Jazz Series

[Angeline]

1.26

Dexter Calling

When he was young
he was long, tall and careless
of the slouch that would become
a stoop. Years push him down
so his light shines more from within,
his mien less panther, more
teddy bear.

It's hard to say which is more
appealing but later his mind
is clear. He threw the horse
that rode him, so what if
he don't gallop so much now?

Freedom lives wide outside time,
behind it and in all the spaces

in between. Listen.

You can peel the palimpsest
layers like onion skin, shuffle
them like cards, hear this one
that one but it's Dexter calling--

big sky eyes, feet planted,
leaning into the wind.

 

[Angeline]

1.27

Round Midnight

Since his middle name is Sphere
you expect the sound to be round
but instead it's angular and precise.

It veers toward the edge of a note
to discover its dissonant bones. It
sheds light in unexpected corners

so you know what isn't dark. Sphere
wrote Round Midnight which might
mean he was alone at the piano

round midnight fitting those combos,
those odd permutations of harmony
and discord into patterns of heart

aching beauty or maybe it was just
midnight somewhere and the moon,
pregnant and misterioso, was round

 

[Angeline]

1.28

This is my fairy tale
but we're not under a tree
with the breeze lifting
pages.

This is my mythology
but we ain't wandering
o'er misty legend lands
rainbows a'glimmer.

We're at the bar
in a faceless uptown,
a top down ride
park on a side street
and yes the trees near
the door are listening
intently.

Inside is chill and dim.
The sweetest little combo
crowds the stage the music
tickles toes and beats
the heart, bass man
right on the edge,
elbow this close
to a cymbal.

The human hum rolls on.
It's a current: voices pick up,
glasses knock back, you hear
that ice jingle jangle and smoke
crawls over it like flies.

There are no beanstalks
here. The jazzers are giants,
maybe even gods. Piano
man plays fleet like Hermes,
sailing the keys and that's gotta
be Zeus, that long-headed man
who bashes the bebop
forward.

It's controlled chaos,
Apollo in the blue spot
blows When the Sun Sets
Down South and flips
that last note into the smoke
just so the moan hurts
just right. But the crowd
only half listens
because
who, besides me, cares
about gods anymore,
anyway?

 

[12oclocktales]

I came across some of Philip Levine’s jazz poems and thought of you. One I saw is a very long poem about Charlie Parker inspired by Phil Schaap’s “Bird Flight” radio show, a NYC institution for jazz lovers for over 40 years. Another one, which I like even better, is “I Remember Clifford” about Brownie; he made a recording of this about 10 years ago with Tom Harrell on trumpet, which you probably know about. It’s on YouTube.

 

[Angeline]

I came across some of Philip Levine’s jazz poems and thought of you. One I saw is a very long poem about Charlie Parker inspired by Phil Schaap’s “Bird Flight” radio show, a NYC institution for jazz lovers for over 40 years. Another one, which I like even better, is “I Remember Clifford” about Brownie; he made a recording of this about 10 years ago with Tom Harrell on trumpet, which you probably know about. It’s on YouTube.

There's a lot of great jazz poetry out there. Sasha Feinstein and Yusef Komunyakaa edit a great journal of jazz poetry and literature, Brilliant Corners. Feinstein has also edited two collections of jazz poetry, both of which include Levine's poems (as well as many wonderful others). Not sure if these books are still in print. I rather doubt it but I've had success finding used copies on sites like Alibris.

I'm a long-time fan of the late Phil Schapp. I used to listen to his show on my commute. I especially loved his birthday tribute shows, which usually included rare recordings and interviews with legendary jazz sidemen. Phil's father Walter Schapp was an early jazz historian and Phil literally grew up around jazz legends. Papa Jo Jones, the original Count Basie drummer, used to babysit Phil!

Also the site Jerry Jazz Musician is an excellent resource for jazz poetry, stories, interviews and other ephemera.

Yeah I like jazz a little bit.

 

[12oclocktales]

I met Phil a couple of times, once at a jazz club in NJ when he walked in with a drop-dead gorgeous babe on his arm (his wife, it turned out, though that didn’t last very long) and they spent the night dancing beautifully together to just about every tune Harry Allen and Howard Alden played. He was quite tall and a big basketball fan, too. You weren’t around long enough in the NYC area (or anywhere) to remember a jazz dj named Ed Beach on WRVR, were you? He had a huge influence on Phil and did specialized shows on artists 5 days a week. I first heard Bird on one of his shows. His opening theme every show was Wes Montgomery’s “So Do It” with James Clay on tenor and he played background music under his talking – Montgomery’s “D Natural Blues.” Both those tunes are so firmly implanted in my head, I’m sure they’ll be the last things I remember just before the ticker stops. Zoot Sims wrote a song dedicated to him: “Beach in the A.M.” An amazing man. Phil, too.

 

[Angeline]

I met Phil a couple of times, once at a jazz club in NJ when he walked in with a drop-dead gorgeous babe on his arm (his wife, it turned out, though that didn’t last very long) and they spent the night dancing beautifully together to just about every tune Harry Allen and Howard Alden played. He was quite tall and a big basketball fan, too. You weren’t around long enough in the NYC area (or anywhere) to remember a jazz dj named Ed Beach on WRVR, were you? He had a huge influence on Phil and did specialized shows on artists 5 days a week. I first heard Bird on one of his shows. His opening theme every show was Wes Montgomery’s “So Do It” with James Clay on tenor and he played background music under his talking – Montgomery’s “D Natural Blues.” Both those tunes are so firmly implanted in my head, I’m sure they’ll be the last things I remember just before the ticker stops. Zoot Sims wrote a song dedicated to him: “Beach in the A.M.” An amazing man. Phil, too.

That's a very cool Phil Schapp story!

I've heard of Ed Beach (actually from an old friend from Eugene, Oregon where Beach retired), but I'm not familiar with either his show or the radio station. The only other NYC radio personality I was into is the great Jean Shepherd whose late night shows from WOR are still around online. Were you a fan? I guess Shepherd is more jazz adjacent (kinda, sorta lol), but I loved his stories, found him absolutely hilarious. I was lucky enough to see his live show a few times at Princeton University (I'm originally from that area) and he was even better live!