Dave McKenna - Nobody Else But Me - I'm Old Fashioned

[theresewilder]

I saw DM play solo inside Woolsey Hall at Yale University in the late 1980's. Even though was performing in a venue large enough to hold an orchestra he held us all in rapt attention in the 2 palms of his five fingers. What a terrific player!

[TheKathode]

Gave me chills...thanks! What a pianist.

[althejazz]

What a consistently stylish player this man was - never a note out of place and such SWING it warms my heart every time I hear him playing. He is sorely missed.

[UlfurTonlist]

4:38 - 5:05 , fucking chops.

[pianojoemiami]

I knew and loved Dave when we met in Cape Cod while I was playing with my trio at a club called Peppino's. He looked and acted like a truck driver. I used to say that if you played one of his ballads to someone and lined 10 people up against a wall, including Dave, he would be the last person to be guessed as the player. Talent and sensitivity doesn't care where it finds a home and it found it in Dave.

[frigenfrok]

wonderfull

[blackandtanful]

ソロで本領発揮するピアニスト～もっともズートの“ダウンホーム­“が印象残る!～ﾃﾞｲヴ･ﾏｯｹﾝﾅ､もっと聴かれていい! #jazzm

[ritt123135]

I once heard Dave at, I think, Hanratty's in Manhattan. At a break I repaired to the men's room, glanced over and there was the great man at the next urinal. I couldn't help glancing over to see if that left hand had just 5 fingers! Dave was the best. Wonderful to find these videos!

[pinkieldred]

rickcee......nice. I'll bet you made his night!

How many times have GREAT pianist like Dave sat at night playing solo piano and people are talking over them.This is totally disgusting! I had the pleasure of sitting close by Marion Mcpartland one evening at a club in Disney World. There she was as always playing beautifully and people sitting at the bar, not listening but laughing and talking very loudly . Marion stopped playing and ask them to be quiet, and that others wanted to hear her play.

[davehorne]

I saw him play live once in New Paltz, NY, I believe. Solo piano. Excellent. If you never knew what he looked like and you met him on the street, you'd think he was a truck driver. Great player!!!

[ubernaffa]

There is one word that describes this video, and Dave's playing in general.

That word is:

Beautiful.

[123kant1]

bye dave.

i love your song! please keep it in heaven

[Dfrankjazz]

Hi DM fans, I invite you to view a wonderful master class on the music of Dave McKenna. Free, entertaining and VERY educational:) To view, type in "Dave Frank" McKenna on Youtube. You vill enjoy it!

[ebutemetube]

Dig that crazy boogie-woogie man!

[nobodady1]

I must have been 10 or ll years old when my parents brought me to see David McKenna. I thought David was just a friend of theirs who played a little piano. Little did I know. I wish i could play with his clarity and brilliance.

[b0ttomzone]

he solos with his right hand, does a walking bass line with his left, and somehow plays chords with his third hand.

[gabi180791]

muy buenooo

[rickcee]

@LCSteve...BTW, we sort of felt badly that we had fooled someone to get that table, but we didn't fool them deliberately. The Maitre d' just assumed that we were his family. As soon as we sat down, and began to talk to Dave, we told him exactly what happened with the reservations, and he had a good laugh. In fact, he began to wonder whether perhaps we were long lost family or something. After a few drinks, we all figured that we probably were, if you searched the clan back far enough LOL.

[golds04]

thankfully, and surprisingly, there is a wealth of video of DM to pay tribute to his earthy swing.

Really one of the greatest "unknown" pianists to grace the black and whites.

[Aiden057]

McKenna had such great musical integrity. I love his sound, he swings like crazy and his conception is so clear and personal.

[rickcee]

One of the greatest "stride" players of all time.

[StrideBatty76]

Yeah!. Although he didn't jump this wide as classical stride pianist usually do. Maybe because of this "small" stride and the resulting gain of time he was able to put some bebop into his playing. His swing is absolutely hot!!! I do not know any comparable. A uniquie treasure! :-) Love him!

[rickcee]

McKenna played at a fancy Chinese restaurant in Manhattan prior to his death. My brother-in-law made reservations for a few of us to eat there while he played. His last name is McKenna, so the reservation clerk thought we were related and sat us right AT the treble side of the keyboard, not 3 feet from his right hand. The food was incredible and so was Dave. We bought him drinks all night and he played everything we asked him to. What a guy. Bye, Dave.

[TheLCSteve]

@rickcee What a delightful story. THANKS for sharing.

[karazh]

@rickcee great story :) if true, realy fantastic!

[rickcee]

@karazh yep...all true. Great restaurant too, but I don't think it's still in business. Quite expensive for a Chinese restaurant, and very classy. Piano sat right in the middle and made for a very cool environment.

[Gorsegrower]

The master of the eighth note.

[ubernaffa]

I heard this guy on the radio the other day with a female singer, but her name escapes me... It was more of a ragtime piano style he was playing on it, but I instantly fell in love with his playing.

What an absolute genius and master of the piano.. Magnificent.

[Surmusicp]

He was an amazing pianist..

[aurorajazz9]

I cannot hear enough of Dave Mckenna's playing...........Thank you God for this wonderful soul!!

[Jazzcat51]

What an inspiration! Love his bass lines and the poppin' time feel - heard him live several times - AMAZING.

[BuckshotLaFunke]

It is as Dick Hyman said in a tribute: 'I can't play like Dave McKenna, because unlike him I don't have that third hand in the middle of my body.'

[Surmusicp]

hehehe! its true,

and whatever DICK HYMAN says about piano jazz...is true!

[pinkieldred]

WOW......Dave McKenna ! Absolutely marvelous..!. In that mind and in those fingers ....came miracles.

[cooljazzlady]

Wonderful....musical!

[IJakeMcKenna]

I'm searching my last name in Youtube and I found this, great pianist BTW...

Well done :D

[MadMac7041]

Go figure... Me too...

[pianofan2204]

wonderful music and a wonderful pianist. thanks for this video.

[ksanj19]

Everyone knows what a true talent Dave was, but at 4:47 he stretches about 2 octaves with his left hand and hits a single note almost at random, without even looking at all to that part of the keyboard. I've watched and been a fan of stride pianists for many years, but this still amazes me. He was the best!

[tjrodier]

Words so often get thrown around like "artisty," and "genius" without regard to their true meaning. Well, Dave McKenna embodied these words, and their ideal, without meaning to. He is like an accidental artist, stumbling upon something great, whether he wants to or not, and letting the rest of us catch up to his brilliance.

[ksanj19]

The thing about Dave's playing, was that no matter what situation (Copley bar, live concert, background music at a party...etc) you could record his set and have a CD as good as anyone. Always consistantly impressive with his playing, he was the best!

[ksanj19]

In response to my own post below, it has been done many, many times and there are great live recordings to prove it!

[Klavierstuck]

I heard Dave for the first time on Terry Gross this afternoon. As a classically trained pianist, I found his playing utterly enchanting and so beautiful. Masterful playing and what an incredible sense of rhythm!

[chnlisle]

As I listned to Terry Gross' i988 interview with Dave this Thanksgiving day I had tears in my eyes. I don't tear up easily but I loved Dave's music and the man he was and I know we have lost a great American treasure. I am thankful for him having been here.

[RMonteverdi]

What an exquisite man and musician. Thank you a thousand times, McKennaFan, for posting these wonderful videos.

[hurstryan15]

RIP

[pinkieldred]

Isn't it astounding that such absolute artistry come and goes on this planet. Thier here one day, leave so much beauty and gone the next! We are so lucky ( those of us that can hear it) to hear the magic of it all.

[billtann]

I've been a Dave McKenna fan for 50 years. I remember first hearing him with Boots Mussuli in Boston in the 60's and then, as a young musician, I had the privilage of playing opposite him at a nightclub on Cape Cod. For years, he could be found at the Columns on Cape Cod where my teen aged daughter and I danced to his maginficent playing. I'll never forget Dave McKenna..., a giant and a true original.

[mendelbookinist]

Musicians like Dave McKenna bring the listener a once-in-a-lifetime experience. That's why each minute spent with them is a treasure that cannot be taken from our lives. In fact,he was and still is one of the greatest artists in the history of music. The kindness of his magical sound, caressing warmth of his ballad playing, frenziest drive of his swinging beat - such things happen just once in a lifetime and blossom in our hearts till the very end. Thank You Dave. We'll be loving you - always.

[BuckshotLaFunke]

Dave McKenna died Saturday October 18, 2008 in State College, Pa. He was 78 years old.

[bialistok]

RIP Dave

[Happyforest]

A piano genius, What sad news RIP

[duncanjazz]

Very sad to hear of Dave's passing yesterday. The end of an era. Thank you Dave for all the wonderful enjoyment you have given me over the years. Duncan

[pianojazz66]

Without doubt one of the best solopianists with unique style in Jazz.

[wlavin]

RIP, Dave.

[thejazzclinic]

I wish I heard him live. I heard a lot about him from Ray Santisi. He told me that they played at Copley Plaza Hotel around the same time in different rooms. Ray respects him so much. He always says "Dave should have been a millionaire by his playing!". Amazing left hand!

[blakemooney]

Wish he'd come South to New Orleans and show our guys what fresh water can do for them.

[herrwilhelm]

NONPAREIL! Here you get a hint and a smattering of his very best.

[jgrodnik]

I first heard McKenna playing "Tangerine" on KJAZ radio, San Francisco, in the 1970s. I'd never heard anything like it and I've been hooked ever since. Thanks so much for this.

[cumbrie]

I was on business in the Boston area in 1973 and found I had an evening to spare. I asked at the Holiday Inn where I was staying if there was any live jazz going down in the neighbourhood.

A chap standing at the hotel reception overheard and said - 'Yeah. There's this young guy called Dave McKenna playing at a bar about ten miles up the interstate".

I found him at a small grand piano virtually playing for his own amusement, with a few enthusiasts leaning on the end of the piano.

What a find!

[zaf511]

Damn!! Dave swings his ass off!! This guy is one of the best solo pianists ever. He's unbelievably talented and so in tune with all aspects of playing. I think even Art Tatum once said that Dave was one of the few "Complete packages"....I have to agree!

[duncanjazz]

Thank you so much for this. Simply amazing, I hope these rare gems keep appearing. Dave McKenna must be one of, if not the greatest jazz piano soloist. Outstanding.

[mendelbookinist]

I could listen to it for hours on end. On behalf of all Russian McKenna fans, thank you for these rariest videos! It's impossible to find them in music stores.