The other day, I was driving home from a hard days work and was listening to some Jackie McLean, one of my favorite saxophone players of all time, and I was thinking how he passed away last year and there really wasn't anything on the news about it. This was a man that was brought up around jazz legends in the likes of Sonny Rollins, and Charlie Parker. Jackie started playing the horn around the time when he was in his early teens. New York at the time was full and vibrant with creative artists and a jazz scene that has yet to be reproduced. You could see Bud Powell in one club and when that set was over, you could go right next door and see Miles Davis. So many of these artists from that important time in jazz have passed away. However, whenever I see or hear of them passing, I take a moment out of my day to just think about that artist. Obviously I wasn't around when they were at the top of their game, but I can reflect by listening to the recordings they gave us.

The reason I wanted to write about this subject is because all too often we hear about entertainers of today in the news that really haven't accomplished anything of any great value at all. Take for instance, Paris Hilton going to jail. WHO CARES! What has she contributed to anything besides saying "That's Hot". Brittany Spears is all over the news all the time for everything but music. Who cares that she shaved her head bald? I'm a big fan of Hip Hop music, but I don't want to be constantly bombarded with news stories about people being arrested and the personal battles they are having between each other.

If someone like Jackie McLean passes away and I don't hear about it, there's a problem. If Michael Brecker passes and there is little mention about him, and he's from Philadelphia, then there's a problem. I challenge the media to cover people who actually accomplish something. I don't need to hear about someone ripping up a ticket and throwing it back at the police officer. WHO CARES! Tell me about someone that contributed to America's Classical Music, Jazz. Tell me about the life they lived, the impressions they left on younger artists coming up. For once it would be nice see something on the news. Tell us more about his legacy so that others will want to continue being creative in this art.