Memories of Ornette Coleman

Wish I had some photos of me & Ornette Coleman inventing Free Jazz at the Five Spot back in '59. Suffice it to say, he was a very "out-there" cat. And though he ultimately took jazz in a more conventional direction, our paths will always be intertwined. With me on trombone & him on that crazy plastic sax, we forged a sound that can only be described as "infuriating." I’ll always remember the time Miles said Ornette was "all screwed up inside" (like HE was a bed of roses inside?) and I retaliated by clocking Miles good in the head with my slide, from the stage, while playing the shit out of the Dorian mode. Wild nights! Some cats just didn’t “get” us, and maybe we never “got” each other, but I’ll carry the torch of freedom for you, Orny. Tonight I’ll be blowing out people’s eardrums on the W. 4th Street platform, still searching for the Shape of Jazz to Come.