For Milt

I love this picture so much. I took it in my basement while we were setting up for a few days of tracking. Milt was so enthusiastic about it, he just loved to play and record; really the whole creative process.  And although I know he loved working in world class studios I think he particularly loved sessions like this one where you’re forced to find a way to get it done without all the tools you might like to have.  He really shined in that environment and he was truly gifted at it.  I’m so fortunate to have worked with Milt so much over the years.  We made three of my own records together and he played on a collaboration I did with Joseph Parsons (photo is from those sessions).  We also spent a lot of time on the road together, logging a lot of miles both here in the States and in Europe. I fondly remember the many late night hotel room conversations and the long hours in the van discussing everything from philosophy and religion to what makes a good bordeaux.  But it’s the music I remember most and performing on stage with Milt night after night was a joy.  It felt both safe and dangerous to me in the best possible sense.  Never quite the same, always fresh and new; I loved that about him. Of course work quickly turned to friendship and truly it’s that friendship that I hold most dearly.  I would gladly trade every note Milt ever played for me for that friendship alone.  I love him still and will miss him very, very much.  Rest in peace my friend.