Beirut and George Adams

The crisis that is the Middle East and Lebanon today reminds me of an old friend of mine. George Adams, who Grover Washington, Jr. personally confessed to me was the best tenor sax player in the world, loved Beirut.

In 1974, when he was part of Charles Mingus’s quartet, he was booked into Beirut. He called it the Riviera of the Middle East. He was so excited to go and spend a couple of weeks playing music and embracing the ambiance of Beirut. He was hyped!

Well, war broke out and the tour was cancelled. George was devastated. The group at the time consisted of Charles, Don Pullen, George, Dannie Richmond, and Hammett Bluett.

I can’t help but think what he would be thinking today and how he would feel.

Here are is a music video of George and one of his with Mingus.

Charles, George, Don and Dannie are gone now. But, their musical brilliance and legacy lives on.

What will be the legacy of the crisis in Beirut?