All Activity

👍

I agree with the names you mention. Nasheet I first saw with Andrew Hill and Peter Brötzmann (separately) almost 25 years ago. He’s excellent. I don’t know that recordings always capture these artists’ work well, but that has always been the case.

Not listening to the great drummers of today. Blessed to be seeing Gerry Hemingway tonight at The Stone. It’s actually a golden age for drummers. The older guys like Hemingway, Hamid Drake, Paul Lytton, Han Bennink & Andrew Cyrille still playing at a very high level. the slightly younger drummers than the old dudes like Randy Peterson, Gerald Cleaver, Tom Rainey, Mark Sanders & Steve Noble are incredible. then we have Tyshawn Sorey, Ches Smith, Nasheet Waits, etc. the real gap is we don’t have many under 40 drummers making their mark. Not sure why a few have not emerged as of yet. Especially here in NYC.

Why did/would Columbia sit on Captain Marvel for three years before releasing it? Great album, and IMO would have made more of a splash in 1972 than it did in 1975 when some of the songs had already been recorded and released by the Airto/Flora/Farrell/Clarke RTF.

October 29, 2025: Chuck Redd, Parker Jazz Club, Austin November 5, 2025: Cory Weeds, Parker Jazz Club, Austin November 9, 2025: Artemis, House of Blues, Houston Julius Rodriguez, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston November 10, 2025: Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas November 12, 2025: Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, Meyerson, Dallas November 14, 2025: Nicholas Payton Quartet, Wortham Theater, Houston Wynton Marsalis, Grand Opera House, Galveston Mike Stern, Guitar Sanctuary, McKinney Shelley Carrol, Scat Jazz, Fort Worth November 15, 2025: Wynton Marsalis, Hogg Auditorium, Austin Mike Stern Band, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas Kunal Gunjal (Santoor) & Amit Kavthekar (Tabla), Kathak Dance Studio, Plano November 16, 2025: Wynton Marsalis, Hobby Center, Houston November 21, 2025: Anat Cohen, The Clarion at brazosport College, Lake Jackson November 22,2025: Jim Snidero, Scat Jazz, Fort Worth January 10, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's, Austin January 11, 2026: Brandon Woody's Upendo, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston January 17, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's, Austin January 24, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's Austin January 31, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's, Austin February 22, 2026: Branford Marsalis Quaret, Wortham Theater, Houston March 7, 2026: Pat Metheny Side-Eye, Wortham Theater, Houston March 13, 2026: T.K. Blue and African Rhythms Alumni, A Tribute to Randy Weston, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas March 20, 2026: Sarah Hanahan, Monk's Jazz Club, Austin March 21, 2026: Sunny War, Anne Harris, Buffalo Nichols, Jake Blount, Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival, Southside Preservation Hall, Fort Worth March 22, 2026: Sarah Hanahan, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston March 26-29, 2026: Pat Metheny Side-Eye III, Chucho Valdes Royal Quartet, John Scofield Trio, Marc Ribot, Shabaka, Mary Halvorson, Julian Lage Quartet, John Zorn (Various), Chicago Underground Duo, Marquis Hill Blacktet, Brandon Woody, Brian Marsella, Chad Taylor Quintet, Ches Smith Clone Row, Darius Jones Trio, Dave Douglas Gifts Quartet, Either/Orchestra, Harriet Tubman & Georgia Ann Muldrow, Isaiah Collier, Marilyn Crispell & Harvey Sorgen, Matt Mitchell's Zealous Angles, Miles Okazaki: The Compete Monk, Miles Okazaki Trickster, Nate Smith, Nik Bartsch, Nik Bartsch Ronin, Openness Trio, Patricia Brennan Septet, Sullivan Fortner Trio, Tim Berne, Tom Skinner, William Hooker Quartet, Ned Rothenberg, Yasmin Williams and William Tyler, Thomas Fujiwara: Dream Up, Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, Tennessee April 1, 2026: Samara Joy, Winspear Opera House, Dallas Pat Metheny Side-Eye III, Majestic Theater, Dallas April 2, 2026: Kaia Kater, Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Little Rock, Arkansas Samora Joy, Austin City Limits April 4, 2026: Samora Joy, Tobin Center, San Antonio April 10, 2026: Coltrane at 100 (Joe Lovano, Melissa Aldana, Ndudzo Makhathini, Matt Garrison, Jefftain Watts), Cullen Theater, Houston April 23-26, 2026: New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival April 30-May 3, 2026: New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival May 9, 2026: Hiromi's Sonic Wonder, Cullen Theater, Houston May 16, 2026: Chucho Valdes, Paramount Theater, Austin May 17, 2026: Lucia, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston

Never connected with them, but that’s probably on me. There are definitely a lot of fine (at a minimum) drummers on the scene! But the working situations leave a lot to be desired and I think that has a detrimental effect on the “feel” of the music. It’s not so lived-in, nor is it particularly cutthroat.

Yes, Jack was great for his amazing skills and his unique style--that's why he is up there with Max, Tony, Elvin, Art, and those true greats. There are some fine drummers our there, like Joey Baron and Bill Stewart. But I think they are a level or two down from Jack.

Trying to be attentive to my wife’s needs now that she is home and re-establish some normalcy for us. Sneaking in a liten to Keith Jarrett/Gary Peacock/Paul Motian “The Old Country” ECM Japan UHQCD. 300×269 8.53 KB

Pedregal:

Verve MV 4011 (Japan 1980) - The Oscar Peterson Trio " At The Shakespearean Festival" - rec. Aug. 1956

October 29 Mats Gustafsson - 1964

👍 - cover paintings by Bill Dixon!

The Intense Media 600392 - Cal Tjader " Milestones Of A Legend" -

October 29, 2025: Chuck Redd, Parker Jazz Club, Austin November 5, 2025: Cory Weeds, Parker Jazz Club, Austin November 9, 2025: Artemis, House of Blues, Houston Julius Rodriguez, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston November 10, 2025: Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas November 12, 2025: Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, Meyerson, Dallas November 14, 2025: Nicholas Payton Quartet, Wortham Theater, Houston Wynton Marsalis, Grand Opera House, Galveston Mike Stern, Guitar Sanctuary, McKinney Shelley Carrol, Scat Jazz, Fort Worth November 15, 2025: Wynton Marsalis, Hogg Auditorium, Austin Mike Stern Band, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas Kunal Gunjal (Santoor) & Amit Kavthekar (Tabla), Kathak Dance Studio, Plano November 16, 2025: Wynton Marsalis, Hobby Center, Houston November 21, 2025: Anat Cohen, The Clarion at brazosport College, Lake Jackson November 22,2025: Jim Snidero, Scat Jazz, Fort Worth January 10, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's, Austin January 11, 2026: Brandon Woody's Upendo, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston January 17, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's, Austin January 24, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's Austin January 31, 2026: Jackie Venson, Antone's, Austin February 22, 2026: Branford Marsalis Quaret, Wortham Theater, Houston March 7, 2026: Pat Metheny Side-Eye, Wortham Theater, Houston March 13, 2026: T.K. Blue and African Rhythms Alumni, A Tribute to Randy Weston, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas March 20, 2026: Sarah Hanahan, Monk's Jazz Club, Austin March 21, 2026: Sunny War, Anne Harris, Buffalo Nichols, Jake Blount, Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival, Southside Preservation Hall, Fort Worth March 22, 2026: Sarah Hanahan, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston March 26-29, 2026: Pat Metheny Side-Eye III, Chucho Valdes Royal Quartet, John Scofield Trio, Marc Ribot, Shabaka, Mary Halvorson, Julian Lage Quartet, John Zorn (Various), Chicago Underground Duo, Marquis Hill Blacktet, Brandon Woody, Brian Marsella, Chad Taylor Quintet, Ches Smith Clone Row, Darius Jones Trio, Dave Douglas Gifts Quartet, Either/Orchestra, Harriet Tubman & Georgia Ann Muldrow, Isaiah Collier, Marilyn Crispell & Harvey Sorgen, Matt Mitchell's Zealous Angles, Miles Okazaki: The Compete Monk, Miles Okazaki Trickster, Nate Smith, Nik Bartsch, Nik Bartsch Ronin, Openness Trio, Orchestre Baobab, Patricia Brennan Septet, Sullivan Fortner Trio, Tim Berne, Tom Skinner, William Hooker Quartet, Ned Rothenberg, Yasmin Williams and William Tyler, Thomas Fujiwara: Dream Up, Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, Tennessee April 1, 2026: Samara Joy, Winspear Opera House, Dallas April 2, 2026: Kaia Kater, Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Little Rock, Arkansas Samora Joy, Austin City Limits April 4, 2026: Samora Joy, Tobin Center, San Antonio April 10, 2026: Coltrane at 100 (Joe Lovano, Melissa Aldana, Ndudzo Makhathini, Matt Garrison, Jefftain Watts), Cullen Theater, Houston April 23-26, 2026: New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival April 30-May 3, 2026: New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival May 9, 2026: Hiromi's Sonic Wonder, Cullen Theater, Houston May 16, 2026: Chucho Valdes, Paramount Theater, Austin May 17, 2026: Lucia, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston

Church, ballpark, skating rink, etc are all large venues. Organs and organ playing in those days were designed to reach a large audience with one loud instrument. They were loaded up with overtones and throbbing vibrato to create an all-encompassing sound in places where the acoustics might not be that good and audibility trumped subtlety. I remember in skating rinks it was like a wall of continuous sound. Very little space. You could barely make out the tune (and then it would turn out to be the Hokey Pokey) but there was a beat of sorts. That style does not work all that well in a jazz setting. It has to be toned down a bit or it overwhelms everybody else playing. All those overtones are muddy! For me the organ didn't really come into its own in jazz until Jimmy Smith.

All I had hoped for from the Jays was that they keep it interesting. Exceeding expectations!

And then there was Compost...

These guys!

Three organists on the Quebec date are Edgar Swanston, Sir Charles Thompson, and Earl Van Dyke. Swanston was an unknown to me, but research shows him to be a Harlem native. Sir Charles had long been a fixture in Harlem, and Van Dyke was a Detroiter who went on to become a Motown stalwart. So...roller rink or church? Like that man says, do the math! Ask Junior! Ballpark!!!