Feb 3, 2025 10:49 PM
The Essence of Emily
In the April 1982 issue of People magazine, under the heading “Lookout: A Guide To The Up and Coming,” jazz…
Gary Bartz collaborated with the UK-based ensemble Maisha for Gary Bartz & Maisha—Night Dreamer Direct-To-Disc Sessions.
(Photo: Elaine Groenestein)With or without lyrics, the conversation had to happen.
“Some of the musicians didn’t understand, so they felt uncomfortable, especially when I say, ‘I won’t raise you and your children no more.’ Coming from England, they didn’t know I was talking about the mammies that would suckle the so-called white babies, when the mammies had their own kids to suckle.”
That conversation led to a larger discussion on intention. The inclusion of “Uhuru Sasa” on Night Dreamer begged the question: How might a shift in context affect the music’s message?
“We thought, majority white musicians from the UK playing that song in the time that we’re playing it maybe doesn’t make sense,” said Long. “But Gary felt that [the] song can transcend.”
During their discussions, Bartz shared a memory from years ago when he was performing in Germany. He received a pointed declaration from a number of listeners citing dissatisfaction with his NTU Troop repertoire, because they didn’t really understand it.
“I said, ‘Well that’s OK. I understand if you didn’t really like it,’” said Bartz. “‘I wasn’t really writing that music for you. I was writing it for my community, my people.’”
Three days at Artone studio in the Netherlands yielded five tracks teeming with texture, lyrical storytelling and a pervasive heartbeat—at once refined and raw. And while Bartz and Maisha credit the album’s organic nature with deep listening and a sensitive understanding of each other’s tendencies, they’re looking forward to further developing a sound of their own.
Long hopes Night Dreamer will serve to whet the listener’s appetite for what’s to come.
“The reason I’m so excited to get back on tour is to build up that band relationship [with Gary] and develop a really strong concept,” Long said, “as opposed to a moment in time captured in performance.” DB
“She said, ‘A lot of people are going to try and stop you,’” Sheryl Bailey recalls of the advice she received from jazz guitarist Emily Remler (1957–’90). “‘They’re going to say you slept with somebody, you’re a dyke, you’re this and that and the other. Don’t listen to them, and just keep playing.’”
Feb 3, 2025 10:49 PM
In the April 1982 issue of People magazine, under the heading “Lookout: A Guide To The Up and Coming,” jazz…
As Ted Nash, left, departs the alto saxophone chair for LCJO, Alexa Tarantino steps in as the band’s first female full-time member.
Mar 4, 2025 1:29 PM
If only because openings for JLCO’s 15 permanent positions appear about as frequently as sub-freezing days on the…
Larry Appelbaum with Wayne Shorter in 2012.
Feb 25, 2025 10:49 AM
Larry Appelbaum, a distinguished audio engineer, jazz journalist, historian and broadcaster, died Feb. 21, 2025, in…
“This is one of the great gifts that Coltrane gave us — he gave us a key to the cosmos in this recording,” says John McLaughlin.
Mar 18, 2025 3:00 PM
In his original liner notes to A Love Supreme, John Coltrane wrote: “Yes, it is true — ‘seek and ye shall…
Cynthia Erivo and Herbie Hancock perform “Fly Me To The Moon” during a Grammy Awards tribute to Quincy Jones on Feb. 2.
Feb 3, 2025 10:21 PM
The jazz and blues community may not have been center stage for the majority of the 67th annual Grammy Award…
