Somewhere along the way, I haven't determined exactly when, it became acceptable for some musicians to think showing up for live (Jazz) performances wearing the same clothes that they wear anywhere else is the thing to do. These days it isn't that uncommon that a patron of the music, with hard-earned cash in hand, will venture out for an evening with hopes of enjoying some high art but instead will be offered a gig where some of the cats who perform will actually show up and get on stage with prominent holes and stains in/on their jeans, wrinkled and tattered t-shirts, dirty sneakers, v...

I've recently been at odds about just how much I want to disclose publicly on online blogs, newsgroups and bulletin boards about my personal approach and composition methodology. Call it paranoia, or reverberations of shady dealings of the past, but it's no secret that Black musicians have been guilty of being generous to a fault - only to get shafted by the very personalities that they allowed into their circle of trust. Throughout history, time and time again, many innovations, brilliant ideas and glorious offerings have been adapted or outright stolen and used for insidious purposes that bo...

I'd like to begin by thanking the folks at Indaba Music for encouraging me to offer a few of my personal thoughts and perspectives on modern music and it's processes via this blog. Keep in mind that my postings will be merely my own e-pinions, and are based on observations made whilst on the road, in the studio, in the classroom, or based upon a number timeless gems of information that have been bestowed upon me by a great many of the noble elders. So basically, the writings will emanate from the position of actually having been there and witnessed these things as opposed to something that I'd...