Bill Cosby Interview

Well I appreciate it. I think I think if you give me 10 sec I'm not used to doing this but if you give me a few seconds I think I can make our voices be on tape and we'll go from there. Thank you. Let's see we're in Tampa 90 degrees bright and sunny. You're in New England is it. I thought That's right trace this area code one second. I hope I didn't cut you off. I can still hear you. That's great. I think I almost have a proper level here. Level level level level level level level level level level level. Good I can hear you and everything. Welcome to Tampa. Thank you. Even if it's only by telephone. I was there about a month ago. That's right. It's not much you know I was there. Is that right.

Yeah I played the big auditorium. It was wonderful in the Tampa Performing Arts Center I guess fair. Yes and I had a wonderful time. We hope you'll come back often. We're well tell you not the one who invited me you know so don't try to pretend you were you know I didn't even know I was in town Bob. Sure I did but I was I think I was busy that night but we hope you'll come back and bring the players on the new disc with you some time. Well if you buy this and I think you know I've talked to the fellas and I think they'll probably say yes because the town is very yeah. I think we'll get in there and we thank you. Yeah we're speaking with Bill Cosby on the sound of jazz from WUSA WSF PFM and I want to thank you for taking a minute out of what I'm sure is a pretty busy.

Will these days Ron again. Is that right. You're taking it easy. Yeah because I can see my misses because B is working on on her doctorate in education at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. And now I am here. I don't work. To support my wife in other words while she's working on her papers and reading and studying for it. I put my body down on the floor like a puppy and put her feet on something to pivot to and I take a nap and then I get up and I walk over or you know go to the bathroom and I come back. And I go back down on the floor in my you know supportive thing. And then sometimes I get too loud with the snoring. You know she will she give me a little tap you know a Coca-Cola bottle or something

between a househusband and a pet. Yeah yeah but it's a nice feeling I'd love that support thing. Yeah. I want to congratulate you on the success right out of the box. The new release The first under your name in a while with some great players where you lay your head. Well I hope I really hope that your station gets the approval from the from the listeners on on the music. I'm very very tickled. About it. And I must tell you that this is something that is going to continue. In other words I'm going to do more as a matter of fact. I've been working with Bobby Robson. Oh the saxophonist. Yeah yeah. On copying down some things that I've written and not to have them arranged for as much as

I want. I want to make sure that it's my arrangement and Bobby is. Excellent and just a wonderful young man to talk to. I would think so he's a real favorite of mine. It's been a you know I was a let me say something about him. I I mean I really enjoyed myself when I was there because I enjoyed the people when I when I addressed the audience live as a comedian. We had a ball. However this is the first time that I've known that they have a jazz station. That's why you didn't drop by when you were in town. Well of course not you know you think about Tampa but I you know but you guys should let people know that. Really sure we do our best and there are some good books and good jazz programs are coming in to the same hall too but I I'm glad you know

now you know we our NPR affiliate in Tampa and Fort Myers with 100000 Watts in each and over 40 hours a jazz a week and it's the real stuff. So it's been it's been a kick to see how you've been able to promote the music on your series you know using Joe Williams and having Betty Carter on and I remember. Especially the show a couple of years ago I guess when my goodness there was suddenly Jimmy and Percy here that was that was a lot of fun and you know will come along. Yeah I have already submitted his May 2 to be on the show I want his horn orchestra and cliff and going to go out and they are going to dance to the south we're going to have some of the dancers. It is going to be just a wonderful look.

That's great. That'll be coming up the season and hear well next season. Next season I want to do that was the one big jazz show a couple of years ago with going Tommy Flanagan. You had Joe give Joe Wilder a speaking part I mean that's yes he was here a few weeks ago and that was that kind of a wish. Will film or a dream come true to get that much. The people you admire onto in that many American homes. Yes. And you know as you as you well know so many of the musicians don't get a chance because people automatically take it that it is not a music that anybody's going to be interested in. And quite obviously it is it. It goes from a nightclub that a whole 90 people to a fellow standing on a street corner by himself or

to the Hollywood Playboy Jazz Festival once a year. And but you know what's happening is the radio stations across this country that play the music are released to some of them are drying up. I'm really speaking to the listeners to tell them how much they really should appreciate what you guys are doing because I have I have driven across this United States of America and of course to listen. For the music. And that's the entertaining part of my life. Certain things I don't want to hear I'm not too tickled with and it's to some of it may be the music of my children accent or etc. but my words when you go to a city like Los Angeles and you know that your chances of hearing

Sonny Rollins Tatum or Miles Davis from the 50s but power or any of the music from the 50s. I mean the chances are like zero. And that's what you're going to hear. It is today's what what really is what I called Jazz at. And that's music that doesn't it doesn't bother anything. It's it's just I mean it's it's next year it'll be in the supermarket you know. It doesn't bother anything. I'm not saying that you have to bother people but it's that's a description of it. It's almost like being called a nice person in a derogatory way. It is to American law. On the airless even Public Radio and a lot of places these days.

Yeah but. If I go into a city like Denver I've got to search a long time. To try and find out what time they're going to play the music. Even a big city like Chicago I've had trouble on a car radio trying to locate something even though that is a blue city. Yeah you still can't get jazz. You think from your travels and listening to radio you think that the trend is on the decline. For hearing the true jazz on the radio I don't know but the city that bothers me the most is Los Angeles. It really bothers me. They took a station and went from what I called Jazz to classical music and then a little bit to the boom jazz. I

mean it was like they were afraid that the people who drive BMW just didn't want to hear that music and I think it's a very very silly. They used to have some some jocks who played good stuff but they've gone the way of classical music. They've gone the way of Tutti boul jazz act and it's like well you know some of our listeners don't care for Eric Dolphy and we don't want to chase away the guy that drives a BMW because they're you know they're doing airline commercials and BMW and Blaupunkt. But even when you go north California they've got two stations out there that just stand as tall as can be. And you know seven Cisco is

obviously in population smaller than a Los Angeles and here this this small city says yeah we have two jazz stations. And then the big one says well we really don't have any with probably 50 stations in the market. Again very very strange. It leaves a hole to be filled. Yeah. And then where the slot gets picked up generally. He is going to be a membership supported public radio. You better believe it. And this is the only way to go and when people hear that you guys need donations then by God to do it and you know the beautiful thing about the public support it is that it's music that you love to hear and you get a chance to pick up your own tab on it.

So I don't see why you know over 365 days. I mean what do you spin when you go up to the newsstand and you plunk down to pick up how many how many daily papers have you. Two main ones in town. OK two main tapers and they range from what 35 to 50 cents. Yeah 35 to 50 cents. So if you pick up that's at least 70 cents. Now just think about it and don't forget that you've got 50 to Saturday and that's a dollar what a half a small town just 50 cents 50 cents for the Sunday paper than the daily paper can be actually in the dailies a quarter. OK now you're stuck. Cut the price all right. Twenty five cents a day. And then on Saturday. Fifty cents. Now you put that in your computer and you buy the

newspaper and the newspaper doesn't always give you the greatest of what you. You're listening to understand where I'm going. Now in order to keep your station this station that the people are listening to now are live public support. If they thought of it in terms of the same way you think about two daily papers or look at what I'm just saying and if you if everybody sent 50 dollars per person. You keep a station alive that is paying. That is exactly what you have to hear and it's public support without the public support. Then you're going to get the kiddie born music and you're going to get the jazz act and all of that stuff and you'll you'll never hear your Tatum you'll never hear from

nineteen forty one many of the Louis Armstrong band eccentric setter I could've said it better myself. Well good. Well thank you for the endorsement. Well thank you. And I want to tell you I was friendly with the warm feeling of mine too. I mean I know that you had all these great let me edit that out. Well thank you. I mean it up my own coughing. Thank you and we hope will we know that next time you're in town you'll be tuned eighty nine point seven and ninety point one the double whammy of classical music American and classical music European. Do you see.

You grew up around the music encountered some of the top jazz musicians as friends of yours if I understand correctly. A lot of the guys you use now and who are household names the jazz fans were guys you hung out with. Is that right. That is correct. Although you see that it's sort of like I'm the guy that didn't make it to the majors. Well I'm the guy that hung out with those who didn't make it. Now there's a different you know some guys. The guys who make it to the majors always talk about you know there's a guy that didn't make it who was fantastic you know. Well I'm not that guy. I'm the one who deserve it but I didn't make it but did OK in another line of work. Yeah man. And you see what at what happened so wonderfully now a man like Dizzy Gillespie you know

I'm I'm his friend and he's my friend. Well if I had I been disease drummer we wouldn't be talking to you. Honestly he wouldn't be talking to me. So maybe things worked. For the better after I KNOW IT'S THE BEST THE BEST. I mean Miles Davis. If I had played let's say Philly Joe Jones or gotten taken the union card and said for me to come over and I went over and and I and I knew all of Miles's music and with the with with with my playing ability in in the 50s. I mean it would have been embarrassing to you know Myles would probably would have said for me to go over and apologize to part chambers. But now you can be friends with those guys. Oh yes. Yes. Because I'm not hindering them in any way. Are there similar. Do you see similarities between standup

comedy. Came up doing a one man on stage and a jazz player performing on stage. Absolutely absolutely. You take the take the arrangement you play through the head. And then you begin to solo until you take it to the end. There's it's. You're listening you're audience is as much a part of the instrument. With comedy The audience is as much a part. They happen to be the real. I am proud of all of the material. In other words I could go out and do word for word the same material. It is the audience is different how they think what they want to laugh at how they

feel. That makes it a different evening. So it doesn't happen to be the improv part of the act. Were you even in fairly early days pretty young. The Tory on stage even more so because at the time I was establishing my style of performing and writing. I don't have a writers I don't know the material or stand around and watch me work and then hand me a line. But I have written all of my material for all these years. It's an interesting thing as you were primarily a drummer as a musician. Yeah drummer precaution is didn't make any difference.

I've even played and enjoyed it and you do some percussion work on the new one where you lay your head. Yeah interesting collection of players you got together on here some of the cutting edge guys of no. David Murray and John Scofield so onon and some guys well her old neighbor and an old friend. If yours records for many years and Sonny sure Rocco I hadn't heard from in a little while. Hug the band get together on this. Well of course I called them up and I put them together specifically. As you say cutting edge that was important. And I I must tell you that I now know how to record something and I'm going to have them again. I love Sonny I love what what he can give me. I'm going to bring in my friend Ben

Reilly also because Ben has a wonderful sense of humor. And in that in the next album I want Peter Washington you know the young bases right. Yeah yeah. I want to use him. I would love to. Hopefully warrant dearly love. Kenny Baron if I can I hope I hope I hope you will. Partner Ben Reilly from fear. Right right. And then there is one month or two that I want to do and I want to do it. I think I think it'll be a different way. And then I'm going to do a spiritual have asked Mavis Staples to sing it acappella for me just the first chorus.

It's called Have a little talk with Jesus. And then I have a young lady who has already done the old 19 30 or 40 song. If I had my way and then we're going to play that could be some interesting interesting stuff. It sounds like so you've already done. Some of the session work for a Bobbie I've already told Bobbie how I want things done. Yes I have. I've recorded the singer already and there's a piece I hope they have it. I hope they captured it. Been Riley March 14. Poor Sonny sure rock however may burn and I hope they can mix it. Time to be on piano with how many birds

and and the name of the little peach is canning the rat. What I don't want to try and capture that moment again. See this is the thing about about our music man. You can't stop that happens like this and we already have it on tape it's just a matter of if we can edit the dying thing down. So canning the rat will do to the listener what I what I feel it did to me. Well it made me feel just as alive and kind of perky and energized me. Some of the titles were great including skinning the red is that. It is a lot of stuff going to freewheeling in the studio and then edited down from there just going to see what you get.

Not is not as much as you think. We have our you know for instance where you hear the piano solo out front. I mean all of that is is playing amp that is not where you move one thing to the other and playing the song. After that the free form but along with the courage of the saxophone solo all of those things apply and those that those are my arrangements. So there is a lot of groundwork laid shortly here and all you have to have that because with you know the way I write some of that stuff if you if you go commit yourself to some sort of order it all sounds so sloppy that people will say well this is just this is just sloppy you Drew you drew together guys from pretty disparate backgrounds and all of whom have successful careers going on as it is.

It was this band able to get together for any live gig. On the strength of the record you know everybody had their own and they don't bend they don't want to and we didn't unless it becomes like my band and the guys want to go out and just have a ball. I may if I have time maybe next year. I do it at the Jazz Festival in New York you know set aside a date and have. But what I would love to do in New York is Konig will have two bands and Ron is the the acoustical band and any other group is the one that belongs to the electric company. And put those two together and. And as I weave the song they they want to play all together. I mean one band will play

an specific song and just leave it at that. And then the other one will play the other arrangement that I have but never that will be played the same song together. The thing you did for VH 1 with a lot of the same These same guys in the studio it seemed to be kind of conducted in studio. As you went along you pointing who you know went on. Yeah but you see we already knew was wrong. Yeah we already knew songs we already knew the order and we already knew how it was supposed to be. Well knowing that and of course you know what do you want to do when you're on. Do you do we take a lot of time to get into it now because it is TV and we don't want to be lost.

Well I certainly appreciate your taking a few minutes from your not so busy schedule and chatting about this one and I hope the next time you're in Tampa you will stop in. But in any case be sure and check out true jazz on the radio. Yeah. Did you or did we about happen ask him when. He feels like a million here. All right. Yeah. Take care about my girl record. All right. Thank you very much. Bye Bye bye. It.