Bagpipe ruled 'Jazz Summit'

By Winston Wilson, Jr., Staff Reporter

Rufus Harley was coiled in his locks and mystique as he gave life to his bagpipe at the Grog Shoppe, Devon House, Kingston on Tuesday. - Dennis Coke

TUESDAY'S JAZZ Summit at the Grog Shoppe, Devon House, Kingston, was pregnant with both pleasant surprises and bitter disappointment.

The word was already out that pianist Harold Butler, scheduled to play, would be a no-show because of a flare-up of his long-standing mental illness. Despite the programme's promise, tenor Horace Forbes did not get the chance to perform because of technical difficulties. These were the areas of disappointment of Tuesday's Kingston leg of the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival.

However, guitarist Maurice Gordon and his trio joined with bagpipe maestro Rufus Harley to make the setbacks fade into insignificance as they held the Grog Shoppe audience captive.

Maurice Gordon, backed by Silvon Solomon on keyboard, Deleon White on drums and Dale Haslam on bass, gave good value for money.

Among Gordon's offerings were The Magic In You (an original), In a Mellow Tone (Duke Ellington) and Mek Di Music Flow (original). Guitar strings were stroked and petted and caressed and massaged to weave an intoxicating and sensual magic over the fair-sized crowd. Time stood still for several moments as guitar joined keyboard and drums joined bass to produce a delightful harmony. Songstress Aline also joined Gordon.

It was refreshing to see the young people's involvement in jazz, as they shot down the stigma of the music form being for (and produced by) a more mature audience.

There was sanity.

Then came Rufus Harley. The American took the stage in a red, white and blue kilt (a pleated skirt traditionally worn by Highland men), then uncoiled his ground-length dreadlocked hair in between putting the audience in stitches with naughty anecdotes.

It was the intoxicating novelty of the bagpipe that held the most appeal. Hauntingly melodic notes escaped the musical instrument that was a ram-goat effigy to tease the crowd, who responded with spontaneous applause and whooping.

In between his musical offering, Harley revealed nuances of his extremely interesting past; his piquant and raunchy sense of humour the underlying enchantment.

Though it is the tradition of (mostly Scottish) bagpipers to wear kilts, Harley explained that the skirt kept his 'bags' cool.

"Especially when I open my legs like this," he said, demonstrating by widening his legs and touching the said bags.

Sporting sandals, his legs encased in socks turned down at the knees, he explained how the instrument worked and how the "damn bagpipes" caused his hair to grow to the length it was.

The principle of the bagpipe is simple. Air is pumped in a bag with flute-like pipes attached. The melody of the expelled air is controlled by holes in the pipes.

He was accompanied by his son, Messiah, on trumpet and Maurice Gordon and his trio.

He played Montego Bay, a piece he said he made up then and there. The reggae-flavoured Stormy Weather soon followed. He also showed expertise on soprano saxophone, where he was joined by his son for A Child Is Born.

Despite the no-shows, Tuesday's Grog Shoppe experience was enjoyable.

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