Thank You Joe !!! You really made a difference in this this world!

Sincerely
Erik Holck
Gothenburg.
Sweden.

So first of all, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading ALL of the posts on this tribute page and that I want to thank ALL of those who took the time to post their thoughts here for everyone to see. That takes a certain amount of courage in and of itself! So lets not ignore that or them! THANKS guys/girls! Next I would like to add a short story of my own which someone above (”Anthony” on September 24th, 2007) wrote and which I would like to both confirm and add to! This was regarding his comment about the concert Joe did with his band The Zawinul Syndicate in Tallahasse Florida, at a famous but smaller venue called the Blue Moon Theatre.

I say small because compared to some of the places Joe played in it was perhaps a 4 (out of 10) size-wise and yet it had a special and unique air about it that gave you the impression that this old place has had many other fine musicians and entertainers in it over the years. It was quite old and I was told a famous landmark and destination for anyone visiting North Florida to see a show in. It wasn’t especially grand or anything. Very basic, but yet it had a character that most modern venues seem to lack! Hard to describe in words, but as a former professional touring musician myself, I can tell you that all pro musicians know what I’m talking about! Smaller rooms, especially the older ones, tend to be the jobs we most enjoy doing, since its a much more personal connection with the audience. And the acoustics can (usually) be much eaisier to control for both the musicians and the board person, if there is not as much delay in sound travel (ie bounceback etc.) and if the room is jammed full of people (which help absord sound) which it definitely WAS the night Joe played there!

So let me set the stage. At the time I was about 19 years old and well into my professional career as a musician (BIG lover of Jazz and Funk and especially “Fusion”). I won’t bother listing the bands I most listened to at the time, because most have already been mentioned above……but the Rippingtons, Yellowjackets, Spyro Gyra, David Sanborn, Dixie Dregs, Stanley Jordan, Joe Sample, Earl Klugh, Chick Corea Electric Band, et al are among the top of my list…..not to mention those already mentioned like RTF and Weather Report, Mahavishnu et al! I am a percussionist, so my ears are keen on phrasing and ryhthmic patterns whether they be from a drummer, a conga player, a bass player (like Jaco, Stanley, or Gerald Veasley), or a GREAT keyboard player/composer like Maestro Zawinul! And let me say for the record folks…..Joe ALWAYS chose the absolute BEST players to tour and record with! And that was also part of the reason he was so successful! Let’s not understate or underestimate that FACT! Because even with Joe’s immense talents as both a player, performer, and writer, all the genius in the world can be rendered quite useless IF you don’t have the right people articulating what you are trying to convey to the public! And choose the right folks Joe certainly DID!

Now at this particular concert, in this particular incarnation of the Zawinul Syndicate, the line-up was as follows: Joe on keys (of course!), Scott Henderson on guitar, Gerald Veasley on bass, and Cornell Rochester on traps (i.e., drums!). I’m 42 now but was only 19 when I heard them for the first time live! So here I am this young aspiring musician well on my way to a pro career in music, and I had just got off my first world tour with the Air Force’s elite Show-Band and Entertainment Troupe called Tops in Blue! I had just returned to my base in Fort Walton Beach, Florida (Eglin AFB) and I read about this gig that the Syndicate is doing down in Tallahesse, which is roughly 60 miles east of Ft. Walton Beach. So I look at the date and time and realize that if I hurry back I can make this performance since I was at that time working the graveyard shift on my regular Air Force “day” job (the touring stuff was TDY and not my actual job - MOS - in the service).

Now I had no idea what to expect or who would be playing with Joe at this gig, but I KNEW that whoever it was they would all be fantastic musicians, so I was not in the least bit worried about that. It was just this nagging curiosity on the drive down as to who would be backing Joe up. So I get there early, and I find a good seat (general seating in folding chairs if I recall correctly) and I’m thinking to myself, who is going to be playing with joe tonight? So I see what looks like one of the musicians floating around the audience greeting people and saying hello to fans he knew. So I asked someone who that was, and they said it was Scott Henderson. Now I had known about Scott and how good he was, but had never see his face anywhere up close. He was still at the time one of those up and coming greats who was still paying his dues backing up the old-heads and and doing studio work, etc., and never gettting the credit he deserves because he’s not quite “mainstream” enough, etc. I know all fusion and jazz musicians can relate.

So I approach him and greet him and shake his hand, and I tell him who I am and what I am doing as a musican, etc., and that I was so excited to hear the great Joe Zawinul of Weather Report LIVE and up close in such a small venue. And I proceeded to ask him about who the rest of the band was. He said Gerald is on bass and Cornell on drums! I replied “I know Gerald Veasely, he’s from my hometown back in Philly!” Scott laughed and said “Yeah, that’s right and so is Cornell!” Now Cornell I did not know about, which is ironic because I am a drummer and had been studying and playing in Philly since a very young age. And going to Performing Arts High School put me in touch with young musicians from all over the city and we all talked about who the big-guns were out in the real-world doing it. So somehow Cornell just wasn’t on my radar screen….but keep in mind I was only 19 and went directly into the military right out of high school (with my sites set on becoming a musician in the military once I got in!).

So the concert starts with a bang and I just sat there in awe as these guys just ripped through one song after another, each taking mind-numbing solos and doing runs and progressions that would make the most seasoned pro blush with envy! I was just paralyzed with amazement and perplexed with curiosity at how these young guys were so good and yet so unknown to the mainstream culture! Keep in mind this was in ‘87……Gerald, Scott, and Cornell are HIGHLY regarded and ‘mainstream’ accomplished NOW, in large part thanks to the influence and experience of playing with greats like Joe! But also because they were just destined to be great anyway and this was an early step in that direction (and a BIG one at that!). And believe me, Joe was a major taskmaster on stage as well as off! He would make comments right onstage live if he wanted more out of you! He yelled over to Scott during his solo that night “Make it sing!”. He also yelled out to Pops Adderley “This one’s for you Pops” as Anthony mentioned above! Very intense guy Joe was! Excelent bandleader too!

The other interesting point was that about seeing Cannonball Adderley’s fathe,r Julian “Pops” Adderley, Sr. (an accomplished musician in his own right) at that concert. He was there sitting in the front row, and half way into the show Joe stands up and introduces him to the crowd and said it was his 90-something-th birthday! Wow….people were just amazed that he was even still around. So they all gave him a rousing standing ovation! Joe then dedicated the next song to him, which was “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy,” a song which Joe wrote for his son “Cannonball” back in 1967! WOW! Talk about a historic moment. The song brought tears to the eyes of the elderly Julian Adderley, Sr., whose son was taken from us at the premature age of 46 by a stroke while performing on stage. (…and in later years…..AWESOME pics!)

Cannonball was another gifted genius. May he rest in peace!
http://www.findagrave.com/photos/2004/314/8400_110014377999.jpg
Cannonball was a short portly man, hence the name “Cannonball” (given to him while he was in school for his voracious appetite). The song was a very moving tribute and was played with EXTRA emotion and intensity by Joe since Pops was there front and center to witness the momentous occasion! Joe played in Canonball’s band back in the day! If one Adderley was taken early, we could at least celebrate his memory and also the fact that his father was still around at the ripe age of 90-something and in good health to boot! What a treat that was! I had no idea that the Adderley family was origianlly from Florida and that area in particular! So I learned something that night! I also had no idea that Joe was a good friend and bandmate of Cannonball’s! Check this out (YOUNG lions!) if you want to REALLY be BLOWN AWAY!

After the concert was over, I waited up front for the band members to come out and greet the fans. Joe was backstage freshening up and probably chatting privately with VIPs, etc. But Gerald Veasley and Cornell came out right away and I introduced myself to them and hung out with them for a while since the three of us were Philly boys and had a lot of mutual musician friends. They invited me backstage to meet Joe and hang out later on, but I had to get going if I was going to make it back to work on time! It’s a serious thing if you are late from work in the military…they call it ‘AWOL’ there! LOL! So unfortunately I never got to meet Joe face to face and thank him for all his music. So those of you who posted above who did were VERY VERY fortunate indeed methinks. I wish I had a video of that show! If anyone knows if such a thing exists….I’d love to get my hands on a copy! Hopefully somebody recorded that! I do recall seeing video camera(s) set up there. Maybe the band made a copy. I guess I can ask Gerald Veasley about that in an e-mail! If anyone out there knows anything else about that show or tour, I’d love to know.

So now you know! And so anyone who was fortunate enough to have attended that small gathering (roughly 200-250 people) in that intimate of a setting, knows how special that evening was and how it touched their hearts and lives! Just to be in a room with all those heavies from the early days of jazz and to have that song played to the elderly Senior Adderley right before my eyes, and to watch his reaction to that, and the tears welling etc. was a once in a lifetime even for which I am eternally greatful to God for. Man I tell you folks it just doesn’t get any better than THAT! Trust me! I’ve met many heavies and rapped with them etc. and hung out…..but that just TOOK THE CAKE! A TRUE ‘once-in-a-Blue Moon’ event (pun intended) at the Blue Moon Theatre in Tallahasse FL. ca 1987! A night that will live in my mind and heart until the day I die…and I am Sooooo happy to be able to share it with all of you, Joe’s adoring fans and friends from all over the world!!!!

Thanks again to Curt Bianchi for allowing me - and us all - the forum in which to place our flowers! I don’t know you guy, but any friend of Joe’s is also a friend of mine! Can I get an AMEN on that one????

Sincerely,

Gerard E. Semola
Musician/Muralist/Amateur Historian
Berklee Alumni ‘92
Philadelphia PA

Man…I really miss those events and I’ve got to say that nothing has really replaced this musical hole in my heart since his passing. I sincerly appreciate you keeping this page going for all this time. Its nice to log in every now and again to see what’s going on.

Thanks for your effort,
George

I first heard Joe in 1974, I would have been 11 and have spent the last 34 years loving everything I heard. Joe’s music has carried my heart and nurtured my soul all my growing life. I had the privilege of seeing the Syndicate live in Sydney in October 2000, and I named my son “Jazz,” born November 2000, in his honour, and he was at the concert in utero with my wife.

I wept this morning when I read the news. I really cried. I guess all the emotion and joy I have received through his music was realised. Having Joe Jaco and Wayne together was one of those rare miracles of music.

listen and you will feel emotions conveyed through music that no one has achieved before

who loves you

John Malone
Australia
May 7th 2009

Xavi
Barcelona.

Joe’s music always evokes deep feelings in me.

His music..his persona at live concerts..his soul touched mine.

As I write this ( now listening to “A Remark You Made”), I wonder how I’d be different today w/o Joe Zawinal’s touch. Certainly I don’t mean physically. Every time that I hear this song-EVERY TIME I hear it-I FEEL it, and not just memories.

Music has a sometimes wonderful, sometimes painful way of taking us elsewhere-often to the past-to the times we first got “into” a song. Joe’s music often does just that, but also, has the ability to take you somewhere else, even after you heard the song many, many times…

To those of us Zawinal fans, when “World Music” became vogue, we all wondered where the ‘in vogue-ittes’ had been. Joe had been doing world music for years and years, prior.

From the Cannonball Years (hey, was Joe in the Valley at Stambaugh Auditorium?) to the Zawninal Syndicate years. (Lest locals forget the State Theatre Weather Report concert)

Joe Zawinul was hospitalized in his native Vienna on August 7, 2007[3], only five weeks after concluding a European tour. He died from a rare form of skin cancer (Merkel Cell Carcinoma) on September 11, 2007

Yes, 2008 had been a sadly quiet year w/o Joe, but to and for our GREAT fortune, Joe’s left so much of himself…Joe left us a tool kit-a tool kit that provides us keys to unlock the doors of enjoyment,entertainment, introspection, happiness, sadness and wonder !

Now listening to “Blackthorn Rose” from Weather Report’s Mysterious Traveller, as I look out the window to a beautiful blanket of snow… my memory accesses images from my past and sensations of warmth and wonder .

I remember Joe and am truly appreciative for his gifts to us…plus, I’ll miss the hats….

I would always query what would Joe’s next musical incarnation be….I hope to find out.