Royal Oak

Earlier, caught a bit of Jazz Record Requests. Something Scottish and unjazzy, some solo Davey Graham (spelling?), some MJQ and Horace doing "Song For My Father".

Can't get much better than that! Yes, I haven't heard it in so long (had it on vinyl, which was donated to my sister when my turntable died in the mid-90s) it sent shivers down my spine. Is this a new thing for Radio 3, sticking jazz in the middle of their regular programming? Can't keep track of Radio 3's jazz programming; it's always changing. One thing is certain: it's likely at any moment to be peremptorily swept aside by the BBC old guard which is clearly uneasy about anything that doesn't fit with European middle-class cultural dominance. Opera Rules, you know! At the moment I listen to a two-hour block from 4 to 6 on Saturday (available later online, if you prefer.) Jazz Library is first with the excellent Alyn Shipton (last week's subject, Art Farmer; this week's, Gene Krupa), then Jazz Record Requests follows with an intriguing selection of stuff that's likely to run from Jimmy Yancey to Brad Meldhau! I rarely listen to JRR; Saturdays are too busy and I never get around to "listen again". I've listened to a couple "Jazz Library" programmes (Monk and Horace Silver as I recall). I have little knowledge of what I hear at other times. I tend to prefer solo piano or quiet string quartet music, though I enjoyed Bartok's "The Miraculous Mandarin" yesterday lunchtime. Opera, though, I hate. Especially comic opera - who likes that stuff? It's THE stiffest, most upper-middle class, amateur dramatic society, whimsical horseshit.

Can't get much better than that! Yes, I haven't heard it in so long (had it on vinyl, which was donated to my sister when my turntable died in the mid-90s) it sent shivers down my spine. Is this a new thing for Radio 3, sticking jazz in the middle of their regular programming?

Been listening to BBC Radio 3 lately (in the car). I tuned in only because I don't have a CD player, I can't have pop/rock radio at any price, and Classic FM has too many ads and the unspeakable Simon Bates presenting during the morning commute. I've really been enjoying the absence of ads, the distinctly low-key approach of the presenters, and have enjoyed some of the music I've heard, most of which I'd never heard before. Anyway, this morning, out of nowhere, they played a Teddy Wilson trio playing a gorgeous version of "Sweet Lorraine". Then, on my way to the supermarket this evening, I heard Wes Montgomery playing "D Natural Blues" from "The Incredible Jazz Guitar".

Is that Hertz van Rental, the Dutch blues guitarist? (Old joke beloved of my dad's musician friends)

Mah-tin Fowler Rick-aay Butcher Phiw Mitchell

Plastique Bertrand Burt Reynolds Lonesome Cowboy Burt

Not usually where I post, but.... One of these ("with a built-in Leslie") was offered for free on my local Freecycle website the other day. I notice it's the second Hammond organ to be given away in the last few weeks.

Marc Stein Brian Stein Edwin Stein English footballing brothers of the 80s/90s

Fewer than 350 copies in 12 months? Worldwide, or just the US? (not read the article yet) Either way, who'd sell jazz CDs for a living?

A look through the Didsbury branch of Oxfam brought Monk's biography and a book of selected poetry by The Last Poets.

Bill, wasn't that "Saturday Night And Sunday Morning"? I remember seeing it for the first time at some arthouse cinema in Nottingham, when I was a student at (then) Trent Polytechnic. I like the film, but I don't recall there being a Nottingham accent in it. Shirley Ann Field was particularly bad - typical, I suppose, of thespians doing proletarian accents.

Becks Posh Romeo

Frank Butcher Butch Cassidy Butch Wilkins

Any sign of these yet?

In my "smoking" days, it would be more often than not "The Jimmy Giuffre 3" or Joe Henderson's "Page One" or Charlie Haden/Hank Jones's "Steal Away". Fell asleep every time (in a good way).

"No-one knows who they were......or, what they were doin'" They do now.

On Amazon.co.uk: Bill Evans "Moon Beams" (vinyl) = 500.09 pounds (I can not find the sterling button on this infernal Dell keyboard) Or how about 2 copies of "Cattin' With Coltrane and Quinichette" (CD) - one at 335.49, the other at the bargain price of 300.19. Seriously though, Amazon.co.uk is full of these silly prices, usually the same 5 or 6 US megasellers. While I can't imagine they ever sell stuff at such prices, logic suggests they must get an occasional bite.

Not now, but earlier this evening: "Prog Rock at the BBC" - compilation of prog rock bands performing on various BBC shows over the years (slightly superfluous explanation there...) I'm not a big fan of Prog Rock, but I enjoyed some of the performances, notably Jethro Tull and Wishbone Ash. Yes, Genesis and ELP I found pretentious and/or bombastic.

I don't think I've heard a bad one, but personally: Open Sesame/True Blue Blues And The Abstract Truth Bluesnik (Jackie Mac)

Signing in

I played those Prestige albums the other day, inspired by this thread. I bought them after hearing the Howard McGhee/Tal Farlow Blue Note, and the Art Farmer "Met Gryce" and "Featuring Gigi Gryce" albums. I like the Richard Williams quintet albums very much ("Rat Race Blues" is my favourite), but I just got the impression he was running out of ideas by this time, evidenced by recording very old standards ("Frankie And Johnny", "Lover Man" and "Summertime") or rehashing his old tunes like "Minority" and "Nica's Tempo". Much of the more interesting material seems to be written by others (I don't have the albums to hand but I'm sure "Blues In Bloom", "Monday Through Sunday" and "Strange Feelin" aren't Gryce's compositions). Would I be right in thinking that those three albums were his last recordings? I'm pretty sure they were all recorded in the same year, though don't quote me on that.

I tend to agree that the diversification route has weakened some of these stores. I would hazard a guess that my local HMV (Stockport, a large town), stocks more non-music product than music. Their jazz section has always been pretty poor, but like Bev says, it's now lumped in with easy listening/blues/country/classical as "specialist". I went in a couple of weeks back and was surprised to see a couple of Concord RVGs, but they were charging 14 or 16 quid for them! It's not as if HMV has any specialist music-shop competition in Stockport; the last few years has seen the disappearance of Sam Goody, Our Price and Music Zone. I note also that our Borders store (a BIG one) now stocks virtually no music.

Way to go ! Yes. My eldest is now 5, and pretty much every Christmas day has descended into a "not enough sleep-too much stuff to play with-want more chocolate" tantrum-fest. This year, it didn't happen and he was bloody lovely, which was VERY nice.

How about that? Zavvi UK has gone into administration today.