That was the first night [Coleman] Hawkins was really challenged. But when I say "challenged", I mean it was a respectful challenge. You see, nobody in those days would walk in and set up with Hawkins, except maybe in New York where Chu Berry was just coming up. But most of the time at sessions guys would just be trying to show Hawkins how they had improved since he had last heard them. Those sessions were held for the joy of playing. They wren't cutting sessions or contests. This was all part of our feeling about music in Kansas City. Now those were pretty tough times and yet the guys did take the time to study, and when they had found something new they would pass it around to the other musicians, no matter what instrument they played. So they would try that particular riff or that particular conception at a session and perfect it. The idea of the jam session then wasn't who could play better than somebody else--it was a matter of contributing something and of experimentation. Jam sessions were our fun, our outlet. << less