See Mud? It’s Eric Dolphy Day!

Do they still celebrate Eric Dolphy in Syracuse, New York? Back in the 70s friends of mine at LeMoyne College cut classes and partied on the first winter day when enough snow melted so they could see mud again. They proclaimed this earliest harbinger of spring to be Eric Dolphy Day.

Listen to this YouTube clip of Eric’s solo performance of God Bless the Child and you’ll understand why. That bass clarinet sounds chthonic. Makes me want to wallow with the toads in some primordial ooze. Maybe by my back door. Get down, batrachians!

It isn’t exactly mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful yet, as e e cummings put it. But there’s enough moist, bare earth under foot to summon Eric’s spirit.

This is the debut of a weekly series of jazz clips that I’ll call Café Mouffe. Why the name? Tune in next Friday and I’ll explain.