Ron S

I am working it Ron. If I can't squeeze it into this fall mini-tour. I'll get it in the spring. g ← Sorry to keep nagging you but, to be truthful, Jim, Joe, and Randy secretly hired me to do just that. ← Well, I hope you are at least seeing some money for it. ← They promised me a percentage once sales of "This Is The Place" reach 100,000 units.

The name of the agency is Federal Emergency MANAGEMENT--not ASSISTANCE-- Agency. The purpose of the agency is to move into disaster situations that figuratively--and in this case literally--swamp and overwhelm the local and state authorities' limited capabilities. FEMA is supposed to move in, take over, coordinate, and MANAGE the response. Don't take my word for it--this is from FEMA's web site: Sitting in Baton Rouge or wherever they were and waiting for state or local authorities to tell them where and when to apply this powerful federal agency's resources is NOT MANAGEMENT by any definition. FEMA should be using its own resources--including, at the very least, having its own people on the ground and montioring ALL media reports (and not just the broadcast networks)--to determine where help is needed in the only big city affected by the storm. I don't know about you, but I expect more from the federal government and its leaders, and I say that having worked for the federal government myself, and having had many friends and relatives who have. I don't want to think that any federal agency, and especially one in the Department of Homeland Security, is relying upon state and local governments to do its job, especially in a situtation where those governments are as overwhelmed by a disaster as enormous as this. Yes, someone in local or state government may have screwed up by not advising FEMA about the tens of thousands of people at the convention center, but FEMA also screwed up--big time--by not asking the right questions, watching the right television, and having people in the right places to learn about this on its own. Call me naive (and with resepect to federal government capabilities I'm anything but), but I hold a federal agency such as FEMA--and the political leaders above it--to a much higher standard than I would municipal and state governments, and especially those in extremis as here.

Just Ubu's and Sangry's. (Only kidding. )

He DOES have great socks.

In Philly, North By Northwest's schedule, here, looks like it has some openings, if the other clubs don't. (Persistent little bugger, aren't I? )

Ron, I agree. That's my point. The New Orleans and Louisiana govts should have informed FEMA of the status quo, and they didn't. It looked to me like Brown did in fact learn of the Convention Center crowd from television. That shouldn't happen. For that matter, the Convention Center crowd apparently gathered two days before the television people began to report about it. Why didn't the TV people know about it? Why did they devote 100% of their reporting to the Super Dome? ← But my point is that in as massive a disaster as this, FEMA shouldn't have to rely on either the media OR state and local governments for information as critical as this. We're not talking about a few isolated people at the Convention Center, we're talking about TENS OF THOUSANDS. The whole reason for FEMA's existence is that certain disasters are beyond the capability of state and local governments to handle on their own, hence the need for federal intervention and assistance. FEMA is supposed to devote its own resources to getting a handle on a situation such as this and determining what it needs to do. That's a major part of its job.

Chris, I have to disagree with you and maybe for the first time agree with Dan Gould. I don't get cable TV and can't say what they were reporting on, but I have been watching as much of NBC and ABC as I could, and they reported only on the Super Dome, never mentioning the Convention Center until the day that Brown said he had just learned about it. ← But one would hope that FEMA and its Director are not relying on network television for this kind of information.

Why not just lengthen the Fall tour? You know, strike while the proverbial iron is hot?

Although I have been a jazz fan for many years, I have only begun to seriously collect jazz CD's in the last couple of years. Unlike most other record companies, Fantasy's comprehensive in-print catalogue has allowed me to quickly acquire many or most of the recordings of a wide variety of jazz musicians. By contrast, other companies tend to keep only a limited portion of their holdings in print, severely limiting the acquisitions of relatively new collectors. As a result, I have been able to purchase hundreds of brand-new Fantasy jazz CD's over the past couple of years, and intend to purchase many more in the future. Further, again unlike the efforts of other large record companies, I am constantly amazed at the consistently high sound quality of even the earliest digital transfers and remasterings of Fantasy releases from the 1980's and early 1990's. Just as Lester Koenig and his Contemporary engineers did with analog recording in the 1950's, Fantasy's digital engineers seem to have been among the first to "get it right." And while I support the 20-bit K2 remastering program and purchase these releases when they are available, Fantasy's vast in-print catalog of earlier transfers and remasterings still sound terrific and should appeal to even the most discerning audiophiles (for example, the five Shelly Manne Black Hawk CD's immediately come to mind). Therefore, yet again unlike other companies, Fantasy is fully justified in maintaining its older CD issues in print, without the need to delete these earlier efforts from the catalog until "better sounding" releases can be issued. So, like many others, I strongly urge Concord to keep this unique resource fully available to current and future jazz fans, who undoubtedly will continually return to "drink" from this "well" again and again.

I am working it Ron. If I can't squeeze it into this fall mini-tour. I'll get it in the spring. g ← Sorry to keep nagging you but, to be truthful, Jim, Joe, and Randy secretly hired me to do just that.

I will! But you should also push for an interview spot and playing time--similar to the Michigan public radio show you recently posted here--as a lead-in to a gig here this fall! With the buzz you're getting in other parts of the country, and a pitch about the illustrious history of organ trio jazz here in Philly (Jimmy Smith, Joey D., etc.), it would seem to be a natural fit.

DAMN! You know, Philly's the 4th largest radio market in the US (after NYC, LA, and Chicago). You guys should use this Chicago hype to get some air time on WRTI here in Philly (which is, as I've pointed out before, where organ trio jazz really began ). As I've suggested to Greg, you should get some radio exposure here as a tie-in with a gig.

. . . and send them copies of "This Is The Place." Also, once you get a gig scheduled, you really should contact WRTI, send them the 2 CD's (if they don't already have them), and get them to play them and do some interviewing leading up to and promoting the gig. I've heard them do that with other "emerging" performers coming to town. ← Again, many thanks Ron. Contacted Chris, still having a tough time with Ortleib's. But I am, Tenacious G... g ← And don't forget the other 2 places if those don't pan out--or even if they do!

. . . and send them copies of "This Is The Place." Also, once you get a gig scheduled, you really should contact WRTI, send them the 2 CD's (if they don't already have them), and get them to play them and do some interviewing leading up to and promoting the gig. I've heard them do that with other "emerging" performers coming to town.

... But also, as trane_fantastic and others have noted, there are lots of other great musicians on this set (he didn't list Elvin Jones, who's terrific on the many tracks on which he appears). ← I did... the Jones bros. (Elvin, Hank & Sam) ← Sorry, I missed that! I guess I was looking for Elvin's name separately because he's on 6 sessions/25 tracks , whereas Hank's only on 2 sessions and Sam's on 3. ← Actually, Sam is a brother from another mother, if ya dig my drift. Now, if Thad was on there, then the trifecta would be complete. ← Yeah, yeah, THAT'S why I missed it! But you still f-cked up by not mentioning Elvin separately.

Just read it Ron! Many thanks for the info!!! g ← Do you still have the other suggestions of Philly jazz clubs I had sent to Jim? ← If you could send them to me it would be great. I think I've contacted most...however, better safe than gigless. ← Greg, I'll post the other suggestions I can remember here, in case anyone familiar with the Philly jazz scene wants to supplement them: Chris' Jazz Cafe (www.chrisjazzcafe.com) Ortlieb's Jazz Haus (www.ortliebsjazzhaus.com) Warmdaddy's--affiliated with Zanzibar Blue but a bit funkier (www.warmdaddys.com) North By Northwest (www.nxnwphl.com) Alan Lankin, Chalupa, and other Philly-area Board members may have some more ideas, and hopefully will post them here--I know there are other clubs out there. Again, if there's anything I can do to help, let me know.

Centuries.

As was already noted in this thread yesterday (post #367 above)... ← But Hans, we can always use an update as to whether it's STILL sold out.

J.J. Johnson, discs 5-7:

... But also, as trane_fantastic and others have noted, there are lots of other great musicians on this set (he didn't list Elvin Jones, who's terrific on the many tracks on which he appears). ← I did... the Jones bros. (Elvin, Hank & Sam) ← Sorry, I missed that! I guess I was looking for Elvin's name separately because he's on 6 sessions/25 tracks , whereas Hank's only on 2 sessions and Sam's on 3.

I had the same concern before I got this set but, as I said earlier, I'm enjoying the set much more than I had anticipated. For one thing, Johnson's playing style falls much easier on my ears than that of a lot of other trombonists, and he also makes extensive use of muting to further round out his tone. But also, as trane_fantastic and others have noted, there are lots of other great musicians on this set (he didn't list Elvin Jones, who's terrific on the many tracks on which he appears). Further, some of these groups are heard across several sessions and lots of tracks, giving a nice structure to the set. As also mentioned previously, the arrangements are great, and there's a good mix of standards and original tunes, making this an extremely satisfying set of small-group straight-ahead jazz that wears well over the entire 7 discs.

Better move on that JJJ set next, and soon. "Running Low" can turn into "Last Chance" can turn into OOP fairly quickly. I moved on it, and am very glad I did. A lot of terrific music, and even more enjoyable than I had anticipated.

Anita O'Day, Disc 7:

Then maybe you can answer a question for me. I was listening to the OJC CD of "You Get More Bounce With Curtis Counce" on headphones the other day, and noticed on track 3 ("Too Close for Comfort") that the left channel disappears at 1:28-1:51. Do I have a defective CD, or do you hear it also?

That's in THOUSANDS, right?