Re: [Harp-L] Re: The Greatest? (Aongus MacCana)

rmcgraw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx · Thu, 27 Dec 2007 12:17:37 -0500 (EST)

Roger, thanks for posting these....wonderful!!!
WVa Bob

>
>>From: "Aongus MacCana" <amaccana@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Aongus wrote on Mon, 24 Dec 2007 17:12:49 -0000
>
>>The night before last, on a UK chat show I happened on an archival clip
>> of
>>Larry Adler playing a duet with the classical violinist Perlman. It quite
>>took me back and made me wonder how I had lost the true faith after all
>>these years. In my youth there was only one "Mouth Organ Player": Larry
>>Adler! and everyone in the world had heard about him. Mostly he seemed to
>>play a 12 hole chromatic, which largely due to his efforts was beginning
>> -
>>grudgingly - to be acknowledged as maybe a 'real' musical instrument
>
> I have shown this clip many times at the NHL festivals, and once at
> SPAH in Denver when Larry was recognised with a Special Achievement
> Award. Larry died just before Douglas Tate could present it and I
> brought it back to his family.
>
> When I was looking for this particular clip I found another one which
> I have just put on YouTube. With some superb editing by persons
> unknown, Larry plays Summertime with full orchestra, alone with his
> own piano and finally with Itzhak Perlman.
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoCM_NLQTcs
>
> The UK was fortunate to have the greatest entertainer and musician
> ever to play the harmonica, on its radio and TV screens for over 50
> years. He had a mastery of tone and feeling for music rarely
> approached by anyone else, as well as the ability to liven up any chat
> show with his stories. Larry was also the President of the NHL.
>
> If you would like to see the full performance with Itzhak Perlman
> which was repeated on Parkinson's chat show this week, I have just
> found that it is already on YouTube. Just watch them watching each
> other and having fun.
>
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmC4SJ42Z-s
>
> Roger
>
>>. Big time art music composers like Vaughan Williams even wrote pieces
>>for Larry Adler. I only
>>once heard Larry perform live. That was at an intimate little theatre in
>>Dublin in the mid nineteen fifties.  Larry reminisced for an hour or two,
>>with musical interludes where he held the harmonica in one hand and
>>accompanied himself on the piano with the other. He showed his usual ease
>>with and mastery of the instrument.
>>
>>Thinking about Larry Adler's musical legacy reminded me of an Irish
>>parrallel. At about the same time as I heard Larry Adler perform in
>> Dublin a
>>genius of Irish Traditional Music one Sean Maguire was just beginning to
>>make his name. Sean Maguire brought Irish Traditional Fiddling to new
>>undreamt of heights and was unchallenged as the greatest living Irish
>>Fiddler for over fifty years until his recent death. Strangely though he
>> was
>>kind of written out of the script in the Irish Traditional Music scene.
>> It
>>was as if eveyone decided that he was in such a different league that we
>>needed to "forget about Sean Maguire- now let's see who is the best
>>traditional fiddler?" The Culture Police occasionally alluded to the fact
>>that Maguire had had a classical music  education - the suggestion being
>>that this might have polluted the purity of his traditional music. Some
>> of
>>these people had the view that true traditional players could and should
>>only acquire the tradition from their mother's milk and/or by osmosis
>> from
>>other older trad players, who happened to live in their immediate
>>neighbourhood.
>>
>>I began to wonder whether the late Larry Adler might not also have
>> suffered
>>from a similar unspoken cultural exclusion. Sean Maguire and himself
>> shared
>>another trait. Like Muhamed Ali neither of them had any doubt that "they
>>were the greatest".
>>
>>One way or another I think it is time for me to augment my meagre library
>> of
>>Larry Adler records and start listening to them again.
>>
>>Beannachtaí
>>Aongus Mac Cana
>>
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 7
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 09:20:10 -0800
>>From: "G. E. Popenoe" <gpopenoe@xxxxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] Seasons greetings!
>>To: Harp-L <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Message-ID: <41B834A9-D93A-4097-95BB-3DDA06BB1AF0@xxxxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain;	charset=US-ASCII;	format=flowed;	delsp=yes
>>
>>Gary Popenoe here. Just joined harp-l  but I go way back with Spah
>>having played before two of their national conventions as a member of
>>the Original Harmonica Band back in the late 80's.
>>
>>Just wanted to give a shout out to everyone for the holidays.
>>
>>I've been playing with singer songwriters here in LA. Next gig is at
>>Kulaks Woodshed on January 4th with Severin Brown and James Coberly
>>Smith. It is a live webcast. Log on to www.kulakswoodshed.com at about
>>9PM Pacific time to watch.
>>
>>For archived sessions accompanying David Stone(ukelele), search my
>>name on you-tube.
>>
>>
>>Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 8
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 09:33:18 -0800
>>From: Tom Buttram <tomb500@xxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] (no subject)
>>To: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Message-ID: <BAY112-W22BC44C2F466FE1C9F0AAE4590@xxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>>
>>
>>tomb500@xxxxxxx
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 9
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 13:35:52 -0600
>>From: "Mick Zaklan" <mzaklan@xxxxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] The Greatest?
>>To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
>>Message-ID:
>>	<88bfaf130712241135r2b7d7576sec48a88c6769762e@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>>
>>   I was lucky enough to catch Larry Adler back in the 80's at the now
>>defunct Tango Restaurant in Chicago.  He worked there twice for extended
>>engagements.  The first time through he brought maybe the greatest piano
>>accompanist ever, Ellis Larkins.  That was the best duo I ever saw, in
>> any
>>genre of music.  It was like listening to a great singer go through the
>>American songbook.  In fact, very few singers could have equaled what
>> Larry
>>was doing tone and phrasing-wise night after night in that little room.
>>   As far as Larry Adler being forgotten about; I'm sure that being
>>blacklisted during the McCarthy era here in the States didn't help.  And
>>Larry's cockiness was legendary and probably didn't sit well with a lot
>> of
>>people.  A wonderful player, though, and the guy who put the harmonica on
>>the map.  He was as important to our instrument as Segovia was to the
>>guitar, as Coleman Hawkins was to the saxophone, and as Bill Monroe was
>> to
>>bluegrass music.
>>
>>Mick Zaklan
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 10
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 14:49:13 -0500
>>From: Robert Bonfiglio <bon@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] (no subject)
>>To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
>>Message-ID: <872A2312-11EC-422B-B0A2-8DAEBFCADAF3@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed
>>
>>To All Fellow Harmonica Players,
>>
>>Merry Christmas and a Harmonica Happy New Year!!  Happy Harmonica
>>Hanukkah too!!!
>>
>>Harmonically yours,
>>
>>Robert Bonfiglio
>>http://www.robertbonfiglio.com
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 11
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 20:16:03 +0000
>>From: Paul Routledge <kingley@xxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] Harp L  (no Subject)
>>To: Harp L L <Harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Message-ID: <186280D6-6097-461B-9004-9A55684FEA33@xxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain;	charset=US-ASCII;	format=flowed;	delsp=yes
>>
>>Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all.
>>
>>I hope you all have a great time and listen to and play some great
>>music!
>>
>>Paul
>>
>>www.kingleyharp.co.uk
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 12
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 15:30:59 -0500
>>From: "Rob Paparozzi" <Chromboy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] Remembering Oscar
>>To: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Message-ID: <C4992AC7E37A4DFEA2A033170CBAF386@Bedroompc>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
>>	reply-type=original
>>
>>Oscar Peterson Dies at 82...not exactly a member of our community....but
>>here's a COOL rccord he did back in 75' at the Montreuux Jazz Fest in
>>Switzerland with Toots and Company...I still play my VINYL copy!
>>
>>http://www.ejazzlines.com/c847/OSCAR-PETERSON-BIG-SIX-OSCAR-PETERSON-BIG-6-LIVE-AT-THE-MONTREUX-JAZZ-FESTIVAL-p2961.html
>>
>>he will be missed in the Music World..
>>
>>Happy Holidays,
>>
>>all the best,
>>Rob Paparozzi
>>www.myspace.com/hudsonriverrats
>>
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 13
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 15:17:52 EST
>>From: IcemanLE@xxxxxxx
>>Subject: [Harp-L] My Larry Adler story
>>To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
>>Message-ID: <cf3.22e4f284.34a16df0@xxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
>>
>>Larry Adler - my experience.
>>
>>It was at the Trossinger Hohner International Competition in '95 (I
>> believe
>>it was '95, or close to that year anyways).
>>
>>Larry Adler was a guest of honor and was staying at the only real nice
>> hotel
>>in Trossingen. It was breakfast/brunch time. It appeared to me that
>> everyone
>>was avoiding this small skinny man with big glasses as he moved through
>> the
>>buffet line, sitting by himself in the corner and eating.
>>
>>At the time, I was, in a sense, new to the old chromatic masters in my
>>understanding of who they were and what they have done in their lives. I
>> was  also
>>fearless and a bit daft at the time, not really understanding the major
>>figure he was. So, I wandered over and asked if he would mind if I joined
>> him  for
>>breakfast. He seemed glad that someone actually came over to talk to him
>>rather than avoid him.
>>
>>I introduced myself, mentioned that I knew who he was and admitted that I
>>was new to the "scene" and therefore only had heard of him through
>> reading, so
>>was unfamiliar with what he had done. Apparently, this was a somewhat new
>>experience for him, so he really relaxed and opened up, glad for the
>> company for
>>a moment. We chatted inconsequentially through the breakfast. Joe Filisko
>>snapped a picture of the two "Larry's" chatting which I have somewhere in
>> a box
>>of photos.
>>
>>Larry was pretty down to earth and had lost none of his sharp mind nor
>> wit.
>>If I had realized exactly his stature, I probably would have either never
>>approached him or started gushing. As it was, it was just a cool
>> breakfast.
>>
>>Later on I competed in the World Diatonic Competition. After my "spot",
>> when
>>I left the small stage, Larry came up to me and shook my hand. He told me
>>"I'm pretty well known for not liking the short harp, but I really
>> enjoyed the
>>way you play and your tone."
>>
>>It was only later that I realized the amazing compliment - especially in
>>regards to the diatonic.
>>
>>
>>
>>**************************************See AOL's top rated recipes
>>(http://food.aol.com/top-rated-recipes?NCID=aoltop00030000000004)
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
>>Message: 14
>>Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 15:50:02 -0800 (PST)
>>From: David Payne <dave@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>Subject: [Harp-L] Re: The Greatest
>>To: Harp L Harp L <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>>Message-ID: <686323.45953.qm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>>
>> remember when I was a kid, maybe eight, I read a larry Adler biography.
>> It was a whole new, strange world of playing to me at that age, the
>> instrument, style and even, to some degree, lifestyle, was far different
>> than anything we had on rural Elk River in W.Va. Reading about Larry got
>> me thinking about music more seriously, thinking about more than maybe
>> learning Stephen Foster from tab.   I don't think any chromatic player
>> has ever inspired me more than Doug Tate, but Larry got me thinking
>> about a lot of things. Wish I could have met him, the closest we ever
>> had to a big-name on the river, I think, was when David Allen Coe played
>> this dive bar in Sissonville back in the early 1990s.
>>
>>  Dave
>>
>>  ________________________
>>  Dave Payne Sr.
>>  Elk River Harmonicas
>>  www.elkriverharmonicas.com
>>
>>
>>------------------------------
>>
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>>
>>End of Harp-L Digest, Vol 52, Issue 52
>>**************************************
>
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