CHOOSING SECURITY


George Wallington played 
in Dizzy's first bebop 
combo on 52nd Street.
in 1960 he gave
up jazz, went home
to Florida, joined
the family business
installing 
air conditioners. Wendell
Marshall played with Ellington, 
Coleman Hawkins,
Milt Jackson, Gerry
Mulligan, gave it up,
went back to St.
Louis, started his own
insurance agency. Teddy 
Charles played swing,
played bebop, played
the far out stuff, 
played with Miles, with
Mingus, with Wardell
Gray, gave it up
to get his captain's papers,
skipper a charter
skipjack on Long Island
Sound, in the Caribbean.
I’d go for that.
 




TEDDY KOTICK


I deliver the mail
in Needham Mass
middle aged white
guy in blue shorts
Fridays I drive
three hours to Albany
bass in the back
play for the door
back to the route where
everyone knows me
even the dogs
who sniff at my ankles
but no one
would know what it meant 
if someone told them
I’d played with Bird





CAREER TRAJECTORY

​
Alexander Steinert
winner of 
the Prix de Rome
for composition
in 1931

now described
even by the
Academy as
“largely forgotten” still
found himself

in Hollywood
played the role of a
symphony orchestra
conductor
in Too Young to

Kiss with Van Johnson
conducted the soundtrack
for Bambi
and composed the
original score
​
for Strangler of the Swamp
The Unknown
Blondie Knows Best
Target for Today
The Devil Bat’s Daughter