I mean, one of our most modest and soft-spoken board members. I knew he'd played trombone with Count Basie's band, and that, in and of itself, gives ANYONE bragging rights. But, noOOOooo...Mr. Ross sits back, and mingles with us mortals like other people of serious note have.

Read Mr. Ross's bio...he's played with countless greats, I won't embarrass him more here, but, this soft-spoken gentleman from D.C. deserves an MP forum salute!

SA-LUTE!!!

I have not read his resume but have listened his music and read his posts. That saids it all

I loved that show.

I *LOVE* L. Ross!

Actually, I love BOTH of them!

Salute!! I think you could write a book about your touring years! Would love to read it man.

Hey wait a minute fellows ... easy on the syrup!

But thanks Ted, Dak, Gus, Dan and Boosh I salute you.

Where do you find his bio? It's not in his sig line, and I'd like to read it.

Well, seriously, Lincoln, as Boosh said, we'd love to hear some stories. And I'd bet you've got some tales to tell...

And say howdy to that Jedi son of yours...he's been hiding lately...

I caught Basie and the band back in '65... I don't suppose you were with them, then, were you, L. Ross?

No that was before my time. I came on nine years later in '74.

BTW the leader of the band now, Bill Hughes (bass trombone), has been in the band for an incredible 51 years.

I met Lincoln once in D.C., where we got a small but fun forum hang together at this great Asian restaurant. He gave me a copy of his CD. Great musician and a truly nice guy! Good to have you with us, Jedi.

Old Jedi just turned 30 and has been busy with my grandkids besides trying to finish up an album before he goes back to his English teaching gig in September. I got to hand it to him though, he's a dedicated Dad for sure and puts in a lot of time. I have been truly blessed with two great kids and three wonderful grandkids with one on the way. I'll tell him you asked about him.


As far as stories go, you know how it is, they do accumulate as the years go by and often some of the names have to be changed to protect the guilty. But here is a good one I posted on the Keyboard forum in March of this year.

Thirty one years ago I had the unbelieveable experience of riding on a train through the Swiss Alps while on the road with the Count Basie Orchestra. I was playing 3rd trombone and was the youngest member of the band at the time.(I was really lucky to get that gig but that's another story.)(Keeping it real though the trombone is still kicking my ass to this very day.)

Anyway I was walking through the train maybe on my way to the dining car when I passed a cabin where Basie, Norman Granz, and O.P.(Oscar Peterson) were sitting and having a casual conversation. They invited me in and I must have sat there for about 20 minutes shooting the breeze with them as we talked about the then current popular music and electronic instruments in particular.

O.P. mentioned that he had heard that Herbie Hancock was playing some kind of electric piano but that he had not yet played one. I also vaguely remember O.P. commenting something about the Beatle's tune Ellenor Rigby (sp.) and how he couldn't imagine soloing on it. I think Basie had already recorded an album of Beatle's tunes so that's how the topic came up.

Also I remember kind of standing up for some of the soul music of my generation to them by citing Sly and the Family Stone and other hot acts of the time as groups I enjoyed.

On this tour O.P. and Basie would play a duet together right after O.P.'s set and before the big band came on. They would arrange two grand pianos together facing each other interlocked as you have probably seen done before. Anyway one show at the end of O.P.'s set I was in the wings checking him out, as I did every night, when Basie came up behind me right before he was to go on for the duet. He said something like:

As I remember him Basie was a down to earth regular type guy who often rode the bus with the band. Not a pretentious bone in his body. Once I caught him one the bus alone and asked him what advice he might have for a young guy trying to make it in the music business. His answer was something to the effect that it would be good to have something to fall back on job wise but to always keep a clean mind. He was 70 and I was 24.

Wow... that's great. I wonder, though, what it's like playing some of the same tunes for a half century. I'm thinking after a few decades, it's pretty much second nature...

Cheers!

I was fortunate to have been at the hang that Steve was talking of (after an Alesis Ion demo by Craig as I recall). It was the first local gathering of forumites that I had the pleasure of attending.

L. Ross, from the brief time that I met you, I could tell that you were a very nice guy, passionate about music, even more passionate about your grandkids , and a total gentleman.
My hat is off to you as well.


- Neil

He's not a bad look'n guy either.

And his music? Smmmmmoooooth.
Can ya dig it? I knew that'cha could.....

I imagine you get plenty of opportunity to smooth out any rough spots.

Although....I few years ago I was playing for a band that had been doing the same material for twenty years, and had never bothered to learn the second verse to a couple of the tunes they did...they just repeated the first verse twice.

I always thought; "Hey, if you're gonna play the song every night, at least learn the whole thing!"

But what do I know? They're booked solid years in advance... :rolleyes: