by Mike Metheny
JAM Editor

 
Confessions of a Techno-Dummy
As someone who still can't fathom how a stylus extracts sound from record grooves, the whole concept of a laser reading ones and zeroes and filling the room with music remains a mystery. And now comes something called "MP3" to further expose a tech-challenged baby boomer who had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century.

For our cover story, Dean Hampton has been hitting the books and adding to his already expansive knowledge of this new and evolving technology. His piece on internet audio is at once enlightening and scary. The 2000s are here; and the way music is heard and marketed in the Future that has just arrived is about to change.

The Real Deal
One of the highlights of last summer's KC Blues & Jazz Festival was a rollicking good set by veteran jazz singer Myra Taylor. Taylor has deep Kansas City roots dating back to the '30s, but due to many years on the road, she isn't the household name in KC jazz circles that she deserves to be. Hopefully contributor Lisa Bauer's profile will change that. Ms. Taylor is the Real Deal.

Travis
My most vivid memory of saxophonist Travis Jenkins is from the 1967 Kansas City Jazz Festival. As an impressionable high school kid firmly rooted in the straight and narrow, to watch someone like Jenkins come out and set Municipal Auditorium on fire was unexpected and startling. "This guy is possessed!" I remember thinking. Travis Jenkins was quite the cutting edge KC jazz musician in the 1960s. And his life in music since then has literally taken him to some of the most remote corners of the globe. Travis was kind enough to share his story with us last fall in the form of a wonderfully written letter. It is reprinted here with his blessing.

For the Record...
... KC-connected jazz artists continue to release more recordings than we can keep up with. It was a challenge this time to fit nine reviews into "For the Record" when four or five are usually the norm. Unfortunately, that meant bumping a few ahead to April; but it's a nice problem to have. Home-based jazz talent and KC recording facilities appear to be enjoying good times.

There's Hope
If you attended the Interstring CD release party at the Blue Room on December 30, like me, you had to be encouraged. That night there was excellent playing by one of KC's finest groups, a full house in one of the city's hippest rooms tuned in to every subtle nuance, and those on hand savored the kind of attentive ambiance that brings out the best in both musicians and grateful patrons.

So, here's another wish for the New Year/Century/Millennium, to be added to the ones listed last issue: May this signify a positive trend in KC's many jazz-themed clubs. Such a model can be a win-win for musicians, patrons and management alike.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
"Why can't I sing the old tunes? Death of a Salesman has been staged before. Does that mean Brian Dennehy can't do it again?" -- Diana Krall, Down Beat, December 1999.


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