Ron S

See my avatar. Never mind--I'll make it bigger: This and the other 4 volumes offer some of the best played, best recorded live club jazz ever. I recently A-B'd these with some other live sets of the same 1959-61 vintage (Miles at the Black Hawk, Byrd/Pepper at the Half Note, Art Blakey at the Jazz Corner of the World, etc.), and the level of ensemble playing on this set, plus the clarity and presence of the sound, were way ahead of the others. Not that the others aren't good, but just that the Manne/Black Hawk recordings are phenomenal--at least to my ears. And these haven't been remastered (at least in the US) since their initial CD issue in the early '90's. Frankly, there's virtually no room for improvement, which I guess Fantasy has figured out (and hence no U.S. 20-bit K2's).

I'm still wondering why only the Farlow set--and not the other 2 Verve sets with European versions and runs of 10,000 (Jazztet and Eldridge)--is being so widely distributed in the U.S. for such a low price. Is it not selling well?

I still say that whatever his reputation was among jazz critics in the '50's, it wasn't helped at all by the somewhat wacky public persona he cultivated in 1960's mass media. But again, you're absolutely correct that his music should be allowed to speak for itself.

Is it true that "mike casinghino" of Connecticut is actually the Organissimo Board alter ego of another Michael C. from Connecticut?

Yep--great small-group stuff from the late '30's (for some reason I was only thinking big band).

I have this 3-disc Columbia set, and it's very nice: The first disc has 24 pre-Blanton/Webster tracks. It's not a comprehensive collection of all the Columbia material from that period by any means, but the set presents a nice survey of all of Ellington's Columbia recordings. And the 80-page booklet that comes with it is terrific--lots of info, photos, etc. and very well organized. For early Ellington, there's also the 2-disc Okeh set: A lot of the same songs as on the Brunswick set, but recorded for the Okeh label. The sound is more processed (less surface noise) than on the Brunswick set, but still acceptable. And 6 of the tracks in this set are also included in the above Columbia set.

Amazon's Canadian site has it here for CDN$70.99, but shows it shipping within 4-6 weeks. EDIT: Now it says shipping within 7-13 days! Was it something I said???

Well, come to think of it, with the snow we just had in Philly, I could use a couple of the regular Mosaic box tops to sled down the nearest hillside. Sounds like a super, cool, fun and different idea Ron! One box for each cheek! Way to improvise, man! Damn! If only I had the Nat King Cole box--then I could take my whole family with me!

Well, come to think of it, with the snow we just had in Philly, I could use a couple of the regular Mosaic box tops to sled down the nearest hillside.

I assume you're referring to the outer shipping packaging and box, and not the actual Mosaic set box. That should be identical to the US Mosaic box, except that it has the "B" number and not the "MD" number. And my European Farlow Mosaic set also didn't have a "Made in Germany" sticker and was manufactured in the US (even says "Mosaic" all over it except on the box). I wonder if some of the merchants just slap the "Made in Germany" sticker on them because they're technically issued by German Universal, or if some of these sets actually are made in Germany?

DUDE!

Please 'splain what the timeframe or some critic's opinion has to do with Jack's "jazz credentials". I see it as their problem, not his. AND my story was not that recent. We're on the same page, Chuck. I was responding to the first post in this thread, and saying that Sheldon's acting and comedic antics in the '60's and '70's (remember "Run, Buddy, Run"?) probably didn't help his creds with the jazz critics, contributing to the negative comments quoted in the first post. I agree that his playing--especially with Pepper and others in the '50's and early '60's--should speak for itself, but I'm guessing that at least some critics can't evaluate it without letting his wacky public persona of the '60's and '70's color their opinions. FWIW.

Should we look for that as a patch on the back of your jacket? Or as a tattoo on your forearm?

Really don't think that had anything to do with his "jazz credentials". Lester Bowie told me about some sort of "trumpet summit" he played in Boston. Jack walked on stage (looking like 300 lbs) and said something like "Sorry I'm so G-D fat, but I've been fucking for years and finally got pregnant". But that's fairly recent, isn't it? I was referring to liner notes/criticism from the '80's, or earlier.

. . . and the self-destructiveness of the JATP box . . .

I completely agree with you about Sheldon's playing, and apparently so did Pepper, and Koenig et al at Contemporary. Unfortunately, Sheldon didn't help his jazz credentials with the critics by starring in zany sitcoms and serving as Merv Griffin's court jester in the '60's and '70's.

From the Verve web site: So much for the Grammies.

Just keep saying over and over to yourself, "I believe! I believe! I believe! . . ." Oh, and tap your heels together three times.

Don't forget this version:

They're now showing NINETEEN in stock here. I guess it's been a good seller (probably thanks to this Board). And just to show that I'm not pimpin' for Caiman, another Amazon Marketplace seller, Music Media, has the European Farlow Mosaic listed for almost a dollar cheaper than Caiman (with 7 in stock) here.

Anybody else planning to go to this Saturday night? Should we each wear a big "O" so we know who's from "The Board"?

Thanks -e-! I'm going to see what I have lying around here... I'm up, and I'll post something soon. Surely there's one of those big, fat, ugly, underutilized Mosaic boxes taking up a lot of valuable space on your shelf . . . .

And mine.

#0310 here. Oh my gosh--only 4 numbers apart! It's kismet!

How can you be so sure that some aren't assembled by the NIGHT shift???