Richard Davis RIP 1930 to 2023. RIP

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

Death announced on Organissimo of bassist Richard Davis, bass player on countless significant sessions. My favourites are Out to Lunch, Point of Departure and the Booker Ervin Space & Freedom Book sessions. But they are legion. And also offer described as Stravinsky's favourite bass player.

Nice duet here however with him and JJ Johnson on Bud's Blues from a live concert

http://youtu.be/H3KwXFjeC14?si=ImYUtAG2zOPUj9zg

[Serial_Apologist]

Death announced on Organissimo of bassist Richard Davis, bass player on countless significant sessions. My favourites are Out to Lunch, Point of Departure and the Booker Ervin Space & Freedom Book sessions. But they are legion. And also offer described as Stravinsky's favourite bass player.

Nice duet here however with him and JJ Johnson on Bud's Blues from a live concert

http://youtu.be/H3KwXFjeC14?si=ImYUtAG2zOPUj9zg

Indispensable, and probably my favourite bass player on any one of the early 1960s Blue Notes. I never knew that about Stravinsky's opinion of him.

[Jazzrook]

Indispensable, and probably my favourite bass player on any one of the early 1960s Blue Notes. I never knew that about Stravinsky's opinion of him.

One of my favourite bassists also, appearing on so many great jazz albums.
Here he is with Archie Shepp playing Monk's 'Pannonica' recorded in 1989:

https://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=viUXYJuPWt8

JR

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

"Davis was a master technician who could alternate between acoustic and electric bass and was in high demand as a sideman. He also found time to record over 20 albums under his own name and enjoyed notable LP collaborations with ex-Coltrane drummer Elvin Jones, vibraphonist Walt Dickerson, and saxophonist Archie Shepp. The classical music world, too, benefited from Davis’ expertise; he worked with the Russian-American composer Igor Stravinsky (who once purportedly described Davis’ virtuosity as “god-like”) and also played under the baton of several eminent conductors, including Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez, and Leopold Stokowski."

And then there's Van Morrison!

[Jazzrook]

Eric Dolphy & Richard Davis playing 'Muses' in 1963:

https://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=_sUCaT9tKpA

I was shocked to read this from Brian Morton in a recent Wire magazine: "While Dolphy was a supremely intelligent musician... he was also a flagrant poseur, who often failed to curb a pointless and sometimes lazy showiness in his playing."

JR

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

Brian Morton in 2019...

"I carry a small burden of guilt about Eric Dolphy. Not, as you might expect, over a still-undelivered book, but because of nagging suspicions, first, that Dolphy is almost too perfect an individual, too untainted by vices or politics (Miss Ann is a rare reference to race), to make for good biography (that would be hagiography, right?) "

He also gave what I thought was a very good overview of Dolphy's work in combination with Alyn in one of the old Jazz Library series. Is Morton now suffering from belated "grumpy pensioner syndrome"?!

I remember Clark Terry saying about Dolphy at the time that Eric was a great player but "he just does all this wild stuff for effect, to be the next new thing" (paraphrase). I alternatively thought one of key and attractive features of him was his ebullience, phrasing & intervals and a very individual momentum, central to him and certainly not any cheap grandstanding.

Very strange.

[Jazzrook]

Brian Morton in 2019...

"I carry a small burden of guilt about Eric Dolphy. Not, as you might expect, over a still-undelivered book, but because of nagging suspicions, first, that Dolphy is almost too perfect an individual, too untainted by vices or politics (Miss Ann is a rare reference to race), to make for good biography (that would be hagiography, right?) "

He also gave what I thought was a very good overview of Dolphy's work in combination with Alyn in one of the old Jazz Library series. Is Morton now suffering from belated "grumpy pensioner syndrome"?!

I remember Clark Terry saying about Dolphy at the time that Eric was a great player but "he just does all this wild stuff for effect, to be the next new thing" (paraphrase). I alternatively thought one of key and attractive features of him was his ebullience, phrasing & intervals and a very individual momentum, central to him and certainly not any cheap grandstanding.

Very strange.

I've been searching for that Brian Morton biography of Dolphy, appropriately titled 'Gone In The Air', for years.
From what Morton says it seems that it was never published but here's the blurb on the book from his potential publisher Equinox;

https://api.equinoxpub.com/books/1576

JR

[elmo]

Agree with all the previous comments - a wonderful bassist and boy could he drive a big band. here he is lifting the Thad Jones Mel Lewis Band at the Village Vanguard playing 'Little Fingers'
RIP Richard.

https://youtu.be/4MSMgwknQlI?feature=shared

elmo

[Tenor Freak]

Just back from hols - read this on the Twitter when I was away. RIP to one of the greats. As another example of his work I present you with this - not an obvious one given his best-known work but he adds a welcome layer of rhythmic flavour to this bossa.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnD_YwghSM8