On Mon, 26 Apr 1999 11:48:49 +0000, Ph. Barnard wrote:
> Yeah, I've been enjoying this thread too. I'm chiming in late, but
> hasn't anyone mentioned Julius Hemphill? He was my fave of the
> bunch. Saw him a lot over the years and followed him from his B.A.G.
> days in St Louis to his New York phase and untimely death three years
> or so. It's not crucial, but I always thought Julius was the
> initial organizer of the WSQ.
Hemphill's biggest role in influencing the direction of the WSQ was in his
compositions. In the early days, Lake and Murray did a little composing,
and Bluiett was responsible for that incredible signature tune Hattie Wall,
but Hemphill did about 90% of the writing. I would say that most of the
tunes folks knew them for, with the exception of Hattie Wall, were Hemphill
compositions - Steppin, Bordertown, My First Winter.
My personal favorite Hemphill record was recorded in 1993 - Five Chord Stud.
While recent heart surgery prevented him from playing, he did all the
composing and conducting for a saxophone sextet featuring Tim Berne, Marty
Erlich, and James Carter. That is one excellent record. Kids, can you say
"Blues-Drenched"?
~Greg
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