SOTW 3: Garcia/Grisman, 'So What'

'Crossover' is a turnoff for me. I go for the unadulterated. Single malt whiskey. Kurosawa's "Hidden Fortress" rather than "Star Wars". Beowulf in the original Old English. Just kidding about that one.

But I do like sharing music that I'm just in the process of discovering, the stuff that's running around my mind when I wake up in the middle of the night. So this week it's 'So What', written by Miles Davis as performed by Jerry Garcia & David Grisman.

It's a classic jazz piece played by a great rock guitarist joining forces with an ex-bluegrass mandolinist, and they've managed to forge a singularly charming little gem.

Jerry Garcia (zt"l) led the Grateful Dead—an eclectic rock jam band and cultural phenomenon. (He was also a prince of a guy. I had the distinct honor of helping host him and the Dead for a weekend.) He eventually branched out into various country & western, bluegrass, 'new acoustic' directions.

David Grisman worked mostly in the 'newgrass' context. That means music with bluegrass instrumentation and texture, but fueled by progressive, jazz-minded improvisation. Bela Fleck is the acknowledged Main Man there. Grisman, with Andy Statman, has even ventured as far afield as newgrass klezmer.


Garcia/Grisman made several CDs together. This one is called "So What", recorded 1992. It's their jazz CD, including 3 pieces associated with Miles and one original.

'So What' is the opening cut of Miles Davis's 1959 "Kind of Blue". It's a unique album. Everyone loves and admires it. Non-jazz people. MORers. Aficionados of elevator music. Effete jazz snobs (although I don't know any of them personally). Critics. Even Deadheads, turns out. Poll any jazzist about the great jazz albums of all time, chances are it'll be #1– unanimously. More of an icon in jazz than the 'underwritten and overproduced' Sgt Pepper in rock. It's really that good. Miles read a theoretical work about modal scales, recruited the young (white) pianist Bill Evans into his black band which included John Coltrane, scheduled 'just another session', and a monolith was created.

The cut here isn't life-changing music, but it sure is sweet and smile-provoking. Heck, it's even got vocal percussion.