There will be rainy days

There will be rainy days

There will be sunny days
there will be rainy days
this there is no doubt
but when I am out
and clouds part from the sky
it will be you and I and
a rainbow passing by.

Inspired by James Moody playing, "Rainy Days":

Hello

Hello

Hello. Can we sing?
Can we dance? Can we jive right
when you have a chance?

Watch Louis Armstrong playing, "Hello Dolly":

Inspired by L'espirit De La Nouvelle-Orleans at the Montreal Jazz Festival. 

Hum sing shout

Hum sing shout 

If I ever get too low
that I can't enjoy the show
just hum sing shout
until my blues are out.

Bix Beiderbecke playing "Royal Garden Blues":

Inspired by Dixieland bands at the Montreal Jazz Festival. 

No mystery

No mystery

Grateful - it is no
mystery why I love jazz
or why I love you.

My sketch of Stanley Clarke

Stanley Clarke Band playing, "No Mystery".

Inspired by the Stanley Clarke Band at the Montreal Jazz Festival. 

Network

Network

Cultures, sounds,
people, places,
time zones,
a single instant
- captured.

My sketch of  Charnett Moffett

My sketch of Jeff Tain Watts

Inspired by the NettWork Trio at the Montreal Jazz Festival: Charnett Moffett, Stanley Jordan & Jeff Tain Watts

Perfect

Perfect

I see you as I wish
to see myself -
effortlessly perfect.

Inspired by Louis Armstrong playing, "Dinah".

Memories of you

Memories of you

Not many phone calls
lately. Not many phone
calls at all. A lost number -
a lost connection. Just
redial...No one.

Inspired by Buddy DeFranco playing, "Memories Of You": 

What's new?

What's new?

What's new?
I haven't seen you
you haven't seen me
so I'll let us be.

Inspired by Artie Shaw and Helen Forrest playing, "What's New?"

Beginning now

Beginning now

Beginning now
all the dreams I tossed and turned over
will toss and turn into reality.

Inspired by Artie Shaw playing, "Begin the Beguine":

Believe in love

Believe in love

Because of you I
believe in love family
friends and good fortune.

Inspired by Jon Batiste and Stay Human playing, "Believe in Love."

Happy Father's Day!

Moonlight

Moonlight

Whenever it's just
us and the moonlight I seem
to find contentment.

Inspired by The Aaron Diehl playing, "Moonlight In Vermont."

Home

Home

Take me home
home to where I belong
home to where life revolves
a                   d
   r             n
     o      u

Inspired by Randy Weston And Billy Harper: 'Blues To Senegal,' Live On Soundcheck:

Imagine

Imagine 

Imagine
a musician
rocking back and forth
closing their eyes real tight
breathing from their gut
notes sparking and tapering out
exploding to a hiss
and you
smelling the stale air
squinting in the dim light
feeling the cold wooden benches
being quintessentially present.

Inspired by John Coltrane playing, "Alabama."

Swing

Swing

I used to think that
swing was rather out
of date and that the
only thing that had
a ring was bebop

But just one pop and
I couldn't stop tap
tap tapping away.

Inspired by Benny Goodman playing, "Sing, Sing, Sing."

All

All

All of me
includes the sick
the sad the mad
the tired the lonely
the bored the inspired
the ecstatic the crazy
the ups the downs
the rock bottoms
the heavenly top
the raw middle
and everything in between.

Inspired by Louis Armstrong playing, "All of Me."

Lonely

Lonely

I thought I would be a
lonely woman
but taking one look within
my own self - I found a friend.

Inspired by Ornette Coleman playing, "Lonely Woman."

Swing that music

Swing that music

Swing that music
swing that dance
swing that music
get up and dance.

Inspired by the "Three Clarinets" playing, "Swing That Music". 

Boogie

Boogie

When you are feeling
blue throw your troubles away
get down and boogie!

Inspired by Roy Haynes playing, "Blue 'n Boogie".

Summer

Summer

Heat evaporates
flip flops flip and flop to and
from the beach: summer.

Inspired by Duke Ellington and Coleman Hawkins playing, "Limbo Jazz".

Free

Free

I wanted to be free
I honestly always did
but I felt trapped in some way
for reasons unexplained

I thought maybe getting rid of
s
t
r
u
c
t
u
r
e
would put me in my place

I thought I could rebel and
change my self
polar
        opposite

Then I'd be free you see...
because who I am isn't free...
so who I'm not would be...

But as life went on and
days grew to weeks months a year
I started looking different in
my own mirror - a cage -
bandaged wounded trapped

Away with structure away with
schedule away with rules away with...me?

I wanted to be free
I honestly always did
but in order to be free
I had to take the plunge -
accept me.

My sketch of Ornette Coleman

RIP Ornette Coleman. 

Belonging

Belonging 

I never felt like
I belonged much of anywhere
not the country I was born
not the town I was raised
not the city I went to school
I never felt like
I belonged much of anywhere
until I heard this music and I
heard home calling me.

Inspired by the Duke Ellington playing, "Johnny Come Lately".

I dream while I'm awake

I dream while I'm awake

I dream while I'm awake
everywhere I go I catch an
alternate reality of sorts
idealistically itching to
spice up a dreadfully dreary
ordinary world.

Inspired by Benny Green playing, "Monk's Dream".

Yesterdays

Yesterdays

I woke up today
happy
I wouldn't have believed it
a while ago that time would
p
 a
  s
   s
like this and make me
f
o
r
g
e
t

People remind me
sometimes you know
but it's like those times
just became a series of little
yesterdays
that I
flip
     flip
          flip
through on a dreary day

I woke up today
happy
I wouldn't have believed it
a while ago but time did
p
 a
  s
   s
and yesterdays frankly are just that.

Inspired by Billy Taylor, Stanley Turrentine and Gary Burton playing, "Yesterdays".

Family

Family

When I see you smile
I can't help but laugh we are
family and friends.

Inspired by Bobby Hutcherson playing, "Old Devil Moon".

This far

This far

The most inspiring
thing to see is I survived
and made it this far.

Inspired by Clark Terry playing, "Pennies From Heaven".

Dance

Dance

On a very slow
day I put on a swinging
burning song and dance.

Inspired by George Duke & Chaka Khan playing, "The The A Train".

come out

come out

i live in fear
i walk in doubt
but when i hear music
man, i come out.

Simple listen

Simple listen

An entire world
appears: a simple listen
in Harlem airshafts.

Inspired by Duke Ellington playing, "Harlem Airshaft".

Exciting

Exciting

There is nothing more
exciting than to hear a
big band swing swing swing.

Inspired by Duke Ellington playing, "The Tattooed Bride".

I remember

I remember

I remember yes
I remember just one year
ago you and I.

Inspired by Art Blakey playing, "I Remember Clifford".