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Many of those whose music I love most are aging. Though I was brought up well after many of their primes, I've always been a fan of jazz, early rock 'n roll and R&B, my three favorite genres.
So, as to not clutter this forum with one postmortem tribute after another, I thought it would be nice to have a thread dedicated to all of them. I'll start with one of the best jazz accompanists I've ever heard. I had the pleasure of seeing him with Tony Bennett, the singer he's most associated with, and he is in my mind unparalleled at what he did. Ralph Sharon, RIP.
From Tony Bennett and the New York Times: “I’ve been very lucky to have worked with Ralph Sharon,” Mr. Bennett told The Seattle Times in 1993. “In my life I’ve seen only two others like him, Bill Miller with Sinatra and Bobby Tucker with Billie Holiday and Billy Eckstine — very good jazz musicians, but able to sublimate themselves to singers. It’s a real art, and it’s rarely recognized.”
Bill Miller is one I've shared a couple drinks with, and also a car with as we made our way down to Orange County to attend one of the last live performances by his long-time boss, Frank Sinatra. Bill passed years ago, but when we first met in the mid 90s, I was hesitant to ask him of his early years with Sinatra, but what I found was he was happy to share. Getting that intimate take on Frank's approach to music was enlightening, and it was nice to see that through all their ups and downs, after Frank fired him several times, he held nothing but respect for Frank as a musician and he liked him as a guy as well. Bill had lost his wife in a dramatic way when their was a mudslide on the land where their house sat, and he held onto her hand as long as he could as she dangled before her death. Try carrying that around for the rest of your life.
The article: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/07/a...-who-accompanied-tony-bennett-dies-at-91.html
Tony Bennett on Ralph Sharon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkVBw9Ouy_8
Also, I wanted to acknowledge the loss of Cyntia Powell Lennon. Not a musician, that I know of, but she was the first wife of one of the most important musicians of our time, John Lennon of course.
Here's an interview she did with NPR about the early years with John:
http://www.npr.org/2015/04/02/397057478/in-her-life-after-john-cynthia-lennon-didnt-stop-loving-him
So, as to not clutter this forum with one postmortem tribute after another, I thought it would be nice to have a thread dedicated to all of them. I'll start with one of the best jazz accompanists I've ever heard. I had the pleasure of seeing him with Tony Bennett, the singer he's most associated with, and he is in my mind unparalleled at what he did. Ralph Sharon, RIP.
From Tony Bennett and the New York Times: “I’ve been very lucky to have worked with Ralph Sharon,” Mr. Bennett told The Seattle Times in 1993. “In my life I’ve seen only two others like him, Bill Miller with Sinatra and Bobby Tucker with Billie Holiday and Billy Eckstine — very good jazz musicians, but able to sublimate themselves to singers. It’s a real art, and it’s rarely recognized.”
Bill Miller is one I've shared a couple drinks with, and also a car with as we made our way down to Orange County to attend one of the last live performances by his long-time boss, Frank Sinatra. Bill passed years ago, but when we first met in the mid 90s, I was hesitant to ask him of his early years with Sinatra, but what I found was he was happy to share. Getting that intimate take on Frank's approach to music was enlightening, and it was nice to see that through all their ups and downs, after Frank fired him several times, he held nothing but respect for Frank as a musician and he liked him as a guy as well. Bill had lost his wife in a dramatic way when their was a mudslide on the land where their house sat, and he held onto her hand as long as he could as she dangled before her death. Try carrying that around for the rest of your life.
The article: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/07/a...-who-accompanied-tony-bennett-dies-at-91.html
Tony Bennett on Ralph Sharon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkVBw9Ouy_8
Also, I wanted to acknowledge the loss of Cyntia Powell Lennon. Not a musician, that I know of, but she was the first wife of one of the most important musicians of our time, John Lennon of course.
Here's an interview she did with NPR about the early years with John:
http://www.npr.org/2015/04/02/397057478/in-her-life-after-john-cynthia-lennon-didnt-stop-loving-him