[mymnduccete]

Were it exculsivly a consideration of grip, I would switch tommorrow, but I'm not convinced that people can actually hear a difference. I can play all the comping figures that I play with matched and traditional, and I don't hear a difference. And I've lifted a hell of a lot of Jimmy Cobb's comping. Maybe when I finally get my lesson with Kenny Washington, he'll make me switch... but Clarence didn't even mention it, just said to go for sound. As far as the story with Jack, I can't remember what exactly happened... I think he broke a bone in his hand or something... something unrelated to music, and when he'd healed, found it more comfortable to play matched. He's certainly playing out of a different bag of tricks than Jimmy Cobb, but the rudimental technique is there... and impeccable. Brushes are the hardest to get a real good flow going on with matched, but I've found with a little practice I can approximate the sound that philly gets, and the grip really doesn't come into play. It's more about sound conception and really listening.