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Double Bass Don Thompson

#81
hey Paul,

i caught that thread. i did all the quick searching would turn up. nothing really mentioned size nor do i know if that was the chanot or not either way. but still...

that bass was BIG, even with don playing it.

it had a very dark and mottled red toward brown aged look to it. the tuners were on a single plate a side. violin'ish corners, i think. in a stump box stand.

man, did i mention that thumb technique?

anyway, i stray again thinking about his playing...


oh yeah, i am unworthy....

but i work at it anyway



simon
 
#82
man i'm listening to Live at Mezzetta with Reg Schwager & Don Thompson and it's absolutely crazy! with just a guitar and bass its the perfect environment to just sit back and listen to don do his thing. the way he plays sentimental mood just melts me where i lay...:eek:

I saw him a few days ago and got to speak with him; like most people have mentioned, lots of emphasis on sitting at the piano to really understand the nexus that formulates at the bandstand

overall, I'd have to say he's my new god. ;)
 
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#94
Don did a collaboration with John Abercrombie called Witchcraft. Mostly standards with one collaboration piece. Nice stuff. Thompson plays piano on a couple cuts.

The recording dates from 1986. I have a release on Justin Time from 1991.
I'm not sure if this is the same recording that was referred to earlier in the thread.

Don also engineered and co-produced the recording.

He is quoted a bit in Dough Ramsey's bio of Paul Desmond when the quartet with Bickert was playing in Toronto.
 
#96
James R said:
Mark:

Yes it's weird that there are so many great players that are from the Vancouver / Nanaimo BC area. There were certainly no jazz radio stations and school jazz programs were non existent until later in the 70's, so I don't know or how Don got interested in jazz up in Powell River, a small mill town north of Vancouver. And Bickert was from the Okanogan Lake BC area, again thousands of miles from NY or LA where jazz was thriving in the 40's & 50's. CBC radio didn't air much in the way of jazz until the 70's. At least now we can pick up a NPR jazz station from Seattle.

When Don moved to Vancouver (where I currently live) in the early 60's, he soaked up a lot from guys like pianist Chris Gage (another little known monster that died too young). Then Don and drummer Terry Clark split to San Francisco to play with John Handy and both eventually moved permanently to Toronto.

Some others from this area... saxophonist Shamus Blake, pianist Renee Rosnes, Hugh Fraser (strong trombonist, pianist & composer & educator), Diana Krall of course, bassist Neil Swainson, pop pianist David Foster and many more, most of whom have moved to greener pastures in NY, LA, Europe and Toronto.

Vancouver still has some very high level players though, many have recently moved here from Montreal. If only there were more than a couple of venues to play... Most of us teach etc. to make a living; our jazz fest lasts 2 weeks, then it's back to slim pickin's.

Cheers!
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Don Thompson! What a great musician.

'How did Don get into jazz since he was in Powell River'?
Don told me himself 'I got playing jazz because of Lloyd Arntzen'!
Lloyd is a clarinet player of early jazz active in the area. I have played with Lloyd since 1975. I was just hired for Lloyd's 90th birthday party, who is still playing well and leading bands.

Long ago, on our gig breaks, musicians working for Lloyd would mention that he and local drummer Charlie Brown played with Don in Powell River. Lloyd had mentioned it too but never made a big deal about it, just was proud of Don's accomplishments.
When I met Don I mentioned Lloyd as one of the people I play with and Don's face lit up. He said something to the effect of 'Lloyd introduced me to jazz'! Lloyd is about 20 years older than Don and a natural band leader and teacher. (Lloyd also happened to be my grade 1 school vice principal in 1961)

Don Thompson is my nephew Casey's wife's uncle. Huh?
Casey is my nephew (also has my name) and his wife Kat is Don's niece.
Don played solo piano at the wedding, playing a style that really reminds me of Bill Evans. Cool to have Don Thompson play during your wedding ceremony!

Here is Don on piano with Joel Quarrington in a very informal recording of 'A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square'. :)

 
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#98
roswell1965 said:
A new 7 CD compilation of the shows Don did with Paul Desmond back in 1975, mixed by Don himself:
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I got this set, and generally speaking I’m glad I did. As much as I like Paul Desmond at times he can sound a bit precious, and there are times in these 7 discs where he does. But of course he has many more beautiful moments, and he and Ed Bickert sound so good together. I will say that Don Thompson’s bass solos are uniformly amazing, perfectly executed melodies all over the bass from top to bottom, and always perfectly in tune. 7 discs is a lot of material, and I can definitely see why some of it would not have been released, but if you’re a fan of this group from the original records then I’d definitely recommend it. And a side benefit is that it help keeps Mosaic going, which is a great thing as far as I’m concerned
 
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#100
Don is no secret - a world class bassist, pianist, vibes player, arranger, writer and teacher. The live album he and Terry recorded with Jim Hall in the 70’s was every aspiring Canadian kid’s master class when it came out. It still kills me 45 years later - it’s in my ears at least once a week. He’s a master of lyrical and beautifully structured playing.
 

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