felser

They did get more expensive at the end. The store by me was charging $1 over list price, and nothing was ever on sale except for the latest pop hits, and they no longer carried the deep catalog they had earlier. And they had stopped publishing the Pulse! magazine. It became just another store, and I actually stopped going a year or two before they closed. But in their prime, they were a marvel.

I have these, only seven: Muhal Richard Abrams featuring Malachi Favors: Sightsong (Black Saint) Walt Dickerson: Peace (Steeplechase) Al Haig: Trio and Sextets (OJC) Julius Hemphill: Raw Materials and Residuals (Black Saint) Elmo Hope Trio: Meditations (OJC) Joseph Jarman: Song For (Delmark) Charles Mingus: Jazz Portraits (Blue Note)

Happens to me all the time on the BFT's

Those were the days. I miss the thrill of going into huge brick and mortars and coming out with undreamed of treasures. I remember my first trip to a Tower Records - Fisherman's Wharf area in San Francisco, ca. 1977, I think. And being blown away by the three story + annex one on South Street in Philly. And my amazement when they opened one in suburban Philly (King of Prussia) walking distance from my house. Always looked forward to the monthly Pulse magazine also and the all-label sales in January. This is the golden era as far as being able to locate/obtain stuff, but not in terms of the shear enjoyment of the quest.

Found the following at the end of the Amazon.com listing, which may explain why the release is on Resonance rather than Hip-O or Verver: Resonance Records, which is a 501 ©(3) non-profit foundation, will contribute a portion from every sale to the John Coltrane House, an organization devoted to the preservation of Coltrane's former home in Dix Hills, New York.

They did the same thing on the Self-Portrait set, and I have resisted the deluxe version, even though it is the only major missing piece in my Dylan collection.

Something called a ring modulator was used a lot on electric pianos back then. I remember George Cables recording with it. Woody Shaw's 'Song of Songs' on Contemporary comes immediately to mind re: Cables with ring modulator. Also the earliest Milestone Joe Henderson's. Cables was quite enamored of that effect. I wasn't.

Very late to the party, sorry. Here are my impressions/guesses. I have and recognize enough of these that I think can somewhat drop my self-prescribed "wooden ears" moniker. Great BFT, thanks! 1 – South African. My obvious point of reference is Dollar Brand, but it’s not him. I like it quite a bit, and the 17 minutes passes quickly. 70’s? 2 – “Warm Canto” from Mal Waldron ‘The Quest’. Eric Dolphy and Ron Carter. That album blew me away when I discovered it in the early 70’s. Great cut. 3 – Lovely piano. Assume it is from the 50’s? I’m sure it’s someone I know well and I may well have this CD sitting on a shelf somewhere. The bluesy little thing at the end makes me think of someone like Junior Mance. 4 – Old stuff. Aurally pretty bizarre (poor recording or pressing, variable tape speed), but I do like it some, and find it very interesting. Red Norvo maybe? Or Sun Ra’s 50’s stuff? 5 – Jimmy Giuffre “The Train and The River”, with Jim Hall. Tune is stuck with me forever from that great Newport documentary “Jazz on a Summer’s Day”. Utterly unique and wonderful. 6 – One of the tenor greats, I’m sure. Ben Webster? Lovely. Sounds Ellington-ish, but doesn’t sound like Ellington. One of the Verve Ben Webster albums? 7 – John McLaughlin, “Arjen’s Bag” (later “Follow Your Heart” on ‘My Goal’s Beyond’) from the ‘Extrapolation’ album with John Surman. One of my favorite tunes, especially the Joe Farrell version. 8 – Right up my alley, whatever it is, without being anything special for the genre. Maybe the 50’s Jazz Messengers with Jackie McLean and Bill Hardman? 9 – Well, that’s different, isn’t it? First thought was Rahsaan, just from the bizarre factor, but there are two sax players. I do like it/ 10 – This is the Jazz Messengers, “That Old Feeling” from the the ‘Three Blind Mice’ live sessions. I remember getting this album from a cutout bin in the early 70’s, my first Jazz Messengers album, but far from my last. Cedar Walton is great on this. Love it when Blakey comes in at the beginning. “There it is! indeed”. 11 – Guitarist certainly sounds like Carlos Santana with that sustain, though I can’t place the cut in the Santana pantheon at all. Sonny Sharrock with Pharoah Sanders? Sharrock is also capable of that sustain. 12 – Now that is fine fine alto playing! “Love for Sale” Sonny Criss with Walter Davis and Paul Chambers from ‘This is Criss’. 13 – “All The Things You Are”, but certainly not a version I’m familiar with. Disco era for sure, but bad disco at that. Sounds like it’s being played by a bunch of robots, though I’m sure they’re fine musicians. 14 – Nice tone, but I don’t like the style. Hope it isn’t someone I think is a favorite, they don’t seem to have a sense of how to play a ballad (or at least THIS ballad) (at least to my taste). 15 –Sam Cooke, amazing voice. Or is this a trick somehow?

PM sent on Charles Tyler - Eastern Man Alone - (ESP Disk, digipak)

DL please

He lost me somewhere around the second side of 'Lorca', but 'Tim Buckley', 'Happy/Sad', 'Blue Afternoon' are all big favorites, and 'Goodbye and Hello' is one of my 10 favorite albums of all time. A lot of amazing live stuff and outtakes has also seen the light of day.

I highly recommend the Donaldson and Wilson sets, especially at those prices. Individual CD's of the Donaldson albums have become very pricey, and I've never seen much of the Wilson material on individual CD's (which I find surprising and disappointing).

Another here for the Crusaders set.

I think it was your unwillingness to consider the yak and the wheeless skateboard. That type of blatant prejudice is no longer politically correct ! Price seems fair enough to me, and you were open to offers. Can't ask for more than that. I'd jump on it if I didn't already have it. If you think of it, let us know how you make out on ebay with the set.

It's all good material, and I have a special fondness for 'Homecoming'. He was still in good form for these recordings. Not essential like the Blue Notes, but well worthwhile. As are the Prestige and Steeplechase sides.

I have the Chapter III stuff, really like it a lot despite the weak vocals.

The Morgan date was only on the twofer. Strange, because it's fabulous.

felser, to my knowledge, there has never been a box set of Manfred Mann Chapter Two's complete Fontana recordings, but I believe that every song has been issued on CD. As Is http://www.amazon.com/As-Manfred-Mann/dp/B0006FGH74/ref=sr_1_21?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1408166557&sr=1-21&keywords=manfred+mann What a Mann http://www.amazon.com/What-Man-Manfred-Mann/dp/B00007KKXF/ref=pd_sim_m_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=05EJVSFY1ZNN744QJ5D4 Up the Junction http://www.amazon.com/Up-Junction-Manfred-Mann/dp/B0006FGHF6/ref=pd_sim_m_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=05EJVSFY1ZNN744QJ5D4 Might Garvey http://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Garvey-Manfred-Mann/dp/B0006FGHEM/ref=pd_sim_m_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=05EJVSFY1ZNN744QJ5D4 These are their four Fontana albums. You will note that this CD of What a Mann includes songs which did not make their LP's, including I Wanna Be Rich, Let It Be Me, Miss JD, All I Wanna Do, Last Train to Clarksville, Sunshine Superman and My Name is Jack. Here is another collection. Mannerisms http://www.amazon.com/Mannerisms-Manfred-Mann/dp/B0006FGHEW/ref=pd_rhf_dp_s_cp_3_WAVC?ie=UTF8&refRID=1M0GH4FCPZXGX1EPVP82 Mannerisms has other songs which did not make their LP's: Sleepy Hollow, There is a Man, Fox on the Run, Too Many People, Ragamuffin Man and A "B" Side. In early 1969, Fox on the Run was the #1 song in Washington, DC, and to my knowledge not played on the radio anywhere else in America! As you probably know, it was later a country hit. (It may interest you to learn that A "B" Side was recorded with lyrics on Manfred's next album, Chapter Three, with the title Travelling Lady.) I am not aware of any other tracks they recorded for Fontana. Hope this helps! Thanks, this is great info! But the idea of spending $65 for these, to add maybe 30 cuts to what I have, doesn't seem like a good idea given economic realities. But I will track the albums on the usual sites, thanks again!

My favorite Mosaic set, given the quality of the music and the difficulty in finding much of the material elsewhere (Blue Note has not been kind to Elvin Jones in the CD era).

Per the Manfred Mann, it's frustrating. The EMI stuff has been available in many configurations throughout the CD era (I own the 4CD "Down The Road A Piece" set, which is as perfect as these things get from what I can tell), yet as far as I know, the Fontana stuff that followed is very difficut to find. I have a spotty 20 track "Best of" from that era, but nothing more comprehensive is available that I know of. Am I missing anything?

You could list them here and put a minimum # of discs you are willing to send in an order.

PM sent on: Wadada Leo Smith -- Ten Freedom Summers (Cuneiform, 4-Disc Set) $15 Bud Powell -- Birdland 1953 (ESP, 3-Disc Set) $10 Steve Lacy -- Scratching the Seventies (Saravah, 3-Disc Set) $50 Peter Brotzmann -- FMP 130 $7 Alexander Von Schlippenbach -- Hunting the Snake $7 Steve Lacy Five -- Blinks...Zurich Live 1983 $7 Steve Lacy Five -- The Way (Two Discs) $10 Howard McGhee -- Maggie's Back in Town!! (Contemporary, still sealed) $5 Johnny "Guitar" Watson -- The Original Gangster of Love, 1953-1959 (Jasmine Records, still sealed) $5

PM sent

I've been very happy with their sets.

I've also had 100% fill rate on my three largish orders with them over the past couple of years.