Steve Catanzaro (stevencatanzaro@sprintmail.com)
Fri, 3 Dec 1999 00:52:42 -0700
Ok, the 20th century is poised to go down in history as the bloodiest and
most violent this species has yet been able to conjure up. I'm quite sure
hell is experiencing a golden age, what with the recent arrival of some of
our centurymates; Stalin, Hitler, Mao Tse Tung, etc..
But be that as it may, there is still reason to rejoice, because the 20th is
also the century that American music, or better, Afro-American music, took
over the world! All right then, here's my pantheon, the top 9 who made this
century the funkiest ever!
9. Horace Silver. Hard bop pianist who introduced all kinds of funky
elements and gospel-esque licks into jazz, together with Art Blakey and as a
solo artist. Horace is still releasing records (this year's "Jazz With A
Sense of Humor") which some feel have lost the true spark. But he is without
doubt a true pioneer of funky jazz music.
8. Nat "King" Cole. What does he have to do with acid jazz? Precisely
nothing. Except, anyone who has ever tried to play an instrument while
singing has to marvel at how smooth and easy Nat made it look. A terrific
piano player with a great swing feel who inspired thousands, and of course,
that incredible voice...
7. Herbie Hancock. Was he just teasin'? It doesn't seem like he digs the
funky music anymore.
"'Dis is da drum" was an embarrasment, as bad as "Hard Machine." While he
continues to garner accolades for traditional jazz stylings (This year's
Gershwin tribute, for example), it has to be admitted that when he wanted
to, he could get FUNKY. He set the pace for jazz-funk with the incredible
Headhunters records, and of course, along with Bill Laswell, he broke more
new ground with '83's "Future Shock."
6. Bernard "Pretty" Purdie. Who? Only the most recorded drummer of all time,
the Babe Ruth of funk drummers. Did the "Purdie Shuffle" with Steely Dan,
Aretha, and, according to him, even the Beatles! His solo records (like
"Soul to Jazz") are pretty awful, but he basically defined that acid jazz
groove for future generations.
5. Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter. Together, the fathers of Weather Report
inspired just about every Acid Jazzer out there. Caught the world's
attention with "Heavy Weather" and proceeded to experiment with jazz, funk,
and world music excursions all the way through the impossibly funky
"Sportin' Life." Zawinul's solo career started with a bang with, for my
money, one of the greatest records of the 1980's, "Dialects." (And, I have
it straight from the horse's mouth that this will be re-released on CD;
Don't sleep on it if you have a chance to pick it up.)
4. Miles Davis. OK, so a lot of acid-jazz head-nodders may have been
disappointed when finally checking the freak-out funk of records like
"Bitches Brew" or the Laswell remixed "Panthalassa." But this guy set the
tone for music for at least 4 decades. Skip "Amandala," "Tutu" and "Doo Bop"
and go right to the real stuff; Check out his modal classic "Kind of Blue"
for starters, but the golden era, in my opinion, ws the sixties; Nefrititi
is a mind-blower, and In a Silent Way is a godfather to ambient;.
3. Sly Stone. Funny how the truly great music produced by most of the people
on this list makes up only small portions of their lives, as if the funky
muse burns itself out after a short while. But, the family was unbelievabaly
funky, if just for a spell, and his influence has been long lasting..
2. James Brown. Yes indeed, it is the real deal. If Acid-Jazz did nothing
more than turn new generations on to James Brown joints like "Talkin' Loud
(And Sayin' Nothin)" or "Papa Don't Take No Mess," it served an incredible
purpose. It is simply amazing how good some of his late 60's and early 70's
releases sound, how incredibly funky they remain and how deadly his band
was, including funk hall-of-famers Jabo Starks, Bootsy Collins, and Maceo
Parker.
1. The one and only Duke Ellington. He is the father of all Afro-American
music, the "hot Bach" as he was called back in the day, and just about every
technique "pioneered" by later musicians was tried out by the Duke at least
30 years before. (Oh yeah!... he was doing world music way before the
Beatles started smoking dope in India!); I think this 100th year after his
birth is as good a time as any to name the 20th century for what it really
was...a violent mess sure, but more than anything, the era of Ellington.
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