Whoa! Hamiet bluiett

[bartonsax]

Holy mother of god :shock:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COH28H1aqvs&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo%2Egoogle%2Ecom%2Fvideosear ch%3Fsourceid%3Dnavclient%26rlz%3D1T4DKUS%5FenUS29 1US292%26q%3Dhamiet%2520bluiett%26um%3D1%26ie%3DUT F%2D8%26sa%3DN%26hl%3Den%26tab%3D&feature=player_embedded

That just isn't right 8-)

[Tryptykon]

A BAD !@#$%^&*, indeed.

Always enjoyed him, and it seems like he's rarely, if ever, mentioned.

another :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwa400oIOVM&feature=related

[bartonsax]

A BAD !@#$%^&*, indeed.

Always enjoyed him, and it seems like he's rarely, if ever, mentioned.

another :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwa400oIOVM&feature=related

Thats exactly what I was thinking

[bartonsax]

Any idea on his current setup?

[FranzKafka]

Are there recordings by this guy available?

[Tryptykon]

^^^
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=hamiet+bluiett&aq=0s&oq=hamiett&aqi=g%3As1

[jmathesonjr]

Are there recordings available of Bluiett? Ever hear of the WORLD SAXOPHONE QUARTET?????????

This guy has been around for over 30 years or more. He has worked with Gil Evans, Mingus, Lester Bowie, and THE WORLD SAXOPHONE QUARTET!

I do not know what his current set up is. I know he moved back to the East St. Louis area after a nasty and messy divorce. He is offering his services for lessons at around $200.00 an hour.

I think he is living in Lovejoy, IL.

[Joe Bananas]

I think Bluiett uses a Conn Transitional Baritone.
Of course he have a large amount of albums released under his name and also as sideman.One of my favorites is "Old Warrior, Young Warrior" with Mark Shim on Tenor Saxophone and an explosive opening track called Blue'N'Boogie.

[nachoman]

Know he's a Mauriat endorsee, & I'd thought he played on Lawton mouthpieces.....

[Randall]

My info is a little dated, but when I worked with WSQ at the Blue Note in the 90's, HB was playing a low A MK VI.
I can't remember the mp he was using, but the guy was an absolute genuis on the bari. I have never heard altissimo like his, on the bari.

[littlewailer]

The James Carter Live Album Out of Nowhere has the most epic dueling bari rendition of I believe I can Fly with James and Hamiet.

Just like the first time I heard the studio version of Delta City Blues, this rendition of I believe I can fly with Dueling Bari's made my hair stand on end (and I've got lots of hair).

I think he's might be on the JJ band wagon.

[Adam]

My info is a little dated, but when I worked with WSQ at the Blue Note in the 90's, HB was playing a low A MK VI.
I can't remember the mp he was using, but the guy was an absolute genuis on the bari. I have never heard altissimo like his, on the bari.

Actually, it wasn't a VI, it was the gold plated SBA I have. After the Lawton he went to a rubber RIA, which is what I believe he is still playing on...

[Randall]

Adam, I am pretty sure that the horn you have is not the one he was playing when he was here....but I could be wrong.
The one he played here had almost no finish on it all. Sound like your horn?

[Adam]

Adam, I am pretty sure that the horn you have is not the one he was playing when he was here....but I could be wrong.
The one he played here had almost no finish on it all. Sound like your horn?

That's it... The only places the finish is left is where it is protected by the keys...

...Actually now that I am home and have the horn in front of me (I've been predominantly using the VI for work these days) I take back what I said. There is a lot more finish on the horn than I thought (about 40-50%). However, unless you look really closely at it, it pretty much looks completely naked (look at my avatar - I know it's tiny...).

The first time I saw WSQ was my senior year of high school in '86. He was playing this horn with a Lawton. It left a pretty deep impression on me! Years later when I moved to New York I had a handful of master classes with Hamiet at the New School (he was playing on the RIA then). in '97 I bought the horn from Bob Ackerman after he traded it in for the Conn... I had no idea the horn wasn't a VI until I discussed it with Bob. I was a bit concerned until I got the horn in my hands (and I recognized it immediately).

I hadn't seen the color Mingus videos on YouTube from '72 before. Pretty trippy to see the horn with most of the finish still on it! At first I wasn't sure it was the same horn, but it does have some obvious SBA traits (smaller palm key cups, alignment of the neck screw and octave key, and the bell flare isn't as prominent). I think the chances of him having had another low A SBA are pretty slim... It also looks like he was playing on a Rubber link in those videos...

[Randall]

Mea Culpa;)
That must be a high serial number for the SBA? What is it, if I may ask?

[Adam]

I added a bunch of info to the above post...

Serial is 53181. It even has the VI pinky cluster!