If you’ll allow that inspirations come in all shapes, colors and sizes, I’ll share that for me March has already yielded bunches of them and we’re not even half way through it! First, the Monterey Jazz Bash by the Bay was held on the first weekend in March and, while the numbers were not yet back to pre-pandemic level, they were much larger than in 2022 and there was an encouraging number of “first-timers” in attendance, so the Board has decided to continue into 2024. With festivals folding near and far, I just feel very grateful to be able to share this news!
Moreover, I was inspired when I read our beloved editor’s “Static From My Attic” in the March issue to do a bit of sleuthing regarding a young lady who goes by the stage name “Bliss Blood.” In his editorial, Andy Senior shared a Facebook entry she posted lambasting those who follow early—“trad,” “classic,” etc— jazz (while he was unclear as to whether this polemic was aimed directly at him, the shoe certainly fits). I won’t quote the entire thing here—you can go read it in last month’s issue if you care to—but the pertinent bit, at least regarding my research, was her diatribe “How boring is jazz, especially trad retro retread jazz at this point? It was cute to hearken back to the Depression during the Recession, but we need some new ideas right now…”
Really? I went to my trusty e
