I played with Bird at Bop City along with Al Hibbler. All you had to do was follow Bird. He would never squawk about what you did behind him. It was easy because he carried his own drum in his back pocket. A lot of people rode off his back. I did. I sounded the best I ever did with him. Bop City was a great place. Jimbo the owner used to run around town gathering up all these musicians and actors like Clint Eastwood to fill his club. Ringo Starr once spent an entire set sitting next to me watching me play drums at Bop City. Maybe my favorite playing experiences were with Sonny Stitt. As great as he was he always made an attempt to fit in with you instead of you fitting in with him. It was like electricity every time you got on the same stage. He knew all the music your part and his.
~ Smiley Winters
http://www.crouchingphotographer.com/Smiley%20Winters.htm
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"Don't play what the public want. You play what you want and let the public pick up on what you doin' -- even if it take them fifteen, twenty years." (Thelonious Monk) | Meine Sendungen auf Radio StoneFM: gypsy goes jazz, #165: Johnny Dyani (1945–1986) - 9.9., 22:00 | Slow Drive to South Africa, #8: tba | No Problem Saloon, #30: tba