The Manrilla Blog | Life. Art. Religion. Culture.

His hands were like chasms that had been filled in with a life-time of dirt and grit.

Speaking in a babble of tongues, he uttered the names of the Saints.

He was not crazy; I could see lights behind his eyes.

He had seen things no man should ever have to see; lived like everyman presumptuously wished.

He knew St. Luke’s but he prefers to live outside.

Crumpled pages, all scraps of paper - a trail of missed hopes and unfulfilled dreams. Reverently, he tucked them in his pocket.

Rendered motionless by his gaze; I could only watch him turn and walk away.

Save the date!! June 2nd, 3rd and 4th. International Muslim Brotherhood Presents 4th Annual Weekend Extravaganza: Jumu’ah in the Park with khatib Dr. Amir al-Islam. Check out the pdf for details. Google map.

It’s barely been a week and I’ve seen two of my musical heroes; two geniuses. Billy Harper and now Allan Holdsworth. I have been listening to Holdsworth most of my life, being that my middle brother is a professional guitar player and Holdsworth is almost prophetic to guitar players. Metal Fatigue is the first album I heard him on so it was great that Chad Wackerman also happened to be there last night. Jimmy Johnson sat in on bass.

A small note: sound is so important to live, musical performances. I say this because for the first half of the gig, I could hear nothing but Wackerman’s drums. So, please, if you’re the sound people, do a real sound check and see if it sounds any good! Okay, on to the performance.

Wow!! I got to hear Allan Holdsworth! Yeah, it was kinda like that. His playing is truly difficult to describe (so listen to the video clips); at once fiery, enigmatic, and tranquil. His sound is haunting, filled with complex harmonics, and is a key component to Holdsworth. In terms of history, he’s in the jazz tradition, having played with Tony Williams (The Believe album is off the chain!) and other jazz artists but if I were to peg him he would most certainly fall in the realm of fusion (though personally I’ve always thought of Holdsworth sound as akin to that of Coltrane’s sheets of sound).

The band played through some great old standards off of Holdsworth’s previous albums as well as two from the Believe date with Williams (Fred and Proto Cosmos). You can tell that Wackerman has played with Holdsworth many, many times. They locked very well together and did a great job of setting and off-setting each other rhythmically. Johnson is a monster on the electric bass. If you can, see this group at the Iridium in NYC.

I am really happy that I met him and that I got to exchange a few words with him; a man who’s so quiet and unassuming (looks more like a chimney sweep than a monster musician). Enjoy the video clips as well: 1, 2, and 3.

Allan with Chad

At last, we meet

Thanks to Denise, my music career hit an all-time high last night - and I was just a listener! Malachi Thompson performed last night on Penn’s campus, in conjunction with Ars Nova, with tenor saxophonist, Billy Harper. I’ve been floored by Harper’s music and sound for many years. For me, he is one of the most important jazz musicians alive today. He is a direct link to some of jazz’s greatest players: two years with Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, a brief stint with Elvin Jones and also collaborated with Max Roach in the late 70’s. Harper also established a long working relationship with composer/arranger, Gil Evans. He also has a successful career as a jazz educator.

But enough of that! Man, he really blew the roof off the sucka’. Harper’s tone is so outrageous. But by no means was it Harper’s show. Thompson had some fine arrangements of new tunes. Malachi mostly played on his flügelhorn with some unmuted trumpet as well. The rhythm section held it down tight and all in all it was a great performance. The accoustics could have faired better, but for me, to have seen, spoken with and shaken hands with Billy Harper, I can just be thankful. Enjoy a few pics below. Here’s two Quicktime movies of the performance as well: 1 and 2.

I would highly recommend reading the new book, September 11 In History, A Watershed Moment?, edited by Mary L. Dudziak. The book features a very well written essay by Dr. Sherman Jackson, Islam(s) East and West: Pluralism between No-Frills and Designer Fundamentalism (Duke University Press). Highly recommended. Order from Amazon or Duke.

Had a some what busy weekend. Went to see a film entitled, Imagine the Sound, by Ron Man (Comic Book Confidential, Grass). The film follows four musicians from the free-jazz/avant-garde jazz movements: Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, Bill Dixon and Paul Bley. The showing was at the International House on UPenn’s campus. If you’re interested, here’s a link to the film (I heard they’re supposed to re-master it for DVD soon).

Man#1 stands outside a small food stall on a dirty corner somewhere in a North American city. While waiting for his sandwich, Man#1 is approached by Man#2. Man#2 addresses Man#1 with a thick accent:

Man#2: You Muslim?

Man#1: Yes, I am. Are you?

Man#2: [Chuckles]…, you Muslim, huh? Where you get that bag?

Man#1: I bought it. Online.

Man#2: You know what this means [Man#2 points to Man#1’s bag]?

Man#1: Yes. It’s the Prophet’s San…

Man#2: Yes, let me please tell you. It’s the Prophet’s Sandal.

Man#1: Yes, I know it is. I bou…

Man#2: Where you get this? You Muslim?

Man#1: Yes, akhi. I am a Mus…

Man#2: You read Holy Qur’an?

Man#1: Yes, I do. I used to teach…

Man#2: This book is Holy Book. In Arabic language. Not like your English.

Man#1: Yes, I know. I studied Ara…

Man#2: My father was shaykh. I used to know many Qur’ans. Many suwrah.

Man#1: Oh, that’s great. Umm…, well, I gotta be…

Man#2: You pray? You pray the salah?

Man#1: Yes, akhi. I pray 5 times a…

Man#2: My grandfather was a shaykh. He knew the whole Qur’an.

Man#1: That’s great. Look, I’d really love to…

Man#2: Ma’sha Allah, may God guide you. I have to go now. I own a party store. I have to get back.

Man#1: Oh, okay. We’ll maybe I’ll see…

Man#2: It’s not haram!! Wa’Allahi al-’Adheem!, I don’t drink. This is for the kafirs. I sell only to kafir.

Man#1: Sure. Okay, well, it was nice…

Man#2: I have to go. You Muslims, right?

God as my witness, this exchange took place right after my moving to Philadelphia. It was one of the funniest moments in my life. I know there are some of you out there that have had this same experience with almost the same exact guy! Well, just a little humor to start the week with.