The Lost Art of Adhering to Guidelines
Want more success with less effort? Read on . . .
Continue ReadingTop 10 Favorite Lionel Loueke Tracks
I don’t usually devote Top 10 lists to musicians of my own generation, but I had to make an exception in this case.
Continue ReadingMental Practicing
Rather than dictating WHAT you should be practicing, here we explore the most physically low-impact way to accomplish the greatest amount of growth, something that should be useful whether your subsequent at-the-instrument time is 10 minutes or 8 hours.
Continue ReadingTop 10 Favorite Clark Terry Tracks
It would be tough to name anyone in jazz whose music strikes such a balance of being infectiously joyous yet without the slightest watering-down of technique, harmony and overall depth.The list could, of course, be longer, but these are 10 of my favorite C.T. moments, presented in chronological order.
Continue ReadingTop 10 Favorite Elvin Jones Tracks
I’m always hesitant to offer definitive “favorites” for most anything but Elvin is my favorite drummer, period. Enjoy this varied list . . .
Continue ReadingMLK and How to Measure Success
This post is predicated on my belief that all we can control is doing the right thing to the best of our ability – to a large extent, the specific outcome is out of our hands. As such, when we try to affect positive change, the tangible outcome is an inadequate measure of success. Here I discuss this idea and tie it in with the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Continue ReadingTomato Sauce – Basic and with Variations
A good tomato sauce is a great for coating pasta or spreading on pizza, and it’s a multi-purpose way to spruce up vegetables or soups or even sandwiches. AND, it’s actually quite easy and relatively cheap to make a tomato sauce that’s better than anything you’ve ever had from a jar.
Continue ReadingCommon Decency and Obeying the Muse
2011 end-of-year reflections on sincerity, common decency and the elusive ways of “the muse.” And you can even hear me sing if you have the stomach for it 🙂
Continue ReadingThe Underbelly of Race and Jazz
It seems like everyone is throwing their hats into the ring in the aftermath of the scrum catalyzed by Nicholas Payton’s blog post this week (suggesting that the word “jazz” be replaced by BAM, an acronym for “black American music”). Here is my $.02.
Continue ReadingOvercoming Overeating Without Deprivation
Last winter I dropped 20+ pounds and have kept the weight off for over a year now, even though I feel like I’m enjoying food more than ever. Since many of us in the U.S.A. now find ourselves smack in the middle of the biggest period of food-excess of the year, it seemed like a good time to discuss the insights that have allowed me to pull this off.
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