Stereojack

I attended Woodstock with my brother and three of our friends. We heard about the event a couple of months in advance, when it was still scheduled to take place in Walkill, NY, as a 2-day event (Saturday & Sunday). The list of performers was staggering, and as music fans, we eagerly anticipated getting a chance to see a whole gang of great bands. We actually sent for tickets, and received them. I still have two of the tickets. Later the promoters added a 3rd day (Friday), and seeing the lineup was mostly folk acts on that day, we chose not to buy the additional tickets. A month or so before the event, the location was switched to a farm in Bethel, NY, and this is where it finally did happen. On Friday afternoon five of us - me, my friends Dave and Bobby, my brother and his friend Wayne - piled into Dave's 1956 Ford and headed for upstate NY. We ranged in age from 19 - 24. We came prepared - brought our own food and drugs. I don't recall hitting any serious traffic on the way, but perhaps we had timed it right. We arrived around 9 or 10 in the evening, and parked the car and set up the tent we had brought about a half mile from the stage area. After getting settled in we decided to head over to the stage area to check things out, even though we didn't have tickets for Friday. We could hear the music from the tent. When we got to the stage area, it seemed that no one was taking tickets, and we were able to walk right in. Tim Hardin was on stage at that moment. We stayed and listened for a little while and headed back to the tent to crash. The Saturday show was scheduled to start at 1:00 pm, so we headed over and even though we arrived relatively early, we had to sit pretty far back. A couple of us had brought binoculars, which came in handy later. There was an announcer addressing the crowd repeatedly, and this was when we became aware that this was now a free concert, and that attendance was way beyond what had been anticipated. They kept saying 300, 000 at the time, although that number seems to have grown to 500, 000 by now! I had never been in a crowd so large in my life, although I have to say that the vibes were pretty mellow. Most everybody, including all of us, was pretty stoned anyway. My memory of the actual sequence of acts is hazy today, although I'm sure that information is on line somewhere. We saw Country Joe McDonald, John Sebastian, Santana, Quill, Grateful Dead, Canned Heat, Incredible String Band, Creedence Clearwater, Janis Joplin, Sly & Family Stone, and a few more. After Sly's set we decided to head back to the tent to crash. It was probably already around 2:00 am and we were very tired. We heard the Who perform "Tommy" while we were walking back, and the Airplane were scheduled for next, but I crashed and never heard them. The next morning we headed back to the stage area, determined to get better seats, and we did. Joe Cocker began the afternoon, and although I wasn't a fan, Bobby had brought a joint of something very special, and I have to say that Joe's rendition of "I Shall be Released" sounded very sweet. Right after his set the sky got dark, and it became obvious that we were about to be deluged! When it started, we huddled under a poncho, but this wasn't working, so we resigned ourselves to getting drenched. Talk about a buzz kill! The concert was suspended, and being soaked to the skin, we decided to head back to the tent to change and dry off. The rain did eventually stop, and the concert was resumed. The acts that played in the final hours included Crosby, Stills & Nash, Blood Sweat & Tears, and the Band - these are the only ones I can remember. On Sunday evening we crashed a little earlier - it was cold and wet after the rain, and we were tired. To this day, people chide me that I didn't see Hendrix! He came on Monday morning at dawn, and we were sawing wood a half mile away! If you see the film, you will see that the crowd was pretty thin for his set. On Monday morning we headed back to Boston. It wasn't until afterward that we began to hear about the "cultural milestone" we had participated in.

this is obviously somebody looking to get a reaction, for reasons inexplicable. the best response is to ignore this uninformed and mean-spirited post. Y'all have never seen a troll before???

Back in the 1960's, when it was hard to find many jazz LP's in Boston, my friends and I would venture down to Sam Goody's in New York to get the latest Prestiges, hard to find Verves, and the like. There was an Asian guy working there who was very helpful and extremely knowledgeable. Years later I found out it was Harry Lim!

The Sessions Live series on Calliope are are drawn from the TV series "Stars of Jazz", filmed in Los Angeles and hosted by Bobby Troup. Spoken portions have been edited out. This series ran into copyright problems almost immediately, and was withdrawn, although most of the albums are still easy to find. There is a lot of fine music available on this series, in good sound, even though discographical details are lacking. Also, some of the sessions are duplicated within the series. If I have time later, I will try to find a complete listing. CALLIOPE (Sessions Live Series) CAL 3001 Oscar Peterson w. Jane Fielding/Gerald Wiggins w. Terry Morel CAL 3002 Cal Tjader w. Ernestine Anderson (1958)/Paul Togawa w. Chris Connor (1957) CAL 3003 Red Mitchell Quartet w/ Toni Harper(1957)/Andre Previn Trio(1958) CAL 3004 Jack Teagarden (1957)/Teddy Buckner (1956) CAL 3005 Harry James w. Jilla Webb/Les Brown w. Laurie Johnson CAL 3006 Connee Boswell w/ Red Nichols(1958)/Stuff Smith(1958)/Firehouse 5 + 2 w/ Jean Gayle (1958) CAL 3007 Oscar Peterson w. Pat Healy/Leroy Vinnegar w. Jeri Southern CAL 3008 Count Basie w/Joe Williams(1958)/A. Blakey(1957)/Tommy Gumina (1957) CAL 3009 Buddy Collette(1957)/Abbey Lincoln (1958)/Les Thompson(1957) CAL 3010 Terry Gibbs w. Pete Jolly, Bobbie Lynn, Steve Allen (1958)/Red Norvo (1958) CAL 3011 C.Tjader Quintet(1957)/...? CAL 3012 Herbie Mann w. Ella Mae Morse/Jimmy Giuffre w. Nellie Lutcher CAL 3013 Max Roach(1958)/Mary Ann McCall(1958)/Bud Shank(1956)Josephine Premice(1956) CAL 3014 C.Adderley(1956)/B.Collette (1956)/Annie Maloney(1956)/Sylvia Syms(1956) CAL 3015 Buddy DeFranco w. Lucy Ann Polk(1957)/Art Pepper w. Pam Russell (1957) CAL 3016 Stuff Smith w. Carmen McRae(1957)/Chamber Jazz Sextet w. Jeri Southern (1957) CAL 3017 Firehouse 5 + 2 (1957-58) w/ Barbara Dane & Jean Gayle CAL 3018 Paul Horn w. Al Viola, Ronnie Deauville(1958)/Paul Togawa w. Georgia Carr(1958) CAL 3019 Don Fagerquist w. Doris Drew, Al Viola(1958)/Dave Pell w. Peggy King, Les Thompson (1958) CAL 3020 Terry Gibbs w. Jo Reynolds(1957)/Benny Carter & Pete Jolly Trio (1957) CAL 3021 Curtis Counce (1956)/Anita O’Day (1957) CAL 3022 Jimmy Giuffre, Shorty Rogers, June Christy, Irene Kral CAL 3023 Harry Babasin & The Jazzpickers(1958)/Barney Kessel Quartet(1956)/...? CAL 3024 Sonny Criss w/ Terry Morel (1957)/Calvin Jackson w/ Rayna Clay (1956) CAL 3025 Candoli Bros(1958)/M.Murphy(c1958)/L.Vinnegar Quartet(1957) CAL 3026 Charlie Barnet w. Mel Torme/Pat Moran Quartet w. Bev Kelly CAL 3027 MJQ, Herb Jeffries, Georgia Carr, Chico Hamilton CAL 3028 Red Nichols, Firehouse Five + Two CAL 3029 Rampart Street Jazz Band (1956)/Jack Teagarden (1956-57) CAL 3030 Lighthouse All-Stars(1958) w/ Julie London(1958)/Bud Shank w/ Chris Connor (1956) CAL 3031 Charlie Barnet w. Mary Lou Martin/Les Brown w. Stumpy Brown CAL 3032 Pete Jolly w/ Billie Holiday (1956)/Leroy Vinnegar w/ Jeri Southern (1958) CAL 3033 Teddy Buckner, Firehouse Five + Two CAL 3034 Modern Jazz Quartet, Herb Jeffries (1958)/Chico Hamilton, Georgia Carr (1958) CAL 3035 Lighthouse All Stars w/ June Christy (1958)/Jimmy Giuffre(1957) CAL 3036 Art Blakey (1956-57) w/ Kitty White

The Sessions Live series on Calliope are are drawn from the TV series "Stars of Jazz", filmed in Los Angeles and hosted by Bobby Troup. Spoken portions have been edited out. This series ran into copyright problems almost immediately, and was withdrawn, although most of the albums are still easy to find. There is a lot of fine music available on this series, in good sound, even though discographical details are lacking. Also, some of the sessions are duplicated within the series. If I have time later, I will try to find a complete listing.

The Bright Orange series were all recorded around 1959-1960, and were originally issued on the Crown label. The sessions were supervised by Maxwell Davis. While on the surface the records appear to be quickie tribute albums, the band does not ape the original arrangements, but provides interesting interpretations of material associated with the original bands, sometimes stretching out to provide extra solo space. In addition, a number of great musicians such as Ben Webster take part, some of them actual veterans of the original bands, others are Los Angeles session players. BB King even sings on the Ellington & Basie tributes. The whole series (Goodman, Basie, Shaw, Ellington, Kenton, and others) is well recorded in stereo, and all of the albums are worth checking out. The Bright Orange pressings came out in the 1970's.

I met Rosetta at a jazz convention some years ago, just around the time she was launching the Rosetta label. She knew I had a store, and was giving me the hard sell, which really put me off. Her records contained a lot of fine music, even if the liner notes were over the top.

Hmmmm, obviously the date is wrong.

Was Big Al sears living in Baltimore at this time? Listening to this version, it sounds like a pick up group of top whack pro jazz musicians, not a bunch of local guys. The rhythm section in particular is so loose and groovy it just swings the hell out of the Bryant version, which is fairly strict tempo. Maybe Brown DID form a band in Baltimore but it sounds like when they got to the New York studios, there were all these other guys who'd been assembled by a producer who knew what was what. I did find a personnel listing for the Al Brown record: June 1, 1960, NYC Al Brown (vo), Rudy Powell (as), Al Sears (ts), Budd Johnson (bars), Bert Keyes (p), Everett Barksdale, George Barnes (g), unknown (b), Herbie Lovelle (d)

Out of the mouths of babes... You got me, Dave!

Was Big Al sears living in Baltimore at this time? Listening to this version, it sounds like a pick up group of top whack pro jazz musicians, not a bunch of local guys. The rhythm section in particular is so loose and groovy it just swings the hell out of the Bryant version, which is fairly strict tempo. Maybe Brown DID form a band in Baltimore but it sounds like when they got to the New York studios, there were all these other guys who'd been assembled by a producer who knew what was what. MG I'm pretty sure Al Brown was New York based, and the players on his version are all NYC session cats. Brown's name can be found as leading the backing band on a number of R&B sides from the late 50's and early 60's. Brown's record was definitely the hit Madison tune in the Northeast at the time. I never heard Bryant's record until years later when I had gotten into jazz. I was in high school when the "craze" happened, and nobody ever danced the Madison at any dances I attended! I believe it was a Baltimore fad, and has already been suggested.

I looked at it carefully - really couldn't tell!

A great talent. Her music has brought me a lot of pleasure. RIP

These are fantastic records! The first three were first issued in the 1980's. Terry had brought Wally Heider out to record the band in 1959, but none of the material was released at the time. The first three LP's were so well received that Fantasy licensed two more albums from Universal (originally issued on Mercury & Verve) and released them as volumes 4 & 5, although these are from two years later and feature a slightly different lineup. Eventually they were able to squeeze out a sixth volume from the 1959 tapes.

I've said goodbye to several pets over the years, and it's never easy. My condolences.

Why not show us a list of what you already have, and maybe we can add to it. I'm not too young to have heard of him!

Spanky returned the favor a few years later - Little Brother Montgomery appears on one track on one of the Spanky & Our Gang LP's.

That is a really good album, in my opinion. I'd say it is his last real masterpiece.

No arranger credit is given. Looked it up in Chris Sheridan's Bio-Discography, and there's no credit there, either.

7 out of 12. And every one was a guess!

The picture of my house looks like it was taken over a year ago, perhaps earlier, judging from the trees and the car in the driveway.

There are two double CD's on Musicmasters of the 1954 Gramercy Five sides: The Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65071 More Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65101 And these are not complete, but they are close. Obviously, the ASV set (which I have not seen) is far from complete.

I have it from a reliable source that this set will contain a fair amount of unissued material. Good news (bad news for the pocketbook) for those of us who already have the LP's!

I believe it is Steve Gibson & The Red Caps.

Please continue it. I've seen a lot of interesting stuff. We'll take the ego-tripping with a grain of salt.