Pieces of Silver

Clint Eastwood’s “Bird”: The Good, The Bad, The Apocryphal

By Matt Silver

The real Buster Smith pioneered the so-called “Texas sound” on saxophone, played with Lester Young and Count Basie, and mentored Charlie Parker.

Part III: Apocrypha and Artistic License

The Curious Case of Buster Franklin

By most accounts, Bird’s Buster Franklin character, if not the film's primary black hat—that's probably vice-cop-cum-shakedown-artist, Estevez—then certainly its most emotionally resonant one, was meant to represent a fictional character cobbled together from different characters Parker would’ve known in real life. A so-called "composite character." But in real life, everything about the Buster character—aside from how he treats Parker— seems very consistent with a real person, Buster Smith.

Divinely Inspired Music and Humanity-Inspired Jokes Reign in Return of KSDS’s Jazz Live

By Matt Silver

The Charles McPherson Quintet feat. Gilbert Castellanos at San Diego City College's Saville Theatre in the return of Jazz Live, Aug. 8, 2023. Photo by Larry Redman.

“Thank you so much for being here,” Charles McPherson said with seeming earnestness as the rest of the band walked backstage for a set break. “Without your support [drawn out pause for effect], we’d probably be doing the exact same thing.”

Ninety-nine percent of musicians or performers of any kind would have reflexively trotted out the anodyne, “Without your support, none of this would be possible,” which maybe at one time made people feel seen and appreciated but has become just another vaguely well meaning, obligatory part of the artist-audience exchange.

Not Charles McPherson.

As Jazz Live Returns, the Historical Timeline of a San Diego ‘Institution’ Restored

By Matt Silver

Charlie Chavez plays congas with The KSDS Jazz Orchestra at Jazz Live, Oct. 2017. Photo by Larry Redman

Spring may be the season of rebirth, but, this year, summer is the season of renewal because Jazz Live is back. 

KSDS’s signature live concert series returned to City College’s Saville Theatre and Jazz88’s airwaves this past Tuesday night with aplomb — and a Gilbert. And a Charles.