Big Al

Switch the word Oakland with Texas and and the sentence free fall is in full swing to has been in full swing since the all star break and your an A's fan, I feel your pain. True dat. When that started, I thought maybe for once the mid-season free-fall was happening to someone else and not us for once. You'd think I'd learn after 35 years of watching these guys. On a happier note: Cubbies have won five in a row!!! Oh please Lord LET THIS BE THE YEAR!!!

The only time I regretted that was when I got the Byrds 5D. Wasn't impressed, or at the very least, I thought the stereo mix was a lot more enjoyable. Completely agree about Sgt. Pepper mono, and a lot of 60's rock & roll mono. I did hear Dylan's HIGHWAY 61 in mono once; thought it was okay, but one thing I liked about it was what I thought was a nice AM-radio sound to it.

You got THAT right. There are some nice songs on that disc, but does anyone need four or five different mixes of "New Year's Day" and "Two Hearts Beat as One" each??? That said, having a remastered WAR more than justifies the purchase price ($19.99 at Best Buy the week they came out). AFAIC, this mix lives up to Bono's claim that WAR is "a slap in the face," grabbing you by the throat and forcing you to listen! [rant]Not too keen on the liner notes, though; the writer goes out of his way to avoid the spiritual basis of a lot of WAR's songs. I mean, "40" IS Psalm 40! Just because one is an atheist (or, at the very least, one who lives in fear of being lumped with any religious group) need not preclude one from stating what a song is! [/rant] Me too. I haven't read anything about what's supposed to be on it, but it sure would be nice if disc two had the Wide Awake in America EP as well as The Unforgettable Fire EP (preferably the UF EP mix of "Love Comes Tumbling," which has that extra couple of seconds of guitar strumming at the beginning).

I just caved and bought this since it is running low--the only strategy I have for buying Mosaics without entirely ruining my finances. I don't think I'll regret it, will I Sundog? This is an excellent set, great writing and playing by everyone involved. Very interesting to listen to a young Tony Williams! Especially knowing what was to come. What Tom said! However, I don't particularly care for the "'Bout Soul" and "Some Other Stuff" sessions. Kinda wish those were on their own disc so I could avoid them altogether, but I guess that's what CD burners are for.

I was listening to the OJC of 5 by Monk by 5, and the stereo separation made me wish I could hear the mono version sometime in my life. Am I the only one who was born too late and is too cheap to try and track down albums such as the following: Antonio Carlos Jobim THE COMPOSER OF DESAFINADO PLAYS Johnny Hodges WITH BILLY STRAYHORN AND THE ORCHESTRA Thelonious Monk 5 BY MONK BY 5 Art Pepper PLUS TEN and GETTIN' TOGETHER SONNY ROLLINS AND THE BIG BRASS STAN GETZ WITH CAL TJADER Duke Ellington PIANO IN THE BACKGROUND and BLUES IN ORBIT There's some rock albums I'd like to hear in mono as well: A lot of Ventures records THE BIRDS, THE BEES, AND THE MONKEES What say y'all (especially those of you who weren't around when these records were first issued)?

I have that one as well! A nice set! Me, I'm spinning Freddie Hubbard & Stanley Turrentine In Concert, Volume 1 which I found last night along with its companion Volume 2. I am SUCH a CTI nut!

Garza threw a gem tonight. Yeah he did. I was really hoping for that no-hitter for the guy. And yet with every pitch, he only seemed to get stronger!

The Rangers have scored a whopping ZERO runs in their last 19 innings and only four runs in their last three games. Two shut-outs in a row. The free fall is in full swing. At this point, I'd be surprised if they score another run all year.

Hey, it is what it is. I smell another three-game sweep around the corner. The Rangers offense is playing like they don't care anymore. Who can blame them? The pitching is so horrendous right now, why bother trying to put a bunch of runs on the board when the pitching is only going to give it away (hell, sometimes before the Rangers even get to bat)?

Congratulations, Ed, and welcome back! Good to see you & Dex again!

Downloaded and listened yesterday while driving around, probably not a good idea since I wasn't in a very good mood and there was some challenging music. So, the following comments probably reflect more on my crankiness than the actual music itself. 1. Whatta swingin' way to start a disc! If I didn't already own this Mosaic, I'd be begging you for the answer and then begging someone to sell this to me! Track 1 from Bone & Bari! 2. "Time After Time" after time after time after time..... this is the solo that doesn't end, it just goes on and on my friends..... 3. This starts off waaaaaayy too slow, makes a whole lotta racket before settling into a groove but retaining the same level of racket..... I could only tolerate this for a few minutes before I hit NEXT. (Listening to it on the computer, I see this goes on for fifteen minutes!!! Talk about an endurance test! Thanks, but no.) 4. Another one that takes forever to get going. Songs like this sound like they are in constant "introduction" mode. Get to the song already!!! Another one that goes on for almost fifteen minutes! I understand there are people who dig this, but I'm definitely not one of them. Sorry. Those last two were so maddening, they made me realize that this is what jazz-haters refer to as noise when they express displeasure with jazz. I can't say I disagree with them, but then I point them right back to track 1 of this BFT. Or I could just point them to.... 5. ....this nice slice of what started off sounding like some late 60's soul-jazz big band, then Rabbit comes in with his unmistakeable sound, then the orchestra makes some very Dukish statements. I'm gonna guess it's either a Hodges big-band date for Verve or an Ellington Fantasy date. Either way, I LIKE, and I'm gonna seek it out when this is all done! 6. "Ole," baby!!! I came very close to switching off the flute intro, and boy I'm glad I didn't! Have no idea who this is, it's obviously not Trane, it's not McCoy on the piano (in fact, I prefer this pianist's understated playing of the vamp without showing off), definitely not Elvin on the drums. Who could it be? No clue, but eager to find out! 7. {{{{sigh}}}} I tried. The soprano was nice, but the piano player sounds like he's trying to channel Andrew Hill, Cecil Taylor, and McCoy Tyner all at the same time. Oh well, at least this doesn't go on for 15 minutes. 8. This started out okay, but then the tenor started sounding like it was having a coronary. Nope, not sitting through this for twelve minutes. Like I said before, I understand people dig this, but it's just noise to me. Now, if I was watching this live, that'd be a different story. I can dig that. But listening to it at work or in the car? Sorry, can't do it, don't wanna do it. 9. Uhhhh.... yeah..... 10. Ahhhh! VERY much some Tony Williams there! But what? Starts out sounding like his 80's Blue Note group, but that is DEFINITELY Freddie Hubbard on the trumpet! And that has to be Ron Carter on the bass! Herbie on the piano, only thing left is to see if that's Wayne on the tenor.... and it is. So this has to be some VSOP recording, I guess. Did they ever make a studio album? I like this enough, but Wayne's solo is not my favorite. I don't mind when he goes out there, but for some reason in this case, it just sounds out of place, or maybe he's just out there too long. I don't know. Freddie's solo, OTOH, is ferocious, fiery, melodic, in your face with all kindsa grace! 11. Oh God, this was the most maddening track! I wanted to like this, I really did. I love that piano figure, the cymbal washes, but the tenor is just so NOT THERE! Wayne again? It sounds like him, but instead of sounding melancholy, he sounds comatose! That, and the frustration thinking I know the name of this song, but it's not coming to me! I keep thinking "Poinciana," but it's not. It'll come to me, probably after the answers have been revealed. 12. Sounds like a mid-70's McCoy Tyner Milestone date. Not really jumping out at me right now, but the beauty of McCoy's Milestone dates is that, while they take a couple of listenings to get used to, they are extremely rewarding. I wouldn't be surprised if this falls in that category. 13. Some solo piano somethingorother that didn't really hold my attention. Alright, that's one man's grouchy take on it. Let others who enjoyed this more than I did (and there should be plenty of them) make better and better-educated guesses than this old bop-head stick-in-the-mud.

In a perfect world, Youk would come to the Rangers after declaring free agency at the end of the year.... A perfect world for a Rangers fan, mind you.

Links downloaded. Thanks MG!

Damn.... a month too late for me! Wish I could be there!

Bouncing back and forth between the recently received Buddy Rich and Jack Teagarden sets.

It never fails: I skip a BFT and end up missing out on a doozy! KEEP THAT GROOVE GOIN' is one of my favorite albums and yes, the songs on there are NOT long enough! Especially "Go Red Go." Can I get a download of this disc? If not, maybe one of the US participants can hook me up.

I can't believe I missed out on this BFT. After looking at the answers, I about cried. Is it too late to get a download of disc one? If so, could one of the US participants mail a copy of disc one to me? Thanks in advance!

CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN! TWICE IN ONE DAY! HOLY COW!!!! Somewhere, I gotta believe that Harry & Skip are throwing down some brewskis (Budweisers, probably, since Harry was a "Bud Man and a Cub Fan") & arguing with each other during this series.

Up again cuz a new poster bought a disc, so maybe there are others who'd like to partake!

All of these arrived in excellent shape about a week or so ago, nicely packaged, and the vinyl is SUPERB!!! They all sound terrific. Thanks again, Pete. Are any of these others still available?

Funny, his playing on "Star Bright" never caught my attention. I think I first noticed him on Comin' On as well. The sessions with the Three Sounds are also par excellence. ok ok, I don't get what's so hilarious about me mixing up two albums - or is that some kind of language joke that I don't get or what? Chuck just made the comment that he didn't notice Stanley's playing on SB because he's not on that album; Hank Mobley is. It was Chuck's comment that was funny, not your confusion. At least, that's how I read it.

You got THAT right, especially when they were backed by the Horace Parlan "Us Three" Trio.

And another couple of CTI faves:

I loves me some Veggie Tunes! Here's a CTI fave:

The Rangers have not won a game at Fenway since last season. I smell another sweep around the corner. The announcer said something like the Rangers are 12-37 against the Red Sox in the last few years (I forget how many; I'm sure Dan will know).