What a blast.

What a blast the last two weeks have been... Audrey and I just got back from having dinner with Billy and Faina... What a great couple of people and even MORE fun to be with when they are not in work mode... Billy is the prankster and joker for sure, as he is a man who loves laughter... Faina is as sweet as she can be and is a logistical wiz. With her, all the i's are dotted and t's are crossed. She does all this while treating you with the utmost respect and care... This is not easy for everyone with so much and so many to have to deal with.

But this night, the four of us just hung out and had a grand time with one another.

How truly blessed I am... In truth, how many people will ever get to rub shoulders in this manner with an honest-to-goodness, true musical legend and icon like Billy Cobham. The added bonus to that was learning what a super guy he is aside from being the extraordinary music maker we all know him to be... Billy if you read this, I ain't suckin up. I'm just tellin it like it is...

Dean Brown, Victor Baily, Mark Soskin, Kenny Baron, Randy Brecker, John B. Williams...
ALL sweethearts! Not a pretensious bone in their bodies... Driving Billy, Faina, John and Kenny over to Santa Cruz and just talking about who we all would like to see in the White House and life in general was a nice treat for me.

Man! There is so much to process....

More later.

Don.

P.S. Those of you who have not recently seen Billy work his magic behind a set of drums MUST DO SO! Seeing him work within these two genres back to back over the last two weeks have been amazing... Imho, he truly has all the bases covered. Billy Cobham is on a quest of musical growth and that quest only grows stronger with each performance experience.

That is SO fab, Don. It could not
have happened to a better guy. I
am sure I echo everyone's sent-
iment, here, when I say that we
envy you to the max.

I have always dreamed of sitting
behind Billy's kit - especially his
most recent configurations.

That Don!!!

And one more thing and this is
to Billy - Thanks for taking care
of Don for us. We know he will
never ever be the same.



Regards,

That sounds so great, Don!!!!

You are real fortunate, Don, to have been able to spend that kind of time with Billy and his familia.
I hope you were able to take it all in and we're all envious of your opportunity.

Yes, thanks, guys.

I feel I should mention that it wasn't just Billy but everyone else involved. All the great players he uses that are legends in their own right (But mainly Billy though).

I forgot to mention that I even met Donald Baily, the drummer and driving force behind the late, great, Jimmy Smith. He's Victor Baily's uncle and came to out one of the SF shows.

Extremely nice man...

Guys, should Billy make it to your neck of the woods, I see this as something any of you might have the opportunity to do.... Of course with Billy's blessing. One of the things that makes me so fortunate is the very strong music community not only here in California, but the bay area. There is something going on constantly! Always somebody famous to see. George Duke, Stanley Clarke, and Chick Corea all just recently performed here. In June, it's RTF in San Francisco.

In L.A., Jazz and fusion never sleeps, and in the summer, we have the three day indoor and outdoor San Jose Jazz Festival where a slew of big names come through over the course of the event. I go and volunteer myself to be on staff for the available positions. You just gotta get involved and allow influentual people to see and get to know you... Doors will then begin to swing open.

Don.

Of course, you are right, Don.
Good advice, indeed.

I am just a hacker.

Those guys are the top!!

Thanks, again!

Regards,

Hi Don,
So cool you had a chance to hang out and chat outside of the music so to speak. Sounds like it WAS a blast! That's great-

If you get a chance, please post some more pics if you have any-It would be great to see---Oh and the one you posted of you sitting behind Billy's kit is awesome! I could see you breaking off some licks on that monster--haha-

Glad the experience was a great one- you deserve it!!

D.L.

D.L.,

My hope is that everyone that really wants to do something like this gets the opportunity. Make no mistake about it. As much fun as it was, it was also a lot of work. Billy was in tour mode and the logistics were never ending, really. He and Faina had wheels constantly turning as to stay at least one step ahead of any potential problems. Me, seeing and learning how things operate in the BC camp DIDNOT want to be that problem. So I tried to pay close attention and I scrutinized everything I did....

Don't get me wrong, Billy was very helpful, forgiving and easy to work for. But at the end of the day I understood what was at stake and what he expected... This was especially true in Santa Cruz where I was THE tech as Franz had to fly back to Germany the day of the show to fullfill some prior comitments. So, my quest was not to fall short of what Billy may have expected of me, Moreso, my quest was not to fall short of what I expected of myself... That's just the way I roll... I hope I at least made the grade.

More pics will be up before the day is done, my friend (Pacific time).

Don.

Don is ruthless, with himself but
while he might say his snare is
just all-right, I know it is the
crack of lightning and thunder!!

Thanks, again, Don!!



Anything can happen, in this world.
The possibilities are never ending.



Congrats, Danica Patrick - the 1st
woman to ever win a race at the
Formula One level!

Btw, Don - Did Billy get a look at
the new forum?

Regards,

D. Slam wrote: I forgot to mention that I even met Donald Baily, the drummer and driving force behind the late, great, Jimmy Smith. He's Victor Baily's uncle and came to out one of the SF shows.

Extremely nice man...

Great you are going through the experience with Billy, for sure a treasure.

Just wanted to add that Donald Bailey is a legendary drummer himself, he is in a ton of albums. He played with Hawton Hawes, Freddie Hubard, Joe Pass, Gene Ammons, Jimy Rowles, Bobby Hutcherson, Blue Mitchell, Harold Land, Mundell Lowe, Sarah Vaugahn and many others. I think he is originally from Philadelphia.

Billy Hart used to tell me ALSO that his mother was a fantastic "chef" and all the famous guys used to go to his house to taste her dishes.

Have you ever seen him playing live, I think he lives in Oakland?

Best regards,

Have you ever seen him playing live, I think he lives in Oakland?

Yes, Alex... He will soon begin teaching at a local music store there.

Great, that should be interesting.

Thanks or the answer!

Best,