Klarinet Archive - Posting 000606.txt from 2005/06

From: Ed Wojtowicz <ewoj@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Lester Young's sax position
Date: Wed, 29 Jun 2005 18:44:39 -0400

The story I had read somewhere as told by Artie Shaw, was that Lester
played this way because he liked practicing while lying on his bed. I
have never heard this corroborated anywhere else, but it sure is a
good story.

Ed

On Jun 29, 2005, at 6:22 PM, Danny Bittker wrote:

> I have heard several stories that his 90 degree angle position came
> from
> playing on crowded bandstands, but that seems counterintuitive,
> since it
> would seem to take up more space. I suspect it was simply a product
> of his
> unique approach to everything---he had a manner of speaking that
> was quite
> unusual, and is often commented upon by his previous bandmates; all
> sorts
> of wonderfully personal slang and so forth. You can hear him on a
> couple of
> interviews that are included in one of the box sets, possibly the
> complete
> Verve sessions; I don't recall just now. He was clearly aware of
> cutting an
> original image in everything he did, but most of all in his beautiful
> approach to linear improvisation.
>

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Klarinet is a service of Woodwind.Org, Inc. http://www.woodwind.org