STRANGE ENCOUNTERS

WITH MY GUITAR HEROES - Pt. 1

Howard Roberts, Joe Pass, Ralph Towner, The ‘A’ team

Two guitarists I would dearly like to have met were Wes Montgomery and Baden Powell. Wes was huge in my musical life. Thousands of guitarists were influenced by the man - the melodic sense, the innovation, the sound, but more important than all of that was the ‘feel’. Nobody could touch him. Jazz guitarists all over the globe shook their heads when they first heard Wes play. I sure did.

Baden Powell was a major figure in the Afro-Samba and Bossa Nova of his time. Like Wes, he was unique, and like Wes it was the innovation, the sound, and feel that set him apart. While meeting these guys didn’t end up being in the cards, I was lucky enough to meet several other of my heroes in the flesh.

I have to say ... it’s a little strange when you find yourself hanging with one or another of these people and you discover they aren’t floating six inches above the earth - that they have arms, legs and heads just like you. Then again, I can’t say the feeling ever quite goes away.

Skagway,AK,1985-Lynn Canal. The Cessna caught an updraft and gained altitude rapidly. The wind coming up Lynn Canal was fierce, a fairly common occurrence in Skagway, located as it is, at the head of the channel. It streams through S.E. Alaska’s Inside Passage and builds strength as it funnels through coast mountains that rear up on either side of the waterway. We had just taken off from Skagway, and were headed to Haines AK. I was excited. The Haines Fair was underway and I was about to see one of my favourite groups - Oregon.

I was already a working musician in Vancouver and I thought I was aware of what was current in music until my pal, Buff Allen - percussionist extraordinaire and bon vivant - played me a recording that floored me.

The scope of the music was enormous. Brilliant compositions combined with inspired improvisation left my head spinning.

“Who,” I croaked after it was all over, “is that?”

“That, my friend,” he replied, ”is Oregon.”

I grabbed the cover to find out what kind of supernatural beings were capable of playing such music. They were Ralph Towner (guitar/piano), Paul McCandless (reeds), Glen Moore (Str. Bass) and Colin Walcott (perc, sitar et al). Towner seemed to be the main composer for the group.

In the years to come, I followed the band, and collected most of their recorded work, but this was to be the first time seeing them live and, although we had talked briefly on the phone, I was also looking forward to meeting Ralph for the first time.

Skagway,AK,1985-Lynn Canal. The plane hit a downdraft, dropped a few feet, and everybody made that ‘cat coughing up a hair ball’ sound. It must be part of the human physiology. Then things leveled out, and I pushed back in my seat and tried to rest. But I was excited. Meeting your musical heroes is heady stuff, and this was gonna be fun. My mind drifted back - to a couple of earlier encounters with heroes and mentors that changed the way I looked at the world, the earliest of these probably being Howard Roberts.

“Sundays”

Remember when in the early part of your workweek the upcoming weekend seemed to be lightyears away.

Remember when you were mostly through the workweek and could picture the weekend knocking at your door.

Remember when the weekend arrived you had to spend a good part of Saturday doing a bunch of chores for yourself, home and family.

Remember when on Sunday mornings you decided to sleep in as this day was for recharging your battery and then you indulged in a brunch fit for royalty. Soon, music you chose for your soul filled the air transporting you to a place where time was irrelevant.

Sunday was crucial for you to achieve balance and put life into perspective with a sense of humor… while you yearned for someone in authority to make room in the calendar for more Sundays each month.

Remember when.

Jeff Salmon

Ride Needed

I’ve lived in Atlin for thirty years and this is the first time that there’s no weekly trip to Whitehorse. I don’t have a vehicle so this is hugely inconvenient for me. I have no ability to schedule doctor, dental or other appointments or shop for necessary items not always available in Atlin. If you go to Whitehorse on a regular basis and would be happy to accommodate a paying passenger once or twice a month please call:

Katherine 250-651-7705

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