Tuesday, April 20, 2010

for art blakey (17)


for art blakey
aka abdullah ibn buhaina
(1919 – 1990)


music washes away the dust of every day life.
art blakey

umatched u were in hard bop’s idiom,
yr mighty drive & steady pulsing beat;
yr artful & percussive axiom?
go heavy on the 2 & 4, bring heat.
lay down some slick but solid cymbal work
with ride & hi-hat on the very edge.
don’t rush, nail down the time, then go beserk
with manic press roll roars, let triplets wedge
between the 2’s & 4’s, let rimshots end
the phrase. throw in an afro-cuban feel,
& bounce. yr rhythm burned, a fiery blend
of all that’s hip & what is crazy real.
a bebop prophet, hard bop father/sage?
hell yes, & thaumaturgic rhythm mage!


© Joseph McNair; 2010

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