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GregK

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Posts posted by GregK

  1. Washington, DC folks, what's the best way to get to the Naval Academy in Annapolis?

    in Miscellaneous - Non-Political

    Posted

    Yeah, the MARC train would only take you to Bowie, I think, and that's probably the closest you'll get using public transportation. The area is served well if you need to get to the immediate DC suburbs, or between DC and Baltimore. Anything west or east of that immediate corridor and you're on your own.

    I was just in Baltimore a few weeks ago, and used the Light Rail and MARC train to get from my hotel in Baltimore to my next hotel in DC. I had never realized (or maybe just never checked) just how close they are. Took about 45 min or so to go from Baltimore to DC. 

    No idea about record stores in DC, although I did see a FYE in Union Station!

  7. Miles Davis: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4

    in New Releases

    Posted

    I am glad I'm not a record producer etc.--you can hardly please anyone at all these days, so much negativity.

    You know, no one was complaining in this thread about the other material not being present. It was more a question out of curiosity. I asked were other Newport sets also recorded. Go back and read the post. Not sure where you're perceiving all the "negativity".

  8. Miles Davis: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4

    in New Releases

    Posted

    Re the "On The Corner" box set, I haven't downloaded it because I want the booklet.  I like the chronological narratives, and need the shifting cast of musicians.

    if you're expecting anything useful out of the booklet besides the listing of musicians, you will be disappointed. 

     

    I haven't made it past disc 3 of the Newport set yet, but I'm glad it's all in one place despite the presence of previously released material. Were other Newport appearances by Miles recorded too? Is this set all there is?

  12. What is your typical morning meal?

    in Miscellaneous - Non-Political

    Posted

    ***I'm interested in the recipe Larry.

    Take two scoops of (ideally) freshly ground coffee (or however much it takes to brew a good strong cup for you) cover the ground coffee with water in a one cup metal measuring cup or pot and boil the coffee-water mixture on the stove, making sure that it doesn't boil over. Meanwhile, place a fine-enough mesh strainer over your coffee mug and when the coffee-water mixture begins to boil, pour it through the strainer, leaving the grounds in the strainer as the coffee essence drips into the mug. Then pour enough milk to fill the mug through the grounds that are still in the strainer, remove the strainer, dump out the grounds, and put the mug filled with the coffee essence/milk combo in a microwave and heat to taste -- about 1:40 does the trick with good-sized coffee mug for me. The results are like rocket fuel. Of course, all this only makes sense if you like a coffee-milk mixture. A sprinkle of cinnamon in the bottom of the mug before you begin can be nice. If all this sounds complicated, I do it rapidly and often more or less in my sleep.

    The idea of boiling coffee, I've been told, is regarded as barbaric by the French, but this method was taught to me by a talented female violinist who spent a good many years in Finland.

    Interesting, but maybe this is Nordic coffee, as Finland isn't part of Scandinavia.

  18. Is the Detroit Jazz Festival worth the trip?

    in Live Shows & Festivals

    Posted

    I went last year and was floored by how vibrant, alive and engaged with the community it was. In some ways it felt like I was going to a festival in the heyday of the music. The music felt very alive, and not like a museum or a quiet polite orchestra performance. The festival itself seemed to take over a third of the downtown area, enthusiastic crowds for endless blocks in any direction. Extremely diverse crowds of every age, class, race, it felt like the entire community really embraced it. There were plenty of the traditional faces you'd see in the festival crowd, people who grew up on the music and diehard fans, but there were just as many people who probably did not consider themselves "jazz fans" but were just as engaged, enthusiastic and respectful.

    I booked a relatively cheap hotel right less than a quarter mile from the main stages, using Expedia or a similar site. I was surprised and very impressed with that portion of downtown Detroit. You can see the city really has a rich history and the many buildings downtown were very impressive in scale, but also in the beautifully diverse architecture and history. The city felt like a lost treasure.

    I realize the real problems the city has, and that everything might not be as clean and nice on weekends when they aren't hosting the jazz festival but it felt more like Manhattan than the bleak and decaying city that I'd imagined based on a couple of prior visits to venues on the outer rings of the city. The city was easy to get around, which is refreshing in comparison to Chicago. They had some cool coffee shops and restaurants too. I had a great memory my last night of the festival, doing an impromptu three mile walk down the main strip with my girlfriend, from the restaurant back to the hotel. We walked past a Tigers MLB game as it was letting out, a bunch of theaters, all while watching fireworks along the horizon on one of the most beautiful nights of the year. It really made me a fan of the city and I root for Detroit to start to turnaround like other rust belt cities like Cleveland and Pittsburgh are slowly starting to do.

    Seeing Ahmad Jamal perform at a packed and enraptured crowd was in my top three all time musical experiences. Similar to Chicago, it really made me a proponent of free outdoor urban festivals that fit into the community.

    Where were these coffee shops and restaurants??! I've been there many times over the past 14 years and have yet to find any coffee shops or restaurants even open in the evening, other than the sports themed pubs immediately next to the baseball stadium.

  20. allmusic.com

    in Miscellaneous - Non-Political

    Posted

    Just get ad blocker ... makes life so much easier :)

    It was my go-to-place on the internets for plenty of time, but nowadays often you get more accurate and complete info on discogs, wiki or of course on specialised discography pages. Allmusic is still visitied often, but the lack of meaningful reviews and inaccurate/messy info regarding line ups, recording dates (they keep mixing them with release dates) makes it bit of a nuisance. Some good reviews are to be found there, for sure though - Eugene Chadbourne for one, or this dude calling himself "arwulf arwulf".

    Arwulf Arwulf was a DJ on a local NPR station (WEMU in Ypsilanti) for a long time, until he quit a couple of years ago (or he was forced out by the station's slow but sure shift from classic jazz to smooth and vocal jazz). He would play the really old stuff, the very early recordings, ragtime, etc.

  21. Stockholm record/CD stores?

    in Recommendations

    Posted

    Not to my knowledge. However, Andra Jazz is also cash only.

    The owner started out with a bookstore at an other location, but shifted towards records some time in the 80s. I first visited that shop around 1990.

    The owner, now in his mid 70s, had a reputation of making customers who didn't have a clue, who complained about the prices or those who simply showed bad taste in music to feel uncomfortable. He had strong views and wasn't afraid to discuss them. Usually, you might not want to mention that you were looking for CTI albums or an Oscar Peterson "best of" collection.. On the other hand, if you showed real interest and had an open ear for things outside the mainstream, he'd help you expand your horizons. He's gotten more mellow through the years, though.

    During my years as a student when I had more time on my hands, I usually got stuck there for hours every time. There would often be guests, chatting about music and conducting endless blindfold tests. I've never seen anyone beat the owner when it comes to recognize anything jazz related ever put out on vinyl. At other times there would be a game of chess going on, with concentrated, quiet men, smoke from hand rolled cigarettes lingering over the shop and some unexpected free jazz record in the speakers.

    That shop cannot survive without its owner, and when it folds Europe will have lost one of its greatest jazz shops. Visit while you can!

    Sounds like an interesting place. I'll try to go while I'm there. Too bad about the cash only, though. I'm planning on using a credit card that doesn't charge foreign transaction fees, for most purchases.

  23. Stockholm record/CD stores?

    in Recommendations

    Posted

    I'm going to be in Stockholm for a conference at the end of June and was wondering if there are any recommendations for stores that still sell physical discs containing music (CDs, etc.). Should I expect to be able to find Hat, or even ECM discs in a store there?

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