Below, all the way down at the bottom of this post, you'll find two video treasures with some beautifully written music. It's from Chuck Mangione and features Don Potter, an outstanding Christian worship leader and musician. I remember this album when it came out, but didn't realize it was Don Potter on guitar and vocals. Don is truly the consummate musician's musician. I deeply enjoy his musicianship and expressive love for God.
This is from 1970. The conductor is Chuck Mangione, before the trademark hat. Although it isn't a worship setting in the traditional sense, the vocals (written by Gap Mangione, I believe) are especially meaningful. The words speak of a man's cry for deeper meaning, but in it, I could hear a cry for God and the need for God to fill. I hear Don's cry.
On this video are many musicians that I respect. Trumpeters Marvin Stamm, Vince DiMartino, and Al Porcino, saxophonists Gerry Niewood, and Chris Vadala, the entire Rochester Philharmonic, and many others from the Eastman School Of Music crowd from back then.
I loved listening to Chuck from this period, but I also like his early years with Art Blakeys Jazz Messengers. Chuck's arrangements and orchestrations always had this uplifting, spiritual quality, not the faux-spiritual, humanistic parallel present in so much of the 'searching-but-never-really-finding' culture at large. I have watched those "King Of The Hill" TV episodes where they poke fun at Chuck (some very funny satire), but I think Chuck is an underrated musician and composer (a downright genius, ok?) who taps into extraordinary levels of expression.
Chuck has a quality that is highly valuable to any musician or artist, prophetic or not - ACCESSIBILITY. I don't know if Chuck knows Jesus. I hope and pray he does (for his own sake), but his music touches the heavenly realm. I'm sure I'll ruffle a few feathers with that one. So be it. I learned a lot from Chuck about music message, presentation, artistic potency and sensitivity. God used those Mangione lessons in my life walk to give him glory.
One fond memory from my youth was about the typical bus ride on the way home from my High School. I rode the "green limousine", another name for a Chicago CTA bus. My daily trip was a five mile ride with a transfer to a second bus. On most days I would stop at the record store one mile away from home. I was a sight to behold. I always carried a full, draw-string book bag over my shoulder, along with my trumpet and a large, black portfolio of my latest artwork.
I was known at the record store as "the trumpet kid with all the bags". I would be there at about 3:30, and claim a "listening room" (a small acoustic tiled room for "spinning sides" or playing vinyl LP records, if you will. You could sample any album before buying. I usually didn't buy. They put up with a lot of my nonsense. I would hog up that room for hours or as long as any serious art and music student had time for). I'd play selections from the latest music from Chuck, Dizzy Gillespie, Maynard Ferguson, Cannonball Adderley, etc. Then I would go home and work out the solos I had just heard earlier.
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Another thing I learned about 'Signore Mangione, Il Maestro':
When Chuck was a kid, Chuck's father would bring him and brother Gap, to see the visiting jazz musician in town. He brought him to see Dizzy Gillespie. Chuck's father made sure that his kids met him and even would invite him to pasta from Mrs. Mangione.
My early life had similar parallels. Although I didn't have a family member bringing me to concerts or introducing me to jazz legends, I did it on my own. I would invite them to my family's house for dinner and would pester a private lesson out of them (with notables like Dizzy Gillespie, Art Farmer, or Clark Terry). The interaction with these legendary musicians greatly sped up my musical progress. This approach I learned directly from Chuck Mangione, or maybe I should credit his parents.
I find it amazing how God will use influences of all types, even those outside His church, to hone an expressive voice in one of His kids. Don't you?
(Note: Before you watch, you'll want to pause the MixPod video player located on this page to the left, right above the "About Me" section.)(Note: Do you recognize this very young Don Potter?)
More from that concert at this post. Click —>>>(Click here)
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— Tony Mujica © 2011
". . .making music, poetry, and paintings that capture beauty pointing to infinity."
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