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Eastwood's First Love: Jazz Piano

Love, not practice, evinced in movies and performance

By Victoria Floethe,  Newser User

Posted Dec 15, 2008 3:09 PM CST

(Newser) – Growing up, Clint Eastwood had an affinity for piano but no money for lessons. He nurtured his passion for jazz throughout his life, Nick Tosches writes in Vanity Fair, and has written music for almost every picture he’s directed, including the theme for his recent Gran Torino. But, Eastwood says, “if I’ve had any regret in life, it was not paying more attention to it and not practice, practice, practice.”

Still, he did eventually get on stage at Carnegie Hall in 1996—despite his own lack of confidence in his performance. “All of a sudden, we’re playing away, I’m going along, and finally I’m seeing that maybe … I’m overstaying my welcome here,” he recounts. “I don’t play to perform, though I suppose I could work out some things if I needed to. It’s usually just for my own satisfaction and to get material.”

Yeah, the white stuff: never. It was sort of a steal from the black stuff, and the black stuff seemed like it had more of the origin, Clint Eastwood says of his musical preferences.
"Yeah, the white stuff: never. It was sort of a steal from the black stuff, and the black stuff seemed like it had more of the origin," Clint Eastwood says of his musical preferences.   (Getty Images)
 Clint Eastwood arrives at AFI's 40th Anniversary celebration presented by Target held at Arclight Cinemas on October 3, 2007 in Hollywood, California.
Clint Eastwood arrives at AFI's 40th Anniversary celebration presented by Target held at Arclight Cinemas on October 3, 2007 in Hollywood, California.   (Getty Images)
Director Clint Eastwood attends the premiere to promote the movie Letters From Iwo Jima during the 57th Berlin International Film Festival.
Director Clint Eastwood attends the premiere to promote the movie "Letters From Iwo Jima" during the 57th Berlin International Film Festival.   (Getty Images)
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Eastwood and Ray Charles talk music.   (reversesnake)

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Well, I always liked Monk. He came along, he became popular, when I was in my early teens. Nobody could quite figure out what he was doing, but everybody thought he was kind of interesting.
- Clint Eastwood

I picked a tune I played in an assembly when I was in high school—Avery Parrish’s ‘After Hours’—and I told Jay McShann, I said, ‘Look, I don’t know how much of this stuff I remember... - Clint Eastwood

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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
kokuaguy
Feb 1, 2009 1:54 AM CST
Apple/won't/honor/its/warranty/so/i/don't /have/a/spacebar/sorry/folks Just/saw/THE/CHANGLING/last/nite/and/noticed/that/Eastwood/composed/ music/for/it/ He/is/a/true/American/genius/and/ treasure/CHANGLING/is/a/master-piece
riffran
Jan 23, 2009 11:03 PM CST
Mr. "Go ahead punk make my day"...a piano man???? Who would have thunk it....Thats actually kind cool...tickle the ole ivories and blow away scumbags all in one package...

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