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Feature
Articles
Unsung
Hero By Bill
Wimmer Horace
Parlan certainly qualifies as an unsung
hero by virtue of his long career and his
singular talent as a pianist, and let's
face it, how many of you knew he was even
still alive and active as a
player? Many
people are probably familiar with Parlan's
work as a sideman with Charles Mingus on
some of Mingus' great recordings, and
others may recall his duets with Archie
Shepp in the 70s. The fact is, Parlan has
had a very prolific career for someone who
has made the most of his talents in his
life, and he has a recognizable voice in
the music. I also
think that it is important to honor the
masters while they are still alive and not
just after they're gone. I promise I won't
get hung up on the fact that a person of
this great talent has to move to Europe to
make a living for the last 30
years! Born in
Pittsburgh on Jan. 19, 1931, Horace Parlan
was afflicted with polio at age five. His
bout not only affected his right hand, but
the whole right side of his body. At the
suggestion of his doctor, he took up piano
at around eight years of age as part of
his therapy to combat the effects of the
disease. His first piano teacher, Mary
Alston, urged him to develop his own
keyboard technique to compensate his
physical limitations. And what are these
limitations? "The
fourth and fifth fingers of the right hand
are not used at all. The second and middle
fingers, and sometimes the thumb, are used
to complete voicings of chords that are
basically supplied by the left hand.
Occasionally, too, the left hand is used
exclusively in single-note lines.
Incredible as it may seem, along with all
of this, the left hand does a normal job
of comping in its regular
register." Pittsburgh
boasted an array of fine jazz pianists,
with Earl Hines, Mary Lou Williams, Errol
Garner, and Dodo Marmorosa already
established, and a younger generation with
Parlan, Ahmad Jamal and Sonny Clark.
Parlan, along with Jamal, studied
classical piano with James Miller, who he
lists as a major influence. One of his
other influences must have been the
church. As the son of a minister, his
gospel-inspired feel would be an integral
part of Mingus' "Better Git It In Your
Soul" and "Wednesday Night Prayer
Meeting," as well as in his spiritual
duets with Shepp later on. In the
early 70s, many jazz musicians found it
hard to make a living in the U.S., and
quite a few of the masters who got tired
of scuffling and the lack of respect moved
to Europe. Parlan
settled in Copenhagen, Denmark, and
enjoyed the opportunities afforded there.
There was never a lack of world-class
musicians who either lived in Europe and
toured the Scandinavian city or visited
from the states. Of course, by this time
there were also many excellent homegrown
Europeans who could really play, and a few
excellent record labels like Danish
Steeplechase, which started releasing
audiophile
quality
recordings
of Parlan as a leader and backing up other
artists. Even though these albums might
not have had the distribution of domestic
or larger labels here, they nonetheless
presented Parlan as the artist in a way
that kept critics impressed and gave the
average fan here a great way to enjoy a
musician who hadn't had any exposure in
the U.S. for years. Throughout
the 80s and 90s, Horace Parlan has stayed
active mainly on the European club and
festival circuit and played on quite a few
recordings backing up others. One of the
last times he appeared on this continent
was an appearance with Archie Shepp at the
Montreal Jazz Festival in 1999, where he
was playing very well, according to one
critic in attendance (respectfully, that
critic and this one won't dwell on Shepp's
saxophone chops now, versus his 70s duets
with Parlan). It is very
difficult to describe Parlan's style of
piano playing, because he doesn't fall
into any set category of pianist for the
time he was playing. He has a very bluesy,
sparse soloing technique but he has always
been able to find very luscious and
interesting harmonic approaches to the
music, also. The closest stylistic match
by way of comparison might be another
great Horace, Horace Silver. The
interesting thing is that by the time
Horace Silver was recording as a pianist
with Blakey and his own groups, Horace
Parlan was already a professional with
great experience and proximity to many
other great players, even before he'd
arrived in New York. Parlan's sound has
always been his own, and his accompaniment
has always been one of his strongest
points because of his ability to propel
and support without ever overplaying the
soloist or the mood of a given
tune. To be able
to play the kind of intense tunes that
Mingus demanded and then to achieve the
kind of tender honesty that the Mingus
ballads called for was no easy task, but
if you listen to their work together it is
hard to imagine another pianist who could
pull it all off as well, and could deliver
the blues sensitivity, too. Of course I'm
biased, but for me the combination of
Horace Parlan and Booker Ervin was one of
the most beautiful expressions in jazz,
and I would encourage anyone to check out
their collaborations together. As a
teenager, Parlan dedicated himself to
jazz, and although his parents had him in
law school for a year and a half, he
became a professional musician in 1952.
Parlan became a busy young pianist on the
Pittsburgh scene, and he was able to meet
a lot of great local and national talents
at jam sessions, including future contacts
Booker Ervin and Charles Mingus. At around
this time he worked and studied with Tommy
Turrentine, Stanley's older brother, and
backed up Sonny Stitt for a time in
Washington, D.C. When he
moved to New York in 1957, Parlan was
quickly hired by Mingus to join one of his
pivotal groups, with the likes of Bill
Hardman, Jimmy Knepper, Shafi Hadi and
Dannie Richmond. With Mingus, Parlan
recorded some of the most important music
of Mingus' career. The time and the
recordings with Mingus really cemented his
reputation as a pianist and led to his own
recording dates as a leader on Blue Note
Records. Parlan's Blue Note output
stretched to seven recordings, featuring
trio and larger combos. Using the core
rhythm team of Al Harewood on drums and
George Tucker on bass, these sides also
featured the Turrentines, Booker Ervin,
Johnny Coles and Grant Green. These are
excellent recordings in the Blue Note
tradition, and showcase a completely
developed voice as a pianist and
composer. From 1960
to 1961 Parlan, Ervin, Tucker and Harewood
formed a group to be the house band at the
legendary Minton's Playhouse. This group,
known as The Playhouse Four, became a New
York legend also for its tight interplay
from working together every week and
backing up so many artists who played
there. Horace next worked with the Eddie
"Lockjaw" Davis-Johnny Griffin Quintet
until it disbanded in1962. Parlan then
spent from 1963 to 1966 with Roland Kirk's
group. Throughout the 1960s he found work
with some of the most interesting and some
of the hardest-driving groups in modern
jazz. With over
70 albums currently available and probably
a bunch out of print, it is easy to find
highlights of a career like Horace
Parlan's. With Mingus, I would recommend
Mingus Ah Um and Blues And Roots.
As for the
Blue Note period, last year Mosaic
released The Complete Blue Note Horace
Parlan Sessions in one of their
immaculately recorded and nicely packaged
boxed sets, and this is a great set of
music from beginning to end. It is also a
3-CD set, so it isn't as expensive as many
boxed sets. Since it's from Mosaic, really
the masters of the reissue for many years,
you can be sure it also is comprehensive
without containing any music put in merely
to increase the price. Another
fine example from this same time frame is
Up At Minton's, by Stanley Turrentine,
which is recorded live from the famous
nightclub and also features Grant Green.
With Archie Shepp&emdash;yes, I said
Archie Shepp&emdash;I would recommend both
Goin' Home and Trouble In Mind, and they
will surprise you. Johnny Griffin Live In
Tokyo, is a phenomenal live recording
featuring Arthur Taylor, Griffin and an
incredible block chord solo from Parlan on
"All The Things You Are." Stable Mable
from Dexter Gordon and New Morning from
Johnny Coles are both available on
Steeplechase, as are Parlan's own The
Arrival, Blue Parlan and Like Someone In
Love. In
summary, I hope I can inspire someone to
check out the great music of Horace
Parlan. Here is a musician that is always
tasteful and original and who's made huge
contributions over the years. I would also
love to inspire any musician that thinks
faster is better or who values flashy
technique over sensitivity that there are
other ways of expression than the obvious.
I salute Horace Parlan and have always
loved the music of this true living legend
and unsung hero. |
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