BFT #24 - Discussion (Disc 1)

[Hardbopjazz]

Having not read anyones posts yet, I have only figured out one track so far on disc 1. Track three is Fletcher Henderson, if I can trust my ears.

[brownie]

brownie, I guess my partial quote above didn't help, sorry! I just wanted to ask if something got lost here:

9- A classic Coleman tune. But the blues does not sound that much like the idiom of the musicians here. Not bad but I have heard so much better.

All these

Ubu, small typo. Just fixed that.

Typos like that happen when you're dealing with BFTs that include around 20 tracks!

Still hope when the truth is revealed that I was not dissing old favorites when I wrote about that track 9, the Coleman blues treatment!

[king ubu]

brownie, I guess my partial quote above didn't help, sorry! I just wanted to ask if something got lost here:

9- A classic Coleman tune. But the blues does not sound that much like the idiom of the musicians here. Not bad but I have heard so much better.

All these

Ubu, small typo. Just fixed that.

Typos like that happen when you're dealing with BFTs that include around 20 tracks!

Still hope when the truth is revealed that I was not dissing old favorites when I wrote about that track 9, the Coleman blues treatment!

I would be astonished if these guys are old favourites of yours, brownie! I guess not.

Typos happen, of course, I was only wondering if something interesting got lost there.

hardbopjazz: not Henderson, but somewhat close...

ubu

[randyhersom]

hardbopjazz: not Henderson, but somewhat close...

Don Redman orchestra?

or maybe Horace Henderson?

[king ubu]

hardbopjazz: not Henderson, but somewhat close...

Don Redman orchestra?

or maybe Horace Henderson?

Nope, the tenor has been nailed (read above) and the band is too bad to bother with all that much... I think both Henderson and Redman would have done a better job (and maybe convinced the taper to let it roll after the tenor had his say...)

[Man with the Golden Arm]

Well I've waited long enough to post thinking that by osmosis that I would suddenly be able to express something. Yet another test that finds me looking at it like some second semester chemistry exam. I've given both discs more than a few listens - so mush great music- so I will just post some thoughts as I have had a hard enough time seeing all the replies pile up and can't wait to read them.

Track 1 - Sounds like it might be Lester Young but it appears to be too new for that. Also gives me a feeling of a Grapelli tune. As I have neither (gather yer stones) this is just purely as guess as will be many too follow. Very lovely tune that would certainly accompany some red wine and fatty food nicely.

Track 2 - This must be from Ubu's stash of 78s. Very nice and consitent crank turning I must say. This and the next few will be openers for me.

Track 3 - Again. The tenor here is great and wish he had gone on a bit longer but thems the breaks with such speed.

Track 4 - Tune has that "Body and Soul" melody but it is entirely another that I can't come up with. These three might be a trio medley of the same artist?

Track 5 - Some serious bar honking going on here but sounds very much in that Jazz in Paris series. Might be a Hampton band from the series. Just a great stomping cut. That geet box is wack! Scrambling all around the drawing board to this one.

Track 6 - This cut I thought I recognized on the first go round but have since given up. Sounds newer than a Lee Morgan side. Has that Kenny Drew blues BN sound (maybe) and I almost expected to hear McLean come in but he doesn't and I give up on the tenor. Maybe this is a modern take by a Marsalis? Nah, it's a Blue Note that is somewhere in the closet laffing.

Track 7 - Nice "What is This Thing" but no idea. Rhythm team is just fantastic - the runs by the piano and drums are stellar. The bass is back there somewhere too.

Track 8 - Dang, I'm supposed to know this piece. Too much tunes in the head and not enough smarts left over. Flawless rendition. Not many accordions in the BFTs, they're always good for a stump.

Track 9 - Wish I could come up with more astute commentary here. Very familar tune. The first cue sounds a bit like an Ornette but it can't be that. Just maybe a sample tossed in as a quote. Have to come back to this one again.

Track 10 - Pretty challenging trio. This took a couple of listens but just some fantastic interplay.

Track 11 - Bit of a Silver a go go happening but sunk for the electric bass that is completely out played by all around. Probably the lightest of weight tune of the bunch.

Track 12 - Eastern feel never really quite opens up in the bottom and I guess it remains a showcase for the saxophone. Some very expert durbucke as Mike can tell us that it's hard to keep that drone going for so long. My stab would be Thomas Chapin.

Track 13 - Nice segue here from cut 12. Two horn line up that might teach Zorn a bit or two. Since I already used up my Chapin guess maybe this is Zorn on some Bill Laswell date. I used to be all over this way out stuff and am thoroughly taken a back as it is not my cup as much anymore but there still remains some in the bottom that I can't wash out.

Track 14 - Another nice bridge from the previous. Damn pretty and I'll bet Terrason with that Ogunogunokowelloguy.

Track 15 - Nice. More wine and fatty foods with these last two.

Track 16 - Now where'd this come from. Shouldn't this have been after #11?

I think I've heard this tune but not a clue. I like this and will very interested to see the guesses. The recording is a bit muffled to really show it off. Some Zawinul big band thing??

Track 17 - Frisell live. Man I just don't care so much for Bill anymore but Baron is always killin!

Track - 18 - Duke's biznis. Truly inspired first half!!

Really wish I had a smidge of the knowledge of coming up with good commentary like the others here but will just peruse happily and hopefully post disc 2 impressions soon.

edit fer spellink.

Edited March 16, 2005 by Man with the Golden Arm

[king ubu]

Hey Vint, enjoyed reading your post!

Funny that Chapin comes up again! I've just started finally listening to his box set ("Alive") a bit and enjoyed what I heard so far very much. But then, this is not Chapin...

Not Frisell, either, btw, and not Baron

Some musicians have been identified, some tracks, too, there's a short resume further above.

Oh, and ubu is far too young to have any 78s...

[Man with the Golden Arm]

I can almost hear, from half a world away, his majesty the King laughing his ass off over our feeble guesses!

feeble is too kind for those postings of mine above.

i'm just happy i knew that durbuke, or durbuka as you all say. all them church picnic bellydancers paid off fer something.

reading the discussion thread is making my head hurt. i've got it open in three pages on the desktop and still can't figure it all out. pesky folks posting numbers in other languages! sheesh.

[Man with the Golden Arm]

Not Frisell, either, btw, and not Baron

Oh, and ubu is far too young to have any 78s...

#17 - yes i see that now. Hmmph, I was ready to put up all my money, too. whoever it is they owe Bill some money. is that "Everything Happens To Me."? and then he quotes Foster's "Oh Susanah". (might have been ID-ed but missed it)

[marcoliv]

first of all many thanks to the King for the discs

track1: what a lovely way to start your disc Flurin. i think i'm familiar with the song and i would guess Ben Webster as the tenor

tracks2/3/4: NMCOT

track5: only the vibes got my attention and i can't see who is playing it

track6:this is Hush from D.Byrd and i'm quite sure i have this version...i'm eating my hat for not reminding myself who is playing this my first guess was from a black lion release but i was wrong

track7:i would say Helen Merrill and this performance is truly great. now i see where Ms.Nnenna Freelon takes her inspirations

track8:stop the plane!!!!!!!!i want to jump out with no parachute!!!!!!!!!!!jesus christ, this is absolutely amazing!!!!!! my knowledge of accordeon in jazz is non-existant so i should say Richard Galliano. i GOT to have this NOW!!!!!!!!!!

track9:can't identify the players or the song but i like it

track10:i still have problems listening this kind of music. anything similar i would say that it's Cecil Taylor......but i'm probably wrong about it

track11:a greazy one but just okay

track12:no please, thanks

track13:sorry if i'm being rude but no, thanks

track14:interesting piano trio.this one is growing on me after each audition

tracks15/16:just okay

track17: the kind of guitar that i really avoid

track18:this guy is on the new season of american idol right????

my disc has almost a hole on track 8 since i'm listening to this ad nauseum

thanks my beloved King!!!

Marcus

[marcoliv]

8. This track blew me away, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I was drawn into how the accordion player was able to comp like a brass section all the while soloing with the other hand. I mean, this guy sounds like a one-man Benny Golson arrangement! Yes, I know it’s “Whisper Not,” but I just can’t get over how GOOD this sounds; how much it SWINGS! Tell me who this is NOW!!! Hell, I even applauded when it was over!

Al,

thanks for perfectly expressing my feelings about this one. my first reaction was to applaud the performance too!!!

btw, Whisper Not is such a gorgeous tune

Marcus

[king ubu]

8. This track blew me away, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I was drawn into how the accordion player was able to comp like a brass section all the while soloing with the other hand. I mean, this guy sounds like a one-man Benny Golson arrangement! Yes, I know it’s “Whisper Not,” but I just can’t get over how GOOD this sounds; how much it SWINGS! Tell me who this is NOW!!! Hell, I even applauded when it was over!

Al,

thanks for perfectly expressing my feelings about this one. my first reaction was to applaud the performance too!!!

btw, Whisper Not is such a gorgeous tune

Marcus

I'm glad you guys dig that track so much! I'm already planning the bonus disc for my next bft...

I'm afraid to say, on #8: you have it now, nothing more there...

Marcus: glad you enjoyed some of my choices! Obviously there's some that won't appeal to everyone, but there's kind of a theme to this disc, so everything has its place (@Vint: that theme is why #16 is not coming after #11...).

You're right on Frog & Helen, as you will quickly see skipping through the discussion.

[JSngry]

Been trying to find a time where I could post everything at once. Doesn't seem like that's going to happen any time soon, though, so here goes. Ususal thanks and disclaimers apply.

TRACK ONE - Ben & "Old Folks" (is this a theme for cuts to follow?). Beautiful. So much virtuosity involved to play so "simply", virtuosity of tone, phrasing, timing, all the things that make music music. Listen to the cat - he never plays the melody per se, yet the melody is the only thing he plays. Art of a very high order.

TRACKS TWO - FOUR - Sounds like excerpts featuring the same tenor player. Very fluent player, especially for the time, tremendous swing, very driving. If I had to guess, I'd guess Chu Berry, but I'd not put any money on it. These are cuts I need to obtain myself!

TRACK FIVE - "Mop Mop", although maybe that's not what it's titled. Prety sure I her Jacquet, Hamp, & Milt Buckner. Very nice swing-to-bop cut whoever it is. Pianist is very forward thinking harmonically, I'll take some of this too, thanks!

TRACK SIX - D. Byrd's "Hush", but by whom? Altoist has a pretty distinctive tone and way of juggling traditional bop harmonic gambits rhythmically, which makes not being able to readily identify him very frustrating. Not Sonny Redd, is it? Actually, the same goes for the entire group - they play the style, so to speak, but find polenty of room for surprises therein.

TRACK SEVEN - Again, no idea who it is, but the backing trio is some baaaaaaaad mofos! Helen Merrill? Maybe a touch of a "European" accent there. No matterr - it takes a singer with guts to neither be cowered by nor try to outdo the backing when it's this hardcore. Very nice!

TRACK EIGHT - "Whisper Not" on accordion. Now I've heard everything! Good, yeah, but not really anything or anybody I'm particularly taken by.

TRACK NINE - WHOA! "When Will The Blues Leave" played totally straight, and burningly so! Tenor sounds quite a bit like Oliver Nelson in spots, but not consistently. Same w/the drummer vis-a-vis Roy Haynes. I'm guessing that this is some really hip mid-60s European Hard Bop players. I'd like to hear more by them, especially the tenor player, whose tone is quite interesting and somewhat "German" in character, ala Heinz Sauer.

TRACK TEN - Ok, I swear that I either have this one or have heard it enough back in the day for it to stick, but as to who it specifically is, I can't say. Don Pullen comes to mind, as does some of the freer Dave Burrell things. I like this quite a bit - it's "free" but totally focused in it's developement. Everybody's on the same page from the git-go, and that's the name of the game. No bullshit here! Sure sounds familiar, but if I could remember everything I've heard, what fun would that be? The tune itself isn't really "out" either, it's pretty straightforward, so what they do with it should be able to be "picked up on" by a listener who's so inclined.

TRACK ELEVEN - Varitoned alto, humming bass, electric piano, enthusiastic drumming, waht's not to like? Well, the recording quality for one thing, but I can live with that. Is this some late-60s MPS thing? No clue, but I dig it muchly. Lightweight, but positively so.

TRACK TWELVE - I dig Joe Harriot quite a bit, and have heard a fair amount of his work, but never the Indo-Jazz things. This would be my guess. I like this very much, and if it is in fact Harriot, that's a hole in my collection I need to fill soon. Spots of it seem "naive", if that makes any sense, but for all the right reasons.

TRACK THIRTEEN - Again, no idea (setting a record here for times having to say that...), but also again, I dig it a lot. Not much more to say than that. Very focused in its "free"-ness, so it conveys the sense of a story being told and developed, which i really all I ask of any music.

TRACK FOURTEEN - Tune sounds like "Delilah", but it's not. Pianist sounds very familar, but again, I can't call anybody specific, much to my chagrin. Defintiely sounds like a long-standing working group, great empathy and interplay amongst the three. That quasi-Jamal groove is like cream gravy - you could put it on a turd and it would make it taste good! But fortunately, this is no turd. Not the kind of bag I'd necessarily follow for a lifetime, but then again, maybe it is if the results were always this good.

TRACK FIFTEEN - BEAUTIFUL tune, a descendant of "Blue In Green", sorta, BEAUTIFUL arrangement! No idea who it is (again), but the writing alone makes this a "must have" for me! That French horn solo is wonderful, wholly personal, "world weary" yet defiant. Yeah! The other soloists don't do as much for me - there's a quality of "fluent noodling" to them, of gliding to and from all the notes without a lot of thought in between. But that's cool - it's a great tune and even greater arrangement, and that, plus the french horn, is more than enough for me!

TRACK SIXTEEN - Don Ellis? Fillmore? Bootleg? From a well-. perhaps over-, played cassette? The band is totally into the chart, which makes the difference in something that has the potential to be as ponderous as this one does. That it doesn't end up there is a testament to the difference that the "team spirit" in a band makes. If this is Ellis, there's things of his that I like more, but also things I like less. His was a very unique world, and one that is full of its pwn special rewards. Yeah, that's Glenn Ferris, right? Big FAT ensemble chords, nice. Yes to Don Ellis!

TRACK SEVENTEEN - "Ghosts". Sounds like somebdy halfway between Blood & Frissell, kinda like Brandon Ross... Great cut, again, everybody's focused and playing together "spiritually", which be it this or Don Ellis, is the key to making music that exists at a level other than mere "product". I'll take some more of this, too, please!

TRACK EIGHTEEN - Duke at his most sardonic. God, I love that man - has anybody ever said FUCK YOU more gracefully?

A tremendously satisfying set!

Gotta go make a gig. Will try to get to Disc Two upon return.

[JSngry]

A few comments now that I've read the previous postings.

So 2-4 are not all the same player, eh? Interesting...the tone of the tenorist is more rhythmic than I associate with Hawk of any period, except maybe the mid-40s. But I'm light on his Euro years, so maybe his tone got more limber during those years. Time to learn, no doubt.

5 is not Jaquet? Wow....

6 - "Hush" is from ROYAL FLUSH, fwiw.

10 - Irene S. is a name I've heard, but not her playing. This is a good piece to me. I'll explore more of her work. Thanks for the coat-pull!

11 - Not a varitone? A multivider, then? My h.s. band director also owned a music store, and he brought one of those in for us to experiment with. Worked w/either a pickup or a mike, which is what I used. Fun, but when you're 15, what the hell do you know what to do w/a multivider, a tenor, and a mike?

[king ubu]

Jim, I really enjoyed reading your guesses and ideas!

Now, I guess it's time for me to step forward and make on little thing clear:

#2-4 are from the very same date - and for what it's worth: it's all there is from that date, so you got it now, folks!

That cut which now had another guess on Don Ellis (not him) - I'm sorry about the sound there. It's from the air, not from a tape, thus no wear, rather I probably fucked up some settings when doing the transfer to the HD in order to get it onto CDR.

#12 is not Joe Harriott, btw, but that's another interesting guess!

ubu

[JSngry]

16 is not Don Ellis? Oh well...

Is Glenn Ferris on this cut anyway?

Yes to Don Ellis anyway, and yes to whoever this is!

[king ubu]

16 is not Don Ellis? Oh well...

Is Glenn Ferris on this cut anyway?

Yes to Don Ellis anyway, and yes to whoever this is!

Nope, sorry I forgot to tell you about Ferris. The 'bone is a young Swiss guy... I assume this doesn't help any, though

[catesta]

1- This is great stuff. Can't name the tune right now, but this is surely Ben Webster, no?

2 - Did this start in progress or was it really that short? No real guesses, I'll say Fletcher Henderson for the hell of it.

3 - Could be Fletcher Henderson again, us that Hawkins?

4 - 'I'm in the Mood For Love' and if Hawkins was not on any of the other tracks so far, he must be on this one.

5 - This is Hampton, right? Sure seems to be along those lines. Piano may be Oscar Peterson, tenor may be Cobb, trumpet I'm at a complete loss. Maybe the piano is Teddy Wilson?

6 - Nice! Is that Red Garland on piano? Jimmy Woods on alto?

Not sure, but I'm into it.

7 - I can guess the name of the tune B-) , but not sure of the wonderful vocalist.

I like the mood here.

8 - Accordion??!!! The tune is 'Whisper Not' , I couldn't guess the player in a million years, but I liked it.

Something I could dig listening to while sipping on a big ass beer outdoors.

9 - Straight ahead goos stuff. This could be something familiar by the likes of Silver or any other BN artist. I liled the tenor, and really liked the trumpet. Blue Mitchell?

10 - Another good 'un.

Steve Kuhn? Lightsey? Nah, perhaps something by some new blood?

11- Funky, funky, funky. Sounds like something from a dance scene in a 1960s era film. Cool. B-)

12 - The tone of the sax was cool, bit that;s as far as it went for me.

13 - It got better when the bass started up, but still a little over my head. However I would be interested to hear more.

14 - After a second listen I was able to appreciate this more. I liked it just fine.

No clue on the players. I'll throw Jarret's name out there for laughs and giggles.

Shit, it may even be Bill Evans. Oh hell I haev no idea, but me thinks Im liking it more and may want to pick this up.

15 - Very, very sweet.

16 - Funky, funky, funky, again. Seems like I should be able to name this tune.

It's okay stuff, but not sure how much if it I could take.

17 - No clue. Safe to say this is not for me. Maybe someday.

18 - THAT IS DUKE!!!!!!

I don't know from which performance, but that be Duke in full force.

[Man with the Golden Arm]

1-17 Ayler's Ghosts on guitar Marc Ribot?

so is Randy on here?

could this be Ribot's Spiritual Unity Band?

[king ubu]

Nope, no Ribot here! Surprise guy, but a good one! I like the drummer and bassist equally well.

[king ubu]

Time for some lengthier reply to some of your post, Jim:

TRACK ONE - Ben & "Old Folks" (is this a theme for cuts to follow?). Beautiful. So much virtuosity involved to play so "simply", virtuosity of tone, phrasing, timing, all the things that make music music. Listen to the cat - he never plays the melody per se, yet the melody is the only thing he plays. Art of a very high order.

Love that comment of yours about the melody - that may indeed be the core of late Webster (I ADORE those dutch recordings that were fairly recenlty reissued on a Blue Note 2CD set, for just that).

TRACKS TWO - FOUR - Sounds like excerpts featuring the same tenor player. Very fluent player, especially for the time, tremendous swing, very driving. If I had to guess, I'd guess Chu Berry, but I'd not put any money on it. These are cuts I need to obtain myself!

As I said: here you get them cuts. Nothing more to be had, not Chu (tenor has been identified by several persons, but no one came that close to grouping these three together as you. on that, on Choo.

TRACK FIVE - "Mop Mop", although maybe that's not what it's titled. Prety sure I her Jacquet, Hamp, & Milt Buckner. Very nice swing-to-bop cut whoever it is. Pianist is very forward thinking harmonically, I'll take some of this too, thanks!

Don't know if there's more of this around. These guys are all totally unknown, no Americans at all. Dig couw's comment about stiffness and adjusting (no need to do that on your end, though ) to get an idea... and check EKE's post right at the start of the thread to see the names of the guys made allusion to.

TRACK SIX - D. Byrd's "Hush", but by whom? Altoist has a pretty distinctive tone and way of juggling traditional bop harmonic gambits rhythmically, which makes not being able to readily identify him very frustrating. Not Sonny Redd, is it? Actually, the same goes for the entire group - they play the style, so to speak, but find polenty of room for surprises therein.

I love this cut a lot. The alto is NOT Sonny Red, he's virtually unknown (not over here, but...). The trumpet man and the pianist (who does some feghing great stuff elsewhere on the disc are known, the drummer is feghin' famous, so to speak, so try again, someone, try just a little bit harder... (it's not Janis' drummer, though )

TRACK SEVEN - Again, no idea who it is, but the backing trio is some baaaaaaaad mofos! Helen Merrill? Maybe a touch of a "European" accent there. No matterr - it takes a singer with guts to neither be cowered by nor try to outdo the backing when it's this hardcore. Very nice!

Feghin' great, isn't it! And I'm happy to report I hunted down one of the two CDs EKE linked to above and can safely tell: not from there!

TRACK EIGHT - "Whisper Not" on accordion. Now I've heard everything! Good, yeah, but not really anything or anybody I'm particularly taken by.

Now here you're just plain wrong...

Check everybody else's comment to see how you should have gone all fegh is this great!

TRACK NINE - WHOA!  "When Will The Blues Leave" played totally straight, and burningly so! Tenor sounds quite a bit like Oliver Nelson in spots, but not consistently. Same w/the drummer vis-a-vis Roy Haynes. I'm guessing that this is some really hip mid-60s European Hard Bop players. I'd like to hear more by them, especially the tenor player, whose tone is quite interesting and somewhat "German" in character, ala Heinz Sauer.

Interesting that Sauer pops up a second time here! I hardly know his playing, and this is not him. Can't tell if there has been an influence.

I never looked at this cut as being a hardbop interpretation of a Coleman theme (that was maybe too obvious for me to notice). I always considered these guy not just yet ready for the task (so did several others in their responses, interestingly - in a similar way, btw, than about "Mop Mop", just a couple of decades later). However, I guess this one makes A LOT more sense the way you look at it!

Also the two of these guys appear elsewhere, splitted, I may say

TRACK TWELVE - I dig Joe Harriot quite a bit, and have heard a fair amount of his work, but never the Indo-Jazz things. This would be my guess. I like this very much, and if it is in fact Harriot, that's a hole in my collection I need to fill soon. Spots of it seem "naive", if that makes any sense, but for all the right reasons.

Harriott's indo-jazz stuff... well, they are in an alltogether different bag, much more loaded, if you know what I mean. This one is direct, straight, nothing here that may clog things up, and that naiveté yes, I can hear it, and I think it adds to the freshness and purity of this cut.

TRACK THIRTEEN - Again, no idea (setting a record here for times having to say that...), but also again, I dig it a lot. Not much more to say than that. Very focused in its "free"-ness, so it conveys the sense of a story being told and developed, which i really all I ask of any music.

Oh wait, here comes that freshness again

TRACK TEN - Ok, I swear that I either have this one or have heard it enough back in the day for it to stick, but as to who it specifically is, I can't say. Don Pullen comes to mind, as does some of the freer Dave Burrell things. I like this quite a bit - it's "free" but totally focused in it's developement. Everybody's on the same page from the git-go, and that's the name of the game. No bullshit here! Sure sounds familiar, but if I could remember everything I've heard, what fun would that be? The tune itself isn't really "out" either, it's pretty straightforward, so what they do with it should be able to be "picked up on" by a listener who's so inclined.

Quoting this again after your comment on #13: thanks for seing this two cuts as focussed! So do I, but some do disagree here... I really thought I'd pick the "freer" stuff in a way that may not piss too many off in too harsh a way, and it worked with some, in regard to some cuts (the ones in question, I think, are #10, #12, #13, and maybe #16, which was liked the least).

TRACK FOURTEEN ...Not the kind of bag I'd necessarily follow for a lifetime, but then again, maybe it is if the results were always this good.

Pretty much same opinion here. Just wanted you to hear this pianist, and that one cut is indeed a helluva good one!

TRACK FIFTEEN - BEAUTIFUL tune, a descendant of "Blue In Green", sorta, BEAUTIFUL arrangement! No idea who it is (again), but the writing alone makes this a "must have" for me! That French horn solo is wonderful, wholly personal, "world weary" yet defiant. Yeah! The other soloists don't do as much for me - there's a quality of "fluent noodling" to them, of gliding to and from all the notes without a lot of thought in between. But that's cool - it's a great tune and even greater arrangement, and that, plus the french horn, is more than enough for me!

The "Blue in Green" similarity has escaped me so far, will have to re-listen. Note that (as far as I can tell) you're only the second poster to nail the french horn! I love the french horn, and I think this guy is one of the best around these days. The band was a mix of stars and working guys, but then among the working guys, some are here appearing on instruments that they don't usually play, so things are a bit special in several respects.

TRACK SIXTEEN - Don Ellis? Fillmore? Bootleg? From a well-. perhaps over-, played cassette? The band is totally into the chart, which makes the difference in something that has the potential to be as ponderous as this one does. That it doesn't end up there is a testament to the difference that the "team spirit" in a band makes. If this is Ellis, there's things of his that I like more, but also things I like less. His was a very unique world, and one that is full of its pwn special rewards. Yeah, that's Glenn Ferris, right? Big FAT ensemble chords, nice. Yes to Don Ellis!

I tellya these guys DO have team spirit! Saw them live once and they're freakin' mad!

TRACK SEVENTEEN - "Ghosts". Sounds like somebdy halfway between Blood & Frissell, kinda like Brandon Ross... Great cut, again, everybody's focused and playing together "spiritually", which be it this or Don Ellis, is the key to making music that exists at a level other than mere "product". I'll take some more of this, too, please!

This is sort of a free track in disguise. I love it. The guitar has that sweet sound, and the whole group sound is not too far off, but still there's a lot going on. The bass player is another impressive youngster (so are the other two) that I'm quite fond of and have seen in a few different settings.

TRACK EIGHTEEN - Duke at his most sardonic. God, I love that man - has anybody ever said FUCK YOU more gracefully?         

:g :g

A bunch of thanks, Jim, for taking the time to write up these notes (and even more for sitting down and caring for the music!)

ubu

[king ubu]

now on to catesta-pated: I had my share of laughs and giggles on Jarrett...

Not Woods on #6, not Garland either, but I can hear some of it in the chords he plays during the horn solos. However, I think his own solo shows more of Timmons (as someone has noted above, already).

And why the hell do you all think "Hamp" on "Mop Mop"? Is he just the one obvious name for the style, or do you really hear a lot of his influence in this vibist's playing? Guess I'll need to re-listen again...

And I'm glad that #15 is a favourite, because that's one of the very few and select cuts there's more of to be found (only sort of, though pretty close...)

[Man with the Golden Arm]

now on to catesta-pated:

not with that diet of his!

[king ubu]

now on to catesta-pated:

not with that diet of his!

this is the first hit of a google image search for "catesta"

I'd say: gotcha! busted!

ubu

[Nate Dorward]

OK lessee--

1: Ben Webster & I don’t remember the name of this tune. Hm, just tenor, piano, & drums, maybe an informal after-hours thing. Oh, here’s the bass. Very, very pretty. Maybe one of those 1960s Webster live dates form Europe? I don’t think it’s a band of Ellingtonians. Anyway, so the BFT starts on a high point...!

2: Dig that surface crackle! No idea who it is. An airshot, I assume?

3: Oh I forget the name of the tune. More airshot-quality sound. Yow, a take-no-quarters solo from the tenor, filling up all the space. Pity it fades out.

4: Ugh, I don’t know how much more of this sound I can take, it seems to be getting worse.... Probably Coleman Hawkins buried under there somewhere (maybe it’s just the “Body & Soul”ish keychange at the bridge that makes me say that, but, no, I think it’s him). What’s the tune?

5: Oh good, some decent sound. 1940s swing-to-bop tune over rhythm changes, reminds me of “Knockout” on George Wallington’s Savoy disc. Somehow I’m not getting a lot out of this one though it’s probably historically interesting. Nice suspension at the end of the vibes solo, & wow, some snapping-turtle electric guitar. Some harmonically nice things in the piano solo. Not a great track, but an interesting track.

6: OK, modern times. Demure call & reponse bluesy tune. The altoist knows his Jackie McLean & James Spaulding & other Blue Note altoists, otherwise I haven’t a clue who it is. & the trumpeter has also listened to a stack of Blue Notes. I’d be surprised if this was actually old veterans, it sounds like young guys playing old to me. The pianist maybe a little more interesting than the horns. Gimme the old surface crackle.....

7: This is a little livelier. Aha, Helen Merrill. Not typical of her work, at least the stuff I’ve heard! Hm, early Bill Evans on the piano. The drummer I should know too, but can’t quite put my finger on it. Must be one of the Mercury dates.

8: I recently reviewed a rather nice hardbop accordian disc by Pino di Modugno, tell me if you'd like my copy Flurin. No idea who this is. The studio acoustic seems a little old-fashioned, I'd thoguht this was a recent track originally but just the studio sound makes me think 1960s. Other than the instrsumentation there's nothing especially remarkable about the track. Curious drop in volume at the end.

9: Icky sound, which is a pity. Ornette tune, "When Will the Blues Leave?" West Coast vibe, maybe following the lead of Art Pepper's reading of the tune for Contemporary. The trumpeter sounds terribly familiar, the tenor less so.

10: Aha, a Cecil Taylor tune off The World of Cecil Taylor, I think it's "E.B.". Not so often you hear Cecil covered. The big difference here of course is that the rhythm section plays just as freely here as the pianist whereas on the original Denis Charles mostly keeps time. A good band performance with a nicely unpredictable development (obvously carefully worked-out, with the pianist reaching a vehement climax & then the mood immediately getting calmer for the bass solo). Nice idea for the fadeout with the dancing treble figures too.

11: no idea! Fun, if nothing else. The trumpeter sounds familiar, the rest I dunno.

12: Nice dramatic opening with the acerbic alto jumping out of the bass drone. Reminds me a bit once the percussion kicks in of Sonny Fortune’s work with Glen Velez, but I really don’t know this: the guy’s tone is so distinctive that I think I would know who it is if I already knew his work. Good track.

13: No idea who this is. It’s OK without doing much for me, whether in the slow opening or the fast blow in the middle.

14: Slick.

15: I liked this one a lot--interesting chart, good solos. No idea who it is.

16: hm, I initially thought Carla Bley, but the writing doesn't quite seem like her. I don't get a lot out of this one. I think on balance I'll still plump for Carla Bley though it does seem awfully cluttered for her.

17: Sounds like a guitarist halfway between Frisell & Scofield! Nice powerful rhythm section. It's an Ayler tune, so I think I'd have to guess Marc Ribot for this.

18: Ellington of course.

Edited March 21, 2005 by Nate Dorward