Ed Thigpen: Live at Tivoli / Master of Time, Rhythm and Taste

Everyone who has ever met me – or read more than just a small snippet on this site – knows that I was and am also a huge fan of the late Ed Thigpen, drummer extraordinaire and somone who graced more than 1500 albums with his tasty style and impeccable work. He was also someone I had the fortune of meeting many times in the late 70s and then several times again throughout the 80s and 90s.

Still, somehow, the following release completely passed me by.
It wasn’t until I checked edthigpen.com that I became aware of it. Continue Reading →

Ed Thigpen: Gentleman of Jazz

A Profile of Sorts

I pride myself on hardly ever having misjudged people. Naturally, I have been completely wrong at times (and when I am/was wrong, I am/was completely off), but as far as I recall, the number of blunders were rather limited. It is my profession to evaluate people and although that is often quite difficult, I usually get it right at some point, especially if I am able to spend longer periods of time with the people in question.

That’s why I would state that Ed Thigpen was not only a cool guy, but also a true gentleman. Now, I have absolutely no idea if he walked around at home throwing terrible tantrums or if he had a tendency to easily go off the rails in more private settings, but whenever I had the chance to experience his personality up close, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he would be a great friend to have. Continue Reading →