Rory Hoffman and I had dinner Friday night and went to the floor of the NAMM show Saturday.

I have had the honor of meeting and playing with some of the world's best. In high school, a sax player named "Duke" Madison took me to play at the NARCO hospital in Lexington. It was a Federal drug treatment facility. Sadly, a great number of the jazz giants from around the world went through there for treatment.

In California as a 17 year old "scrub" on the Steve Allen show, Ray Brown and Ella, my "LA Mom", introduced me to the finest from the show and the area. That was a "who's who" of the bebop world. In the years since, I've backed up many other top players and performers, including several Grammy winners.

I can tell you with some measure of credibility (in my mind-at least-LOL), that Rory has a place in that exclusive club. He is one of the finest multi-instrument players I've ever met and heard.

On keys and guitar, he's a "monster". He briefly played the new Nord C-2 and a Wetcher guitar, and quickly drew a crowd. Film crews for various music shows and the daily video review that is played on a proprietary channel in the area motels during the show followed him.

Not only does he have fantastic chops, but he easily moves from Django style to fusion and jazz standards, covering everything in between.

He impressed the other real pros. Here's a guy who moved from ND to the most competitive music environment in the country, and he's really made a name for himself in the last 14 months or so. He has the talent, dedication and drive to get to where he deserves to be in time.

On Saturday, I had to leave to make a job in Lexington just before he was playing in the Q-Lighting booth with Bill Laurence, the world-renown pick-up designer/manufacturer. Bob Burris, a friend and designer of a high end hand-wired tube head who is also the Q-Lighting engineer is going to talk to him about an endorsement contract. Previously, Rory demoed for Blade.

Even though he's young enough to be my kid (in fact, Logan, my son, loaned him his badge, and he was my "adopted" son for an hour or so), he taught me a few things:

1. When I first heard of him, I identified him as a gospel/country player...two of my least favorite types of music. I'm telling you, this old man would have to struggle to keep up with Rory playing MY type of jazz. The lesson is NEVER have a pre-conceived idea about a player or style before really hearing it/them.

2. Rory plays a guitar on his lap, strumming/picking it with his LEFT hand and playing the most intricate of lead lines and changes/chord inversions with his right hand without reversing the strings. The lesson is, don't think that there is only one way to do things correctly.

3. I've been feeling a little overwhelmed since an accident that left me with some damage and numbness in my left hand and arm.
The lesson is, considering what Rory has overcome, I need to get off my "pity horse" and get on with the program.

Rory is at the top of the list of pro's here, in my mind. And while I won't completely excommunicate Logan and Ben from the family, he's one I'm proud to recognize as my "adopted son".

I have plans to bring him to Lexington to work on a film score in the future...to play the parts I generally play. He'll do a better job.

The internet is great, but you can't really see the full story about the folks you meet on-line until you sit and visit.

It's an honor to know Rory. I've been in this business over 50 years, and he'll always be in the top tier of my list of pro's of substance.

Thanks, Rory for a fabulous visit.


Russ



[This message has been edited by captain Russ (edited 07-20-2009).]

You should get a purty good underscore out of the lad...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIvNxF89qkA

Wow... Wow... wow...

I hardly know what to say. Geez Russ, I think I need to hire you to be my promotions guy. Yikes. Thanks for all the kind words.

I know there are a few here who have met Russ, and I already knew what kind of character he had when he decided to do that project asking some of us to recommend nonprofits/charities that he might donate to. But what a terrific person with a great personality! He started guiding me around like he'd been doing it for years. (I had my cane with me the first night, as I usually do when I first meet people, just in case things were awkward or he ran me into stuff just being careless or unused to it. Didn't bring it with me the next day at Namm, because I figured I'd probably set it down in some booth and forget about it, plus I was completely comfortable with him guiding me around.)

Dinner was great, although I'm still pretty sure I must have eaten about 80% of the calamari myself. Lol, it was good. Russ is very easy to talk to. There wasn't a single moment where there was one of those moments where nobody could think of something to say.

Thanks Russ for letting me and my friends use your badges. I wish you could have stayed longer. I hope it isn't too long before I see you again.

Rory

Rory be hot! Rory be very hot! Incredible guitar work!

I will donate all my guitars to charity and feel like doing the same with the keyboards.
What a talent!
DonM

Incredbile talent!!! A couple of years ago you posted you're version of " Oh,Lonesome Me" arranged as a Bossa. I still play that every now and then. It's got to be one of the best renditions of that tune, I've ever heard.

... and that's an UNDERSTATEMENT !!!!!!
EXCELLENT !!! ...

And I don't care where you had that calamari, but if you guys want the BEST you've got to come to RI ...
right, Steve?

t.

As good or better than anything I've ever seen or heard on the 'net. In case anyone was wondering what a 'pro's pro' is, you are looking at it. In the immortal words of Diki, "Wow, wow, wow". Excellence has never been defined by genre' and I've got a feeling that Rory could make even Schlager sound good . And I agree with DomM; a lot of guitar players who watch this are going to take their collection of guitars and burn them. Nobody, NOBODY, 'learns' that kind of musicianship; you either got it or you don't. Man, all this time I thought only liberal democrats had that kind of talent (just kidding you guy ).

Good luck, man, you've certainly got the goods.

chas

[This message has been edited by cgiles (edited 07-20-2009).]

Mac, thanks so much for posting the link to Rory's work.

Probably most important of all, he's a GOOD person. I've always believed that the most talented people are the nicest, and that pretty much describes Rory. All that talent and modest as can be. He'll blow you away on keyboards, too!

And Rory, it seemed like we had been going places together for years. My bass player all through college was my life-long friend, Johnnie Ballard. We were friends for over 40 years. He died last year, but every year, we'd make a big event out of checking out the new cars. He knew every change and could identify the make, model and year of any vehicle he could touch in about 30 seconds.

Walking around was bitter-sweet for me, because it brought back 40 years of great memories. We were on the road together in the Dick Clark Caravan of Stars tour one summer-about 1964, I think, and had a standing weekly lunch for 35 of the 40 years; until he got ill and couldn't be as mobile as he once was. In my heart, I'd been there before, and it felt good!

Here's hoping Rory get's all the recognition and success he so rightfully deserves.

And don't worry about old Russ getting short-changed in the calamari department.

Russ (burp) Lay



[This message has been edited by captain Russ (edited 07-20-2009).]