Racine native Ben Sidran recently donated his musical archives to his alma mater, UW-Madison, just in time for another generation of music lovers to discover his low-profile genius. The three-CD set Ben There, Done That: Live Around the World 1975-2015 compiles selections from four decades of performances around the globe.
Sidran has worn many hats, from his days playing with the Steve Miller Band (Sidran co-wrote “Space Cowboy”) or as an NPR radio host, author and college professor. This collection features Sidran the pianist, vocalist and bandleader. Fronting combos that feature lean arrangements, the CDs are grouped into three chapters, and all selections are previously unreleased live recordings. The varied eras represent Sidran’s onstage persona as bebop hipster, groove merchant and pop stylist.
His evolution can be neatly summed up with his recollection: “When I came up, you couldn’t learn this music going to school. I mean, they didn’t teach it. Back in the ’50s and ’60s, if you wanted to play bebop piano or understand what was going on, you had to put on the records and listen to them a thousand times and try and figure it out. And it was really not easy, man; it was like trying to learn a language from scratch. Like, what if you were on one side of a wall and on the other side they were talking some language that you didn’t know? You would have to listen and try and listen again and again and, gradually, you learned the language.”
Saxophonist Bob Malach serves as musical foil on many of the cuts, and Ben’s son Leo plays drums, adding an intangible element of rhythm beyond DNA. The limited-edition set’s booklet includes a wide-ranging interview with Sidran, as well as essays and notes from his fellow travelers.
