JAM: December 2003/January 2004 Issue: Hangin' With CT

Hangin' With "CT"

Special to JAM
by Barry W. Bernhardt

Editor's note: Barry Bernhardt is the Director of Bands at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau and the host of the annual Clark Terry/Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival in April. Last May he traveled to Europe as the personal assistant to Dr. Terry, who then made it back to the States in time to appear at the Gem Theater's "Coda Jazz Fund" benefit concert on May 17 ("Jazz Snaps," JAM, Aug./Sept. and Oct./Nov.). The following is a piece Professor Bernhardt composed upon his and Clark's return. "CT" turns 83 on December 14.

* * *

I am sitting in my office at midnight on a May evening, listening to a recording called Clark Terry/Live at the Village Gate. It was made just three weeks before Clark's 70th birthday in late 1990. Jimmy Heath joined CT on this memorable session, one in a line of countless quality recordings made by this jazz master of the trumpet and flugelhorn. I am now trying to get back to earth, as I recall the most incredible twelve days of my life in music, hangin' with my hero: Clark Terry.

Clark and I became friends six years ago when the university president (of all people) asked if I knew Clark Terry. After picking my jaw up off the floor, I told the president that CT was my hero. He then handed me a card with Clark's phone number and said that I should call and invite him to come to Southeast to play a concert. The rest, as they say, is history.

Clark has been coming to Southeast ever since, playing at the annual Clark Terry/Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival. He was awarded his eleventh Honorary Doctorate from Southeast in December of 2000 and wowed the commencement crowd with several numbers, including his famous "Mumbles." As luck would have it, the commencement speaker that day was Governor-elect Bob Holden who was so taken by CT's performance that he invited my band to play with CT at a Missouri Showcase concert to be held at Lincoln University in Jefferson City the night before Holden's inauguration in January of 2001.

This past April, I called CT to tell him I was going to be in New York for the weekend and was wondering if he was going to be playing anywhere in the city. He said that he was only going to be in town on that Thursday evening and then had to go to the Cape May Jazz Festival in New Jersey. He asked me to come over to his house for dinner on Thursday -- how could I say no? -- and, after I arrived in New York, CT and his wife Gwen sent a driver to pick me up at the airport and take me to their house in New Jersey. What followed were six glorious hours of quality time with a true jazz legend.

Clark's house is filled with jazz history, including letters, diplomas, certificates, awards, photos, and musical instruments (like a new black Yamaha drum set with gold hardware from Louie Bellson). It was a wonderful evening of discussing what we were going to play at the upcoming Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival, talking about music, and consuming a wonderful meal of catfish and greens prepared by Gwen.

"...It is the music, the perpetuation of the craft, and
the continued contact with talented young jazz artists
that keeps me going." -- Clark Terry

During our dinner conversation, CT said that he was having difficulty finding someone to travel with him for upcoming performances in Vienna, Austria and Bern, Switzerland. I said that I would be glad to accompany him, thinking that he would just toss my offer aside. As luck would have it, about two weeks later, he called to see if I was still serious about going to Europe with him after our festival. It didn't take long for me to say yes. What an honor and privilege it would be to hang out with someone of Clark's stature in the jazz world!

* * *

Over the past six years CT has become a surrogate grandfather to my children and a loving member of the Bernhardt family. We always cherish our private time with him. Most recently, he visited Cape Girardeau to play at the 5th Annual Clark Terry/Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival. Clark came to town on Thursday, April 24, and we played to a packed house on Friday evening at Southeast's Academic Auditorium. There was also a concert on Saturday evening for our President's Council Dinner. CT then joined us at our home for a late-night "taste" before resting up for our whirlwind trip to Europe.

On Sunday we flew to Vienna and arrived on Monday after 23 hours of traveling. We were met at the airport by the director of the Vienna Conservatory Jazz Ensemble, and we had about three hours to shower, eat and change before CT's rehearsal with the band that, as luck would have it, was doing a tribute to Count Basie! Frank Wess (tenor saxophone), Harold Jones (drums) and John Thomas (lead trumpet) -- all Basie alumni -- appeared with the Conservatory Ensemble. There was a two hour rehearsal, with an hour break, before a three hour concert to a packed house of 1,900 people. And CT signed autographs for an hour afterward!

The next morning we flew to Switzerland and took a car to Bern. When we checked into the hotel that hosted the Bern Jazz Festival, I was floored when I saw "The Clark Terry Suite" (Room #1) with his signature on the door. The suite contains a plethora of CT memorabilia, including a signed letter from Louis Armstrong. Louis Bellson and the late Lionel Hampton also have named suites in the Inner Inger in Bern.

For this gig CT had assembled one of the hottest big bands I have ever heard. It consisted of current and former students and included the likes of Conrad Herwig on trombone (a student from the first Clark Terry International Jazz Institute), Brad Lelieh on alto sax (also a Basie alum), Stepko Gut on trumpet (from the Ukraine), Tony Lujan on trumpet (a student from the first Clark Terry International Jazz Institute and a studio player in New York), Frank Green on trumpet (a NYC lead player), and a 16-year-old drummer named Marcus Gilmore, who is the grandson of Roy Haynes. This kid is a true inspiration! While the band was great, the teen-age Gilmore drove this "pro" band like he had been playing for a lifetime. This was a young band that played with the expertise and poise of the Basie and Ellington bands at their peaks. (Butch Miles, also of the Basie band, said to me on Sunday afternoon that he was glad he wasn't on the bandstand at the same time with this "kid"...!)

Upon our arrival in Bern on Tuesday afternoon, CT rehearsed the band for two hours prior to two one-and-a-half hour sets. The band played two similar sets every night in Marianne's Jazz Club at the Hotel, Tuesday through Saturday, and each night there were additional charts, some sight-read, some rehearsed. It was a true gas for the packed audiences in this smoky club, and throughout the week I witnessed the band -- and CT -- getting stronger by the day. Clark may be 82, but he still can outlast and outplay most of the young bucks. (The recording from the Friday night show should be coming out soon. Don't miss it; it should be superb.)

Another treat for me was that the current Basie band itself was in town for the festival on Friday and Saturday. Most of its members were in attendance for our late show on Friday evening and almost all of them came to the "CT Suite" after the gig. What a gas that was for me, personally, as the Basie band has always been my favorite.

* * *

Some final thoughts. During our trip, CT shared many things with me, one of which was: "...It is the music, the perpetuation of the craft, and the continued contact with talented young jazz artists that keeps me going."

Now into his 80s, Clark Terry remains a personal inspiration for me, and a beloved icon for jazz lovers of all ages everywhere.






	Search our site:		Hangin' With "CT" Special to JAM by Barry W. Bernhardt Editor's note: Barry Bernhardt is the Director of Bands at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau and the host of the annual Clark Terry/Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival in April. Last May he traveled to Europe as the personal assistant to Dr. Terry, who then made it back to the States in time to appear at the Gem Theater's "Coda Jazz Fund" benefit concert on May 17 ("Jazz Snaps," JAM, Aug./Sept. and Oct./Nov.). The following is a piece Professor Bernhardt composed upon his and Clark's return. "CT" turns 83 on December 14. * * * I am sitting in my office at midnight on a May evening, listening to a recording called Clark Terry/Live at the Village Gate. It was made just three weeks before Clark's 70th birthday in late 1990. Jimmy Heath joined CT on this memorable session, one in a line of countless quality recordings made by this jazz master of the trumpet and flugelhorn. I am now trying to get back to earth, as I recall the most incredible twelve days of my life in music, hangin' with my hero: Clark Terry. Clark and I became friends six years ago when the university president (of all people) asked if I knew Clark Terry. After picking my jaw up off the floor, I told the president that CT was my hero. He then handed me a card with Clark's phone number and said that I should call and invite him to come to Southeast to play a concert. The rest, as they say, is history. Clark has been coming to Southeast ever since, playing at the annual Clark Terry/Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival. He was awarded his eleventh Honorary Doctorate from Southeast in December of 2000 and wowed the commencement crowd with several numbers, including his famous "Mumbles." As luck would have it, the commencement speaker that day was Governor-elect Bob Holden who was so taken by CT's performance that he invited my band to play with CT at a Missouri Showcase concert to be held at Lincoln University in Jefferson City the night before Holden's inauguration in January of 2001. This past April, I called CT to tell him I was going to be in New York for the weekend and was wondering if he was going to be playing anywhere in the city. He said that he was only going to be in town on that Thursday evening and then had to go to the Cape May Jazz Festival in New Jersey. He asked me to come over to his house for dinner on Thursday -- how could I say no? -- and, after I arrived in New York, CT and his wife Gwen sent a driver to pick me up at the airport and take me to their house in New Jersey. What followed were six glorious hours of quality time with a true jazz legend. Clark's house is filled with jazz history, including letters, diplomas, certificates, awards, photos, and musical instruments (like a new black Yamaha drum set with gold hardware from Louie Bellson). It was a wonderful evening of discussing what we were going to play at the upcoming Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival, talking about music, and consuming a wonderful meal of catfish and greens prepared by Gwen. "...It is the music, the perpetuation of the craft, and the continued contact with talented young jazz artists that keeps me going." -- Clark Terry During our dinner conversation, CT said that he was having difficulty finding someone to travel with him for upcoming performances in Vienna, Austria and Bern, Switzerland. I said that I would be glad to accompany him, thinking that he would just toss my offer aside. As luck would have it, about two weeks later, he called to see if I was still serious about going to Europe with him after our festival. It didn't take long for me to say yes. What an honor and privilege it would be to hang out with someone of Clark's stature in the jazz world! * * * Over the past six years CT has become a surrogate grandfather to my children and a loving member of the Bernhardt family. We always cherish our private time with him. Most recently, he visited Cape Girardeau to play at the 5th Annual Clark Terry/Phi Mu Alpha Jazz Festival. Clark came to town on Thursday, April 24, and we played to a packed house on Friday evening at Southeast's Academic Auditorium. There was also a concert on Saturday evening for our President's Council Dinner. CT then joined us at our home for a late-night "taste" before resting up for our whirlwind trip to Europe. On Sunday we flew to Vienna and arrived on Monday after 23 hours of traveling. We were met at the airport by the director of the Vienna Conservatory Jazz Ensemble, and we had about three hours to shower, eat and change before CT's rehearsal with the band that, as luck would have it, was doing a tribute to Count Basie! Frank Wess (tenor saxophone), Harold Jones (drums) and John Thomas (lead trumpet) -- all Basie alumni -- appeared with the Conservatory Ensemble. There was a two hour rehearsal, with an hour break, before a three hour concert to a packed house of 1,900 people. And CT signed autographs for an hour afterward! The next morning we flew to Switzerland and took a car to Bern. When we checked into the hotel that hosted the Bern Jazz Festival, I was floored when I saw "The Clark Terry Suite" (Room #1) with his signature on the door. The suite contains a plethora of CT memorabilia, including a signed letter from Louis Armstrong. Louis Bellson and the late Lionel Hampton also have named suites in the Inner Inger in Bern. For this gig CT had assembled one of the hottest big bands I have ever heard. It consisted of current and former students and included the likes of Conrad Herwig on trombone (a student from the first Clark Terry International Jazz Institute), Brad Lelieh on alto sax (also a Basie alum), Stepko Gut on trumpet (from the Ukraine), Tony Lujan on trumpet (a student from the first Clark Terry International Jazz Institute and a studio player in New York), Frank Green on trumpet (a NYC lead player), and a 16-year-old drummer named Marcus Gilmore, who is the grandson of Roy Haynes. This kid is a true inspiration! While the band was great, the teen-age Gilmore drove this "pro" band like he had been playing for a lifetime. This was a young band that played with the expertise and poise of the Basie and Ellington bands at their peaks. (Butch Miles, also of the Basie band, said to me on Sunday afternoon that he was glad he wasn't on the bandstand at the same time with this "kid"...!) Upon our arrival in Bern on Tuesday afternoon, CT rehearsed the band for two hours prior to two one-and-a-half hour sets. The band played two similar sets every night in Marianne's Jazz Club at the Hotel, Tuesday through Saturday, and each night there were additional charts, some sight-read, some rehearsed. It was a true gas for the packed audiences in this smoky club, and throughout the week I witnessed the band -- and CT -- getting stronger by the day. Clark may be 82, but he still can outlast and outplay most of the young bucks. (The recording from the Friday night show should be coming out soon. Don't miss it; it should be superb.) Another treat for me was that the current Basie band itself was in town for the festival on Friday and Saturday. Most of its members were in attendance for our late show on Friday evening and almost all of them came to the "CT Suite" after the gig. What a gas that was for me, personally, as the Basie band has always been my favorite. * * * Some final thoughts. During our trip, CT shared many things with me, one of which was: "...It is the music, the perpetuation of the craft, and the continued contact with talented young jazz artists that keeps me going." Now into his 80s, Clark Terry remains a personal inspiration for me, and a beloved icon for jazz lovers of all ages everywhere. RETURN TO DECEMBER 2003/JANUARY 2004 MAIN INDEX © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2003. All rights reserved.