Ted O'Reilly

Geez, I recorded that, more than 20 years ago! Two concerts in two cities, two consecutive evenings... Both great performances. (I wonder how much eBay would value the master tapes?) I have lots of solo Friedman from Toronto gigs, too. He's an under-recognized artist, comfortable in any setting, modest and easy to deal with. And what a great musician Don Thompson is. Think of the marvelous players he's worked with: Jim Hall, Paul Desmond, Rob McConnell, George Shearing, Moe Koffman, Ed Bickert, John Handy, Jay McShann, Ruby Braff....on and on. As close to a jazz genius as I've ever known. Pianist, bassist, vibist, occasional drummer. Composer, arranger, producer, recording engineer, teacher... Amazing!

Peter, is your Oppo the Blu Ray version? I have an Oppo DV-981HD which (it says) plays SACDs, but I've only ever had the machine hooked up to a TV, where it's been terrific for about 6 years.Deciding on getting a Blu Ray for a new TV, I held off on paying the big bucks for the Oppo, and went for a (Consumer Reports) highly-rated LG player. I'm going to use the Oppo now as a CD player only. Should I expect good results on all CDs, SACD included?

Yeah...Williams and Haden. Good idea. Speaking of duos... The (now-gone) Montreal Bistro in Toronto was a mostly-piano room, and had just about everyone you could think of play there in the '80s and '90s, into the '00s. During the Downtown Jazz Festival they'd sometimes bring in another piano, and book some interesting duos drawn from the regular list of players, like Dick Hyman with Ralph Sutton, and Harold Mabern with Geoff Keezer. I begged him to bring in JoAnne Brackeen with Jessica Williams, but he didn't go for it. Too bad -- I think they'd be great together: both well-centred and from the tradition, but both able to go outside with confidence. I don't know if either ever did piano duets, but I'd like to hear them.

Wow! 98 cents, tax included. (And whatever happened to That Great Young Vocalist Harry Belafonte?)

Agreed. Great talent, especially in a solo setting I think. She gets more out of a piano than almost anyone -- touch, sound, emotion. I recorded her for radio broadcast two or three times at the Montreal Bistro in Toronto. and never failed to admire her deep talent -- something extra going on there. She's been producing her own material for a long while, available from her website, but see if you can also find recording on Hep records from Scotland, and there are some good ones on the Jazz Focus label from Canada.

The poet/artist Ted Joans had as a motto "Jazz is my Religion, and Surrealism is my point of view". I think I quoted him among my last words on the air when I retired. I know I finished with "Ite, missa est". (Joans is apparently the guy who started the graffiti "Bird Lives!")

Much of Mary Lou Williams' later work was very religious, and I recall having once had an LP called "Black Christ of The Andes" on Saba. Pianist/composer Joe Masters wrote and recorded "Jazz Mass" in the mid-'60s for Columbia (CS 9398) that was re-issued on Discovery (DS 785). It followed a Roman Catholic liturgy: Kyrie, Gloria In Excelsis, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, Pater Nostros, Agnus Dei.

Yup, Gene's still in great shape, musically and personally. He has a phenomenal memory, remembering everything it seems. And as active as he wants to be, too. I had forgotten that Buddy Greco was still with us, too; didn't know at all about Beecher. My earlier reference to Hasselgard was to note that the Swede worked in the US away from Goodman, and that Gene DiNovi appeared on many of those gigs. (As an aside, I wonder how many realize that Gene's daughter Denise Di Novi is a major movie producer. http://en.wikipedia..../Denise_Di_Novi).

Of the guys that played with Benny's bop groups, I'd say that Gene Di Novi is the last one still with us. Did stuff with Stan Hasselgard, too...

I've been enjoying Ed Bickert, Mike Murley and Steve Wallace on a just-released CD ("Test Of Time") of material recorded in 1999. The trio had been recorded live at a Toronto club, but the results were not up to everyone's expectations. Though a live record was desired, there wasn't going to be an opportunity to do in the near future, so they did a couple of sessions at the producer's (Barry Elmes) modest home setup. But before those tapings were mixed, an opportunity came up to again record at a club. Since a "Live" release was what they originally wanted, they jumped on it and made "Live at The Senator" (Cornerstone CRST CD 113) which won a Juno -- the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy. The studio sessions lay fallow for a decade until Elmes was making safety copies of the (Artist-Owned) catalogue, and knew they should be released. For those who love Ed Bickert's guitar playing (and who wouldn't?) these tracks are especially important as they represent some new treasures of a talent that hasn't been heard since his retirement more than a decade ago. http://www.cornersto...s/whatsnew.html and http://mikemurley.com/ for more, including a link to a CBC site that lets you hear examples...

The new "Jazz Puzzles" volume by Vernhettes with Lindström arrived in the mail today. At first glimpse it measures up in every way to the Ladnier book, and worth every penny, though some will think it's overpriced and the author-publishers will get rich. Uh-uh. I've spent more than its' cost on a bottle of wine at a restaurant where the enjoyment was fleeting. This book is going to last. Value versus Price, and it's Valuable. Congratulations to Dan and Bo...

Again, from my Peurling/McConnell experiences, Gene wrote all the vocal arrangements, and with Rob, worked out what the orchestra(s) would be doing. I know there were long phone calls for weeks and weeks as they worked it out long distance. Peurling had pretty much carte blanche from Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer at MPS, who was also very deep into studio production techniques. Gene wanted to do something with the Boss Brass, and made it happen. HGB-S went along with it, and also did the Hi-Lo's with McConnell and later a couple of albums with the Boss Brass alone.

I got to know Gene a little bit, from the time he worked with McConnell -- Rob and Gene and their families all became very close. He told me that the TSU was created as a studio project, that it was never, ever, intended as a performance unit. As a producer, he liked the way multi-tracking (starting with just 8 tracks) could be used by his superb singers to create a pure choir sound. These days, the jazz choir movement in high schools and colleges all have his TSU charts. There was never a strict TSU formula for assigning parts -- as in alto/tenor/baritone/bass, since his singers were so flexible -- nor for number of parts. When he got the performing bug again, pretty much after working with McConnell, Peurling re-formed the Hi-Lo's to do some things, including recording with a McConnell orchestra. It was not the actual Boss Brass, but later the Hi-Lo's and the BB did a concert at the Monterey Jazz Festival...

I don't know this series. Is it a continuation of the one that issued the lovely 4-CD budget-priced Ellington set of a few years back? Now that Sony is able to mix Columbias and Victors as they wish, have they really created a 'best of' Goodman from those labels? Are they new masterings at all?

I pulled the 7-CD "Magic Voices" set by TSU off the shelf as a result of this topic. I've heard it all before, of course, but it's been a while since I've played it. Spot-checking through it leads me to conclude that (other than the sublime a capella treats) TSU's best efforts are with Oscar Peterson, Robert Farnon and Rob McConnell. Canadians all. How about that!?

Get the Frog versions. Be happy.

So, recorded at Pizza Express, released on the Pizza Express label. I wonder how many other jazz clubs have released things on their own label? One I know for sure is the great little club "Jazzland" in Vienna, Austria. I have a good Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis album recorded there with a local rhythm section. (Nothing to do with the American label Jazzland, BTW).

Why's that, Jazzbo? Gotta be the sound -- the music will be the same. Is the mastering inadequate in some way?

80, yes. But you don't look a day over 79, old friend. Best wishes!

These are great mics! The Lee and Christy photos feature the RCA 44 ribbon microphone; the Armstrong looks like the Neumann U47 condenser. Classics both...

Johnny Griffin avant garde? Really? Maybe, if you think Prince Robinson was a bebopper...

Pat LaBarbera has, and plays, Lucky Thompson's tenor and soprano saxes. They apparently came to him via a dentist who took them from Thompson as payment for some dental work...

Let's hope it's not toilet bowls...

"Radioactive pet bowls"?!? Do radioactive pets need special bowls? And where do you get radioactive pets in the first place? There are things I just don't understand...

Yeah, that's why I was hoping somebody might have a more reasonable offer at there. All the sets being offered now are priced between $400 and $900. I can't imagine anyone is buying at those prices. If this doesn't work I'll just start collecting the individual CDs, where possible. Wow! 400 to 900 bucks?!? I have a still-sealed copy sitting on my shelf. But it's rusting away under the shrink wrap. I never intended to NOT open it, but when I got it it was to fill (perceived) gaps in my Evans recordings on single CDs and LPs. I've liked his Riversides more, and tend to reach for them, bypassing the Verves. Maybe I'll hang on until the (rusted) box is worth as much as a (rusted) car...