corto maltese

He played a couple of concerts here in 2005, with Marilyn Crispell and Andrew Cyrille. Someone has just put one of these shows on Youtube (sound only): To be honest, I remember being somewhat disappointed by his performances there and then (his bass was also amplified, which I generally don't like). But my repect and love for his playing in the 1960's is immense.

The first time I saw Lee Konitz was as a guest soloist (along with George Lewis) with the ICP Orchestra.

"Candy Girl" is supposed to be a session by Mal Waldron backed by the three members of Ice. But I've never heard or found any confirmation of that session. Mal Waldron's albums for Pierre Jaubert were recorded (and released) before Jaubert's association with Ice/Lafayette started. I've always suspected that this record was "created" by Jaubert, asking his studio band to add rhythm tracks to some older tapes of Waldron playing the electric piano.

Great news. Obviously, I'm excited about the unreleased Sun Ra. But maybe even more about the second release. Over the past few years, a lot of obscure music by Hartmut Geerken, recorded all over the world, has been released. I love all of it. I suppose the other Cairo Free Jazz Ensemble recordings ("Music For Angela Davis" and the session released on one of the Qbico labels) will be included and probably some more Salah Ragab sessions. Do you happen to know which label will handle this? Is it also Strut?

Yes, it is. The original cover is screen printed and designed by Hartmut Geerken. Inside the gatefold are extensive notes (also by HG) and the back cover has some nice pictures of the session.

You do realize it's you now who'll have to do the write-up for London Jazz Collector ?

I was wondering... that gorgeous picture of the percussion set-up on the inside of the gatefold of the album surely wasn't taken at Van Gelder's? Then I noticed it was only the piece "L-R-G", not the whole album, that was recorded there. Anyway, it's a great album and it sounds terrific.

Discogs mentions two Gavin Gordon releases: this one (from 1949) and a 12" on "Is It Balearic? Recordings" from 2011. Actually, that last one is by Coyote featuring Gavin Gordon.

Thank you for a well-made, enjoyable blindfold test. I have and cherish the Fela, Braxton and Sun Ra records (except for "Mayan Temples", which I didn't recognize). Count me in as another fan of that Shabaka Hutchins track. My initial guess was some lost "spiritual jazz" classic by a troupe of France-based Afro-Caribbean musicians jamming with a couple of American expatriates. It's that good. And yes, I remembered your previous blindfold test and the pictures of Nubya Garcia you included. I like her playing too.

Most original BYG/Jazz Actuel records were pressed on inferior vinyl. Some titles have serious mastering issues. That being said, I quite like the raw, direct and loud sound of many of these recordings. Actually, I would recommend going for original pressings. Most titles of the Jazz Actuel series saw several (sometimes many) pressings in the 1969-1972 period (e.g., black "BIEM" label, black "Sacem" label, large Buddha logo label). As a result, they're not really rare or expensive. I assume you're living in Europe. If you don't insist on first pressings, you can still find lots of used copies for about 20 to 30 euro.

If you know Hot Ptah's love for the new London jazz scene and his little crush on the saxophone player, it's not hard to identify track one.

"In our excitement about this reissue, we leapt at getting copies from the distributor, but realized after the fact that we are not 100% certain of how authorized it is, and are unable to gain conformation. In this light, we offer it to our costumers with a light disclaimer to this end." (Soundohm) On Discogs, this release has been blocked from sale.

It's a bootleg, I'm afraid. The original release was "Bura Bura", under Masahiko Togashi's name. The 1986 LP had different tracks, but the complete concert (including the 5 now-bootlegged tracks) was released as a 2CD-set.

A couple of months back on Discogs, their reissue of Leonid Kogan's Beethoven violin concerto has sold for $ 2100. Yes, a reissue, and yes, more than two thousand bucks.

I have listened a bit to the Slugs set on Bandcamp. Ali's drums are pretty forward in the mix (seems logical), but Stanley Cowell's piano is almost inaudible. "Study for As-Salaam Alikum" starts out in mono, then switches to stereo, although i'm not sure whether it's true stereo or electronically rechanneled. What are your impressions of the sound of the vinyl, Clifford?

Why were they upset? Until now I've been very impressed by their Incus series.

That very same picture is used for the cover of the recent reissue of the "Wayning Moments" LP on the Spanish Jazz Images label. In fact, it's part of a whole series (the Francis Wolff Collection) reusing photographs from the book. (Remember the "Jean-Pierre Leloir"- and "William Claxton"-series on the same label?) I don't know about the books, but (most of?) the LP's on the label are at best grey-area releases.

"Tetterettet" is an onomatopoeia for the sound of a trumpet. Which is somewhat funny, because no one's playing trumpet on this session. But it's a great record.

I happen to have a spare copy (very decent VG+), but am not looking for money. I greatly prefer trades. @ sidewinder: how does the Trunk reissue compare to the original? And do they explain why they didn't use the original cover?

You need all nine of them, even if you already own the original Incus issues.

I think you'll like his two Nato albums: "Tournée du Chat" and "Le Chat Se Retourne". Regardless of genre, Tony Coe on a record is almost always a considerable plus.

Clifford, if you cannot convince sidewinder to part with his original: Discogs has another "factory sample" copy for sale. At 4,400 euro and with the dollar still rising, it's a steal. Honest Jon's really deserves the highest praise for their Derek Bailey reissues. Incredible value for money.

Yes, they were. I remember reading about this very recording on another (German?) music forum, where a member also wondered about the identity of the performers. The Austrian SQ (or rather Österreichische Streichquartett) was founded by Paul Roczek, who became professor of violin at the Salzburger Mozarteum. The other (original) members were Peter Katt (violin), Jürgen Geise (viola), and Wilfred Tachezi (cello), all of them also associated with the Mozarteum. Even in an extremely competitive field, their performance of the Janacek quartets is very worthwhile.

There was an extra song from the same 1979 PAPA concert on the CD-reissue of "Live At The I.U.C.C." ("McKowsky's First Fifth"). I wonder why they didn't include that track in the new triple vinyl-set. Actually, that same track was on the recent vinyl reissue (on the same label) of the Jesse Sharps Quintet, but that's an unrelated 1985 studio session. So they replicated the 2004 CD of the Jesse Sharps Quintet (which also included the PAPA track as a bonus) on a double album set and then reissued the PAPA concert on a triple set leaving out that track. I don't really understand that decision and even find it rather annoying.

Sure? In the liner notes of her 1982 album ("Introducing" a.k.a. "Do It Now"), both are interviewed as siblings.