David Watson's Rebirthing the Cool: Bebop & Beyond Big Band

Sat, Nov 01

David "Doc" Watson is bringing back the Cool for a semi annual engagement at Christo's, after his big move to Kansas City. So let's give him a proper Christo's return, you dig? David "The Doctor Of Bebop" Watson, has always championed swinging jazz. Inspired by Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Jon Hendricks, Eddie Jefferson, Jon Hendricks, Betty Carter, King Pleasure, Joe Carolle, Joe Williams, and others. David has always had his own sound and fresh approach to singing the music he loves, whether it's bebop, blues, or jazz ballads. Born in Fort Myers Florida May 30;1937, David Started singing when he was in the third or fourth grade, his first song in front of the school assembley was "Three Blind Mice" which he sung in a jazzy rhythm. He listened to Ella Fitzgerald who was his first love. Others he listened to was Cab Calloway, The Mills Brothers and The Ink Spots. After hearing what Ella Fitzgerald was doing, he knew that was the musical direction that he was born to follow. When David was around nine years old his family moved to Philadelphia PA. David began singing in neighborhood talent shows and school concerts, he was particularly inspired at that time by Nat Cole, Frank Sinatra, Eddie Jefferson, Jon Hendricks and King Pleasure. David also became a very skilled scat-singer, learning from the recordings of Ella Fitzgerald, Eddie Jefferson, Jon Hendricks, Dizzy Gillespie, Betty Carter, and King Pleasure. Stating "I would sing along with the records learning their every phrase and style. That is how I learned to sing jazz.” At the age of eighteen David went into the Army for four years. Returning to Philadelphia he scored the job that changed his life, bartending for four years at the world famous Showboat Jazz Theater. Meeting and becoming friends with the world class musicians that played there, he was consistently encouraged to pursue his love of singing. David learned from many of these jazz immortals while working at The Showboat, Miles Davis, Tony Williams, Betty Carter, Carmen McRae, Aurthur Prysock, Dizzy Gillespie, Johnny Hartman and Walter Booker. During his period at the Showboat, David also taught himself to play drums plus mastered the difficult task of playing and singing at the same time. David moved to California January 3rd in 1971, and started playing around the SF Bay Area with Herb Gibson, Mark Zannini, Sam Peoples, Earl's Vann Big Band and many other Bay Area musicians. In 1974 he went to Alaska as part of the Herb Gibson Trio, staying for 11 months. Returning to the Bay Area David attended the College of the Marin, also playing gigs at night with Michele Hendricks in a band they called Chelsea. On a couple of their gigs, Michele's father Jon Hendricks sat in with the group, as did the members of the Manhattan Transfer who were traveling together at that time. Later as a professional singer and drummer, David had the opportunities to play or sing with such greats as John Handy, Eddie Henderson, Milt Jackson, Woody Shaw, Buddy Montgomery, Shirley Scott, Mickey Roker, Bob Cranshaw, Mike LeDonne, Joe Henderson, Eddie Moore, Eddie Marshall, Pony Poindexter, Mike White, Mel Martin, Sam Dockery among others. David performed at a countless number of clubs, wineries, concerts also traveling and singing in Amsterdam, Paris, Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Oslo. Re-Birthing The Cool, Bebop N Beyond has evolved into a very impressive group, one that not only plays the West Coast cool jazz reflected in the first half of their name but other areas of music including New Orleans R&B, blues, hard bop and ballads. The lineup features of some of the very best jazz musicians based in Portland: baritonist Pete Petersen, Mary-Sue Tobin on alto & soprano, tenor-saxophonist Brian Myers, trumpeter Paul Mazzio, trombonists Chris Shuttleworth & Shayna Waldman, Mark Vehrencamp on tuba, pianist David Kim, bassist Perry Thoorsell and drummer Ed Pierce. The incredible sight and sound of his 10 piece band is an experience like no other, especially when in the context of our intimate lounge!