RE: First Taste of Acid Jazz

pyramus@wavenet.com
Tue, 16 Apr 1996 23:15:39 -0700


Okay.

My Turn.

I was a mod. Simple. I sang and wrote for a Mod-Ska band
(before the whole big US ska-revival thing) from 1983-1988,
in Northern California, called Speciall Guest.
(The double "l" is meant.)

In 1986 or so we started leaning towards funk as a viable
dance music alternative to what we had already been playing
for a few years. Besides everything mod, I was already listening
to a lot of what used to be called "modern" jazz, ie. Miles'
Sketches of Spain, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Gerry Mulligan,
all of this thanks to my dad (someday I'll own the entire Miles
Catalogue on original release vinyl! whoo!). When the band
got funky, I was beginning to listen to the Chili Peppers, and
through them discovered the joys of P-Funk, and simultaneously
Tower of Power, J.B., etc.

I've gotta say that the first "acid jazz" track I heard was
"Chameleon" by Herbie Hancock (which we ended up covering)
*or* "Squib Cakes" by Tower of Power. Anyone who says
these tracks aren't acid jazz has not heard them.
However, the first track I heard after the term came into
existence was the Brand New Heavies' "Dream Come True,"
like many others on the list.

Interestingly enough, at that point I was drumming in a band
called "Serious George," in and around Santa Cruz, California.
And though we didn't know it, we were an acid jazz band of a sort.
Besides some very cool originals, we covered a couple of
funky tunes by Freddie Hubbard, Cannonball Adderly, and even
"What is Hip" by Tower of Power. At a 1991 gig we had in San Jose,
the sound man put on the Heavies inbetween our sets. I ran up
to the sound booth to find out what it was, and the rest follows.

Hope this thread isn't starting to bore.

Mike

Michael Faulkner--------pyramus@wavenet.com
This .sig contains the word ABORTION purely because the Telecommunications
Act of 1996 outlawed this word in Cyberspace.