Goodbye, Toots.

[NiftyNiblick]

For those not familiar with brasswind instruments, the American jazz cornet looks like the love child of a traditional brass band cornet and a trumpet. It's one of the four Bb horns that, basically, if you play one of them, you play them all.

Cornetists don't abound in this modern age of trumpeters, but a friend of mine was a good one, back in the day, and my very first date with my wife was an evening at the now long gone club at which his band was playing. "Toots" died yesterday, Easter morning, and last night, I found an ancient tape deck to plug into my system so I could play some old cassettes that I had made of that band from long ago.

When you reach seventy, it's not unusual to start losing friends from your youth. Still, that doesn't stop it from sucking.

[Kenny B]

I'm sorry for your loss Nifty.  I'm only a year or so behind you and I've lost friends this past year.  It's just another phase of life, and we will always hold their memories dear in our hearts... but it still sucks!

[fozcycle]

Sorry for your loss, Nifty.  I played the Trombone.....and jazz is one of my passions.  I grew up listening to my Mother's records of Al Hirt & Herb Albert.  I took my wife to dinner on Valentine's day weekend where we had dinner with Chuck Mangione.  I also have a nice collection of Miles Davis records as well.

 

[NiftyNiblick]

Thank you, fellas. It's a part of being here with which we all deal throughout our lives.

 

We're off to visit the widow for a bit.  Her friends brought her to the club on her twenty-first birthday.  That's when my wife and I--and Toots, of course--met her.   It seems like a lifetime ago in some ways and yet like yesterday in others.

[revkev]

Where does one start? I played all of those things well enough to get into Northwestern as a music major and then later to transfer to Ithaca. Louis Armstrong actually played cornet in a band before switching to trumpet. Those old concert band cornetists in the late 19th and early 20 th century were some of the first pop stars.

 

I'm very sorry for your loss Nifty. If you are up for a great tribute to any brass player might I suggest listening to "taps for Maynard".

 

RIP Toots!j