Steve Griggs - Reviews

A Session with Elvin

By Peter Monaghan (Earshot Jazz, July, 1998)

Drum legend Elvin Jones, the churning engine underneath many of the extraordinary 1960s innovations of John Coltrane, and a band member and leader of innumerable sterling projects before and since then, came to Seattle in late May to record an album with four of the region's most-accomplished jazz musicians, saxophonist Steve Griggs (left), bassist Phil Sparks, horn player Jay Thomas (who played trumpet on the date), and guitarist (and drummer) Milo Petersen (center).

The quintet spent three days at Bear Creek Studios, an impressive Woodinville recording facility operated by Joe Hadlock and fashioned from an old barn that is favored by a wide variety of artists, from jazz players to rock stars to 50-piece film-score orchestras.

The album should appear in about a year, Steve Griggs estimates. He organized the recording with the help of Seattle-based drummer and drum maker Greg Keplinger, who has known Jones for many years, and has made drums for him. Greg reported after the session that Jones came away from it very impressed. Onlookers who were fortunate enough to witness some of the proceedings saw and heard some expansive playing from Jones and some inspired ensemble play. One staggering take was a transcendent rendition of "In a Sentimental Mood" where Griggs built a fluttering, cascading solo over Jones's quiet, shifting brushwork punctuated with his trademark intense outbursts. In fact, all the players contributed impressively, and there were many expressions of contentment -- of the realization that they had taken part in a sublime musical moment -- when the take was replayed. The Seattle participants were asked to provide some sense of their experience of the recording. So, here, first, are excerpts from email Steve sent about the project, both at its inception, and later on. Then, Steve's bandmates on the date share their impressions of the rare opportunity they had to play and record with one of the most vaunted of all jazz musicians. Finally, Greg Keplinger relates what Elvin Jones told him about the sessions.

Steve Griggs (saxophonist)

To Dave Liebman (saxophonist): I would like your advice concerning a project idea. I have Elvin's sound in mind when I write small group tunes and he will be here in Seattle at the end of April. I would love to record these tunes with him sometime in the near future. Do you have any suggestions for how I might approach him?

To John Scott (a trumpeter/composer Griggs worked with in Urbana, Ill.): I'm working on my craziest idea ever! Elvin is coming next week and I want to record with him. Nuts, right? ... Lieb says that it will be impossible to reach him [by phone] so I have to pitch the idea in person. I'm going to be a nervous wreck! ... I've got to line up the studio and engineer so that if Elvin says yes and I can afford it, we have a place to record. If he says yes I'm going to need some MAJOR relaxation techniques! If he says no, I'll have things set up to get some of my new stuff on tape with a good band.

To various friends: Tonight is the night that I'll ask Elvin to record. Milo and I will be introduced to Keiko [Jones's wife and manager] during the second set by a friend of Elvin's, Greg Keplinger. Greg makes drums and gave Elvin a snare last year. Before tonight, Greg is going to mention to Elvin that there are some local guys that want to propose a project.

I've lined up a mobile control room and a couple of studios as options. I rehearsed the rest of the band on Sunday. I've worked out kinks in the tunes and found ways to let Elvin stretch with minimal risk of train wrecks.

To John Scott: Milo and I arrived at the club at exactly the same time (a sign of synchronicity). The band was already playing and the club was full but we got a great table (a sign of good fortune). Milo went to say 'hello' to Greg at the bar. Keiko came over and arranged to call Milo on Thursday. She said he could not record this week because he needs to rest. He will be in LA on May 18 and could fly up on the 19th and 20th for the recording. I plan to hang at Milo's Thursday until the phone call... With Elvin and Keiko's travel and hotel, this project could get much more expensive. I'll cross that bridge when the time comes.

To various friends: It's on! Elvin will arrive on the 19th for a rehearsal. We will record on the 20th, 21st, and 22nd if necessary. Milo and I hung with Elvin and Keiko after the gig last night and had some good laughs. The stars are aligned. I'm delirious with excitement. Lots of work to do!

While we were waiting for Keiko to call yesterday, Milo recounted the Tuesday night conversation with Keiko. Her emphasis on Elvin's selectiveness and requirement of the right feeling inspired me to sit down and write a tune "Kimoshi" ("Feeling") right on the spot.

To John Scott: Although I plan to use all of my original tunes and a few arrangements of standards, I would love to record "You're the Berries" with Elvin. It's always been a favorite with me. Would you grant me permission to put it on tape (and CD down the road)?

To Mark Stryker (writer for the Detroit Free Press): Wow! It really happened! I've got 16 tunes on tape and photos to prove it. Over cigars and cognac on the last day, Elvin told me about a 114-year-old bottle of cognac that he would open when I visit in New York! ... Everything about this project has been a dream come true. Stites [a drummer friend] came out for day 2 and 3. I wish all my friends could have been there... We caught some great stuff on tape... I'm gathering names and addresses for a potential record contract.

To various record companies: I spent 3 days recording 14 originals and 2 standards ["In a Sentimental Mood" and "The More I See You"] with Elvin Jones and a Seattle band last week at Bear Creek studio (where Ginger Baker did his latest album)... We used vintage mics, Neve preamps, and 2-inch analog tape in a great sounding room. Would you be interested in hearing a CD with some of the session highlights?

Milo Petersen (guitarist, also plays drums)

The funnest part of it for me was hooking up with Elvin rhythmically, when we were compin', making a real band sound for the others to ride on. Of course we'd all been listening to him for years and years, but when I heard we were going to do this, I made a real concerted effort to listen to him -- not just with Trane but all kinds of settings.

His approach to subdividing the beat the way he does playing Latin music. Compin' with him was the funnest part.

And just hooking up with him rhythmically when I was soloing. He's so supportive and musical that everything he does has something to do with the music. A way of adding to things a way of improvising material and adding to the material.

There were little things that he would augment. He had a way of extending things and adding to things. He added so much.

A lot of things -- it was such a great learning experience, to be able to play guitar with one of my drum idols. It's indescribable. There's no way to explain what it was like. Three days. It was just incredible.

I drove him to the studio and back most days and we talked about everything but music. He talked a lot about politics. He talked a lot about the evils of the Vietnam War, a lot about the environment. He had a lot to say about all the flak he's gotten over the years, from jealous people puttin down people when they were in his band.

I've never met anyone who was so kind to people.

Jay Thomas (trumpeter)

With Elvin what I learned from doing this is he approaches the drums in such a unique way and his time feeling is so fluid, and it was a learning experience for me because I'm just dealing with so many situations in my life, that I start to get into a neobop-nazi state of mind, where everything has to work out just so.

Playing with Elvin is like being in a 12-step program where you turn your will over to a higher power. You get on the Elvin bandwagon. It really got me out of myself.

It was very much the same for the other players. The way we went into it was one of so much respect, we had to give up our preconceived ideas of what we wanted to do on the project.

Usually you get a drummer, you say, we want this thing, we want the other thing. On this one, I think Steve probably decided he would wait to see what Elvin wanted.

I think it also brought a very good aspect of Elvin out, on the other hand. He wasn't in charge any more, either. And he was giving up a lot of that control. I think his playing then.... It's always different when we give up that control factor. So it was a magic deal on both sides.

It was very fresh, we did no more than two takes on the stuff, and it all went down really smoothly. We let nature take its course, and there was no tension at all.

It was kind of an esoteric situation. We realized that a drummer who has perfect time is a drum machine and that isn't what we're looking for. We're looking for the Elvin out there, and that's what we got. He's like a force of nature, and we got a chance to experience that.

And he dug it. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. He kissed me on the cheek and hugged me and called me a rascal.

Turns out he's a sci-fi nut and so am I, so we exchanged some ideas. A Matter of Taste, by Fred Saberhagen, in the Berserker series. I turned him on to some cyberpunk. Snow Crash [by Neal Stephenson]. I said, 'Have you read that?' He said 'Nooo!' So I sent that off to him.

When it comes to that scene that happened out there in the course of four days, thinking about it and getting ready for it, it was a very magic experience. I haven't experienced recording like that ever.

A lot of times when I've been recording on my own jazz things, I'm kind of being the ramrod guy, watching the clock and thinking about the money and trying to get a certain thing achieved. We approached it very patiently and it was amazing how much we got done.

I hand that to Steve. He's one of the only people I know who's pretty much a reasonable man. I mean, Jesus, that's unusual. He's just great. I'm going, 'God, it's amazing.' There's always some quirk out there, and I haven't found out what it is with him. He's totally reasonable and totally first-cabin.

He said to me, 'How about Elvin? I want to get Elvin to record with us.' I didn't know what to think about it, really. When we got into it, it turned out to be a great idea.

When you listen to Coltrane's quartet, Elvin is equal with Coltrane. It's like a spiritual contest. Elvin was threatening to engulf the entire universe if Coltrane wasn't going to stay on top of him.

I really liked it, because there were these really nice bass vamps that were going down. They weren't exactly swing. They were his unique thing. I guess they call it "Elvin's mambo." It was awfully cool.

I saw him when he came through with Trane years ago, and I realize now how he got that sound. He's got some unique things, like a wooden bass-drum beater.

He's so young and full of love. He's just one of the most loving guys.

Phil Sparks (bassist)

It was great, a great thrill. It was also a big challenge, playing with somebody like that, just to play with somebody that great. Usually when you go to a recording session, you have to get acquainted right away and record. Being with Elvin Jones, that's something else, very challenging. Elvin plays the way he plays. I don't know too many drummers like him. He's definitely got his own thing. That was an experience.

What's different about his playing is just the way he swings, just the way he is, the magic he brings. It's different from other drummers. His use of dynamics is really great, and his brush work.

Greg Keplinger

Elvin was pleasantly surprised at how well it went and how cared-for he was. He was having a good time. He was relaxed and really liked the music. He asked Steve if he could have some of this charts, which is a pretty heavy compliment.

It was neat to see how he took in the information of the tunes and digested it and it came out Elvin. That was really cool to see.

For me, it was a hell of an experience seeing him in that concentrated a time. At one point, he stood up and took a standing break, I was in the other part of the studio, looking through a window. He looked right at me and started playing this Latin beat that was just amazing. I ran out in the studio because they were on break. I was just freaking out. He just sat down and went way out, man. It was really cool. It was really powerful. It was worth the price of admission, for me, right there.

He thought everything was great, and that everyone played real well. The vibe was incredible. Those guys rose to the occasion, and for the most part they got to the level. And it was still a learning thing. He was hippin' 'em to some stuff.

He said it was one of the best-organized sessions he'd ever done. He was really impressed with how organized Steve was.

From my standpoint as a drummer, it was really something. I've seen him play a zillion times but in that one period of time, they'd run the tune, and he'd learn it, then they'd run it twice and record it. He must have a vacuum for a memory. Bang, it was right there.

It just expands the music, to me. Just hangin' with him is really something. He's like a little kid, in a way.

(Steve's addendum: Several guests were present during the recording including violinist Michael White from Coltrane's Ascension recording, Pearl Jam's drummer Matt Cameron, Chicago drummer Jeff Stitely, Seattle drummers Mark Ivester and Jon Wikan.)