Gerry
Mulligan All-Star Tribute Band:
Thank You, Gerry!
Liner
notes by Dave Brubeck
Thank You, Gerry! is a moving and appropriate title for this
recording. Every player on it demonstrates his appreciation and respect for Gerry the man
and Gerry the musician.
Gerry Mulligan’s reputation as a talent to be reckoned with preceded him long
before he came to the West Coast. I knew Chet Baker before I had met Gerry. Chet would
often sit in with my group in San Francisco and I was always amazed by his playing. I
don’t think he had yet reached the age of twenty at that time. The pairing of these
two young geniuses along with the formidable percussion of Chico Hamilton and bassist Bob
Whitlock spawned one of the greatest and most unique combos in jazz history. The Mulligan
legacy continued when Bob Brookmeyer stepped in and they extended even further the concept
of the original quartet with its contrapuntal lines and modern harmonies.
My group and Gerry’s often traded gigs on the West Coast, replacing each other at
the small jazz club The Haig, in Los Angeles and The Blackhawk in San Francisco. Gerry
often joked that the reason he had a pianoless quartet was because the bandstand was so
small at The Haig, there wasn’t room for a piano. He also claimed that I got him his
first "steady gig" by our tandem approach of exchanging clubs. I make no claim
to that piece of jazz history, but I was the one who persuaded Sol and Max Weiss at
Fantasy Records to record his amazing quartet with Chet Baker.
Of course, over the years there were many changes in Gerry’s groups and his work
ranged eventually from symphonic compositions to chamber music, jazz quartet to big band.
The late ’60s and early ’70s found both Gerry and me in a period of
transition. I had disbanded my quartet with Paul Desmond, Joe Morello and Eugene Wright.
George Wein, the jazz festival producer, called me in early 1968 to say he needed me to
play at a festival in Mexico. I told George I did not have a quartet anymore. He asked if
I would mind playing with Gerry Mulligan, whom he had hired as a soloist, and he would put
us with some of the various rhythm sections that would be playing in the festival. I
really looked forward to collaborating with Gerry, but preferred to have my own rhythm
section. So I invited Jack Six, the same bassist I am playing with today, to join us and
Joyce Wein, George’s wife, recommended Alan Dawson on drums. That
"temporary" festival group stayed together for almost eight years in various
formations, sometimes with my son’s groups and sometimes forming a quintet with the
addition of Paul Desmond.
Later, Gerry and I both became more involved in composition and in our own groups. We
started playing events separately, but sometimes toured Europe together with Gerry’s
quartet and my quartet appearing on the same concert. I always looked forward to that
moment in the evening when Gerry and I would play a duet on "These Foolish
Things" because it was always so different. Gerry’s group on these tours had the
wonderful rhythm section you hear on this piano: Ron Vincent, drums; Dean Johnson, bass;
and Ted Rosenthal, piano. Ted was the music director for this beautiful tribute album. Of
course, it is not the pianoless quartet of old, but an outstanding group of creative
musicians, typical of the kind of bands Gerry always put together.
Added to the core rhythm section, you have Gerry’s old "sidekicks" Lee
Konitz on alto sax and Bob Brookmeyer on trombone and Randy Brecker on trumpet and
flügelhorn. Jazz history is well served in the choice of additional instrumentalists. To
have added a baritone sax would only have led to the conclusion that no one could replace
Gerry. But you do hear some of the unforgettable melodies and voicings and clear form that
will always be remembered as the Mulligan sound.
Years ago I was asked to describe Gerry Mulligan and I said, "He is the past,
present and future of jazz." I still think so.
—Dave Brubeck for Arkadia Jazz
PS: I have just written a tune dedicated to Gerry. It is titled
"Goodbye, My Friend."
ARKADIA JAZZ