off-Broadway productions of the critically hit “Back to Bacharach and David.”

In 1988, Najimy for the 1st time performed “The Kathy and Mo Show” on Off-Broadway, which she co-penned and co-starred with Maureen ‘Mo’ Gaffney. For her outstanding acting, she was handed an Obie Award. Led by this success, she reprised her award-winning performance for the HBO comedy special “The Kathy and Mo Show: Parallel Lives” in 1991, based on her 1988 Off-Broadway show. Najimy and Gaffney jointly nabbed a CableACE for Performance in a Comedy Special and a nomination for Writing an Entertainment Special. “The Kathy and Mo Show: Parallel Lives” marked Najimy’s TV debut performance.

Shortly afterwards, Najimy made her feature film debut when she landed the part of Michael J. Fox’s girl Friday on the action movie “The Hard Way” (1991), which also starred James Woods. She went on to have off-beat minor roles in films like the Sally Field vehicle “Soapdish” (1991, as an observing costume mistress named Tawny Miller), Terry Gilliam’s “The Fisher King” (1991, as a crazed video store customer) and the based-on-novel “This Is My Life” (1992), but she did not enjoy international recognition until she was cast in the supporting role of the rounded, maniacally sunny-bouncing Sister Mary Patrick on the surprise blockbuster hit “Sister Act” (1992), starring Whoopi Goldberg. The role brought Najimy an American Comedy for Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Think about and a nomination at the MTV Movie awards for Best Breakthrough Performance.

After the breakthrough performance, Najimy was tapped to star aextended side Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker as the Sanderson sisters on Disney’s comedy “Hocus Pocus” (1993) and was nominated for a Saturn for Best Supporting Actress for her fine acting in the film. Later that same year, she recreating her coveted role of Sister Mary Patrick for the inevitable sequel, “Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.” Reportedly, Najimy demanded and earned $1 million for the installment. Nevertheless, she identified problem in finding other film roles and was entirely disappeared from the wide screen until “Jeffrey” (1995), in which she had a cameo turn as Acolyte, and the independent drama “Nevada” (1997), opposite Amy Brenneman and Kirstie Alley.

When her film career stalled, Najimy turned to television. She starred as Kathy Lane in the Emmy award winning TNT musical special “In Search of Dr. Seuss” (1994) and once again worked with Mo Gaffney co-starring and co-writing the HBO special “The Kathy and Mo Show: The Dark Side” (1995). In 1996, she offered a memorable recurring role as Barbara ‘Bix’ Konstadt, a precarious psychiatrist battling manic depression, on three episode of the CBS popular medical drama “Chicago Hope,” for which she had to sheet some 100 pounds. She also made guest appearances in shows like “Clueless” (1996), “Early Edition” (1997) and the hit sitcom “Ellen” (1994-1997).

The next year, Najimy began her long-running gig on the Michael Judge animated series “King of the Hill” (Fox, 1997-current), providing the voice of the long-suffering wife, Peggy Hill. Her efforts paid off when she finally won one out of two Annie nominations in the category of Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Female Performer in an Animated Television Production (2001). It was also in 1997 that Najimy landed the regular role of Olive Massery on the NBC sitcom “Veronica’s Closet,” starring her “Nevada” co-star Kirstie Alley. She left the show in 2000 to focus on her film career.

Back to the big screen, Najimy found herself appearing with Sandra Bullock, Harry Connick Jr. and Gena Rowlands in the Forest Whitaker-directed drama “Hope Floats,” portrayed Mrs. Simpson on the indie-comedy “Zack and Reba,”starring Sean Patrick Flanery and Brittany Murphy, and appeared as a Motel Maid in the horror “Bride of Chucky” (all 1998). Following a series of TV assignments during 1999, including voicing Mother Duck 1 in the HBO animated film “The Sissy Duckling” and playing the stepmother of Elmo on Foxâ€s special “Cinderelmo,” she had a supporting role in the independent film “Attention Shoppers” (2000) and was cast as Sharon Stones’ gynecologist on the HBO film “If These Walls Could Talk 2” (also 2000), helmed and penned by Anne Heche. Still in 2000, she also assumed the starring role of Mae West in the Broadway hit “Dirty Blonde,” from which she earned positive reviews.

Najimy next could be seen playing supporting roles in films like the hit “The Wedding Planner” (2001), with Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey, the ensemble comedy “Rat Race” (2001), “Say Uncle” (2005), opposite Peter Paigi, “Bam Bam and Celeste” (2005), and “Getting Played” (2005), starring Vivica A. Fox. In November 2006, she joined the cast of the CBS crime series “Numbers” in the recurring role of Dr. Mildred French, a role she held until April 2007. On August of 2007, she guested as Mrs. Militich on the “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody” episode of “First Day of Large School.”

The 50-year-old multi-faceted performer will have a part in the animated film “Tinker Bell” (2008), directed by Bradley Raymond. She is also set to costar with Kal Penn, Elaine Hendrix, Yunjin Kim and Tamlyn Tomita in the upcoming made-for-TV film “Two Sisters” (2008).

Name Kathy Najimy Height 5' 6″ Naionality Amerian Date of Birth 6 February 1957 Place of Birth San Diego, California, USA Famous for

The post Kathy Najimy Biography Photos Wallpapers appeared first on Beautiful Women.

source http://topbeautifulwomen.com/kathy-najimy-biography-photos-wallpapers/

[maestrogianni-blog]

Nell’ambito della rassegna “Heraia – Musica ai Templi”, il Parco Archeologico di Paestum e il Comune di Capaccio Paestum, con la collaborazione di Angeli Musicanti Festival edizione 2018, presentano:

“BRAD MEHLDAU TRIO”

Uno spettacolo assolutamente da non perdere quello di Giovedì 19 Luglio, unica data in Campania, che vede in concerto il celebre pianista Brad Mehldau in Trio con il batterista Jeff Ballard e il bassista Larry Grenadier, per la presentazione del suo ultimo album “Seymour Reads the Constitution!”

Un album che racchiude tre componimenti inediti del pianista combinati con brani pop reinterpretati (Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson), standard jazz (Elmo Hope, Sam Rivers) e un brano della tradizione americana (“Almost Like Being in Love” di Frederick Loewe).

Un valzer melodico che affonda le sue radici in “Song Song” (da Art of The Trio n3. del 1998) dove era già chiaro che Mehldau non rincorreva il significato del termine “Jazz” ma andava oltre, mostrando una vena al contempo classica e poetica del tutto propria. Mehldau è stato il primo a leggere in chiave contemporanea brani di artisti come i Radiohead, gli Oasis, i Nirvana elevandoli a moderni standard sempre in bilico tra i generi, ma caratterizzati da una forte connotazione personale.

La rassegna continuerà con concerti ogni venerdì:

PROGRAMMA “HERAIA MUSICA AI TEMPLI”

giovedì 19 luglio “Brad Mehldau Trio” concerto jazz

venerdì 27 luglio “Le quattro stagioni” con la compagnia “Il Balletto del sud” – coreografie di Fredy Franzutti e 20 danzatori con orchestra dal Vivo Hungarian International Orchestra

venerdì 3 agosto “L’incanto di Venere” con INCANTO QUARTET e VENERE ENSEMBLE

venerdì 10 agosto “…e cammina cammina” Peppe Barra in concerto con Paolo Del Vecchio chitarra-mandolino, Luca Urciuolo, pianoforte-fisarmonica, Ivan Lacagnina percussioni, Sasà Pelosi basso, Giorgio Mellone violoncello

venerdì 17 agosto “Kelly Joyce in Jazz Mon Amour” con Maurizio Rolli al basso, Teo Ciavarella al pianoforte e Massimo Manzi alla batteria

venerdì 24 agosto in ANTEPRIMA NAZIONALE “PARIS CINEMA TANGO” con la partecipazione della cantante Letizia Onorati e con il Paolo Di Sabatino Trio e David Cavuti

INFO

Giovedì 19 luglio 2018, ore 21:00 – Area Archeologica di Paestum

prenotazione obbligatoria: in biglietteria oppure online www.musicaaitempli.it

E’ possibile acquistare i biglietti presso le biglietterie del Parco (Porta Principale – nei pressi del tempio di Nettuno – e Museo).

Chi è in possesso del biglietto serale (€ 15,00 + diritto di prenotazione), alle ore 19:30 dovrà uscire dal Parco e potrà rientrare alle ore 20:00.

Il biglietto include: ingresso all’area archeologica (dopo le 20:00 limitatamente alla zona meridionale, tempio di Nettuno e c.d. Basilica) + Museo + Mostra “L’immagine invisibile. La Tomba del Tuffatore” + spettacolo. A chi vuole usufruire dell’intera offerta, consigliamo di arrivare al Parco archeologico alle 17:30

Biglietto: € 15,00 + diritto di prenotazione;

ridotto: per i minori di diciotto anni e per i possessori dell’abbonamento PaestumMia in corso di validità o della card Adotta un blocco: € 5,50 + diritto di prenotazione

Abbonamento ai 7 concerti musica ai templi:

intero: € 75,00 + diritto di prenotazione;

ridotto:

◾per i minori di diciotto anni e per i possessori dell’abbonamento PaestumMia in corso di validità o della card Adotta un blocco: € 38,50 + diritto di prenotazione

◾per chi ha un’età compresa tra i 18 e i 25 anni: € 51,25 + diritto di prenotazione

C.S.

Paestum, Giovedì 19 luglio nell’area archeologica “BRAD MEHLDAU TRIO” Nell’ambito della rassegna “Heraia - Musica ai Templi”, il Parco Archeologico di Paestum e il Comune di Capaccio Paestum, con la collaborazione di Angeli Musicanti Festival edizione 2018, presentano: …

[trevorbarre]

“Honest John” Gilmore, Part 2

John Gilmore’s recording career is most simply broken down into Sun Ra-related material and ‘other’. His reputation will stand or fall with the former - album after album of lovely ballads, bebop-influenced intricately constructed numbers, ensemble passages and free form horn ascensions and percussive interludes. He was comfortable in any and all registers of the tenor, using traditional and ‘extended’ techniques, and with playing standards, ‘space hymns’ and Disney tunes. And solos, what solos. There are far too many fine examples to single out any in particular, but I would mention here my recollections of the Arkestra live.

I saw the Arkestra four times - at The Venue in 1984, on our honeymoon in 1987, and twice in 1990, at The Mean Fiddler and at Hackney Empire. The most memorable for me was the honeymoon gig (obviously!) and the Fiddler one, and what I will always remember in particular was Gilmore’s tenor sax solos on Lights On A Satellite, one of Ra’s earlier Chicago compositions that became an evergreen of their repertoire over the years. Such a rich, deep tone, warm and embracing and unambiguously beautiful, which was given even further pathos by it being evident that Gilmore’s emphysema (he was a chronic smoker) was getting worse, and that he could only really play one or two solos without becoming breathless. He sat out some numbers and played a lot of percussion. I can only imagine what he would have sounded like thirty years earlier. 

It is well worth tracking down a copy of Ra’s small group masterpiece, 1979′s Omniverse, which I have had cause to recommend in other blogs. This contains a number of very representative Gilmore solos, and it is both refreshing and unusual to hear him in this format. In addition, all of his work with Ra in January 1978 (Media Dreams, Sound Mirror, Disco 3000, New Steps) recorded in Italy are worth finding for this reason. An incredible amount of top flight group music was created in what was only a few days of studio and live performing

His work outside Ra is brief in the extreme - a lovely set of recordings with Paul Bley from 1964 (Turning Point, originally on the pianists own IAI label), two with his friend Andrew Hill (Compulsion and Andrew!!!) during the latter’s flawless mid-60s period, one unusual  live set with Chick Corea and Pete LaRoca from 1977, originally called Turkish Women At The Bath (well worth seeking out) and the Clifford Jordan duo cited earlier. There are other dates as a sideman with Elmo Hope, McCoy Tyner and Art Blakey, but that is it really, as far as Gilmore’s work on any other planets than Saturn is concerned. It is still a fantastic legacy, and we owe it to this most unassuming and modest of men to ensure that his name is not sidelined when it comes to the roll call of his generations saxophone colossi. Or of any generation, come to that.

No John, after you.

[acr666]

Elmo Hope Ensemble #elmohopeensemble #onerecordaday #music #records #vinyl #vinylcollection

[theloniousbach]

The Cyrus Chestnut Trio, Jazz at the Bistro, 2 February 2018

This show brought me happily to a primordial place in my jazz listening career.  One of my very first jazz concerts and certainly the first hard swinging piano trio with a huge sound dripping in technique, tradition, and invention was auspiciously Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, and Ed Thigpen.  

It was late 1963 or 1964 when they played the school where my father taught and I eventually studied a decade later as the warm up act (!?!) for the New Christy Minstrels or some such faux folk act.  Since I was on familiar territory and comfortable, I kept getting closer and closer to the music until I was sitting stage right behind the PA column.  To this day, I have drum sticks that Ed Thigpen gave me and I learned the value of being a cute engaged kid (and then 25 years later using Sam) to get into fascinating experiences.  They also were debuting Peterson’s “Canadiana Suite” which was an early early jazz album.

That experience imprinted the piano as the fundamental jazz instrument and such a trio as the basic ensemble.  Guitars and other strings in many other contexts, but the piano means jazz.

I also have in my mind a dichotomy, thoroughly false but fixed, that there are the Petersons, the Tyners, the Chestnuts on the one hand and Bill Evans and Ahmad Jamal and Bill Charlap on the other.  Power and blues vs. chord voicings and melody.  It’s bullshit as the power players have great chords and subtle beauty and Evans, Jamal, and Charlap swing hard.

I walked into Chestnut and his band’s performance last night with this background as a context and a certain sense that, yes, this would be nostalgic but not where my listening is these days.  Welllllllll, maybe.  There certainly is an edgier streak these days--both in the present but also looking back to Andrew Hill, Elmo Hope, and Monk Monk Monk.  But damn this was good.

Chestnut drove hard out of the gate with an original, “Mason Dixon Line.”  It kept swinging and warmed the room with his flurry of ideas upon ideas while giving space to Eric Wheeler for a bass interlude and trading fours with Chris Beck.  The next original “Fate Among the Unknown” started with a lyrical figure in the left hand and built up and resolved with power and grace.  Refuting the visceral/cerebral dichotomy, here and throughout the night Chestnut’s endless and articulate invention stood out.

“It Could Happen to You” was the swinging standard from the Great American Songbook with “Peterson swing” in my notes even as I needed the announcement to place the tune.  The new standard was a “Stairway to Heaven” intro into what turns out to have been Lionel Richie’s “Hello,” a reminder both that there are always pop songs to explore and, probably more importantly, that Chestnut brings r&b/soul to the table.  

There’s lots of gospel in there and his “Claudine’s Prayer” for a deceased friend with an actual spiritual folded into it was a reverential tribute.

Finally,the semi-encore was a left-handed groove figure that the band cooked behind as he scatted good naturedly.

Somewhere between standards and classical was a largely deconstructed take on Gershwin, largely centered on “Summertime” but with hints of other “Porgy and Bess” music.  Eric Wheeler got a bass solo as a reward for strong but unobtrusive accompaniment all night long but the highlight of the tune was Chestnut’s own roaring crescendo out of the bass up to mid-register before settling back into the head.

But, what was particularly striking was how voraciously and widely he listens.  He brought out sheet music for a strong take on Erik Satie’s “Gymnopedie #1″ that managed to cook as a jazz tune while being reverential with the sheer beauty of the composition.  And then there was Mozart’s “Rondo a la Turque” with Beck’s precisely military snare work under the theme.  That theme gave Chestnut yet more ideas to work with.  More than the Satie, this was a jazz version.

I was glad to be home in this cozy part of the jazz world.  It was not the tame experience I thought it might be.  Not at all.

As I started to learn from Peterson, this is magic. 

[thephilosopheroftheboudoir]

Elmo Hope Ensemble

Ecstasy

from the lp Sounds from Rikers Island