Donald Harrison was one of the first professors I met at the New School almost 40 years ago. I was in an ensemble playing a 12-bar blues in F and was still using my metal Dukoff D7 mouthpiece, because that is what my sax hero, David Sanborn, played.
Donald looked at me one day and said, "You have a nice tone, but you should really try a hard rubber mouthpiece, especially if you are looking to play bebop and not R&B."
I was embarrassed. Here was one of the all-time jazz greats telling me that I had been playing wrong all along, but that wasn't a criticism - it was a teaching moment.
I won’t get too technical in a blog read mostly by real estate people, but that one piece of advice changed the way I approached the horn and, ultimately, my sound for the better.
At the time, Donald was one of the most "happening" post-bop alto players on the scene. Born in New Orleans, he came from a lineage of legends from Louis Armstrong to Charlie Parker to Sonny Stitt, and here he was passing some of that knowledge on to me.
It was a direct connection to the masters who came before.
Three days ago, I came across this post from Donald Harrison:
"The war against the Grand Masters of classic jazz is a real thing. It is unconscionable how you won't see them at many events called jazz festivals. You won't see them at many places called jazz clubs. You won't see enough of them doing residencies at major jazz clubs anymore. It is ironic in these times the greatest practitioners of one of the greatest music accomplishments in the history of human beings are not praised to the hilt, and the artists who are given access to the most performance spaces. I played with Dr. Eddie Henderson, Lenny White, Buster Williams, Patrice Rushen, Javon Jackson playing the music of Miles Davis's Kind of Blue recording and the fact that their collective mastery is the epitome. They are on another level because their talents and experiences shine through like a ship's beacon on a foggy night. Please call your jazz festivals and clubs to remind them our masters sixty-five to one hundred plus need to be presented.
When I came through the system, the masters were the arbiters who told the world of the young artists who were getting it together to be amongst their ranks. If the great tradition of music by young people who first played with the Grand Masters to understand the foundation, then developed their sound and concept of music with that in their DNA, becomes a thing of the past, we lose something irreplaceable. Artists who span the ranks from Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Wayne Shorter all have the same mentee to mentor journeys. I believe it is paramount that this thread be kept alive before it is broken forever. This is our last chance to keep this facet of our music alive.
I hope we learn that many ideas can coexist. The new young idea of not being connected is also a beautiful idea. I am glad it is being nurtured. We do not want to force anyone to follow our paths. We just want to make sure our ideas are also part of today's lexicon."
This struck a chord with me.
What he is seeing in the music industry is something I see happening everywhere, especially in real estate - a diminishing recognition of the value of the greats who came before us.
The most important lessons I have learned were not taught in textbooks. They were passed down.
It took me two weekends to get my real estate license, and I complete continuing education every two years. But I never learned more than I did in a single elevator ride with Robbie Brown more than 30 years ago, or during a one-hour phone conversation with Barbara Corcoran before I founded CORE.
Those moments mattered because they came from people who had already done it. People who had seen cycles, made mistakes, built something real, and were willing to share what they knew.
It takes humility to seek that kind of guidance.
It takes curiosity to ask for it.
And it takes willingness and introspection, actually, to internalize it.
James Clear wrote that "people follow incentives, not advice."
But the truth is, the people who find their stride faster and more meaningfully are the ones who seek out advice. The ones who put themselves in rooms with people who know more than they do. There is an adage that if you are the smartest person in the room, you need to find another room. That is true. The people who ask questions, listen closely, and stay open to learning will always win out.
Nothing replaces that.
You cannot shortcut experience.
You cannot download judgment.
And you cannot build something meaningful without learning from those who came before you.
If we care about what we are building, whether it is music, a business, or a career, we have to stay connected to the lineage.
We have to seek it out.
And we have to pass it on.
The best ones understand this. They are secure enough to share what they know. They are not threatened by someone younger, newer, or still finding their way. They still remember what it felt like to be starting out.
So this week, ask the question you have been hesitating to ask.
Call the person who has done what you want to do.
Put yourself in a room where you are not the smartest one.
And just as importantly, look around and ask yourself who you can help.
That is how lineage survives and makes us all better.
Let's do this,
Shaun
Side Bar
Random Real Estate Fact: If you are considering selling your home for top dollar, an analysis by Zillow found that in most parts of the country, properties listed during the last two weeks of May tend to achieve the highest prices, about 1.7 percent higher on average.
Another Side Bar
My favorite song featuring Donald Harrison is "Zulu King" with Dr. John, James Andrews, and Trombone Shorty. Take a listen.