for ed blackwell

an offering in honor of my teacher, master drummer edward blackwell. i studied with edward from 1981 until his passing in 1992. his sound and feel on drums and cymbals reflected life. he told me his sister was a tap dancer; i had learned tap from my mother, hazel hartigan, and uncle, ray hart, who had danced with the great bill robinson in new york. so edward and i worked on some rhythms relating to tap, included in this solo. he inspires my work onward. recorded in north dartmouth, massachusetts, usa, on 29 december 2011, by weihua zhang.

[dolomira]

A very act of love for Ed, bravo !!! I find in the Ed's drumming my inner way on drum, deep and simple at the same time. Viva Ed .

[leor.labarge]

Mr Hartigan Thanks for the solo, for the respect to Mr. Blackwell, and for your West African Rhythms book. Much respect

[royalhartigan]

hi champalas,

thanks for your good thoughts. yes, i did the west african rhythms for drumset, and also the dancin' on the time and west african eve rhythms for drumset, both through tapspace publishers.

edward blackwell is my inspiration along with max roach, clifford jarvis, and lenny mcbrowne, and i do my best to honor their spirits.

in spirit and music,

royal hartigan

[donrenato]

Amazing!  I love Ed's playing so much.  I loved that you talked a bit about him in your book....which I also love.  I've been working through it off and on since I bought my first copy back in 1997-ish.  

[royalhartigan]

hi jami,
yes, i teach, but will be going to ghana for a few months to learn from master drummers there.

warmest regards, and let me know if you are in massachusetts, great to meet. in spirit and music, royal

[graduator]

Amazing, amazing story, and what an honour it must have been to work with him!

[evanpetkau]

I was just turned onto Ed Blackwell last week, which must sound ridiculous to most. Thanks for this tribute

[royalhartigan]

hi jon,

thanks for your good thoughts. i got the set form cherlie donnelly's drum shop in newington, connectivut in 1985. ed had a similar set and i dug the sound. in honor of edward. in spirit and music, royal

[jjthanos]

Much respect!I live in new orleans, The're so many great drummers that come from here, But ed was definitely the cream of the crop!Bless his soul!Do you teach drum lessons and where?Lol

[champalas]

Cool. Loved Blackwell and saw him play live a few times. Are you the R.H. that wrote "West African Rhythms for Drumset"? Great book!

[jonneville]

Is the kit you're playing Ed's last drum kit? I know he was using a Sonorphonic when he passed away.
Very funky solo, by the way- very melodic.
PS- Love your book, too.