It wasn't all that long ago in the Chronicle's "Recommended" column that a writer noted, in essence, that if this were a perfect world then pianist James Polk would have a steady gig with his own trio playing to packed houses, and also providing backing duties for a steady flow of world-class soloists who would regularly play in Austin. Alas, we all know this world is far from perfect, and that being arguably the finest jazz pianist in town doesn't guarantee steady work. Neither does having one of the most impressive résumés in the local jazz community, one that includes a near decade-long tenure as arranger, composer, and performer with Ray Charles and his Orchestra.
"I'm not bitter," insists Polk, "but it's really frustrating." And a bit ironic to say the least, because as this piece is being written, his résumé continues to flourish: Polk is in the midst of, again, arranging material for Ray Charles; he's set to receive an honorary doctorate degree in the fall from his alma mater, Houston-Tillotson College; and, his infrequently appearing band, JAMAD, which he co-leads with trumpeter Martin Banks, is slated to open tonight (Friday) for jazz legend McCoy Tyner at the Austin Music Hall. But Polk still has no regularly booked gig in Austin. Frustrating for him and for local jazz fans who have relished Polk's brilliant playing over the years.
My fondest memory of James Polk is of a rainy weekday night a few years ago when he backed the outstanding trumpeter Charles Tolliver. An imposing presence hunkered down behind the keys, Polk really dug in that night, delving intently into each piece with aplomb and leaving no doubt that he could run with the big boys. It could easily have been a night in any one of NYC's famed jazz spots. Vocalist Hope Morgan, who has worked often with Polk, marvels at his "magnanimous presentation." "His style is very generous," she says, "and he gets the most out of every tune. He swings and plays more soulfully, always managing to find the groove." Perhaps most importantly, she adds, "he knows how to tell a story."
Polk's own musical story and involvement in the Austin jazz scene spans almost 40 years. He arrived from Corpus Christi in 1958 to study music at Houston-Tillotson College. During his early years here, he played with the likes of former HT alumus/trumpeter Bobby Bradford (Carmen's father), and Bastrop schoolteacher/saxman Dewey Redman (Joshua's father) before both men went on to play with Texas legend Ornette Coleman in the Seventies. Polk recalls a thriving club scene in East Austin at that time. "Charlie's Playhouse was the biggest thing on 11th Street There was also Snookie's Lounge, Shorty's, and the Victory Grill, which had jam sessions on Sunday. We use to have `College Night' at the Flamingo Club up on 12th and Chicon where I played in a group from campus called the Steppers."
Like many young African-Americans at that time, Polk was active in the demonstrations and sit-ins of the civil rights movement. Ironically, the hard-fought battle and victory for integration in the early mid-Sixties ultimately sounded the death knell for Eastside clubs. "It killed all that but not immediately," Polk contends. "Upwardly mobile blacks moved into other neighborhoods and blacks in general started going to establishments outside of the community. That's how the black neighborhood went down. Today there are only one or two black-owned clubs worth going to."
It was during this period, while a senior at Houston-Tillotson, that Polk started his band, James Polk and the Brothers. Formed as a vehicle to perform the compositions and arrangements he'd written as graduation requirements, the group stayed together in one form or another for over a decade. "We went all the way through the Sixties playing here and there," Polk remembers fondly. "We did a lot of traveling around Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana with [blues guitarist] Freddie King. I bought a big school bus, and we booked ourselves into West Texas, East Texas, all over. But the early Seventies was when we were really happenin'. Martin Banks, W. C. Clark, Angela Strehli, John Reed, and Matthew Robinson were all in the band then. We had a stellar group," he chuckles.
One day back in 1978 Polk received a phone call he'll never forget. "Brother Polk?" the familiar voice on the other end asked, "This is Brother Ray. They tell me you're a hot-shot piano player. We have this position open; would you be interested in playing?" Two weeks later Polk joined Ray Charles and his Orchestra in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania for what would become a 10-year relationship as writer and arranger. "I played with Ray for eight years, and another couple of years I worked with him in the studio recording and doing arrangements and albums," Polk explains. "I could still be doing that but it's hard when he's there and I'm here, so I ended it."
Since leaving the employ of Mr. Charles, Polk has worked continually in every possible jazz context, from solo to big band leader. He went back to school to earn his master's degree in music, and he currently teaches, full-time starting this fall, at Southwest Texas in San Marcos. He also appears on two recent local releases, Live at the Elephant Room and Elias Haslanger's Standards, and he's presently negotiating to get an album recorded and released under his own name.
Polk is by no means an infrequent presence on the local scene. But more often than not, he's playing in someone else's band. "I'm just too old at this point to be out there running around hustling gigs," Polk states matter-of-factly. Without getting into the thorny politics of booking jazz in Austin (see main story), rational minds might question how two clubs in town each booking jazz seven nights per week can somehow neglect to regularly showcase a musician of Polk's talent and stature. Maybe someone just mistook this for a perfect world...