Re: A-J & the spirit of upliftment

fingers (fingers@microweb.com)
Sun, 10 Sep 1995 23:27:25 -0700


>culture, and authenticity...but really, being Black about more than
>pigmentation..being Hindu has more to it then 1 million deities...and Acid
>Jazz must have more to it then great rhythm sections,& clever jazz solos.
>What I'm asking, then, is WHAT IS THE SPIRIT of ACID-JAZZ? IS, it (and
>should't it be ) about upliftment, like the wayHip-hop is? Or is it
>creatively stagnent to treat ACid-Jazz as "a continuation of African
>American expression" (which by the way Has been the creative force behind
>every new musical form in N.A)? Even for a genre as criss-polinated as
>A
As much as it pains me to say this, most jazz musicians, dont give a shit
about any of this politicising. Now, that is not true for other musicians
who NEED some club somewhere to build an audience for music that would
have no audience in any other way. Look at pop for a huge example. Look
at womens music for a small one. Who cares? Onlyy those that want to make
money and have a job somewhere either as promotor producer or musician. I
am a jazz muscian FIRST, and I play music for a living also. tthat means
playing all kinds of music in all situations. i am in it for the music.
When I listen to Coltrane, I dont here Africans in chains struggling for
freedom. I hear someone who has prracticed every day for 8 hours..
everey day!! In airports , on buses, at home, everywhere. I hear a musician.