Go-Go Marc, Cary On! An Indigenous Person Tells his Story

Phil wishes he was a musician (well, he is one, but he wishes he were a good one) but he's not frustrated by it. He's frustrated with a lot of other aspects of the so-called biz. Therefore, he's excited by independently released jazz.

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Published: May 27, 2004

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MC: Well, the opportunity came after I left. I think I was looking in the wrong places. I was looking to be on RCA at that point. I mean, I'm the pianist in Roy's band, he's on RCA, why couldn't I be on RCA? But they didn't see me as that. They saw me as a sideman and not a viable ...you know. To this day I haven't really found a label that's really ready to go and make the step. They all seem to appreciate, in a certain way, that I keep coming out with records and that all of them can be identified with my sound. Now the label thing is getting funny. Most labels I talk to look at my records as being artistic, not necessarily a commercial thing. If you look at the way I get radio play... Trillium got the most radio play. That's the most commercial I've been. All of my jazz records have been accepted and gone through the whole engine and gotten some radio play, but I didn't have the major backing behind me to do tour support, which in turn gets you a great booking agent. Those considerations were thought about when they decided not to choose me (laughs).

AAJ: How does the agent crack the label nut?

MC: That process is almost like a lottery.

AAJ: How does someone representing you know every club owner to book you in every city?

MC: They don't, the agents do. Well, break it down. Get a great musician who is also a unique musician. The writing is innovative. The label puts you in a different bracket. The label puts some money behind you. The booking agent already has the resources, but is more willing to take the artist on because they have communication and a relationship with the label. So the agent , let's say, can get him a gig in Europe, but the label can reserve the travel arrangements and get paid when the gig's over. I've never really had a booking agent, except recently, with Joel Criss, who got me to Brazil with Indigenous. We did that live record in Brazil .

These agents have a roster of all the greatest cats. I've tried to focus on someone who didn't have so much of a roster because they were more inclined to take me on. They lose steam because it takes money to make these things work, whether it's the artists' money or coming from somewhere else, like a label. It's weird, as you know. You have money behind you, and people actually want to give you shit ! When you don't have money, or an endorsement, let's say, they want me to buy their product.

AAJ: Like those celebrities at the Oscars need those gift bags right? Alright. Who's the personnel on your debut?

MC: Dwayne Burno on bass, Deon Parsons on drums, Yarbrough on flute, with Roy Hargrove (trumpet) and Ron Blake (sax), and Charlene Fitzpatrick on a vocal song. I was 26. That was a tight group and a great record. I was a sideman in Arthur Taylor's band at the time and playing with Abraham Burton.

AAJ: How'd you get Tarus Mateen and Nasheet Waits for Trillium ?

MC: Initially, Trillium was done for Arabesque but they didn't want it. They told me that it was, well, "Garbarge!" They told me we were "meandering" on that record, and, "What the hell is the bassist doing?" They wanted me to get another bassist. I said, "You know what? I don't like you're attitude about what I just did. I just gave birth to something. What're you saying? You don't like the eyes on the baby or the legs are not long enough?" So....

AAJ: (laughs) I brought it up because it seems like Tarus and Nasheet are just playing with everybody now. Where did you hook up with those guys?

MC: Tarus got me in Betty Carter's band. I forgot to mention that I almost gave up on New York after seven months. I started moving my stuff back to DC. He said, "Come back to New York, Betty Carter wants you to audition." I met Tarus in New York, but he's from Bakersfield, California.

AAJ: They're both with Moran now.

MC: Put it like this. Jason Moran calls his band 'The Bandwagon' but he was on the bandwagon when he got them cats. That was my rhythm section, but I couldn't get a gig with them after he grabbed 'em. They became very inaccessible. I considered 'em out on loan, but...

AAJ: So do you have a working band now?

MC: Camille Gainer on drums and her fiancé Dave Jones...he's a great bassist. I use Tarus and Dave. Tarus whenever he's available. And Yarborough Charles Laws on flute and percussion, with, Ron Sutton, Jr. on sax. My band is 'Indigenous People' . For a trio gig I would use Camille and instead of Dave, who plays electric, I'd probably get an acoustic player.

AAJ: So with that first thing, did you accomplish what you set out to do?

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