Pure Imagination

[tbdana]

Thought I'd share a tune I recorded for my Tribute project. This is "Pure Imagination" from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Usually done as a ballad, we perform it in a cool afro-cuban groove, with a swing bridge. I think that turned out to be a good choice. And we were able to get it in one take.



Funny story about this. I got some forceful pushback from folks here when I asserted that trombone lacks the facility of other jazz instruments like sax and piano. My assertion was inspired by this tune. While recording it, Jacam Manricks went nuts during his tenor sax solo. I have pretty good facility on the trombone, but I realized that I didn't have the facility to match what Jacam was playing so, wanting to get the best take we could, I quietly turned to the guitarist, Barry Finnerty (Miles Davis, Brecker Brothers, The Crusaders, etc.), and said, "You got the next solo!" And he jumped right in and did a fantastic job. Listen to Jacam's solo and tell me if there are any trombonists who have that kind of facility on their horn. I can't think of any. Certainly, I do not.

So, this tune features solos by Jacam Manricks and Barry Finnerty, along with Tim Metz on drums.

Dana Douglas - Trombone
Jacam Manricks - Tenor Sax
Barry Finnerty - Guitar
Joe Gilman - Piano
Ben Kopf - Bass
Tim Metz - Drums

This one is for Urbie Green. I don't know if he ever played this tune, but hearing Urbie for the first time exploded my imagination and I knew right then what a trombone should sound like. For years after that, he inspired me and piqued my imagination every time I played something. So, Urbie, this one's for you.

[GabrielRice]

[Doug Elliott]

Nice!
It's not hard to imagine Conrad Herwig playing most of that tenor solo. But yeah, the really fast lines are impossible on trombone, at least with the accuracy of a sax where it's all done with keys and no articulation needed.

[tbdana]

Nice!
It's not hard to imagine Conrad Herwig playing most of that tenor solo. But yeah, the really fast lines are impossible on trombone, at least with the accuracy of a sax where it's all done with keys and no articulation needed.

Right? I feel like they cheat.

[Doug Elliott]

Ask a tenor player to articulate that.

[Doldom]

Maybe,, Superbones can have facility to do the lick fluently like saxophone or guitar.
But I enjoyed the simple melody played by you with trombone more than some virtuosic improvisation jazz licks, and maybe a lot of general public with no classical music background also agree on it.
I think the vocal like quality of slide trombone cannot be reproduced with other instruments, except string instruments.

[elmsandr]

I could easily hear something like that from Marshall Gilkes or Wycliffe Gordon…. But if I have to reach for those two over a fairly standard sax solo…. I think that makes the case pretty well.

Overall, love the recording, great group groove and a fun tune to bring in.

Thank you,
Andy

[hyperbolica]

Very nice!

[JLivi]

I love your tone on the melody. Very cool arrangement.

Did you say in a previous post that you were selling vinyl? Where & when will that be for sale?

[Fidbone]

I really enjoyed that Dana, great playing all around.
You sound very in control of the high register and have a lovely tone up there.
Great solo’s from Barry and Jacam.

I’d say that possibly the only two “known” trombonists that get close to Jacam’s facility and language on the horn are Elliot Mason and Ido Meshulam.

[GGJazz]

Hi Folks.

@ Fidbone : there are also Hal Crook and Mike Dease who play this super-fast way . Do not forget Slide Hampton too.
Hal Crook had this facility from 35 years ago ...

Regards
Giancarlo

[Doug Elliott]

Yeah definitely Hal Crook.

[tbdana]

I love your tone on the melody. Very cool arrangement.

Did you say in a previous post that you were selling vinyl? Where & when will that be for sale?

Yep. There's a media company that is pressing some amount of vinyl albums, I'm not sure how many or when they will be available. I do know that it was sent back because we had too many minutes of music for good quality sound on an LP and had to cut a tune from the album. All I know is it's supposed to be out in the summer.

It frankly still blows my mind to think anyone but my spouse would want one. At this point I'm just a hobbyist, and nowhere near a player worthy of making albums. I feel very much like a fraud. I have not recorded anything that I am satisfied with. And yet, here we are! It's both exciting and embarrassing at the same time.

[BGuttman]

Dana, when you stop thinking you could have done better it's time to hang up the horn. For most of us, no matter how well we did, we always feel we could have done better.

[JLivi]

It frankly still blows my mind to think anyone but my spouse would want one. At this point I'm just a hobbyist, and nowhere near a player worthy of making albums. I feel very much like a fraud. I have not recorded anything that I am satisfied with. And yet, here we are! It's both exciting and embarrassing at the same time.

I doubt it's making a real comeback, but it seems like a lot of people are interested in vinyl again. A lot of my musician friends seem to have record players, but what I'm most surprised by are my non-musician friends that have record players.

When my brass band came out with our 3rd album I decided to press it to vinyl. It's easily the hottest selling item I have. Well that and our t-shirts are super soft and just say "PARTY" with a trombone above it.

[Fidbone]

Hi Folks.

@ Fidbone : there are also Hal Crook and Mike Dease who play this super-fast way . Do not forget Slide Hampton too.
Hal Crook had this facility from 35 years ago ...

Regards
Giancarlo

Ah yes Hal Crook of course, one of my heroes for sure. Is he still active? Elliot Mason is one of his ex-pupils.
I wouldn’t really say Hampton or Dease though as although they do have the facility they don’t have that type of language (think Michael Brecker and Coltrane here).

Actually I could name umpteen trombonists that have facility at speed but it’s the language that is the standout!
I should perhaps include Bob McChesney here as he also has outstanding language.

[tbdana]

Dana, when you stop thinking you could have done better it's time to hang up the horn. For most of us, no matter how well we did, we always feel we could have done better.

There's a saying I heard many years ago and have adopted it as my own. It is this:

No work of art is ever completed, it is only abandoned.

I find so much truth in that. We have to realize when our artistic expression is complete, and not mess it up with second guessing. If only that were as easy to do as to say.