bertrand

It sounds like I have a job to do - perhaps in early May. The unidentified composition is probably just another track off the first Fuel album, which to be honest I don't care for very much. But I'll try to figure it out. Now that I have a discman, I can probably figure it out on the spot (if they let me bring it in). The Newport tapes are from Voice Of America - they are not bootlegs. Drummer Gary Jenkins, who lives in the D.C. area, told me that he toured with Larry Young and George Benson in the early 70's in a trio format. Larry replaced Hilton Felton, also from D.C. Didn't think to ask Gary if he had any tape... Bertrand.

Buck is definitely still active in the DC area. He had a gig at the old Twins early this month, and at Montpelier Mansion in Laurel in March. He did retire from the post office a few years ago. We in DC are lucky to have him in our midst. Bertrand.

I just got my mother a CD player, and she wants to start building a classical collection without spending too much. We picked up a Naxos CD tonight of Brahms' Four Hand Piano Music (8.557056) and I must say, it's very nice. Admittedly, I know nothing about classical music, so my impression of the quality of a performance is based purely on whether it sounds good to me or not. So, my question is, why is this series so low-budget? Are the performances supposed to be sub-par as a general rule? My guess is that it's hit or miss - some are gems, some are disasters. Are there any titles you guys would recommend highly? Are there any to be avoided at all costs? Thanks in advance, Bertrand.

She's a fucking bigot. Still turned on?

Enjoy! Please report back to us with a set-list if you can. I'm curious to see if he added any pieces to the repertoire since I saw him in Paris in January. Bertrand.

The French rock group Ange made a few good records in their early days (although the lyrics are over the top). The one I liked the best was Emile Jacotey, with Caricatures close behind. Haven't listened to this stuff in YEARS. I might hate it now. Bertrand.

I will be there as well. Bertrand.

I checked the copyright database, to see if by any chance Pepper would have copyrighted his piece *before* 'All Blues' was even recorded. Here's what I found: RE-457-534 Title: Cuevas de Mario; musical composition. By Art Pepper (Arthur Edward Pepper) Claimant: Laurie Pepper (W) Effective Registration Date: 15Dec89 Original Registration Date: 12Jun61; Original Registration Number: EU674655. In other words, this tells us nothing more, since the copyright date is posthumous to the recording date. So the Jury's still out. What would help is to get an idea of whether Miles or Art were playing their respective compositions live sometime before their recording date. I think Ashley Kahn's book tries to get into this, but doesn't go very far (I think he's mostly going by Jimmy Cobb's recollections). Another problem is that the origin of the five compositions on KOB is very sketchy - among other things, there are no copyrights for these tunes. Bertrand.

I've been following this band since its inception. The set list has of course changed over the past two years, but here is an idea of what you might have heard. Footprints Live, which documents the first year of the band's existence contains: Sanctuary Masqualero Valse Triste Go! Footprints Ju-Ju Aung San Suu Kyi Atlantis Chief Crazy Horse (Japan only) Since this CD came out, some new pieces have been added to the repertoire (most of the ones above are still in the repertoire): Joy Ryder Over Shadow Hill Way Smilin' Through (theme from a thirties movie) On The Wings Of Song (I don't really know this one, but it's a cover) 12th Century Carol In concerts where the group is backed by an orchestra, they have also played: Angola High Life Orbits Midnight In Carlotta's Hair Vendiendo Alegria Children Of The Night Prometheus Unbound (new Shorter composition, as of yet unrecorded) Yes, Wayne does not talk or make any announcements at most concerts, which some people find annoying. I don't mind it too much, except at the concert where I did not recognize one of the pieces (I was told later it was 'On The Wings Of Song')! He did announce 'Smilin' Through' in D.C. on 3/7/02, which is how I know it (I rented the movie and memorized the head). He plays this one at almost every concert - it's a gorgeous arrangement. He told me it may appear on a future record. If I think of any other titles, I'll update this posting. Bertrand.

So I was in a bad mood earlier - lots of crap going on in my life. But I still think that his playing on 'In Walked Bud' from Keystone 3 and 'Well You Needn't' from the Hancock album are really bad - really, really, really bad. Few jazz musicians have ever struck me as playing that badly. Most of the time, the harshest comment I find to make is that they sound 'lackluster'. For Wynton to strike me as that bad means he's going out of his way. All of my opinions were formed before I found out he was also a jerk. I would have felt kinda sorry for him had he been a nice guy. People may certainly continue to enjoy him (apparently, lots do). I will continue to cringe whenever I hear him. Bertrand.

Wynton sucked from day one. Just listen to his atrocious playing on Blakey's Keystone 3 and with the Herbie Hancock Quartet. His interpretations of Monk are abject. How this clown ever got anywhere in jazz, I'll never know. Bertrand.

I propose the following band name: 'Dick Armey and his army of dicks'. Or, alternatively, just 'Dick Army' (e omitted). Bertrand.

I had enquired at a Bethesda, MD music studio about joint guitar lessons for my 4-year old and me - I didn't think he'd learn much at that early age, but he might get a kick out of watching daddy re-learn how to play, and it would foster his (ever-increasing) interest in music. The place wasn't too keen on the idea, but they gave me the name of one of the two owners who they said liked kids and would probably be my best shot - we could try a trial lesson and see. Well, I put off scheduling the lesson because I thought a private teacher might be more willing to experiment (haven't made the call yet). Well, it turns out 'liking kids' was an understatement - the guy in question was arrested last week for fondling and taking nude photos of a 13-year old girl, and photos of dozens of other girls (headless photos) were found in his house. Holy crap - this really sent chills down my spine. We almost took lessons with a major pedophile. Bertrand.

I've been thinking of picking up the new Baxter's, Pillow, Crown Of Creation and Takes Off reissues using the Borders' 20% coupon. I have no previous reissues of these CDs. How is the sound quality? Some people are griping at amazon.com about the sound (especially Pillow), others seem happy. I only trust the feedback from my friends at Organissimo. Thanks in advance, Bertrand.

Bon anniversaire Claude! Ton ami, Bertrand.

Where is Joe Henderson playing? Bertrand.

It's gotta be an April fool joke - no one at Blue Note actually ever answers e-mails Bertrand.

If it was recorded by Wally Heider, I'm wondering if the master tapes (or a copy thereof) are part of the Heider collection at the Library of Congress. I remember that when I first started going there about ten years ago, this collection was mentioned to me. For lack of time, I never looked into what it contained. As I'm typing this, I'm wondering if there's any interesting Jefferson Airplane material there. Hmm, let's check their website... [Wally Heider Collection] LC Control Number: 92751679 Type of Material: Music Sound Recording (Collection) Main Title: [Wally Heider Collection] [sound recording]. Published/Created: [ca. 1930-1970]. Description: 3,224 sound discs and tape reels. 1,826 sound discs : analog, 33 1/3 rpm ; 12 in. or 16 in. 1,342 sound tape reels : analog, 7 1/2 ips or 15 ips, 2 track ; 7 in. or 10 in. Summary: In 1974 Wally Heider, a sound recording engineer, sold/donated his personal collection of recorded sound materials to the Library. These include concert dates and radio broadcasts by jazz and popular performers from the 1950s and early 1960s. Notes: Title supplied by cataloger. To locate individual items from this collection, search under: (corporate added entry: 710) Wally Heider Collection. Wally Heider Collection, Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division, Library of Congress. Finding Aids: Finding aids located in the Library of Congress Recorded Sound Reference Center. Source of Acquisition: Gift; Wally Heider; 1974. Subjects: Jazz--1951-1960. Jazz--1961-1970. Big band music. Dance orchestra music. LC Classification: Wally Heider Collection Geog. Area Code: n-us--- Repository: Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division Washington, DC 20540 USA dcu -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CALL NUMBER: Wally Heider Collection -- Request in: Recorded Sound Reference Center (Madison, LM113) -- Status: Not Charged If these are his personal recordings, then the complete Buttercorn Lady session could conceivably be contained therein. And I'm sure there's some Airplane stuff - possibly some that later surfaced on CD (I'm not too familiar with those releases, other than having seen them in stores). There's probably some Wayne Shorter stuff in there as well, with Miles or Blakey. I need to look into this on my next visit. I assume there is some sort of finding aid. Bertrand.

I was thinking of piano as well for my 4-year old, but I only have room for a little electric keyboard - seems like kind of a shame. With the grotesque prices of houses in the DC area these days (how do people live?), it doesn't look like we'll be leaving our townhouse anytime soon. Bertrand.

I'm going to two concerts tonight in D.C. 1. Bill Heid @ 6:00 Westminster Church. They go until 9:00, but I'll leave at 8:00 to go see... 2. Charles Davis @ 9:00 at Twins. He's supposedly bringing in a group from NYC. The rest of the week-end, I'll be hanging out with my 4-year-old son: Gym class, birthday party, soccer class, park, possibly the afternoon jam session at HR 57 depending on the weather (it's fucking beautiful today). Bertrand.

I'm in the process of making a CD-R collection of each one of Monk's compositions as played by him, so I can listen to it in the car and finally get the titles straight. Of course, I will be missing '52nd Street Theme', 'Five Will Get You Ten' (aka 'Two Timer') and 'A Merrier Christmas'. Bertrand.

If the Golden Boy you saw had the original pictue of Blakey in a Kimono, jump on it. This is a very hard to find, and the master tape is AWOL so Blue Note (who own Colpix) won't be getting around to it anytime soon. Wayne, Lee, Freddie, Curtis, Cedar et alia are on it - a very nice record. The entire 'S Make It (with the unedited track), Soul Finger and the tune 'Slowly But Surely' from Hold On I'm Comin' (which really belongs to Soul Finger) could probably fit on one CD. I'm sure Verve is not examining this option. Bertrand.

Bummer - I'll be at work at that time, and I don't think I'll be able to get away. Brucker hall is very nice - very good acoustics. I will be at the 9:30 Ray Baretto Blakey tribute at the Kennedy Center. I don't suppose you were headed that way... Bertrand.

Jazzgirl, My pleasure. Kenny is one of my favorite musicians (Afro-Cuban and Whistle Stop are my favorite recordings of his), and this Newport performance is fabulous. It really makes me wish Kenny and Wayne had collaborated in the studio. Tell us more about this archive - do you already have a specific place it is going to be donated to, or is that still under discussion? Bertrand.

Just 13 and already mixing it up with the wrong crowd... Poor kid.