My function at Verve was that of a genuine producer in artists and repertoire.
I still continue to do at least four concert tours a year, and in many cases, as many as six.
The economic picture in the States today doesn't allow for jazz concerts in a tour fashion. People now are too used to the Festival, which gives them more names for the same price.
My juices needed restoring. I needed a sabbatical from the record business.
For years, Jazz At The Philharmonic albums were the only ones of their kind.
Amsterdam must have more than a million people. But the only area where jazz is really profitable and successful in an economic sense is in Japan. That's because they haven't been exposed enough.