tkeith

I'm in, though I'm dreading disc #2 (my ass is still sore from Berigan's BFT).

Fortunately, I live in a very 'crunchy' area. A short drive away, we can get lots of organic produce; even have the option to eat it at a number of area restaurants. I forget about that when I talk to people from elsewhere. Sane options are a very good thing.

On that much we can agree. I do NOT drive a fuel efficient car, but I DO have a valid reason. I live on an unmaintained road and have an interstate commute. There are times of the year where 4WD is not an option, but a very distinct necessity. That said, when I see some tool driving around in a Suburban with a child in the last seat and the rest of it empty, it rather irritates me. Cell phones can go the way of the Edsel and I'd not shed a tear. We have more common ground than I realized -- my apologies.

Not so much. It's a pretty theory, but it's like pregnancy -- each attempt is not a guarantee. Unfortunately, I still have a brother-in-law to prove my point. I'm not sure I follow your point. I think the situation you describe is highly unhealthy. I also am against smoking in public places where my enjoyment is affected. If a smoker is comfortable risking the life of their child, I think that's a larger problem. If s/he cannot go long enough without a butt to not slowly kill her/his child, I don't think that polluting the air I have to breath is an acceptable alternative any more than I think it's okay for parents with children to ruin my dining experience. As has been pointed out, we all make choices. If your screaming brats or cigarette smoke is a detriment to my enjoyment in a public space, my choice is to call you on it.

I saw a video with a donkey, once...

And personally, I like playing in bars without that shit making the air unbreathable. And coming home smelling like somebody's ashtray (not to mention the smell of all my gear, and thus my vehicle, etc.) Plus one on this. Finally, gone are the days where I have to set all my equipment out in the living room and on the porch for 3 days just to get the stench out of it. Except, as pointed out in a response, when smoking was allowed in the workplace here in the states. My mother, who never smoked a day in her life, grew up in a house with smokers, then worked much of her life with them. At 60, she died of lung cancer. I believe that gives me a significant ax to grind with the way in which fellow citizens decide what risks are right for them. Bogart a whole tobacco field in your house, but in public, in traffic, at the beach, and in the workplace, I don't want to smell it. That said, I favor a "smoker's cafe" idea here in the states. We have Asian food restaurants, kid restaurants; why not smoker's restaurants? The answer is simple: U.S. society is too stupid to let something like that work. Somebody would sue over it. If workers were willing to sign off and customers are willing to allow it to exist, it should work. In the meantime, here's one thing I *haven't* seen mentioned in this thread. What is it about smokers that they think it's okay to just dump their butts out the window of the car? There is a mall about 20 minutes from here. The median parallel to the turn lane to get on the high way looks like it has a mop head on it. The mop head is made of cigarette butts. I'll never understand that. If the cigarettes are so enjoyable, it'd really help the rest of the world if you'd do two things: 1) please roll up your window so I don't have to smell it, and 2) please keep your trash, much like I will my water bottles or food wrappers, in your vehicle.

Heck, I was fine with the one thread... at least that way *half* my responses were in the right place!

This might be the finest compliment available in Portland. I recall playing a killer set there one night for the bartender and the sound man (who was a bit of a putz). Someone taped it for us, but never got in touch with me. That sucked.

Interesting you say that....could be they just weren't used to recording tracks this long, or the arranger wasn't yet good enough for this long a song... Just to clarify, it almost sounded as if the media itself slowed, not so much the playing.

Absotively. Had the good fortune to talk with him and Eddie Gale over dinner about a year-and-a-half ago. It was like a trip through a period I was not lucky enough to live through. Dick's playing and writing always struck me as very honest. I think NOW IS THE TIME is one of the most played records (along with Pharoah's JOURNEY TO THE ONE) I've ever owned. Dick's sort of like Mal Waldron -- no technique, just pure heart (clearly an over-simplification, as multi-phonics most definitely qualify as technique). I was luke-warm on his artwork until hearing him discuss it. It's very interesting what he's trying to express, and much like his music, it's very honest. Modern musicians should be listening to more of this sort of stuff from the 70s, IMHO. The music seems to have stagnated a great deal, and it's largely because the educational establishment has everyone looking back to the 60s and before. All that music is great, but it doesn't have a heck of a lot to do with our current way of living. I think if more musicians were exposed to the Strata-East era stuff, the music would benefit greatly. With that, I'll rank myself as a certified Dick Griffin *fan*.

I loved FROGMEN. Widmark had one of those classic faces. You may not have ever heard of him, but when you saw him on screen you recognized him immediately. A few years back, Ira Glass did a segment of THIS AMERICAN LIFE called The Death of Frank Sinatra. It was about that personality, that type of guy that Richard Widmark represented.

Crap... I was trying not to read the comments and didn't realize my mistake. Ugh. Oh well, I'm dying to know the answer to Track 5, disc 2. *Scoopiness* The tenor player was sort of 'dragging' up from a note (or perhaps 3 half-steps) below the note and it just wound up sounding maudlin and sloppy to me. In the solo, it came off as more expressive; on the head... it's tough to describe... he just didn't sound serious to me. I'd play like that if I were pissed off and didn't want to play the tune. Again, I know it's just a matter of taste, but... I'd have clicked the radio to talk radio if that came on.

I’m determined to finish these today! Actually, I’m putting off doing the bills. Anyway, the music… Track 37 – Now this is nice. I like the way the arrangement just steps along behind the lead. It’s a simple line, but it doesn’t need to be anything more – it does its job. Again, I don’t know who this is, but I would buy this. Man… wouldn’t want to be the guy sitting across from that trumpet player. LOL I played with a band that had a trumpet player that would do that – we sat in a semi-circle… there was another trumpeter across from him, guy was really into Art Farmer and those type of players. I thought he was going to toss his horn at the brassy guy one night. Good times… Track 38 – I like this one a lot, I kind of wanted them to stay with the opening feel, though. Again, really like the bone player. Track 39 – Fingers all over the piano. Pianist makes me think of the style Newborn would later develop. Very listenable, but don’t know if I’d play it a lot. Track 40 – Doesn’t make an impression on me. I’m finding myself unable to tune into it – doesn’t really distinguish itself from a lot of this BFT. Track 41 – This sounds like early Ellington to me, but I’m probably wrong. Something about the alto has me thinking Hodges. If I’m right about that, tenor could be Webster, but this is just a collection of shots in the dark. Track 42 – I like this. Again, the band seems to be supporting the lead – I hear a purpose. No idea who it is, though. Track 43 – Nice sax arrangement. Odd, but the time seems to drag around 3:40… like the band starts to drag a bit. Track 44 – I recognize this, but can’t say what it is. I’ve definitely heard it before. Again, the band segments work, but the improv just doesn’t do it for me. Kind of wish they hadn’t bothered with that part. Track 45 – Excepting the slide, I like this. It’s fun and it’s jivey, but it works. Track 46 – (46!?!?!??!?!) Makes me think of an old movie with all the characters going out for dinner at the Copa Cabana. I’m just waiting for Ava Gardner to do something mean to someone. ☺ I like it, though. Berigan, thanks for a BFT that pushed my limits and kicked my ass. I’m going to go do my bills and cry, now.

Track 27 – This gives me some hope, though I’m not a big fan of those vibes. I can hear where the stuff I listen to comes out of this, and that’s nice. Track 28 – Again, this is closer to the stuff I listen to. Interesting. Has almost that Hamid Drake feel in the underlying beat. Neat. Track 29 – Neat arrangement – I like the way it built up into crazy brass near the end. Track 30 – Fun, just doesn’t maintain my interest. Track 31 – I like this a lot. But for the sound, this could be from any era. It’s a simple line, but it has a strong feel to it. No idea who this is, but I would buy this. I love this bone player – no flash, just balls. Wish the sound was cleaner because I like what the drummer’s doing, but it winds up sounding muddled. Not sure about the tenor, other than to say he’s a bad man. Natural tendency is to guess Hawk. Don’t know for sure and don’t care – me likey!!!!! I actually hear a lot of David Murray in this guy, and that makes my solider salute. 7:05 – this MFer is knocking me out! Every modern player should have to listen to this and understand it. This is it! Unconscious! Track 32 – I’ve heard this before, but I can’t place it. Nice way to cool down after the previous cut. Track 33 – Hey! Finally a tune I know. I have a soft spot for this since hearing Lester Young’s vocal version. LOL No idea who the tenor is. Piano could be Fatha, but doesn’t sound loose enough. Track 34 – Uh-oh… back to the other stuff… this just bugs me. Very busy and bouncy, but doesn’t really touch me. Track 35 – See, now this is bouncy, but more interesting. Seems like it’s going somewhere where the last one just didn’t. The band parts work, but the improvs sort of leave me cold. Track 36 – I like this arrangement on the introduction, but it slides back into that bouncy feel again. I guess it’s just a taste thing, but it doesn’t work for me.

Track 21 – Not a clue in the house. Track 22 – Hmmm… this is neat, it sort of has the type feel of something written by Abdullah Ibrahim. To my ear, this is one of the more musical cuts in this bft. Very listenable and interesting. Track 23 – I know one of the things that troubles me about this genre – it’s my distaste for the clarinet. Still, this is a very interesting melody; very mysterious and patient. Track 24 – This just doesn’t touch me. Track 25 – If this didn’t have the vocalist it’d be interesting to me. Like the trumpet solo, but can’t go the singer. Track 26 – This has been an interesting disc, but I can’t lie, I may not make it through disc 2 if it’s the same era. I can handle this stuff in small doses and moods, but this is a lot of time, which I don’t currently have an abundance of, to spend with a genre totally unfamiliar to me. I hope to learn from it, but I’m feeling a bit dejected at the moment.

That was from Friday, this is from today: Track 11 – No impressions. Track 12 – No impressions. I’m on day two – like I said earlier, it’s hard for me to listen to this period *constantly*. Track 13 – Interestingly quirky. Reminds me a bit of the experimental Kenton phase. Don’t know the year, but I’d say this is definitely ahead of it’s time. Track 14 – I like the band, the solos not as much. Track 15 – Raucous, but to be honest, I tuned it out pretty quickly. Hope these responses aren’t too negative, I’m just typing what my gut sends me via my ears. Track 16 – This sounds like Basie to me. It has more story than most of the rest of these. I realize that’s a poor way of wording it, but that’s my instant reaction. There’s a story being told, and I want to know the outcome. I haven’t felt that with the other tunes (excepting maybe tracks 10 & 13). I could guess a bunch of names and be wrong, so I’m not going to bother. I’d be breakfast on Basie, though. Track 17 – I grew up listening to Basie and Ellington, and that stuff has always reached me and touched me more as a result. My grandparents took me to a dance when I was about 14, and Ted Herbert’s band was playing. I enjoyed it, but it lacked the magic of the Ellington & Basie stuff I was used to. That’s the way this strikes me. This would be fun to watch life, but it’s not really wowing me. Track 18 – This is too early for my ears. Track 19 – It’s neat to hear the horns mesh at this tempo, but I’m finding it hard to stay invested in the listening after a short time. Track 20 – The instrumentation was enough to rope me in early on this one, I just wish each had more time to stretch. Just when I get interested in what one instrument is doing, another one takes over. That’s clearly the point, but I feel short changed. That’s it for this session, must go buy tires.

I got nothin'. I'm just going to post my reactions as I listen. This is a weak genre for me thus, it's been a laborious BFT. Track 1 – Hmm… not a clue. I’d guess Louis because of fat vibrato, but I seldom listen to this period. It does not lack heat, that’s for sure. Piano makes me want to hear Dave Burrell on Marion Brown’s SPOOKS. Track 2 – Yaw killin’ me brothah! Again, no clue, but fun. Track 3 – Again, no idea, but fun. Couldn’t listen to it all day, though. Track 4 – Eeesh… I guess this is more of a listening exercise than a BFT for me. This one is cool, but I could do without the vocals. Track 5 – T’ain’t my bag. Couldn’t make it through this one. Track 6 – I like the piano, but the alto is off putting. Can’t explain why, it just… well… bugs me. Track 7 – No idea. Sounds like a neat exercise more than a tune. Track 8 – Feel like I’m watching Tom & Jerry. Most of these thus far have struck me as… I guess, cute. But not as bloody as the stuff I gravitate towards. Not sure, but seems like I’ve heard this tenor player. Track 9 – This one’s not touching me a’tall. Track 10 – Of all the slower tempo stuff, I like this one best thus far, but the scoopiness of the tenor player bugs me a bit. Not so much in the solo, but on the head. In the solo, it’s nice.

Damn.

I know Charlie - it's definitely COAL hace. Gosh... sure wish he'd correct me when I introduce him, then. Probably just used to it. I shall fix it in the future... thanks, Jack.

When I read the subject header, I thought this would be some news on the Clinton campaign.

I took a fair amount of shit for drafting him in the first round (keeper league, so really the 5th round) in my draft on Saturday. I'm looking like a friggin' genius so far. Now if Saltalamacchia would just get his shit together...

I know a guy in my area that was doing a Master's thesis on Hank. I'm sure he's a pretty good source, because he's worked it hard. He also uses spell check.

+1

Yeah, I should have nailed Strozier. I gave the test to my father and he considerably better than I did, starting with Frank.