Jazz Fashion

**docbop** · 10-07-2017, 03:54 PM

See if you can spot the Jazz musicians at the beach.

Reminds me of growing up and 98% of my friends were musicians. Everything we did was music related so the rare occasion we did do something "normal" we didn't have the clothes or shoes for it. Once had a Musicians vs HS Jocks football game that was hilarious, but we had fun. Below is Bud Powell and Johnny Griffin at the beach in France.

Jazz Fashion-bud-powell-johnny-griffin-beach-france-jpg

Jazz Fashion-bud-powell-johnny-griffin-beach-france-jpg

**Doctor Jeff** · 10-07-2017, 04:18 PM

That's a great picture--maybe in '63, when both artists lived in Paris? Powell lived there '59-63, and Griffin moved there in' 63.

Powell looks sad there. Although he died of tuberculosis, his career was pockmarked by mental illness and substance abuse. I find his story more tragic than most.

**docbop** · 10-07-2017, 04:27 PM

Originally Posted by Doctor Jeff

That's a great picture--maybe in '63, when both artists lived in Paris? Powell lived there '59-63, and Griffin moved there in' 63.

Powell looks sad there. Although he died of tuberculosis, his career was pockmarked by mental illness and substance abuse. I find his story more tragic than most.

A lot of his problems came after the police beat him up and cracked his skull. He was one of the few to become friends with Monk, and Monk liked the way Powell played his tunes. Powell name doesn't get mentioned as much, but he was as important as Parker in the creation of the new sound.

**wintermoon** · 10-07-2017, 05:32 PM

Yeah it was probably 100 degrees that day, and there's Bud laying on the hot sand in a suit.

**neatomic** · 10-07-2017, 05:40 PM

herbie hancock... and rhodes...at the beach

Jazz Fashion-885124e4af0b93c66d8b18adb68900c7-jpg

cheers

**cosmic gumbo** · 10-07-2017, 07:09 PM

Miles at the beach.

**PMB** · 10-07-2017, 08:45 PM

Muddy Waters at the beach:

Jazz Fashion-muddy-beach-jpg

**PMB** · 10-07-2017, 08:57 PM

Billy, Holiday at the beach:

Jazz Fashion-billy-crystal-jpg

**henryrobinett** · 10-07-2017, 09:10 PM

Buds’s girlfriend, who pretended to be his wife, who he didn’t even like abs was railroaded into this relationship, controlled all of his money and kicked him in a closet when he wasn’t gigging. Talk about tragic.

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**Vladan** · 10-08-2017, 04:28 PM

Originally Posted by henryrobinett

Buds’s girlfriend, who pretended to be his wife, who he didn’t even like abs was railroaded into this relationship, controlled all of his money and kicked him in a closet when he wasn’t gigging. Talk about tragic.

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There is a movie about that, right? Not really A production as far as I can remember, you get somewhat annoyed, but the plot makes you keep watching.

VladanMovies BlogSpot

**docbop** · 10-08-2017, 05:08 PM

Originally Posted by Vladan

There is a movie about that, right? Not really A production as far as I can remember, you get somewhat annoyed, but the plot makes you keep watching.

The character in the movie was a combination of a number of musicians that moved to France, but Bud's life was the main one. I read most of the book that Francis Paudras the other character in the movie wrote. I stopped because got tired of the guy talking about himself so much. Francis Paudras is one of the others in that picture below. I found a lot of the book different from the movie, but I like the movie. Not many movies about Jazz so I've watched it a lot, plus very cool hearing John McLaughlin play straight ahead Jazz.

**henryrobinett** · 10-08-2017, 05:13 PM

Originally Posted by Vladan

There is a movie about that, right? Not really A production as far as I can remember, you get somewhat annoyed, but the plot makes you keep watching.

VladanMovies BlogSpot

I don't know. I never saw it.

**henryrobinett** · 10-08-2017, 05:14 PM

Oh! Round Midnight with Dexter Gordon? He was nominated for best actor. Yes. I believe it was loosely based on Bud and Ben Webster. I read the book, but I didn't see the same story lines. Just a burned out jazz musician ex pat.

**blille** · 10-08-2017, 05:23 PM

Coverdale with Beach

(Not sure I'll find many Whitesnake fans in a jazz forum but you never know)

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**Doctor Jeff** · 10-08-2017, 06:45 PM

I think it is controversial how bad the injuries were that Powell suffered--1944 and 1947. They didn't help, of course, but injuries like that don't generally cause mental illness. From everything I've read he had symptoms of bipolar disorder or possibly schizophrenia, exacerbated by alcohol and substance abuse. Of course back then the diagnosis and treatments were more primitive.

As far as his relationship with Buttercup, again controversial, but he was completely unproductive without some supervision, and from what I know she kind of "took care" of him and allowed him to play while he was in Paris.

There are quite a few jazz performers with famous inamorata who may or may not have taken advantage of them due to their compromised state--Lenny Breau, Chet Baker and Nina Simone among them. Even Parker and Monk's relationship with de Koenigswarter was somewhat parasitic, no? It isn't always black and white.

(I haven't read any bios or studied Bud in detail, so someone correct me if I'm way off base. This is based on stuff easily available on the Internet.)

**neatomic** · 10-08-2017, 11:21 PM

dexter at the beach..from round midnight

Jazz Fashion-282813_full-jpg

cheers

**docbop** · 10-08-2017, 11:27 PM

Originally Posted by neatomic

dexter at the beach..from round midnight

Jazz Fashion-282813_full-jpg

cheers

So glad I got to see Dexter play, but sadly there was hardly anyone in the club that night. Dexter would kick off a tune, play the head, solo, then he'd just get off the stage and walk around, maybe sit in a booth till time to end the tune and start another.

**wintermoon** · 10-09-2017, 12:48 AM

I'm sorry to say I saw him a day or 2 before he passed.
A friend who was also a huge Dex fan called and said he was just admitted to the hospital.
I went down when I got off my day gig and he was in bad shape.
A sad day, imo when you look in the dictionary under "jazzman" there's a pic of Dexter.

**grahambop** · 10-09-2017, 07:10 AM

Fashion advice from Wardell and Dexter:

Jazz Fashion-wardelldexter1947-jpg

**guido5** · 10-09-2017, 08:07 AM

I heard Dexter play at Johnathan Swifts in Cambridge, MA around '81 with the quartet of George Cables, Rufus Reid and Eddie Gladden. So amazing to hear that tone in person.

**oldane** · 10-09-2017, 01:34 PM

Originally Posted by Doctor Jeff

I think it is controversial how bad the injuries were that Powell suffered--1944 and 1947. They didn't help, of course, but injuries like that don't generally cause mental illness. From everything I've read he had symptoms of bipolar disorder or possibly schizophrenia, exacerbated by alcohol and substance abuse. Of course back then the diagnosis and treatments were more primitive.

As far as his relationship with Buttercup, again controversial, but he was completely unproductive without some supervision, and from what I know she kind of "took care" of him and allowed him to play while he was in Paris.

Yes, it's most likely that Powell suffered from schizophrenia. There are several reports of him being hallucinated and his behavior indicated that he also was quite autistic. He stayed in Denmark for a while when he was in Europe. The Danish musicians found it very difficult to communicate with him. Bassist NHØP who was 16 years at the time and worked with him in Jazz House Montmartre has told that he would just begin to play and NHØP and the drummer had to pick up the tune and follow. NHØP once asked Powell how he knew which tunes to play when he didn't have a set list. Powell answered: "I do plan once a year". NHØP then asked: "But how come you never play the same tune twice in the same night?" Powell answered: "Like I said I said - once a year." NHØP then gave up the subject.

As for Buttercup: She and Bud knew each other from their childhood in the same neighbourhood. They were never married nor sweethearts. When Powell was released from one of his stays at a mental hospital, it was on the condition that Oscar Goodstein (manager at Birdland) became his custodary. When Powell went to Europe, Goodstein couldn't go with him and asked Buttercup to go and take care of Powell and manage his affairs. She also made sure he took his medication (Chlorpromazine which was a novel antipsychotic drug at that time). I think it's safe to say that he was (too?) heavily medicated at that time. Many wondered about his grimazing, but it was actually a neurological side effect of the drug - the so called BLM syndrome (a kind of tardive dyskinesia). Powell tolerated even small amounts of alcohol very badly and it was a constant struggle for those around him to keep him from drinking.

When the "probation period" under custody was over, Powell traveled back to US - without Buttercup. Upon arrival in New York he was asked by a journalist what he was looking most forward to by coming back. His answer was: "Handling my own dough." Sadly he was not able take care of himself on his own. Baroness Königswater tried to help him but he slipped out of sight and things went downhill rapidly. Eventually he died not too long after.