Saturday, December 5, 2009

Horace Silver!


Listening to Horace Silver is simply an amazing aural experience! The man has an incredible feel for 'The Music' as Amiri Baraka calls it. Is there a more complete musician out there? I know there are arguments for cats like Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Thelonious Monk. In no way do I intend to denigrate those guys or anyone else. They were all great and pivotal in the history of 'The Music'. Horace came after those guys, when the music was more established, so there were less trails to blaze, so to speak. Horace was a master of the post-bop or hard-bop genre. He has written some of the more soulful tunes that jazz has ever known. His piano comping behind soloists is second to none. His playing is always swinging, intelligent and most of all soulful. I know that Horace is a proponent of the holistic-healing aspects of his music. When I first heard this, I was---as my nature dictates—skeptical. However, after delving more into his music, I am a believer! If you submit and allow the music to move you, then you will definitely be better off for it. The music of Horace Silver is definitely music for the mind, body and the soul!

Here is a great example of his composition, arranging and soloing skills—a performance of 'Señor Blues' at the 1959 Newport Jazz Festival:

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