J.A.W.

His name was John Ogdon, not Ogden.

That's the going rate for that particular Fire in the West TOCJ nowadays. Another one went for about the same amount a few months ago.

Takarayama had one up one ebay this morning. I was all set to bid but got distracted. Cripes, we're probably all bidding against one another on half his auctions. I hate that 'private auction' biz. Yep, I was outbid on that one... But I managed to win two of his other auctions, Herb Geller's Fire in the West and Frank Rosolino's Frankly Speaking!

I'm looking for this CD in EXC or better condition and I'm willing to pay a good price: Jim Hall/Modest Jazz Trio - Good Friday Blues - Toshiba TOCJ-5424 Credit-card-funded PayPal is my only payment option. PMs only, please. Thanks.

Still for sale, reduced prices (I also edited my first post): Japanese 20-bit K2 remastered mini-LP sleeve XRCD in a clear plastic slip case; can be played on regular CD players: Hampton Hawes - Hampton Hawes Trio, Vol.1 - Contemporary/JVC VICJ-61074; CD condition: M-; $18 Japanese 24-bit remastered mini-LP sleeve CD: Hal McKusick - Hal McKusick Quartet - Bethlehem/Toshiba TOCJ-9614; CD condition: M-; $16 Japanese mini-LP sleeve CD: Caravan - Caravan (first album) - Verve Forecast UICY-9208; CD condition: M-; 17 tracks; $16 Non-registered priority mail rates, up to 250 grams (= up to 3 mini-LP sleeve CDs without plastic slip cases), - to the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan: $6.50 - within the European Union, with the exception of Greece, Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Slovakia: $4.50 - elsewhere: registered priority mail only, rates on request. Shipping by registered priority mail, up to 250 grams, - European Union: $6.50 - elsewhere: $8.50 Payment (no cash, checks or money orders), - in the Netherlands: bank transfer in euros; - in the euro zone: electronic bank transfer in euros (BIC/Swift, IBAN), or PayPal if an electronic bank transfer is not possible - outside the euro zone: PayPal only, in euros or U.S. dollars. PMs only, please.

You have the German 20-bit remastered version. Most of those remasters suck sonically, at least to my ears. The original OJCs are preferable.

For the Brahms symphonies I often return to Otto Klemperer's versions with the Philharmonia Orchestra London (EMI), though I also like the versions by George Szell (Columbia/Sony), István Kertész (Decca/London), Claudio Abbado (DG) and Bruno Walter (Columbia/Sony), in no particular order.

I also love Riccardo Chailly's version with soprano Barbara Bonney and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam on Decca 289 466 720-2

George Szell's version of Mahler 4 with soprano Judith Raskin and his Cleveland Orchestra is still one of my favourites: Sony SBK 46535.

The auctions will end within a few hours.

The following CDs are scheduled for release: * = mini-LP cardboard sleeve On December 20, 2006 KBYK 5603 Sakakibara,Yoko(vo) A House Is Not a Home 2700 On Feburary 7, 2007 LXCY 6243 Mackay,Dave(p) & Vicky Hamilton Rainbow 2625 On Feburary 14, 2007 TKCB 73161 Dream Session Miles Favorite Songs 2000 TKCB 73162 Dream Session Old Monmartre 2000 TKCV 35201(24 Bit) Peplowski,Ken(cl) Memories of You* 2500 TKCV 35202(24 Bit) Beirach,Richie(p) Manhattan Reverie* 2500 TKCV 35203(24 Bit) Cafiso,Francesco(as) Seven Steps to Heaven* 2500 TKCV 35204(24 Bit) Nimmer,Dan(p) Kelly Blue: Tribute to Wynton Kelly* 2500 TKCV 35205(24 Bit) Rosenthal,Ted(p) Shall We Dance?* 2500 TKCV 35206(24 Bit) Beck,Joe(g) Brazilian Dreamin'* 2500 TKCV 35207(24 Bit) Mabern,Harold(p) Somewhere over the Rainbow* 2500 TKCV 35208(24 Bit) Romantic Jazz Trio Music of the Night* 2500 TKCV 35209(24 Bit) Henry,Nicole(vo) & Eddie Higgins Trio Teach Me Tonight* 2500 TKCV 35210(24 Bit) Carroll,Barbara(p) Sentimental Mood* 2500 TKCW 32147 Fonseca,Roberto(p) Zamazu 2700 WPCR 25163(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Chris Connor +2* 2310 WPCR 25164(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Sings the George Gershwin Almanac of Song +4* 3360 WPCR 25166(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Witchcraft* 2310 WPCR 25167(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Sings Ballads of the Sad Cafe* 2310 WPCR 25168(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Double Exposure* 2310 WPCR 25169(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Chris in Person* 2310 WPCR 25170(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Chris Craft* 2310 WPCR 25171(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Free Spirits +4* 2310 WPCR 25172(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) I Miss You So +4* 2310 WPCR 25173(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not* 2310 WPCR 25174(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Jazz Date With* 2310 WPCR 25175(24 Bit) Connor,Chris(vo) Portrait of Chris* 2310 WPCR 25176(24 Bit) McRae,Carmen(vo) Great American Songbook* 3360 WPCR 25178(24 Bit) McRae,Carmen(vo Portrait of Carmen* 2310 WPCR 25179(24 Bit) Bennett,Betty(vo) Nobody Else But Me* 2310 WPCR 25180(24 Bit) Wayne,Frances(vo) Warm Sound* 2310 WPCR 25181(24 Bit) Richards,Ann(vo) Ann Man* 2310 WPCR 25182(24 Bit) Syms,Sylvia(vo) Sings* 2310 WPCR 25183(24 Bit) Stevens,Carol(vo) That Satin Doll* 2310 WPCR 25184(24 Bit) Harrow,Nancy(vo) You Never Know* 2310 XQBV 1001 Baker,Ronald(tp) Five for Fun 1800 XQBV 1002 Allison,Laurence(vo) Thelonious & Bud Together Again 1800 XQBV 1003 El Malek,David(ts) Talking Cure 1800 WNCJ 2174 We Three Trio Mostly Ellington 2800 WNCJ 2175 Iwane,Naoki(as) Deserted Island 2800 QSCA 1033 Dennerlein,Barbara(org) Orgelspiele 2415 QSCA 1034 Dennerlein,Barbara(org) Bebab 2415 CGCR 1007 Kaneko,Arisa(p) Scene Is Clean 2800

I did not say that Davies used NoNoise; he didn't. I'm told that Retrieval applied noise reduction when they used Davies' transfers. Boosting the treble isn't an option in systems (like mine) that don't have tone controls or an equalizer. Besides, highs that have been removed from music can't be restored, they're lost forever - what's gone is gone...

Very sad news. We owe him a lot as co-founder of one of the all-time great independent labels!

The Retrieval King Oliver set sounds awful to my ears; they used John R.T. Davies transfers, but unfortunately they were no-noised to death in the process. Doug Benson, who did the transfers for the new Archeophone set, consulted Davies (just in time!) - see also this thread on the Hoffman forum.

Very sad news. Condolences to his family.

A note on the Mosaic Ellington Small Groups set page: "We have received a strong response to this set. All orders which are placed from this point forward (11 A.M. EST 12/12 ) will not be shipped until early January as the set is on backorder. For all previous orders, this set will be released December 13th. For U.S. orders, the set will ship via DHL (except PO boxes) and therefore will arrive in time for the holidays."

My current eBay auctions. Thanks for looking.

SOLD Bill Evans - How My Heart Sings! - Riverside/JVC VICJ-61064; CD condition: M-; $20

Replied by PM.

I'll list all unsold CDs on eBay later today.

No one's answered the questions about the Richard Goode cycle yet - how is it? Never heard his Beethoven either.

So Hans, "Todd" is your screen name on that other Board? Wish I had the resources to purchase and the time to listen to so many sets... Really! I wonder if "Todd" ever listens to anything else? As I know nothing about the Yves Nat set, I (quickly) read Todd's review and it's rather mixed. His review of the Stephen (Bishop) Kovacevich set, which I've never heard either, is mainly negative, especially regarding the later recordings in the set - and so is the review of Jan de Kruijff, one of the foremost Dutch classical music journalists. The earliest (i.e. early 1990s) recordings in Kovacevich's set seem to be the best by far. On the other hand, the latest Penguin Guide gives the complete Kovacevich set a rosette and says it's one of the best available, and an earlier edition gave his individual disc of 26 and 29 both a "key" AND a rosette and specifically said his Hammerklavier is one of the best ever recorded. So I guess it's just a matter of taste--or pride in a pianist now living in the UK. Yes, I've read the Penguin Guide's recommendations, but I trust Jan de Kruijff's judgement more, after many (25+) years of reading his reviews and listening to him as a long-term member of a panel that reviews CDs on Dutch radio. On the other hand - like I said earlier - I've never heard Kovacevich's Beethoven interpretations, and I've just ordered his version of the Diabelli Variations, which seems to be one of his better efforts. We'll see.

So Hans, "Todd" is your screen name on that other Board? Wish I had the resources to purchase and the time to listen to so many sets... Really! I wonder if "Todd" ever listens to anything else? As I know nothing about the Yves Nat set, I (quickly) read Todd's review and it's rather mixed. His review of the Stephen (Bishop) Kovacevich set, which I've never heard either, is mainly negative, especially regarding the later recordings in the set - and so is the review of Jan de Kruijff, one of the foremost Dutch classical music journalists. The earliest (i.e. early 1990s) recordings in Kovacevich's set seem to be the best by far.

I'm still wondering which sources they used when they remastered the Coltranes in that list, as the tapes were destroyed.

So Hans, "Todd" is your screen name on that other Board? Wish I had the resources to purchase and the time to listen to so many sets...