Jazz for the Asking Blog

I was driving down the road yesterday, on my way to somewhere in a hurry. It is January, which means it is cold and snowy here in NY. I was thinking about what I had to do when I got where I was going, thinking about all the things I had to do today, this week, this year, it seemed almost overbearing.

Then a tune popped into my head. I heard the first few bars of So What by Miles. Perfect. So what I had a lot to do and I was running around like a fool. Life is to live, not to run from one meaningless task to another. So what I was going to be late for my appointment, the people would wait, it wasn’t the end of the world. So what if I was driving a 10 year old truck with 174,000 miles on it, it works, it gets me where I am going. So What.

That is why I love Jazz. It seems that at the right moment, an appropriate song arrives to describe my feelings. It is all about feelings, how the music moves the musicians who created it and play it. How the music moves you when you listen to it. To this day, when I hear Summer Time no matter who is playing it, it reminds me of living in California. Watching the sun set over San Diego bay.

I think about the lives that these guys lived. Many of them overcoming great difficulties, things that I could never possibly know about or understand. Many of them addicted to drugs or alcohol or both. Many truly talented lives cut short by an errant life style. I cannot say whether these things made the music better or worse, but I know that without them the music would be different. Strange Fruit indeed.

The next time you are listening to your favorite tune, thing about the person who wrote it, who is performing it. Think about all the effort that went into that song, be it 4 minutes or 12 minutes. The artistry, the beauty, the sadness and joy.

That is what Jazz means to me.

I suppose I should have posted this long ago, but I have not done a radio show in a long time.  Things just seemed to get in the way, plus a general lack of local interest, lead to the demise of the radio show on WGHQ.

Since there was no support from the ownership, which is not necessarily their fault, I felt it was too difficult to continue on as a single person entity.  The radio station ownership is leaning toward a news/talk format for that radio station and I felt that a Jazz show on a low rated AM station who’s focus is a mostly satellite syndicated programming was not a good fit.  Perhaps there is some other outlet for this music in the Hudson Valley, or perhaps there is no great local interest.

In either case, I will keep the Jazz music store open, as it seems to be quite popular, and I will occasionally post to the blog.

If you like watching video’s of great Jazz artists, especially older material of Jazz greats like John Coltrane, et al, then check out Jazz Tube. This is essentially a site with links to You Tube, but what is nice is the artist are all alphabetized, so you can find something quickly.

There is really some great stuff on there, like this:
John Coltrane, Alabama Jazz Casual

I always liked Kurt Vonnegut, I read Slaughterhouse Five when I was in high school and it was my first exposure to black humor. It was a book that I will never forget.

Kurt was a fan of Jazz, grew up in Indianapolis Indiana during the depression. He used to go to Jazz clubs and watch the musicians play when he felt depressed himself and always felt better for do it.

Once, during an interview on NPR, he said:

If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED
FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
WAS MUSIC

This is one of those topics that may be a little boring to some, so if you are not interested in how to get better reception from your AM radio, or you are happy with the reception you are getting, then skip to the next post.

The main problems with AM radio reception these days are two fold. One, the proliferation of cheap radios with poor selectivity and sensitivity makes tuning in a station difficult. Two, the local noise factors have increased dramatically.

First, the quality of your radio will determine how well an AM station is received and how good is sounds. Believe it or not, this is one place that new high tech gadgetry does not pay off as the older radios are built better and sound better. One good AM radio this is still relatively inexpensive is the GE Super Radio. It is big an bulky but is an excellent table top radio and works well on both AM and FM.

Secondly, the local electrical noise levels have increased dramatically in the last few years. This is mainly due to the use of Compact Florescent Lights (CFL). These little florescent light generate noise, which unfortunately is picked up by AM radios.  There is not a lot you can do about this noise, so the best course is not to use your radio near any florescent lights.  If you need a light near your radio, use an old fashioned incandescent light bulb.  Some times turning the radio will increase the signal level and reduce the noise.

Finally, you may need to use an out door antenna if you are located far away from your favorite radio station.  The GE super radio has provisions for connecting an outboard antenna.  If you have questions on how to go about making a good outdoor antenna, you can always e-mail me, and I will respond.  There are several good designs that do not take up much space and are inexpensive to fabricate and install.

Hope this helps!

Unfortunately, I will not be able to do the show this weekend.  I was going to try and pre-record something, but time has gotten away from me.  Jazz for the Asking will be back on the air on April 14th.