Best Gary Garrison Podcasts (2024)

1
2024.07.08 Matt Garrison on Miles Davis 1981 - 2 of 3 1:07:03

4h ago1:07:03

1:07:03

People love to talk about Miles Davis reinventing himself and reinventing the music. They talk about the First Great Quintet in the fifties, the Second Great Quintet in the sixties, the Lost Quintet of 1969, maybe of the electric bands that followed (although often not). What do they almost never talk about? In 1981, Miles hadn't performed in publi…

1
2024.07.08 Matt Garrison on 1981 Miles Davis - 1 of 3 1:01:30

5h ago1:01:30

1:01:30

People love to talk about Miles Davis reinventing himself and reinventing the music. They talk about the First Great Quintet in the fifties, the Second Great Quintet in the sixties, the Lost Quintet of 1969, maybe of the electric bands that followed (although often not). What do they almost never talk about? In 1981, Miles hadn't performed in publi…

1
2024.06.24 Eric Person on Art Blakey - 3 of 3 59:31

2h ago59:31

59:31

Listen to any song by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. There will be no question in your mind about who is driving the bus or who is riding on the bus or where this bus is going. Who's driving the bus? Art Blakey is driving! Who's riding the bus? Everybody! Where's this bus going? Straight ahead! Seventeen years of Deep Focus and no one has ever…

1
2024.06.24 Eric Person on Art Blakey - 2 of 3 1:08:05

6h ago1:08:05

1:08:05

Listen to any song by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. There will be no question in your mind about who is driving the bus or who is riding on the bus or where this bus is going. Who's driving the bus? Art Blakey is driving! Who's riding the bus? Everybody! Where's this bus going? Straight ahead! Seventeen years of Deep Focus and no one has ever…

1
2024.06.24 Eric Person on Art Blakey - 1 of 3 59:18

24d ago59:18

59:18

Listen to any song by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. There will be no question in your mind about who is driving the bus or who is riding on the bus or where this bus is going. Who's driving the bus? Art Blakey is driving! Who's riding the bus? Everybody! Where's this bus going? Straight ahead! Seventeen years of Deep Focus and no one has ever…

1
2024.06.10 Vernon Reid on Gil Scott-Heron - 3 of 3 1:12:49

1M ago1:12:49

1:12:49

We don't hear enough about Gil Scott-Heron these days. And when we do, we often get the same few crumbs: his invention of a sort of proto-hiphop, some reference to his social concerns, and, of course, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (which too often is wildly misinterpreted). What about Gil Scott-Heron the unique stage performer? What about …

1
2024.06.10 Vernon Reid on Gil Scott-Heron - 2 of 3 1:01:04

21d ago1:01:04

1:01:04

We don't hear enough about Gil Scott-Heron these days. And when we do, we often get the same few crumbs: his invention of a sort of proto-hiphop, some reference to his social concerns, and, of course, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (which too often is wildly misinterpreted). What about Gil Scott-Heron the unique stage performer? What about …

1
2024.06.10 Vernon Reid on Gil Scott-Heron - 1 of 3 1:05:17

28d ago1:05:17

1:05:17

We don't hear enough about Gil Scott-Heron these days. And when we do, we often get the same few crumbs: his invention of a sort of proto-hiphop, some reference to his social concerns, and, of course, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (which too often is wildly misinterpreted). What about Gil Scott-Heron the unique stage performer? What about …

1
2024.05.13 Gary Lucas on Rahsaan Roland Kirk - 3 of 3 1:04:57

2M ago1:04:57

1:04:57

"Who has the hippest chops in the world?" If you're going to ask that question on a record, you had better have the nuts to back it up. I mean, you will be annihilated, humiliated for the rest of time, if you don't. Rahsaan Roland Kirk knew he had them and so did everyone else on the scene. To this day, any time you see a saxophonist playing 3 horn…

1
2024.05.13 Gary Lucas on Rahsaan Roland Kirk - 2 of 3 1:06:41

2M ago1:06:41

1:06:41

"Who has the hippest chops in the world?" If you're going to ask that question on a record, you had better have the nuts to back it up. I mean, you will be annihilated, humiliated for the rest of time, if you don't. Rahsaan Roland Kirk knew he had them and so did everyone else on the scene. To this day, any time you see a saxophonist playing 3 horn…

1
2024.05.13 Gary Lucas on Rahsaan Roland Kirk - 1 of 3 1:02:34

2M ago1:02:34

1:02:34

"Who has the hippest chops in the world?" If you're going to ask that question on a record, you had better have the nuts to back it up. I mean, you will be annihilated, humiliated for the rest of time, if you don't. Rahsaan Roland Kirk knew he had them and so did everyone else on the scene. To this day, any time you see a saxophonist playing 3 horn…

1
2010.09.20 Melvin Gibbs on Soundscape_ Arthur Rhames and Lee Rozie 2 of 2 1:00:05

2M ago1:00:05

1:00:05

Almost every episode of Deep Focus is now available here as a podcast. I say "almost" because there are a handful that, for technical reasons, were not recorded completely or not recorded at all (if anyone has a home recording of the show that I did with Greg Tate on the band VSOP, please send it my way!). This is the second of those episodes to be…

1
2010.09.20 Melvin Gibbs on Soundscape_ Arthur Rhames and Lee Rozie - 1 of 2 1:25:26

3M ago1:25:26

1:25:26

Almost every episode of Deep Focus is now available here as a podcast. I say "almost" because there are a handful that, for technical reasons, were not recorded completely or not recorded at all (if anyone has a home recording of the show that I did with Greg Tate on the band VSOP, please send it my way!). This is the second of those episodes to be…

1
2010.09.13 Melvin Gibbs on Sonny Sharrock at Soundscape 1:38:04

3M ago1:38:04

1:38:04

Almost every episode of Deep Focus is now available here as a podcast. I say "almost" because there are a handful that, for technical reasons, were not recorded completely or not recorded at all (if anyone has a home recording of the show that I did with Greg Tate on the band VSOP, please send it my way!). This is the first of those episodes to be …

1
2024.03.18 Graham Haynes on Woody Shaw - 3 of 3 57:28

3M ago57:28

57:28

What confers greatness? There are many pathways, the most obvious being distinctive playing. Are there others? What about brilliant composing? Or inspiring bandleading? Or creating your own sound? How about honoring the tradition while still being blazingly original? Or just going your own way, whether anyone else is on that path or not? Achievemen…

1
2024.03.18 Graham Haynes on Woody Shaw - 2 of 3 57:06

4M ago57:06

57:06

What confers greatness? There are many pathways, the most obvious being distinctive playing. Are there others? What about brilliant composing? Or inspiring bandleading? Or creating your own sound? How about honoring the tradition while still being blazingly original? Or just going your own way, whether anyone else is on that path or not? Achievemen…

1
2024.03.18 Graham Haynes on Woody Shaw - 1 of 3 1:08:28

4M ago1:08:28

1:08:28

What confers greatness? There are many pathways, the most obvious being distinctive playing. Are there others? What about brilliant composing? Or inspiring bandleading? Or creating your own sound? How about honoring the tradition while still being blazingly original? Or just going your own way, whether anyone else is on that path or not? Achievemen…

1
2020.03.02 Graham Haynes on Jaki Byard - 3 of 3 52:39

4M ago52:39

52:39

We tend to think of the subjects of Deep Focus as conjurers, as master architects, as grand statesmen, as sonic sculptors, as Renaissance men and women. But what about when they’re the guy down the street? Or the dad of your elementary school friend? How does that change the perspective? Cornetist Graham Haynes grew up down the block from the magni…

1
2020.03.02 Graham Haynes on Jaki Byard - 2 of 3 1:00:04

5M ago1:00:04

1:00:04

We tend to think of the subjects of Deep Focus as conjurers, as master architects, as grand statesmen, as sonic sculptors, as Renaissance men and women. But what about when they’re the guy down the street? Or the dad of your elementary school friend? How does that change the perspective? Cornetist Graham Haynes grew up down the block from the magni…

1
2020.03.02 Graham Haynes on Jaki Byard - 1 of 3 1:06:45

5M ago1:06:45

1:06:45

We tend to think of the subjects of Deep Focus as conjurers, as master architects, as grand statesmen, as sonic sculptors, as Renaissance men and women. But what about when they’re the guy down the street? Or the dad of your elementary school friend? How does that change the perspective? Cornetist Graham Haynes grew up down the block from the magni…

1
2024.02.05 William Hooker on Sonny Sharrock - 3 of 3 1:10:07

5M ago1:10:07

1:10:07

Not all of our heroes have streets named after them but this one does. So, will we be playing recordings of Sonny Sharrock on Deep Focus this Monday night (Feb 5)? Will they be recordings that you've never heard? Will we have an insightful listening session with drummer/conceptualist William Hooker? Find out Monday night from 6pm to 9pm NYC time on…

1
2024.02.05 William Hooker on Sonny Sharrock - 2 of 3 56:52

5M ago56:52

56:52

Not all of our heroes have streets named after them but this one does. So, will we be playing recordings of Sonny Sharrock on Deep Focus this Monday night (Feb 5)? Will they be recordings that you've never heard? Will we have an insightful listening session with drummer/conceptualist William Hooker? Find out Monday night from 6pm to 9pm NYC time on…

1
2024.02.05 William Hooker on Sonny Sharrock - 1 of 3 1:03:42

6M ago1:03:42

1:03:42

Not all of our heroes have streets named after them but this one does. So, will we be playing recordings of Sonny Sharrock on Deep Focus this Monday night (Feb 5)? Will they be recordings that you've never heard? Will we have an insightful listening session with drummer/conceptualist William Hooker? Find out Monday night from 6pm to 9pm NYC time on…

1
2024.01.22 The Don Cherry Tapes with guest Steven Bernstein - 3 of 3 1:05:29

6M ago1:05:29

1:05:29

Tonight's Deep Focus (Jan. 22) is on Don Cherry, a wonderful and deeply missed friend of WKCR. Back in the Eighties, Don was a frequent guest on Mitch Goldman's show. Don would guest DJ, talk to the audience, bring guests... It was an ongoing Eighties NYC Don Cherry party. And if there was a blank cassette handy, Mitch would make a recording. The t…

1
2024.01.22 The Don Cherry Tapes with guest Steven Bernstein - 2 of 3 1:02:54

6M ago1:02:54

1:02:54

Tonight's Deep Focus (Jan. 22) is on Don Cherry, a wonderful and deeply missed friend of WKCR. Back in the Eighties, Don was a frequent guest on Mitch Goldman's show. Don would guest DJ, talk to the audience, bring guests... It was an ongoing Eighties NYC Don Cherry party. And if there was a blank cassette handy, Mitch would make a recording. The t…

1
2024.01.22 The Don Cherry Tapes with guest Steven Bernstein - 1 of 3 1:02:33

6M ago1:02:33

1:02:33

Tonight's Deep Focus (Jan. 22) is on Don Cherry, a wonderful and deeply missed friend of WKCR. Back in the Eighties, Don was a frequent guest on Mitch Goldman's show. Don would guest DJ, talk to the audience, bring guests... It was an ongoing Eighties-NYC-Don Cherry party. And if there was a blank cassette handy, Mitch would make a recording. The t…

1
2024.01.08 Peter Apfelbaum on Hampton Hawes, Mulatu Astatke - 3 of 3 59:49

6M ago59:49

59:49

This music is at its best when the artist is telling you exactly who they are. Pianist Andrew Hill always seemed able to take us inside his internal mindscape of thoughts, puzzles and emotions. Whether alone or in an ensemble, in both his playing and his writing, he did so with an articulateness that could seem offhand but betrayed a distinct preci…

1
2024.01.08 Peter Apfelbaum on Andrew Hill, Hampton Hawes - 2 of 3 1:02:18

6M ago1:02:18

1:02:18

This music is at its best when the artist is telling you exactly who they are. Pianist Andrew Hill always seemed able to take us inside his internal mindscape of thoughts, puzzles and emotions. Whether alone or in an ensemble, in both his playing and his writing, he did so with an articulateness that could seem offhand but betrayed a distinct preci…

1
2024.01.08 Peter Apfelbaum on Andrew Hill, Hampton Hawes, Mulatu - 1 of 3 1:00:45

7M ago1:00:45

1:00:45

This music is at its best when the artist is showing you exactly who they are. Pianist Andrew Hill always seemed able to take us inside his internal mindscape of thoughts, puzzles and emotions. Whether alone or in an ensemble, in both his playing and his writing, he did so with an articulateness that could seem offhand but betrayed a distinct preci…

1
2023.11.27 Tru Born Anthony Michael Peterson on finding the thread - 3 of 3 1:27:24

7M ago1:27:24

1:27:24

"Rock." "Jazz." "Classical." "Blues." We rarely question the value of categorizing music. These words are handy buckets to drop songs into: "I like this but I don't like that." Occasionally, an artist will come along and smudge the lines between them and these are often the artists we celebrate on Deep Focus. Tru Born (a.k.a. Anthony Michael Peters…

1
2023.11.27 Tru Born Anthony Michael Peterson on finding the thread - 2 of 3 1:03:08

7M ago1:03:08

1:03:08

"Rock." "Jazz." "Classical." "Blues." We rarely question the value of categorizing music. These words are handy buckets to drop songs into: "I like this but I don't like that." Occasionally, an artist will come along and smudge the lines between them and these are often the artists we celebrate on Deep Focus. Tru Born (a.k.a. Anthony Michael Peters…

1
2023.11.27 Tru Born Anthony Michael Peterson on finding the thread - 1 of 3 1:02:40

7M ago1:02:40

1:02:40

"Rock." "Jazz." "Classical." "Blues." We rarely question the value of categorizing music. These words are handy buckets to drop songs into: "I like this but I don't like that." Occasionally, an artist will come along and smudge the lines between them and these are often the artists we celebrate on Deep Focus. Tru Born (a.k.a. Anthony Michael Peters…

1
2017.01.17 Mark Peterson on Eberhard Weber - 3 of 3 51:21

8M ago51:21

51:21

Bassist Mark Peterson joins me tonight from 6pm to 9pm on WKCR (89.9FM and wkcr.org) in a Deep Focus on German bassist/bandleader Eberhard Weber. Weber is a wholly distinctive musical thinker. Hmmmm… what ELSE do he and Mark have in common? This one is going to be fun! #WKCR #MarkPeterson #DeepFocus #MitchGoldman #JazzPodcast #JamesBloodUlmer #Stan…

1
2017.01.17 Mark Peterson on Eberhard Weber - 2 of 3 1:21:55

8M ago1:21:55

1:21:55

Bassist Mark Peterson joins me tonight from 6pm to 9pm on WKCR (89.9FM and wkcr.org) in a Deep Focus on German bassist/bandleader Eberhard Weber. Weber is a wholly distinctive musical thinker. Hmmmm… what ELSE do he and Mark have in common? This one is going to be fun! #WKCR #MarkPeterson #DeepFocus #MitchGoldman #JazzPodcast #JamesBloodUlmer #Stan…

1
2017.01.17 Mark Peterson on Eberhard Weber - 1 of 3 1:10:16

8M ago1:10:16

1:10:16

Bassist Mark Peterson joins me tonight from 6pm to 9pm on WKCR (89.9FM and wkcr.org) in a Deep Focus on German bassist/bandleader Eberhard Weber. Weber is a wholly distinctive musical thinker. Hmmmm… what ELSE do he and Mark have in common? This one is going to be fun! #WKCR #MarkPeterson #DeepFocus #MitchGoldman #JazzPodcast #JamesBloodUlmer #Stan…

1
2023.10.09 Matthew Shipp on Albert Ayler - 3 of 3 1:12:11

9M ago1:12:11

1:12:11

There is a point at which the usefulness of language ends. You are simply not going to be able to express in words the sense of awe that you feel when creation overwhelms you but you always know when someone else is feeling it, too. In this moment you will find pianist Matthew Shipp and others who admire saxophonist Albert Ayler. Albert Ayler died …

1
2023.10.09 Matthew Shipp on Albert Ayler - 2 of 3 45:44

9M ago45:44

45:44

There is a point at which the usefulness of language ends. You are simply not going to be able to express in words the sense of awe that you feel when creation overwhelms you but you always know when someone else is feeling it, too. In this moment you will find pianist Matthew Shipp and others who admire saxophonist Albert Ayler. Albert Ayler died …

1
2023.10.09 Matthew Shipp on Albert Ayler - 1 of 3 1:11:41

9M ago1:11:41

1:11:41

There is a point at which the usefulness of language ends. You are simply not going to be able to express in words the sense of awe that you feel when creation overwhelms you but you always know when someone else is feeling it, too. In this moment you will find pianist Matthew Shipp and others who admire saxophonist Albert Ayler. Albert Ayler died …

1
2023.09.25 Henry Threadgill on John Gilmore and Von Freeman - 3 of 3 56:40

10M ago56:40

56:40

"Easily Slip Into Another World," Henry Threadgill's recent memoir, is required reading for a full appreciation of tonight's Deep Focus. It reveals the roots, the rich harvest, and the hidden, dark corners of a vibrant, creative life. The prose is plainspoken and forthright but the content is absolutely mind-expanding. No one of Threadgill's explos…

1
2023.09.25 Henry Threadgill on John Gilmore - 2 of 3 1:17:36

10M ago1:17:36

1:17:36

"Easily Slip Into Another World," Henry Threadgill's recent memoir, is required reading for a full appreciation of tonight's Deep Focus. It reveals the roots, the rich harvest, and the hidden, dark corners of a vibrant, creative life. The prose is plainspoken and forthright but the content is absolutely mind-expanding. No one of Threadgill's explos…

1
2023.09.25 Henry Threadgill on John Gilmore - 1 of 3 1:04:38

10M ago1:04:38

1:04:38

"Easily Slip Into Another World," Henry Threadgill's recent memoir, is required reading for a full appreciation of tonight's Deep Focus. It reveals the roots, the rich harvest, and the hidden, dark corners of a vibrant, creative life. The prose is plainspoken and forthright but the content is absolutely mind-expanding. No one of Threadgill's explos…

1
2023.09.04 Craig Harris on Sam Rivers - 3 of 3 1:23:44

10M ago1:23:44

1:23:44

In the sixties, they explained evolution to us with that March of Progress illustration, a lockstep development from the proto-human Dryopithecus to modern man. That same approach was also used to explain jazz evolution: New Orleans to Chicago to New York, hot jazz to swing to bebop to cool... Contemporary evolutionary biologists will tell you that…

1
2023.09.04 Craig Harris on Sam Rivers - 2 of 3 59:52

10M ago59:52

59:52

In the sixties, they explained evolution to us with that March of Progress illustration, a lockstep development from the proto-human Dryopithecus to modern man. That same approach was also used to explain jazz evolution: New Orleans to Chicago to New York, hot jazz to swing to bebop to cool... Contemporary evolutionary biologists will tell you that…

1
2023.09.04 Craig Harris on Sam Rivers - 1 of 3 1:10:29

11M ago1:10:29

1:10:29

------ In the sixties, they explained evolution to us with that March of Progress illustration, a lockstep development from the proto-human Dryopithecus to modern man. That same approach was also used to explain jazz evolution: New Orleans to Chicago to New York, hot jazz to swing to bebop to cool... Contemporary evolutionary biologists will tell y…

1
2023.08.21 Roy Nathanson on Eric Dolphy - 3 of 3 1:05:17

11M ago1:05:17

1:05:17

If Eric Dolphy's music were a school of painting it would be analytical cubism: planar and angular, multi-directional and austere, But it's not abstract. It's showing us something we know; we are simply experiencing it in a completely new way. His work, in its frame, becomes an entire reality unto itself. It's endless. So what happens when you plac…

1
2023.08.21 Roy Nathanson on Eric Dolphy - 2 of 3 1:12:10

11M ago1:12:10

1:12:10

If Eric Dolphy's music were a school of painting it would be analytical cubism: planar and angular, multi-directional and austere, But it's not abstract. It's showing us something we know; we are simply experiencing it in a completely new way. His work, in its frame, becomes an entire reality unto itself. It's endless. So what happens when you plac…

1
2023.08.21 Roy Nathanson on Eric Dolphy - 1 of 3 1:01:52

12M ago1:01:52

1:01:52

If Eric Dolphy's music were a school of painting it would be analytical cubism: planar and angular, multi-directional and austere, But it's not abstract. It's showing us something we know; we are simply experiencing it in a completely new way. His work, in its frame, becomes an entire reality unto itself. It's endless. So what happens when you plac…

1
2023.08.07 Steven Bernstein and Scotty Hard on Miles Davis - 3 of 3 43:20

11M ago43:20

43:20

You're Miles Davis. It's March of 1970 and you're about to release Bitches Brew, your most incendiary album yet. You have an electric band of young assassins (each of whom will go on to become a legendary bandleader in his own right) and they don't sound like any band anyone has ever heard. You know you've got the goods. You're looking for a new au…

1
2023.08.07 Steven Bernstein and Scotty Hard on Miles Davis - 2 of 3 1:19:29

11M ago1:19:29

1:19:29

You're Miles Davis. It's March of 1970 and you're about to release Bitches Brew, your most incendiary album yet. You have an electric band of young assassins (each of whom will go on to become a legendary bandleader in his own right) and they don't sound like any band anyone has ever heard. You know you've got the goods. You're looking for a new au…

1
2023.08.07 Steven Bernstein and Scotty Hard on Miles Davis - 1 of 3 1:04:48

12M ago1:04:48

1:04:48

You're Miles Davis. It's March of 1970 and you're about to release Bitches Brew, your most incendiary album yet. You have an electric band of young assassins (each of whom will go on to become a legendary bandleader in his own right) and they don't sound like any band anyone has ever heard. You know you've got the goods. You're looking for a new au…

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