34-657: William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra . He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Classic Drummer Hall of Fame in 2013. AllMusic biographer Steve Huey said, "Generally acclaimed as fusion's greatest drummer, Billy Cobham's explosive technique powered some of
68-582: A blizzard of British usage". In a play on words, he wrote of the snob appeal of the word: "To be suitably trendy, bespeak to me of bespoke tailoring." Gentlemen's Quarterly magazine wrote that the word was "gaining in popularity", meaning "the opposite of off-the-rack". In its contemporary usage, it implies exclusivity, and is used as an aid in marketing and branding. A 2014 India Today article described bespoke as an emerging branding trend that marketers would need to embrace. A 2001 google search of "bespoke and software" produced 50,000 hits, many not in
102-478: A custom Duffy snare, two flared-shell rack toms by North Drums , four Fibes rack toms, two Fibes floor toms, two gong drums by Duffy customized by Cobham's drum roadie Jeff Ocheltree, a hi-hat, five Zildjian cymbals, and one hanging 36-inch gong . This expansive kit and Cobham's dynamic style influenced later drummers. In 1980, he worked with Jack Bruce in Jack Bruce & Friends. For this group, Cobham used
136-602: A few years before that. A writer in The Independent said that consumers no longer wanted to "keep up with the Joneses", but wanted to set themselves apart, saying that the bespoke drive was anti-tradition, and about a desire to be different rather than identify collectively with others. Newsweek described the word as "monstrously distorted, abused and otherwise mangled into near meaninglessness", saying that anything can now be labeled "bespoke". The same Newsweek writer used
170-510: A long drum solo session with the band's two percussionists, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart , also known as the Rhythm Devils . In 1981, Billy Cobham's Glass Menagerie was formed with Michał Urbaniak on violin and EWI, Gil Goldstein on piano, Tim Landers on bass, and Mike Stern on guitar. Dean Brown replaced Stern when he left to play with Miles Davis . Glass Menagerie released two albums for Elektra Musician . In 1984, he played in
204-523: A version of Cobham's "Stratus" in concert. Phil Collins , who named the Mahavishnu Orchestra's The Inner Mounting Flame as a key influence on his early style, said: "Billy Cobham played some of the finest drumming I've ever heard on that record." Born in Colón, Panama , Cobham moved with his family to Brooklyn, New York , when he was three. His father, Manuel, worked as a hospital statistician during
238-499: A very large custom drum kit designed for him by Tama Drums, featuring three bass drums with linked pedals, and three snares including a piccolo snare and a Hinger Space Tone expanding snare. Cobham said this kit adapted to fit the music, and the music adapted to fit the kit – "a continual chicken–egg–chicken scenario." On October 30, 1980, he joined the Grateful Dead during the band's concert at Radio City Music Hall . He performed
272-548: Is derived from the verb bespeak , meaning to "speak for something". The particular meaning of the verb form is first cited from 1583 and given in the Oxford English Dictionary : "to speak for, to arrange for, engage beforehand: to 'order' (goods)." The adjective "bespoken" means "ordered, commissioned, arranged for" and is first cited from 1607. Originally, the adjective bespoke described tailor-made suits and shoes. According to Collins English Dictionary ,
306-504: The Billboard magazine Jazz Albums chart and No. 26 on the Top 200 Albums chart. Cobham started experimenting with different drum equipment. In 1974 for Crosswinds he used a fiberglass -shell snare built for him by Al Duffy, and used Duffy's custom chain-drive bass drum pedal. Cobham's massive drum kit in the mid-1970s, based on a clear acrylic set by Fibes Drums , contained two Fibes bass drums,
340-525: The Mahavishnu Orchestra , another group that fused rock, funk, and jazz. Cobham toured extensively from 1971 to 1973 with the Mahavishnu Orchestra, which released two studio albums, The Inner Mounting Flame (1971) and Birds of Fire (1973), and one live album, Between Nothingness & Eternity (1973). The studio versions of songs on the live album were released on The Lost Trident Sessions (1999). Cobham's debut album, Spectrum (1973), surprised him and his record company when it reached No. 1 on
374-418: The "bespoke proliferation may be tied to young Hollywood types becoming enamored with custom suits about a decade ago". The Wall Street Journal article said that "language purists" were not happy, while suit makers said the word had been "bastardized". In 1990, American writer William Safire questioned in a New York Times article what had become of "custom, a word fading from our fashion vocabulary in
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#1732869752002408-518: The "world of personalization to an entirely new level". A 2016 The New York Times article describes a satirical video about bespoke water and observed: "The B word has become an increasingly common branding lure employed by interior design companies, publishers, surgeons and pornographers. There are bespoke wines, bespoke software, bespoke vacations, bespoke barber shops, bespoke insurance plans, bespoke yoga, bespoke tattoos, even bespoke medical implants." A 2022 Saveur Magazine article described
442-551: The 2010 Census was 165,456. The largest populations of Panamanians in the United States reside in Brooklyn and South Florida . Many Panamanians reside near army based cities. These cities include: Fayetteville, North Carolina ; Fort Bragg ; Killeen, Texas ; Fort Hood ; Columbus, Georgia ; Fort Stewart ; Colorado Springs, Colorado ; Fort Carson ; Clarksville, Tennessee ; Fort Campbell ; El Paso, Texas ; Fort Bliss ; and in
476-914: The Billy Cobham School of Drums, a school in the ArtistWorks Drum Academy. Many musicians have cited Cobham as an influence, including Kenny Aronoff , Steve Arrington , Ranjit Barot , Danny Carey , Jimmy Chamberlin , Dennis Chambers , Brann Dailor , Matt Garstka , Chris Hornbrook , Thomas Lang , Mac McNeilly , OM , Opeth , Chris Pennie Mike Portnoy , Thomas Pridgen , Sivamani , Bill Stevenson , Jon Theodore , and Tony Thompson . Other musicians have expressed admiration for his work, including Steven Wilson and Dave Bainbridge . With Stanley Turrentine With Stanley Turrentine and Milt Jackson With Mose Allison With Gene Ammons With Ray Barretto With Roberto Tola With George Benson With Bobby and
510-506: The British upper class", adding that the word for Americans tapped into "our individualism. We want everything made specially for us. Even when it comes to salad bars." As of 2012 , there were 39 applications using the term bespoke at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office , with half of those having been filed only in the previous 18 months. The Wall Street Journal said that the term had started to proliferate in corporations and among investors
544-451: The Greek . The concert was predominantly Clarke's music, but all the musicians contributed material. In 2006, Cobham released Drum 'n' Voice 2 , a return to the 1970s jazz-funk sound, with guests including Brian Auger , Guy Barker , Jeff Berlin , Frank Gambale , Jan Hammer , Mike Lindup , Buddy Miles , Dominic Miller , Airto Moreira , John Patitucci , and the band Novecento . The album
578-498: The Life of Mrs Charlotte Charke , the 1755 autobiography of the actress Charlotte Charke , which refers to The Beaux' Stratagem as "a bespoke play". After that, the adjective was generally associated with men's tailor-made suits. Before about the 19th century, most clothing was made to measure , or bespoke, whether made by professional tailors or dressmakers , or as often, at home. The same applied to many other types of goods. With
612-1311: The Midnites With The Brothers Johnson With James Brown With Kenny Burrell With Cargo With Ron Carter With Stanley Clarke With Larry Coryell With Miles Davis With Richard Davis With Eumir Deodato With Dreams With Charles Earland With Gil Evans With Fania All Stars With Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway With Peter Gabriel With Johnny Hammond With Billy Harper With Donald Harrison With Freddie Hubbard With Jackie and Roy With Milt Jackson With Jazz Is Dead With Quincy Jones With Robin Kenyatta Panamanian Americans Panamanian Americans ( Spanish : panameño-americano , norteamericano de origen panameño or estadounidense de origen panameño ) are Americans of Panamanian descent. The Panamanian population at
646-600: The UK or the US. The New York Times quoted an Indian tech director as saying the "global communications boom" contributed to a "superset of English vocabulary"; another business writer explained that software companies in India were accustomed to adapting their language depending on the client, so that switching between bespoke software and custom software was the equivalent of switching between lift and elevator or queue and line . By 2008,
680-427: The United States in the 1970s. Over 86,000 American people of Panamanian descent were registered in the 1990 U.S. Census. The 10 U.S. states with the largest population of Panamanians (Source: 2010 Census): The largest population of Panamanians are located in the following areas (Source: Census 2010): The top 25 U.S. communities with the highest populations of Panamanian (Source: Census 2010) U.S. communities with
714-556: The advent of industrialised ready to wear clothing, bespoke became largely restricted to the top end of the market, and is now normally considerably more expensive, at least in developed countries. At some point after that, the word bespoke came to be applied to more than tailoring, although it is unclear exactly when. Mark-Evan Blackman of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York told The Wall Street Journal in 2012 that
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#1732869752002748-672: The band Bobby and the Midnites , a side project for Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead, with Bobby Cochran and Kenny Gradney , and recorded the album Where the Beat Meets the Street . Cobham moved to Switzerland in 1985. In 1994, he joined an all-star cast Greek Theatre in Los Angeles; the results appeared on the album Stanley Clarke, Larry Carlton, Billy Cobham, Najee and Deron Johnson Live at
782-542: The genre's most important early recordings – including groundbreaking efforts by Miles Davis and the Mahavishnu Orchestra – before he became an accomplished bandleader in his own right. At his best, Cobham harnessed his amazing dexterity into thundering, high-octane hybrids of jazz complexity and rock & roll aggression." Cobham's influence stretched far beyond jazz; he influenced progressive rock contemporaries like Bill Bruford of King Crimson , and later ones like Danny Carey of Tool . Prince and Jeff Beck both played
816-453: The highest percentages of Panamanians as a percent of total population (Source: Census 2010) Bespoke Bespoke ( / b i ˈ s p oʊ k / ) describes anything commissioned to a particular specification (altered or tailored to the customs, tastes, or usage of an individual purchaser). In contemporary usage, bespoke has become a general marketing and branding concept implying exclusivity and limited runs. Bespoke
850-483: The humble guacamole as "...bespoke: Diners could make their guac mild, medium, or hot". The UK Savile Row Bespoke Association has requirements for a garment to use the term bespoke , but those requirements are not followed by some manufacturers. In 2008, the British Advertising Standards Agency allowed a company, Sartoriani, to use bespoke to describe its suits, causing a controversy with
884-399: The number of immigrants entering the U.S. from Panama was approximately 1,000 per year. After World War II, the number of Panamanians entering the U.S. country decreased but this changed in 1965, when immigration law allowed a maximum of 120,000 annual immigrants in the U.S. This law favored a remarkable migration from Panama, which made it one of the main migratory flows from Central America to
918-474: The term was generally British English in 2008. American English more commonly uses the word custom instead, as in custom-made, custom car , or custom motorcycle . Nevertheless, bespoke has seen increased usage in American English during the 21st century. The word bespoke is most known for its "centuries-old relationship" with tailor-made suits , but the Oxford English Dictionary also ties
952-450: The term was more often used to describe software, database and computer applications than suits, shirts or shoes. The BBC News Magazine wrote in 2008 that the word had increasingly been used to describe things other than websites, suits and shoes—like cars and furniture. Some examples of usage of the word are: Deborah Tannen , a Georgetown University linguistics professor, told The New York Times that "Americans associate it with
986-509: The vicinity of Fort Dix in New Jersey . Cities home to Navy and Air Force bases also lay claim to a concentration of Panamanians. These include San Antonio , Hampton Roads , Jacksonville , San Diego and Tampa . The number of Panamanians who emigrated to the U.S. prior to 1960 is unknown, as the Census Bureau counted them in the category of "others". By the beginning of the 20th century,
1020-526: The week and played piano on weekends. Cobham started playing drums at age four, and joined his father four years later. When he was 15, he got his first drum kit as a gift after being accepted to The High School of Music & Art in New York City. He was drafted in 1965, and played with a U.S. Army band for the next three years. After his discharge, he joined Horace Silver 's quintet. He played an early model electric drum kit given to him by Tama Drums . He
1054-510: The word as a verb to describe ordering a custom-made pair of glasses ("bespeaking a pair of spectacles"). One French bespoke shirtmaker was said to offer 400 shades of white, to satisfy vendor-customer relationships and desire for custom-made items. The New York Times devoted an article to bespoke cocktails, which they described as "something devised on the spot to a customer's precise and sometimes peculiar specifications". In another article, The New York Times described bespoke perfumes' taking
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1088-440: The word to shoemaking in the mid-1800s. Although it is now used as an adjective, it was originally used as the past participle of bespeak . According to a spokesperson for Collins English Dictionary, it later came to mean to discuss , and then to the adjective describing something that was discussed in advance , which is how it came to be associated with tailor-made apparel. The word was used as an adjective in A Narrative of
1122-556: Was a house drummer for Atlantic Records and a session musician for CTI and Kudu , appearing on the albums White Rabbit by George Benson , Sunflower by Milt Jackson , and Soul Box by Grover Washington Jr. Cobham started the jazz rock group Dreams with Michael Brecker , Randy Brecker , Barry Rogers , and John Abercrombie . He moved further into jazz fusion when he recorded with Miles Davis , appearing on Davis's albums A Tribute to Jack Johnson and Big Fun . In 1971, he and guitarist John McLaughlin started
1156-460: Was produced and arranged by Pino and Lino Nicolosi for Nicolosi Productions . In 2009, he released Drum'n' Voice 3 . Guests included Alex Acuña , Brian Auger, George Duke , Chaka Khan , Bob Mintzer , Novecento, John Scofield , and Gino Vannelli . Cobham plays his drums using the open-handed technique , which allows the player to play without crossing their right hand over the snare drum. In December 2011, Cobham began teaching drums online at
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