Mark O'Leary Paul Motian Tribute

 Mark in Motian 

So, a saturday afternoon. Just got home on the bus from teaching academy award winning best actor Cillian Murphy and several other luminaries at a small music school in town.

Ok, I want to try to play try to record with Paul Motian in New York. How…

I had worked with some guys who knew him but did not have his contact.

Ok, this may be dilatory, faute de mieux, I contacted a friend that was an acquaintance of Arlo Guthrie;

Paul Motian had played with Arlo, the pendulum of doctrinal focus switched to the possibility of someone in Arlo’s entourage having a possible contact for Paul, inveterate in persistency, a phone number manifested, a phone call and Paul’s acquiescence to participate in the recording.

So, I flew to New York and ended up collecting Paul from outside the iconic Dakota building near the Lennon Ono homestead, it was a Stanley-Livingstone moment, as we met, a Lennon fan was having his photo captured clasping the White Album, in homage to his iconic hero, there and then, I concluded, this album is going to be called the White Album.

eing a skilled, raconteur of letters and litotes, he regaled in soliloquy upon a multitude of anecdotes and allegories, reflections upon the past, reminiscing upon those iconic moments in history with; Bill Evans, Paul Bley and others.

Later he was one of the first people I had called to tell him I was going to be touring Europe as a member of Paul Bley’s last trio.

We even spoke of the possibility of joining his touring group. A warm, incredibly decent, self effacing man.

It was a privilege and honour to have recorded the White Album with Paul Motian.



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