US musician still smoking on all that jazz
Print Edition
WITH a vintage pipe in hand and a Panama hat on head, Donald Jackson, from Chicago, is an artist and just looks the part.
He’s now the musical director at the Waldorf Astoria Shanghai on the Bund, doing what he loves most — making music.
Like Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs, Jackson has his own inimitable stylish uniform. No matter whether it is a hot summer day or in the middle of winter, Jackson is always in his distinctive business suit, white shirt and Panama hat.
As a musician, he spends most of his time practicing, teaching kids to play music and hanging out on Jinling Road, a special area filled with music stores.
“It’s like old Shanghai, very 1920s-30s, more vintage type. To be honest, that’s why I love this road, because of the musical instruments,” he says excitedly.
Jackson used to smoke but quit because of an ex-girlfriend. But that hasn’t stopped him puffing on his pipe, despite there being no tobacco in it. The cool customer says he still likes to use it as a comfort tool as it has calming effects on him.
The same can be said of Shanghai. After 16 years in this “wonderful metropolis,” Jackson appears to have found his Shangri-la.
“I love Shanghai,” he confesses. “I fell in love with being here.”
Q: Could you tell me why you came to Shanghai 16 years ago?
A: I came to play at the Westin hotel on Henan Road. I played in the first band when it opened.
But when I got to Beijing — at that time there were no direct flights from Chicago to Shanghai — there were some problems and my double bass was taken from me, because I had to have someone meet me in Beijing, which I didn’t. They gave me a piece of paper, and the people from the Westin hotel had to pay US$2,000 to get it out of customs.
Q: Was that your first visit to an Asian city?
A: No. I first came to Asia in 1987, to Singapore. I think the management from that hotel in Singapore was involved with the hotel here, which means I knew somebody that knew someone else, so that’s how I came here. Between those times I played on cruise ships and in Las Vegas for 15 years.
Q: Could you share one or two interesting stories related to Shanghai?
A: Coming here made me rethink everything I’d ever learned and where I was from. In America, they don’t even show too much about any other cultures — in the media and stuff.
I’ve met a lot of people that I probably wouldn’t have met in America. As a foreigner, I’ve probably met more people from America than I normally would back home. It’s the same thing as if you went to America and saw another person from Shanghai, you’d probably talk to them, whereas here you wouldn’t.
Q: How do you spend your weekends or leisure time in Shanghai?
A: I really like to study. I’m not the kind of person who goes out too much, I’m mostly home.
I study constantly all day — music, or watching YouTube, different styles of music. I study most of the time, even after finishing work at night. I’ll be up watching videos or reading a book. So I don’t really go out to leisure places.
Q: Which place in Shanghai do you like best?
A: I like JZ Club. I go there sometimes to play, sometimes to jam on Friday and Saturday nights. I might go sometimes after work to play, so that’s nice.
And I like HEYDAY (a jazz bar) and Shake (a restaurant with music shows). Most of the time if I go after work, I’ll go to places with music to meet the musicians. Most people, after work, come to one place. I will always see people in the business there.
Q: And what elements of Shanghai or China make you love here?
A: I like China because I can relax and hear myself thinking more than I can in America. Back home you gotta watch your back, you know, you got bad gun laws and all that stuff, so you gotta watch it, you gotta be careful.
I just love being in China. I’ve been traveling a long time. I worked in Beijing for a couple of years. I worked in Hangzhou for a while as well. A couple of the places I can’t really remember the names of.
Q: Anything you dislike here?
A: One thing I’ve noticed that’s changed yet isn’t attractive is that the rental prices have gone up, and I think maybe too fast. Something that’s 4,000 yuan (US$623.66) and then jumps to 8,000 this year. I don’t wanna criticize but I’m just saying the rental price is so different.
When I first came, something that was 1,500 yuan is now 6,000.
Q: Compared with your own country, or anywhere else you’ve lived for a while, are there any shortages in Shanghai?
A: I think Shanghai has grown a lot; it was like in a pioneer stage before. Like the Wild West, the city was developing. But Shanghai is moving a lot faster, because they can build faster. They’ve caught up.
When I first came here, jazz wasn’t so popular. But now, there are many Chinese musicians playing it now. That wasn’t around when I first came. That’s the big difference.
Q: Is there anything you want to change in Shanghai?
A: Not really, just the rental prices. I wish the prices were lower. I know a lot of people who are moving outside of Shanghai — once you get too high, you lose the things that attracted people here.
Q: Do you have some impressive memory during your life?
A: I miss the exchange rate not being the same as it was when I came here, and that’s nothing to do with China. I mean, I miss my girlfriend I broke up with from Hong Kong. I never knew Chinese women were as beautiful as they are! I’m a lot older than when I first came, things change as you get older.
But actually, I was overwhelmed when I first came here, firstly from the number of people here. There are a lot of cities in China that have a huge population but people in America don’t even know about them!
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