6 episodes
Barry Finnerty's "START" (WARNING! Contains: Sex! Drugs! Jazz! Reality!) BARRY FINNERTY
-
- Music
Barry Finnerty is an internationally known guitarist, having played with such jazz luminaries as Miles Davis (The Man With The Horn), the Crusaders (Street Life) and the Brecker Bros. (Heavy Metal Bebop). He is also the author of two acclaimed "Serious Jazz" educational books. He now lives in Oakland, California with his wife Clarita and several dogs. "START" is his first literary work.
Synopsis:
In New York City in the mid-1990's, internationally known guitar player Barry Finnerty found himself in a very bad place. His glory days of the 70's and 80's, when he was recording with Miles Davis, flying first class around the world with the Crusaders, making legendary records such as "Heavy Metal Bebop" with the Brecker Bros, banging beautiful groupies and partying non-stop - all of that is a distant memory.
As he reminisces about the past and laments what might have been, he has no choice but to make a living as the rock singer in a high society tuxedo band, a job with no artistic satisfaction whatsoever, which he finds highly depressing to say the least. Self-medication with booze and cocaine is continuous, and he becomes so unhinged at one point that he actually believes he can escape his predicament by getting into a relationship with Yuvana Crump (the ex-wife of the notorious New York real estate tycoon Ronald Crump) because she smiles at him while he is onstage at a tuxedo gig at the Waldorf. When that brilliant idea doesn't work out so well, he starts thinking that maybe becoming a stand-up comedian might be his way out.
The often hilarious narrative, told in the first person (from Barry's own perspective) and in the present tense (except when recalling past memories), blurs the barriers between memoir and fiction. "There's a lot of reality in it," says Barry. "although many of the names have been changed to protect the guilty. And a lot of it sounds like it really could have happened... although most of it didn't. But some of it did!"
-
PUT IT WHERE YOU WANT IT
This tune by composer/pianist Joe Sample was a big instrumental hit for the Crusaders in 1971. Now with new lyrics written by the songwriting team of Barry Finnerty & Clarita Zarate, it is being released worldwide by the Italian 4-piece band Barry Finnerty SuperBad Funk Machine featuring Barry Finnerty, guitar and vocals, Paolo Sturiale, bass, Luca Colussi, drums and Francesco di Luisa on keyboards. Mixed by Sven Peks. Produced by BF.
-
The Most Sucky - Est Time Of The Year
It's simply... The Most Sucky-Est Time Of The Year! Ain't that the truth?
-
Bom mp3
BOM! - The title means "Good!" in Portuguese. But this is more of an African high-life kind of groove, partially inspired by a CD I had called "Soukous Vibration". Soukous is a popular African style well known for its intricate interlocking guitar parts. I threw in a little of that on the intro. But then Randy and I play the "A" melody in harmony and then the "B" melody (which I just started whistling one day while driving my car!) in unison. Everyone in the band gets featured on this one.
-
Country Weather
This track was featured on Teruo Nakamura's "Superfriends" CD in the 90s. Toots Thielemans plays the melody on harmonica, with Steve Gadd on drums and Marcus Miller on bass.
-
Start Podcast #2
From the audiobook "START" - In 1994 New York City, an embittered, despondent, and self-medicating Barry Finnerty reminisces about his first meeting with Miles Davis.
-
START Podcast #1
In New York City in the mid-1990's, internationally known guitar player Barry Finnerty found himself in a very bad place. His glory days of the 70's and 80's, when he was recording with Miles Davis, flying first class around the world with the Crusaders, making legendary records such as "Heavy Metal Bebop" with the Brecker Bros, banging beautiful groupies and partying non-stop - all of that is a distant memory.
As he reminisces about the past and laments what might have been, he has no choice but to make a living as the rock singer in a high society tuxedo band, a job with no artistic satisfaction whatsoever, which he finds highly depressing to say the least. Self-medication with booze and cocaine is continuous, and he becomes so unhinged at one point that he actually believes he can escape his predicament by getting into a relationship with Yuvana Crump (the ex-wife of the notorious New York real estate tycoon Ronald Crump) because she smiles at him while he is onstage at a tuxedo gig at the Waldorf. When that brilliant idea doesn't work out so well, he starts thinking that maybe becoming a stand-up comedian might be his way out.
The often hilarious narrative, told in the first person (from Barry's own perspective) and in the present tense (except when recalling past memories), blurs the barriers between memoir and fiction. "There's a lot of reality in it," says Barry. "although many of the names have been changed to protect the guilty. And a lot of it sounds like it really could have happened... although most of it didn't. But some of it did!"