Michael Weiss

Hampton family band (Slide, etc) Louis Hayes' brother Gerald Ralph Lalama's brother David Twin brothers Marcus and EJ Strickland Wayne and Alan Shorter

Up the hill from Artigue, a village outside Bagneres de Luchon in the Pyrènèes, two weeks ago. Lac de Gaube, a 90 minute hike from Cauterets.

The French website ina.fr has beaucoup video of this band!!!

Fried Buzzard has some of the best Bill Hardman on record.

Sonny Clark Doug Watkins

Big thanks to Peter Johnson and his lovely wife for holding us a couple of seats front and center. It was a little surreal - Wayne's group performing at floor level with a constant stream of people passing directly in front of the band throughout the performance, often stopping to snap a photo, two feet in front of Wayne, just like they do for the Mona Lisa in the Louvre. Hopefully several unsuspecting museum goers stopped and listened long enough to become captivated. Of course most of those who staked out seats early on knew what they were in for. Following Danilo's score as they rehearsed in the afternoon (the band hadn't seen the music until then) gave me a useful frame of reference when they performed the commissioned work. Interestingly, when Wayne was turning pages of his part, he was turning backwards not forwards! They followed with a largely improvised montage, though it began with strains of Sanctuary and then the coda from Over Shadow Hill Way, which I guess has acquired its own title, "Adventures Aboard the Golden Mean." The sound was surprisingly magnificent and Wayne's tone on soprano and tenor was gorgeous and full bodied. The talk before the concert was, as always with Wayne, provocative and full of humor, as he imitated Rod Steiger from "The Big Knife" and touched on familiar topics - Newark, Alan, Stephen Hawking, Quantum Physics, etc.

I'll be there.

You gotta go to Versailles Restaurant for killin' garlic chicken! There's one in Culver City: 10319 Venice Blvd

Had a nice experience playing with Dankworth and Cleo Laine at a Billy Taylor 80th birthday tribute at the Kennedy Center around eight years ago. Real pros.

Coincidentally just finished reading the short story collection, "The Preserving Machine." Title story about preserving music through animals. Check out Jonathan Lethem's "The Wall of the Sky, The Wall of the Eye."

Tom Harrell's quintet at the Vanguard. Still one of the best BANDS in the business. And there aren't too many bands out there. Particularly ones that SOUND like working bands. And this one really does. Wayne Escoffrey, Danny Grissett, Ugonna Okegwo, Jonathan Blake.

Wasn't my photo, but it looked pretty similar. This is the recipe we use from the NYTimes: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/02/dining/02mini.html

PERNIL 4.5 hours in the oven

It's a blues in C minor.

Yes vaguely, although no more details to add - sorry.

I don't see ONE black musician slated to perform. What's up with that?

An immaculate conception!

When you call someone a "master," THIS is what it's supposed to mean.

That is amazing.

Au contraire! That's Strayhorn's "Johnny Come Lately."

Nevermind, I got it: The Young Savages, 1961, directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Burt Lancaster. Either my parents or the babysitter f'ed up that night; that's no movie for a 5-year old. Just watched "The Young Savages." I thought I heard Harold Land! (David Amram score)

The "Which is the Most Time Wasting Thread?" thread.

Are you sure about that?

I performed with Jamil a fair amount in the 1980s and 90s. In trios with Al Harewood or Vernel Fournier, and in the quartets of George Coleman and Lou Donaldson. I never played with a bass player before or since who's harmonic path on any given tune was played as forcefully as Jamil. Jamil also has a son Zaid who plays alto. (Corrected)