Steve Marsh
2007-05-08 19:39:24 UTC
Some innovative musical artists labor in semi-obscurity for much of their
lives, yet are still able to invent a fresh, individual, innovative approach
to their instruments. Such was the case with Baritone Sax and low reed
master, Kurt McGettrick. Kurt was a real artist who was uncompromising and
fearless in all musical situations. Kurt McGettrick passed away last Sunday
night (5/6/07) due to an aggressive cancer condition.
Kurt was a specialist on the low woodwinds. His advanced techniques on Bari
Sax, Bass Saxophone, Bass Clarinet, ContraBass Clarinet, Flute, Alto Flute,
and Piccolo were astounding. His sound on Bari Sax was HUGE! He regularly
employed double and triple tonguing, an amazing mastery of multiphonics, and
a very impressive command of the extreme altissimo of the Bari Sax. Kurt
played the bass clarinet very beautifully, with an amazing fluency in the
delicate upper range. On tenor, Kurt's favorite influence was Gene Ammons.
He had absolutely zero interest in cloning Mike Brecker or any of the other
favorites of the moment. Kurt was not a bebop player. Instead, he
developed his own style of thematic improvisation which incorporated
techniques which he developed himself. McGettrick was also a fine arranger
and composer.
Kurt was perhaps most notorious for being a member of Frank Zappa's 1988
touring horn section, which spawned the albums "The Best Band You Never
Heard In Your Life", "Make A Jazz Noise Here", and "Broadway the Hard Way".
During his career, Kurt toured and recorded with Graham Parker, and toured
with the "Prez Conference" band. Kurt also recorded with B.B. King, Tom
Petty, Patti LaBelle, The Meters, Phoebe Snow, and the Ladd McIntosh Big
Band. He played on many movie soundtracks, including The Lion King, and
Matchstick Men.
Good places to hear McGettrick's work are on Ladd McIntosh's CD's
"Temptation", and "Ride the Night Beast". The is the way to play Bari Sax
in a modern big band! Kurt's tremendous Bari Sax sound is heard and felt on
every song throughout these discs. Kurt's presence in Ladd's band was much
like the way in which Harry Carney was such an integral part of the
Ellington band's sound. Kurt went to Berklee many years ago to study
arranging and composition, but he said that the faculty kept pushing him to
play Bari with all the big bands. Kurt generally didn't like to play Bari
with big bands because he said so few big band writers wrote good parts for
Bari Sax. He made an exception for Ladd McIntosh and he played in Ladd's
band for 30 years. Ladd writes exeptional bari sax parts!
You can hear excerpts of the Ladd McIntosh Big Band recordings at the
CD-Baby website. Kurt is featured on "Steak and Beans" on the Ride the Night
Beast CD". And on "I Got It Bad' on the "Temptation" CD.
To hear fine examples of Kurt's more 'outside' playing, check out Andre
Caporaso's CD, "Avenue 5".
http://www.amazon.com/Avenue-5-Andre-Caporaso/dp/B000053F8V/ref=sr_1_1/002-6039199-8661648?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1178647498&sr=1-1
There are many example of Kurt's Bari Sax and Bass Clarinet artistry on
Caporaso's CD. McGettrick was really in his element when dealing with a
harmonically open ended setting.
On a personal note, I spent many enjoyable hours over the past 17 years
playing alongside Kurt in the Andre Caporaso band, and also in Steve Speigl's
big band. Kurt's playing was a constant inspiration. He brought a ton of
musical energy to every situation. Musically, he was his own man. His
style was strictly of his own invention. I admired Kurt's fearless,
ferocious flights into the stratosphere. His improvisations were completely
unpredictable. You were always going to be surprised and amused by what he
played, and you weren't going to hear any stock licks - ever! His playing
made me reach deeper - in an effort to keep up with his tremendous
intensity.
Kurt was a real funny guy. His hard boiled outlook was shaped by a career
of observing the ridiculousness of the music industry and the recent decline
of the studio scene in L.A.. His stories about touring with Zappa were
hilarious. Kurt was cynical about many aspects of the business, but he
balanced that with his great sense of humor. Kurt McGettrick will be very
much missed out here in Los Angeles. Check out the work of this important
musician.
Here is a PARTIAL list of the albums or songs Kurt McGettrick recorded on:
1960's B.B. King - "King of the Blues"
1974 Brown, Toni - "Good For You Too" (saxophone)
1975 Garthwaite, Terry - "Terry" (saxophone)
1976 Labelle, Patti- "Chameleon" (Bass Sax_, horn arrangements)
1977 Meters - New Directions (clarinet, flute, sax (baritone), sax (bass))
1977 Heartsfield - "Heartsfield Collectors Item" (horns)
1977 Carpenters- "Passage" (saxophone)
1977 Labelle, Patti - "Patti Labelle" (horns)
1977 Snow, Phoebe - "It Looks Like Snow" (horns)
1978 California Dreaming - "California Dreaming" (horns)
1978 King, B.B.- "Midnight Believer" (saxophone)
1979 Mighty Clouds of Joy - "Changing Times (horns)
1980 Krause, Bernie - "Citadels of Mystery" (flute, sax (soprano))
1982 Parker, Graham - another grey area (flute, saxophone, baritone sax)
1984 Wilder, Matthew - "Bouncin' Off the Walls" (saxophone)
1984 Lamb, Annabel - "Flame" (baritone sax)
1985 Petty, Tom - "Southern Accents" (horns)
1986 Fishbone - "In Your Face" (baritone sax)
1987 Archangel, Nathalie - "Nathalie Archangel"
1988 Broadway The Hard Way - Zappa (baritone saxophone)
1991 The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life - Zappa (baritone saxophone,
bass saxophone, contrabass clarinet)
1991 Frank Zappa- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 4 (baritone sax)
1991 Make A Jazz Noise Here - Zappa (Bari Sax, Contrabass Clarinet)
1991 McIntosh, Ladd - "Bulbous Garlic Blues" (baritone sax)
1991 Andre Caporaso "Pathways" (Bari Sax, Flute, Alto Flute)
1992 Frank Zappa- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 6 (baritone sax)
1992 "League Of Their Own" - (baritone sax)
King, B.B. - King of the Blues (box set)
Bruce Fowler - "Entropy"
1993 Parker, Graham- passion is no ordinary word: the gr (flute, saxophone)
1994 Nesmith, Michael - "Garden" (clarinet (bass))
1995 Frank Zappa - "Strictly Commercial" [lp vinyl only]
1995 Band From Utopia - "music of frank zappa" (baritone sax, soprano sax)
1996 Barrow, Arthur - "Eyebrow Razor (clarinet)
1996 Tin Drum - "Real World" (bass clarinet, piccolo, baritone sax, tenor
sax)
1998 Frank Zappa - Cheap Thrills
1999 Neil Sadler: "Theory of Forms"
(bleeding arts ba 10012) - feat.m.keneally, walt, steve and bruce fowler
and kurt mcgettrick
1999 frank zappa- son of cheep thrills
greatest science fiction hits, vol. (flute)
secret agent file- secret agent file (flute)
Norman, Neil- greatest science fiction hits, vol. (flute, glockenspiel)
Norman, Neil- greatest science fiction hits, vol. (multiple reeds)
2000 Andre Caporaso "Avenue 5" (Bari Sax, Bass Clarinet, Contrabass
Clarinet, Flute, Alto Flute, Piccolo)
2000 Steve Speigl Big Band "Enigma" (Tenor Sax, Flute, Clarinet)
2004 Ladd McIntosh Big Band "Temptation"
2004 Ladd McIntosh Big Band "Ride the Night Beast"
2006 frank zappa: trance-fusion
John Trubee And The Ugly Janitors Of America: "World of Lying Pigs" (Alto
Flute, Piccolo, Baritone Sax)
Lion King: Rhythm of the Pride Lands
Matchstick Men
lives, yet are still able to invent a fresh, individual, innovative approach
to their instruments. Such was the case with Baritone Sax and low reed
master, Kurt McGettrick. Kurt was a real artist who was uncompromising and
fearless in all musical situations. Kurt McGettrick passed away last Sunday
night (5/6/07) due to an aggressive cancer condition.
Kurt was a specialist on the low woodwinds. His advanced techniques on Bari
Sax, Bass Saxophone, Bass Clarinet, ContraBass Clarinet, Flute, Alto Flute,
and Piccolo were astounding. His sound on Bari Sax was HUGE! He regularly
employed double and triple tonguing, an amazing mastery of multiphonics, and
a very impressive command of the extreme altissimo of the Bari Sax. Kurt
played the bass clarinet very beautifully, with an amazing fluency in the
delicate upper range. On tenor, Kurt's favorite influence was Gene Ammons.
He had absolutely zero interest in cloning Mike Brecker or any of the other
favorites of the moment. Kurt was not a bebop player. Instead, he
developed his own style of thematic improvisation which incorporated
techniques which he developed himself. McGettrick was also a fine arranger
and composer.
Kurt was perhaps most notorious for being a member of Frank Zappa's 1988
touring horn section, which spawned the albums "The Best Band You Never
Heard In Your Life", "Make A Jazz Noise Here", and "Broadway the Hard Way".
During his career, Kurt toured and recorded with Graham Parker, and toured
with the "Prez Conference" band. Kurt also recorded with B.B. King, Tom
Petty, Patti LaBelle, The Meters, Phoebe Snow, and the Ladd McIntosh Big
Band. He played on many movie soundtracks, including The Lion King, and
Matchstick Men.
Good places to hear McGettrick's work are on Ladd McIntosh's CD's
"Temptation", and "Ride the Night Beast". The is the way to play Bari Sax
in a modern big band! Kurt's tremendous Bari Sax sound is heard and felt on
every song throughout these discs. Kurt's presence in Ladd's band was much
like the way in which Harry Carney was such an integral part of the
Ellington band's sound. Kurt went to Berklee many years ago to study
arranging and composition, but he said that the faculty kept pushing him to
play Bari with all the big bands. Kurt generally didn't like to play Bari
with big bands because he said so few big band writers wrote good parts for
Bari Sax. He made an exception for Ladd McIntosh and he played in Ladd's
band for 30 years. Ladd writes exeptional bari sax parts!
You can hear excerpts of the Ladd McIntosh Big Band recordings at the
CD-Baby website. Kurt is featured on "Steak and Beans" on the Ride the Night
Beast CD". And on "I Got It Bad' on the "Temptation" CD.
To hear fine examples of Kurt's more 'outside' playing, check out Andre
Caporaso's CD, "Avenue 5".
http://www.amazon.com/Avenue-5-Andre-Caporaso/dp/B000053F8V/ref=sr_1_1/002-6039199-8661648?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1178647498&sr=1-1
There are many example of Kurt's Bari Sax and Bass Clarinet artistry on
Caporaso's CD. McGettrick was really in his element when dealing with a
harmonically open ended setting.
On a personal note, I spent many enjoyable hours over the past 17 years
playing alongside Kurt in the Andre Caporaso band, and also in Steve Speigl's
big band. Kurt's playing was a constant inspiration. He brought a ton of
musical energy to every situation. Musically, he was his own man. His
style was strictly of his own invention. I admired Kurt's fearless,
ferocious flights into the stratosphere. His improvisations were completely
unpredictable. You were always going to be surprised and amused by what he
played, and you weren't going to hear any stock licks - ever! His playing
made me reach deeper - in an effort to keep up with his tremendous
intensity.
Kurt was a real funny guy. His hard boiled outlook was shaped by a career
of observing the ridiculousness of the music industry and the recent decline
of the studio scene in L.A.. His stories about touring with Zappa were
hilarious. Kurt was cynical about many aspects of the business, but he
balanced that with his great sense of humor. Kurt McGettrick will be very
much missed out here in Los Angeles. Check out the work of this important
musician.
Here is a PARTIAL list of the albums or songs Kurt McGettrick recorded on:
1960's B.B. King - "King of the Blues"
1974 Brown, Toni - "Good For You Too" (saxophone)
1975 Garthwaite, Terry - "Terry" (saxophone)
1976 Labelle, Patti- "Chameleon" (Bass Sax_, horn arrangements)
1977 Meters - New Directions (clarinet, flute, sax (baritone), sax (bass))
1977 Heartsfield - "Heartsfield Collectors Item" (horns)
1977 Carpenters- "Passage" (saxophone)
1977 Labelle, Patti - "Patti Labelle" (horns)
1977 Snow, Phoebe - "It Looks Like Snow" (horns)
1978 California Dreaming - "California Dreaming" (horns)
1978 King, B.B.- "Midnight Believer" (saxophone)
1979 Mighty Clouds of Joy - "Changing Times (horns)
1980 Krause, Bernie - "Citadels of Mystery" (flute, sax (soprano))
1982 Parker, Graham - another grey area (flute, saxophone, baritone sax)
1984 Wilder, Matthew - "Bouncin' Off the Walls" (saxophone)
1984 Lamb, Annabel - "Flame" (baritone sax)
1985 Petty, Tom - "Southern Accents" (horns)
1986 Fishbone - "In Your Face" (baritone sax)
1987 Archangel, Nathalie - "Nathalie Archangel"
1988 Broadway The Hard Way - Zappa (baritone saxophone)
1991 The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life - Zappa (baritone saxophone,
bass saxophone, contrabass clarinet)
1991 Frank Zappa- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 4 (baritone sax)
1991 Make A Jazz Noise Here - Zappa (Bari Sax, Contrabass Clarinet)
1991 McIntosh, Ladd - "Bulbous Garlic Blues" (baritone sax)
1991 Andre Caporaso "Pathways" (Bari Sax, Flute, Alto Flute)
1992 Frank Zappa- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 6 (baritone sax)
1992 "League Of Their Own" - (baritone sax)
King, B.B. - King of the Blues (box set)
Bruce Fowler - "Entropy"
1993 Parker, Graham- passion is no ordinary word: the gr (flute, saxophone)
1994 Nesmith, Michael - "Garden" (clarinet (bass))
1995 Frank Zappa - "Strictly Commercial" [lp vinyl only]
1995 Band From Utopia - "music of frank zappa" (baritone sax, soprano sax)
1996 Barrow, Arthur - "Eyebrow Razor (clarinet)
1996 Tin Drum - "Real World" (bass clarinet, piccolo, baritone sax, tenor
sax)
1998 Frank Zappa - Cheap Thrills
1999 Neil Sadler: "Theory of Forms"
(bleeding arts ba 10012) - feat.m.keneally, walt, steve and bruce fowler
and kurt mcgettrick
1999 frank zappa- son of cheep thrills
greatest science fiction hits, vol. (flute)
secret agent file- secret agent file (flute)
Norman, Neil- greatest science fiction hits, vol. (flute, glockenspiel)
Norman, Neil- greatest science fiction hits, vol. (multiple reeds)
2000 Andre Caporaso "Avenue 5" (Bari Sax, Bass Clarinet, Contrabass
Clarinet, Flute, Alto Flute, Piccolo)
2000 Steve Speigl Big Band "Enigma" (Tenor Sax, Flute, Clarinet)
2004 Ladd McIntosh Big Band "Temptation"
2004 Ladd McIntosh Big Band "Ride the Night Beast"
2006 frank zappa: trance-fusion
John Trubee And The Ugly Janitors Of America: "World of Lying Pigs" (Alto
Flute, Piccolo, Baritone Sax)
Lion King: Rhythm of the Pride Lands
Matchstick Men