Had I died in my sleep? The clock radio clicks on Classic FM one summer morning in 1994, and what awakens me sounds like the song of angels. Then, in that rapid-fade moment when sleep recedes and the music comes fully into focus, I recognise the saxophonist: Norway’s idiosyncratic Jan…
Category: Features – Archive
Charles Mingus didn’t want to do it. This was ’62, and he had a major project of his own on the boil; didn’t have the time. Of course he loved Duke Ellington: the man, his composing and his piano playing. Who didn’t? But it was Duke who’d fired him nine…
Hearing of a possible gig with a hot new band, Marshall Allen looked in on a rehearsal, expecting the leader to say, “Let’s hear you play”. Instead he was welcomed with recited poems and lectures about space travel, ancient Egypt and philosophy. Bewildered, he nonetheless stuck around, listening to music…