Some Community Service Announcements
First off, thanks to Arthur Gilroy and James Benjamin for their recent diaries expanding the discussion here, and raising some points I’ll try and keep in mind. In particular, both raise the point that there are lots of great musicians out there keeping the music alive, and we owe it to them and each other to bring up-and-coming musicians to each other’s attention as much as possible. So please everyone take this as another invitation to do just that. I’ve linked back to their diaries, which in turn have links and recommendations in them (check out the comments too) to many musicians for you to check out.
Second, if you missed blksista’s diary the other day on “Fats Domino and Pete Fountain, world citizens of New Orleans, take stock after Katrina,” go directly back and read it; do not pass Go, do not collect $200. However, you may find you get more timely help from Community Chest than from FEMA.
Third, I want to publicly thank dada for pointing out Rene’ Marie to me a few weeks ago (I went and got her CD “Vertigo” on his suggestion and am delighted to confirm that she’s a wonderful vocalist – more details below) by giving a plug to the community radio station where he’s got a “monthly gig as a program producer/dj/engineer,” KGNU.
Fourth, for Cabin Girl, just wanted to let you know that I now have confirmation that plans for the upcoming Bela Fleck and the Flecktones tour are well underway. I know this because they’re going to be here in Knoxville on Jan 27, 2006. Complete dates and cities for the tour available here.I tried to win tickets by being lucky caller #13 at my NPR station during Morning Edition, but was #14. (All together now: Awwww!) Must have been the slight time delay caused by dialing a cell phone while tooling down the interstate on the way to work and driving with my elbows. Guess I’ll have to get tickets the old fashioned way, by passing myself off as a reporter (hey, if JG can get in the White House that way…) – Uh, I mean by paying for them, LOL.
I see they’re also playing the Uptown Theater in Kansas City; many moons ago before the place was renovated I was on the board of directors of an environmental group that rented office space in that building. At the time, the rents from the offices was all that was keeping the owners from tearing the place down, and the performance area was absolutely trashed. Looking at their website, I’m heartened to see that they’ve done a great restoration – and office space is still available, although I’m sure not-for-profit groups can’t afford it anymore. We’ve had a similar experience with the renovation of the Tennessee theatre here, which is where they’ll be playing in Knoxville. It’s great to see the trend in restoring these historic old venues so new generations of performers can have performance sites worthy of their art – and they help rejuvenate the surrounding neighborhood as well.
Like I said above, dada pointed out Rene’ Marie to me and I’m hooked. Her website is a bit cryptic about her background, so I can’t give too much biographical information; the following was on her publicist’s website:
Married at 18 and a mother of two sons by 23, Rene’ took a hiatus from singing in public to raise her family. But this shift in focus proved to be a period of incubation. Rene’ started listening to jazz and began, for the first time, to compose. She continued to sing at home – exposing herself and her sons to a wide variety of music genres, including show tunes, jazz, hip-hop, world music and rap. Her jazz influences read more like a recipe – Joe Zawinul’s energy and insistence on originality, Strayhorn’s moods and Monk’s quirky note choices. All these elements, plus a wealth of life experiences, contribute to the open and adventurous spirit in her arrangements and compositions, distinguishing her from the rest of the pack. Most of all, Rene’ learned the importance of exploring the depths of a melodic story, taking chances and giving old standards new meaning and possibilities. Perhaps enigmatic artists like Rene’ Marie make traditionalists a bit uncomfortable, but Rene’ has proven that truly listening to one’s own voice is the very core of jazz artistry.
Rene’ Marie’s live performances can only be described as a transformation. The soft-spoken artist takes to the stage and turns it into a voodoo possession with her band. Her burning rhythms and tonal density make each song an experience beyond the typical jazz presentation. She swoops, yodels, seduces and conjures notes that leave the audience emotionally drained and satisfied. Rene’ Marie is a formidable artist at a time when the jazz world is desperately trying to decide who will be the “new leaders” of jazz.
Sound clips for you to hear Rene’ Marie are available at MaxJazz here and here, on her webpage (link above, in title) and at NPR (including video).
Since I’ve only heard her album Vertigo so far, let me give you some impressions from it. Her original songs are all great, very creative, but what blew my shoes right off my feet was hearing what she did with songs that I thought I knew: She takes “Surrey With The Fringe On Top” and makes it absolutely sultry; this is not your parents’ Rodgers and Hammerstein by any means!
Where you at first glance might expect her to go sultry, on “I Only Have Eyes For You,” she and the band do it as (surprise!) a Bossa Nova. This makes it lighter, but no less romantic; she sings with the bright joy of a new-found love. Her guitarist, John Hart, makes the number positively sun-drenched. While many singers take Cole Porter’s “It’s All Right With Me” at a rapid tempo; she takes it slow and poignant. McCartney’s “Blackbird” becomes an anthem of personal transformation; two additional – and quite different – takes on this tune by Marie can be heard on her website by following the “music” link to “alternate tracks one” and “alternate tracks two.” One is full of swamp-like background nature sounds that morph into an electronic background ostinato; the other is a big-city-urban “re-arrange-mix” version of the first alternate that is even more original. Sir Paul would be surprised at where his tune could go, but I think he’d approve…
But the most envelope-pushing number is the pairing of “Dixie” with “Strange Fruit,” which is forcing audiences to deal with racism by taking both black and white listeners out of their comfort zone. I’ll quote from her interview with jazzreview.com:
Jazz Review: The “Dixie/Strange Fruit” medley is very powerful. Where did you get the idea to pair these unlikely songs?
Rene’ Marie: “I’m from Virginia. I have thought ever since I was a kid that the words to ‘Dixie’ were innocent. There’s no reference in the lyrics to slavery. It’s someone longing for the South. I’ve thought, ‘Why is it that white people sing it and black people don’t because it’s a beautiful song, especially when you slow it down?’ I remember singing it for my son even before I starting singing professionally. He was learning to drive. I was in the passenger seat. We were at a stoplight. I said, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could sing Dixie like this?’ and I started singing it to him. He said, ‘But, Mom that’s Dixie.’
A couple of years later when I started singing, I wanted to do this version of ‘Strange Fruit.’ I was doing it alone. Then the idea of doing ‘Dixie’ came back to me, but I couldn’t figure out what to do with it. One day, I don’t know what made think of it, I thought, ‘What if I put Dixie and Strange Fruit together? Maybe Dixie wouldn’t be offensive, and Strange Fruit would have a whole new twist.’
I went to some friends of mine, all African-American, and asked them how they would feel if they heard ‘Dixie’ this way. I sang it. They said, ‘I don’t know, Rene’.’ Every one of them said, ‘I don’t know.’ As much as I tried putting it behind me, it wouldn’t go away. I thought I’m just going to do it. We did it the first time in Mississippi, of all places. I had prepared myself for strong adverse reaction, but I didn’t get it. I received positive reaction.”
Jazz Review: Did you just launch into it?
Rene’ Marie: “I used it introduce it with this long explanation, almost apologizing ahead of time. It was like a caveat, ‘Look out now. I’m getting ready to do something. I hope you don’t get offended.’ Someone said, ‘You know, you shouldn’t do that. Don’t even introduce it. Just sing it. Let people go through the entire emotions that they are going to feel with Dixie and then bring them back with Strange Fruit.’ I think that does work better.
There are certain reactions that I get. You start singing ‘Dixie,’ and sometimes you hear a chuckle like, ‘Is she serious? This has got to be a joke.’ Then as I go on, they realize, ‘Oh my God, she’s really going to sing this song.’ The black people in the audience, almost every time, sit back in their chairs and fold their arms and get a look on their face like, ‘I cannot believe she is singing Dixie.’ It is so quiet in the room. Then when I go into ‘Strange Fruit,’ the posture changes. They lean forward and go, ‘Ohhh.’ I’ve had strong responses after the song during the break or after the show. One man said, ‘That’s the first time that I heard ‘Dixie’ where I didn’t feel like shooting somebody.’ Another told me about the first time his grandfather took him to a lynching. He’s a white man in his mid-50s. He said he was a little boy when that happened. He told me how that song brought back memories, and he’s crying.”
Jazz Review: Audience members, both black and white, are sharing their experiences with racism.
Rene’ Marie: “Yes. I never expected that. There is one funny story. We were in Panama City, Fla. It’s still the deep South. It’s the northern most part of Florida. This was at a church. I had my eyes closed, and I was singing a cappella. ‘Ohhhh, I wish I was…’ Then this deep bass voice comes in, ‘In the land of cotton.’ My eyes popped open. It was a white man. It was an all white audience. He sang a couple of more lines. I think someone must have jabbed him the side because he stopped. But, I loved it. He was in the spirit of it. It was fine. It dredged up all kinds of emotions.”
In a press release dated Aug. 5 on her website, Marie indicates she will be performing live on NPR’s “Toast of the Nation” on New Years Eve from Columbia, MO. But I’ve also seen that NPR is planning to broadcast the New Years Eve program from New Orleans, post-Katrina. Has she been replaced? Does the program broadcast several artists from multiple locations? If anyone knows what’s up and can clarify this for the gang I’d be appreciative. Thanks.
