Wednesday, July 19, 2006  

The great pianist Martial Solal on the French Riviera, July 19, 2006.

He'll be 80 in January 2007, and he's still playing amazing music. Based in Paris, with relatively few trips to the U.S. during his 50-plus-year career, Solal's not well known outside of Europe. But it's safe to say he's one of the most original and talented jazz musicians ever from the continent. (And he's certainly the best to have grown up in Algeria.)

You can buy Solal's recent Dreyfus CDs and one Blue Note disc with ease, but his older music can be hard to get a hold of in the U.S. -- though virtually all of it is worth digging up. Or just watch Breathless again -- he did the soundtrack, though Godard has never told him whether or not he liked the music.

Somewhere in the near distance is F. Scott Fitzgerald's old joint, Villa Saint Louis/Belles Rives. God bless Rockville and its gorgeous pike, but I'd rather be buried in Juan-Les-Pins.

Posted by CP | Link |

---