Simplicity

What calls out
of the storm
the lightning the thunder the clap
is hiss the rolls the crashes
what calls out of the cacophony
the endless notes
the phrases interrupted by time
the notes that don't mean anything
the ba da bee ops
the za zapedy ees
the da dee a be oo das
is the sense that we
as a unit
need to take a step back
and think simply
not just in music, art
but in life
because in simplicity is honesty
all art must be built on that which is true
even if it means going without
flourishes
bends
squeals
whinnies
hoos and hollers
what calls out of the storm
the lightning the thunder the clap
is hiss the rolls the crashes
is silence, is sunshine, is reality.

The world according to jazz

In its sound
I can find the profound

a bop a beep a boop
zee ba da lee-op
da ba da ba ee dod e la

it's a language
it's a code
it's a dialect

a bop a beep a boop
zee ba da lee-op
da ba da ba ee dod e la

it's a way of life
it's a lifestyle
it's a spirituality

a bop a beep a boop
zee ba da lee-op
da ba da ba ee dod e la

it's in me
it's in you
it's in us

a bop a beep a boop
zee ba da lee-op
da ba da ba ee dod e la

I can hear it
I can feel it
I am it.

Passion!

Passion!

Passion heals the world

I have seen so much medicine

so many corporations

so many products guaranteed 

to cure you

to heal you

to make you happier

to make you healthier

to release your problems

but, they don't work

there isn't a direct route out

of unhappiness

unhealthiness

but there's passion

there's a vision

there's determination

and with these tools

anything can happen

and you heal yourself as if in magic. 

I wake up each day

I wake up each day
with a mission

a mission to spread

music

music and art

music and art all around the world

music and art all around the world so that people can see
the impact of passion, of life, of beauty
a role model without greed.

The beauty of life

The beauty of life
the beauty of love
cannot be contained within us

the beauty of life
the beauty of love
becomes music, becomes art
becomes sculptures, paintings, masterworks
becomes inventions, creations, explanation

the beauty of life
the beauty of love
must be shared with others.

Defining jazz

the march that makes my heart a dancer
the strut that makes me soul alive
the jump that propels me being forward
the hope that never dies.

Experience the culture

Jazz
is more than the surface of it all, you know

yeah,
there's the quartets, quintets, big bands
trumpets, saxophones, drum sets

there's the standards
from Broadway, TV, movies
the bop tunes
those great Wayne Shorter songs
we all hum down the street

there's the legends
Bird
Dizzy
Pops
Duke
Trane
Ella
Billie
Prez
Hawk
Count
Miles

there's the informal formalness
jam sessions
cutting contests
hangs galore

there's the soloing
the going in
the complete release of inhibition

there's the directness of it
channeling the true self
channeling a higher being
channeling God

there's the history of it
the blues aren't from a textbook
this music was made from blood
this music was made from people
that had no other way to make it
than to live through it

this stuff, this jazz we all talk so much about
is real
is raw
is authentic

this stuff, jazz,
isn't made in a school, a book, in a recipe
you can't just buy two eggs, some flour
and sugar and wait for it to come out of the oven
you can't just buy a book of magic spells
or take a potion and start playing lines

this stuff - jazz -
is made out there
in real time
with real people
in real places

and to anyone that labels it as a music...
I'd dare you to go out there, close your eyes, feel the vibes and
experience the culture.