Larry Kart

One of the Klang albums has a piece dedicated to me, "Alone at the Brain," because James used to see me seated at a table by myself at the Hungry Brain, listening to the music:

"One can get hooked" is what I was thinking. The upfront presence of all the percussionists on the album makes me feel like my DNA is being rearranged.

You betcha. Backed by Jorge Maldonado and Eddie Rosado, Lead vocalist Hector "Papote" Jimenez is scorching. Jimenez in action: Colon, BTW, was the pianist for celebrated vocalist Hector Lavoe for many years. More Jimenez:

Anyone know this pianist-bandleader? I picked up a copy of his 2008 album "Hot Bread": https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Bread-Pulpo/dp/B0018AAQQO/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1473969701&sr=1-1&keywords=hot+bread and while I'm no Latin jazz or Latin music expert, so far it's knocked my socks off. Tremendous rhythmic density, plus a kick-ass recording job.

As you may know, a staple of classical music are viola jokes, that being THE disrespected instrument in the field. Last night I was at a string quartet performance at Ravina where the cellist broke a string. While he was backstage taking care of the problem, the violist told some viola jokes. Violist driving home sees a cluster of flashing red lights as he turns the corner. He gets out to see what's up, is met by a cop who says, "I'm sorry, sir, your house has been burned to the ground and your wife and children are missing." Violist: "My God! Who did this? "Cop: "The conductor." Violist: "The conductor came to MY house."

Wonderful movies.

No nuance? I can think of few players this side of Johnny Hodges who have more nuance going for them than Ammons. Just about every phrase is spun out, coddled, caressed, stroked, chucked under the chin, you name it.

Perhaps you're just being facetious, but in case you're not, while I certainly don't agree with Brookmeyer on Ammons, I assume his opinion was based the usual stuff we all base such opinions on -- recordings, live performances, his own background/assumptions/prejudices. Or maybe he just got it straight from Martin Willliams.

I remember once Brookmeyer on his site tearing into French hornist Tom Varner because he couldn't play "even eighth notes."

I did listen again to "Strings for Holiday." If anything I dislike it more now, for same reasons, than I did before -- but that's why they play ball games (or however that saying goes and whatever it in fact it means). My wife's been away in Italy for almost two weeks, leaving me to take care of my teenage stepson, our dog, and our cat, and as wonderful as all those creatures are, I'm beginning to babble.

That's not Bob Magnusson, that's Ned Flanders.

Thanks. I think I should listen again. BTW, a sublime record with Lee and a small group of strings is the one he did with Bill Russo "An Image": https://www.amazon.com/Classic-Albums-Konitz-Harvard-Square/dp/B009RQZKTO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1472335151&sr=8-1&keywords=konitz+an+image In fact, that probably is the best soloist with a small string ensemble record I know. Russo also did a nice one with Cannonball playing material from Ellington's "Jump for Joy," but the major Russo composition on "An Image" is a genuinely major composition.

I have some respect for arranger Daniel Schnyder, but my memory of this one is that the strings' rather intrusive, near-soloistic lines kept getting in Lee's way, more or less pushing him into outlining the melodies of the songs rather than embellishing them, which is what the strings were doing. My sense was that Schnyder was trying to do too much; I'd rather hear Lee's ideas than his.

http://www.allmusic.com/album/in-a-twentieth-century-drawing-room-mw0000570419 Title makes it sound like pure frou-frou, but it's not. Albam also did that fine Hank Jones with strings album that Mike Weil mentioned above.