OK, so we’re all doing it Gangnam Style this week.
There was an expression amongst jazzers years ago, ‘All the good notes are taken’ to explain why older tunes were more memorable. I was told that Duke coined it. Even if that isn’t true, it’s something he could have said so I’ll go with it. The melancholy in that sentence is something I feel keenly. Duke was a guy who went from nothing to great success to being forgotten and then reborn to fame and then finally recognised as a national treasure. I always admired the man even more than his music because he just kept going out every night with a quiet dignity regardless of the latest fashion. He wasn’t truly appreciated until his passing, but those who knew him always realised that he was the coolest man in any room.
There have been a number of articles and books out lately about […]
