One Year Later
It was a year ago today.
Having thought about it daily for the last 364 days, the following wish list has crystalized:
I wish all of Dixon's music--and I mean all of it, the gigantic stack of reel-to-reel tapes in his closets and all the cassettes--were "available." Available by paid download, available by free download, available by purchasing cd's manufactured by the Trust--whatever. That part doesn't matter--not to me anyway.
I wish all of Dixon's written music was also available--either in leather bound portfolio, in photo copy or PDF. Those particulars also doesn't matter as much (to me). It's the knowledge and overstanding I'm after--and for that I'd pay happily. I'm guessing that as time goes on and the rest of the world catches up to Dixon's contribution to music, I won't be the only one interested in that material.
I wish all of the recordings of Dixon speaking (of which there are hours and hours and hours) were transcribed then I wish someone (I wonder who?) would transcribe all those tapes and turn them into two books: The Complete and The Aphoristic. Heck, even golfers love the Aphoristic.
Related to this, I wish all the Dixon interviews from WKCR (as well as any other radio) were also made available (both as audio and as written document) and included in the aforementioned collections.
I wish there was a bibliography of all the books Dixon owned at the time of his death. Actually, I'd like to know all the books Dixon ever read in his entire life, but that might take a while.
I wish there was a record-o-graphy (is that what you call it?) of all the recordings Dixon owned at the time of his death. I'd also like to know all the records Dixon got rid of way back when he had is big record purge. I do remember him saying that one of the records he made a point of keeping was Ornette On Tenor. What else did he keep?
The living man is gone, and for that we are certainly the poorer. There is, however, a huge trove of material generated by Dixon, most of which even his most ardent fans have not heard. Not to be a glutton, as his "official" releases are thick enough to keep anyone busy for a long long time. But there is so much more: A Dixon Apocrypha and Dixon Hadith await.
Just putting that thought-form out there.
Questions? Comments?
Having thought about it daily for the last 364 days, the following wish list has crystalized:
I wish all of Dixon's music--and I mean all of it, the gigantic stack of reel-to-reel tapes in his closets and all the cassettes--were "available." Available by paid download, available by free download, available by purchasing cd's manufactured by the Trust--whatever. That part doesn't matter--not to me anyway.
I wish all of Dixon's written music was also available--either in leather bound portfolio, in photo copy or PDF. Those particulars also doesn't matter as much (to me). It's the knowledge and overstanding I'm after--and for that I'd pay happily. I'm guessing that as time goes on and the rest of the world catches up to Dixon's contribution to music, I won't be the only one interested in that material.
I wish all of the recordings of Dixon speaking (of which there are hours and hours and hours) were transcribed then I wish someone (I wonder who?) would transcribe all those tapes and turn them into two books: The Complete and The Aphoristic. Heck, even golfers love the Aphoristic.
Related to this, I wish all the Dixon interviews from WKCR (as well as any other radio) were also made available (both as audio and as written document) and included in the aforementioned collections.
I wish there was a bibliography of all the books Dixon owned at the time of his death. Actually, I'd like to know all the books Dixon ever read in his entire life, but that might take a while.
I wish there was a record-o-graphy (is that what you call it?) of all the recordings Dixon owned at the time of his death. I'd also like to know all the records Dixon got rid of way back when he had is big record purge. I do remember him saying that one of the records he made a point of keeping was Ornette On Tenor. What else did he keep?
The living man is gone, and for that we are certainly the poorer. There is, however, a huge trove of material generated by Dixon, most of which even his most ardent fans have not heard. Not to be a glutton, as his "official" releases are thick enough to keep anyone busy for a long long time. But there is so much more: A Dixon Apocrypha and Dixon Hadith await.
Just putting that thought-form out there.
Questions? Comments?
posted by The Dixon Society at 9:05 AM
2 Comments:
I would be VERY interested in hearing any unreleased Bill Dixon recordings. (especially his U Wisconsin and Bennington class tapes) Any documentation related to the Jazz Composer's Guild would also be fascinating.
Before he passed, Bill told me in an email that a folio was being prepared of scores from his RCA album. Please keep us up to date with any developments!
Jason,
Apropos your post, work is in progress on gathering and cataloging Bill Dixon's oeuvre prior to placing the work in an archival setting. Likely, the Bill Dixon estate will retain publishing rights for 15-20 years and some/all of what you describe may come to light.
Meanwhile, consider interviewing some other folks, while you are at it. We've enjoyed reading the interviews on your page!
While we wait for a new Dixon website and imprint to develop, interested readers may wish to follow Bill Dixon on Facebook.
BTW, Odyssey is now available for purchase again!
Keep a light in the window.
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