My heart is heavy today, as I have learned of the death of famed Jazz icon Teo Macero. Teo was a Jazz saxophonist, composer and producer who was an important figure in Jazz history, especially known as the innovative producer of Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, Dave Brubeck, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis. His production credits included Ellington’s “Blues in Orbit,” Brubeck’s “Time Out” and much of the Davis canon, including “In a Silent Way” and “Bitches Brew.” Macero’s unique production techniques, splicing and effects, influenced all music that followed in a profound way. Besides his importance to the world of music, I considered him a friend and will miss him greatly.
I first encountered Teo completely by accident, when I found an advertisement for his music in the back of Downbeat. I felt this approach was a bit low-tech for someone of such stature and called the number expecting to reach a secretary at his production company to offer to set up a website for him. I was so startled when Teo himself answered in a gruff voice that I dropped the phone and hung up on him. I called back and apologized for my rudeness, but he just laughed and said the same thing happened to him all the time. We ended up talking for an hour about the history of Jazz. This was the beginning of a friendship that continued until his death.
We would talk at least once a week generally after that. I initially taped some of our conversations, as we discussed possibly doing an official interview, but after a time I felt it was too intrusive and stopped the practice. I never did the “interview” and now never will, yet I feel my conversations were more rewarding for their impromptu nature. Teo had strong opinions about everything and everyone and was well known for his irascible demeanor, but he also had a deep love of life and music.
One of my favorite Teo memories will always be Christmas of 2006. We hadn’t spoken in a few weeks and he called me out of the blue to wish me well. What a thrill to have perhaps the most famous music producers in history call me, a lowly writer. As recently as last fall, he was still having me contact musicians in the Chicago area for him, and he even had me checking into hall rentals for a potential concert of his music (he played and composed until he no longer could), but sadly this was not to be.
The world is bit dimmer today with the loss of Teo Macero, but I do feel my life was enriched by knowing him. My heartfelt regards go out to Jeanne and the rest of the family. R.I.P. Teo.
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