Jim R

Well, speaking for myself (and since I'm the one who mentioned "Greatest"), the answer is... because I've owned "NY Scene" in one form or another for about 25 years...

Yeah, just hearing the beginning of Hancock's intro is enough to stop me in my tracks. That is DEFINITELY a good example. Too bad I didn't think of it first...

Not even in JAPAN (as far as I know, at least). I don't get it...

I'm sure there are a lot of classics- by Sonny and many others- that we sort of take for granted and don't discuss very often. I think NEWK'S TIME (Wynton Kelly, Doug Watkins, Philly Joe Jones) is one that doesn't get mentioned often enough (no doubt in part due to the aforementioned "default status" of his 50's work).

I'm pretty sure it was available at one time (don't recall now whether I saw a domestic or an import), but I can't recall for certain. Someone here will have an answer soon, I'm sure... Speaking of Dizzy material, here's a great one that I've still not seen on CD: It's overdue!!

I was tempted by a whole bunch of obscure discs I saw in the "new arrivals - vocals" section at Musty Groove... and I ordered... NOTHING!

I've been cooling it for about six months now, and it has felt very good. I've always gone through phases too, but right now I feel like my mega-binging days are behind me. I've been doing more playing (guitar) than listening lately, and now when I do turn on the stereo it feels more purposeful, instead of routine. I don't regret having bought so much in the past, because it's wonderful to have so much music available for enjoyment, study and reference... but more and more I feel like I have nearly (leaving the door open here ) enough... at least in terms of jazz. I may start collecting soundtracks or something if I'm not careful, though...

I don't necessarily disagree, Mark, but my final comment about policing was less about the jerks who end an auction early and then take it off-site (but actually HAVE an item to sell), and more about the latter crook I described. Maybe we can expect them to find ways to prevent that sort of thing (or at least much more difficult to pull off), and ideally maybe even try to go after some of those people. The common theme here, though, is the fact that it's so easy to just end an auction any old time and disappear. I wish they had never provided that option (I could have done without "buy it now" too). I thought eBay was working great before they started making all those changes. ============ BTW, Hal, I may not have bought anything from you, but you still get a big from me in terms of your opinions and attitude about selling. Sorry if I hijacked your topic a bit!

I've only participated (and only as a buyer) sporadically at eBay over the last 5 years, but I've been getting a sense that corruption is on the increase. I've never had much faith in eBay's ability to "police" itself (which is a separate issue from the feedback system working reasonably well, which I think it does). BTW, I agree with Brad regarding the percentages and the level of trust I'm willing to employ. Especially for prolific sellers, anything below a 99 spells danger, IMO. A 95 may sound like a reasonably high number, but you've got to be either inept or crooked to earn a 95. Anyway, I have a question and a comment. Earlier in this thread it was suggested that one should "be careful" about breaking eBay rules, whether explicit or implicit. While I agree that people should take the high road, follow the rules, and use good judgement regarding feedback if they want to be active there and keep a good reputation, I'm not sure I understand how things currently work vis a vis rules violations, reporting people, etc, and whether it's realistic to expect results if you report trouble. I guess I had the impression that eBay had gotten WAY too big to handle the everyday, relatively nickel & dime stuff (and yes, I would consider the $92 box set discussed here in that category, relative to some big ticket items I've followed in the past). If a person clearly violates eBay policy (in a situation where it can be proven) these days- especially if the item is fairly inexpensive, are they really at risk of getting into trouble with eBay? It was also mentioned above that sellers can and do switch identities when things go bad. Well, I'll take that a step further... I'm confident that there are more and more sellers who have no intention of "making a good name" for themselves in the first place. Sellers that are baiting people, and deleting their identities quite casually after yanking their bogus items or ending their auctions early (in the case of "real" items). In the past year, I've contacted two different sellers regardiing their items- both of which were expensive guitars ($5K to $10K items). In one case (a rare guitar that I believe the seller actually had in his possession), the seller ended the auction early and tried to start a bidding war via e-mail. I still don't think eBay ever should have allowed sellers to end auctions any time, at their own discretion. The other day, I saw an expensive guitar listed, which looked fishy (long story, but I recognized it, and the description didn't match the photos). After a couple of e-mails, it became clear to me that some guy had taken photos and descriptions from a couple of different online vintage guitar dealers' sites which I recognized, and was actually trying to pretend he had them for sale. This fool actually e-mailed me after he had pulled the item from eBay, and in his broken english attempted to get me to send him $5K for the two instruments (whose real value is about $15K). Bizarre stuff, and I'll bet it goes on all the time now. Is anybody policing that?

Not a big deal of course, but lately I've noticed some topics showing up here in the Discography forum that don't really belong here. So, just a friendly FYI... "Discography" doesn't refer to anything having to do with (compact) "discs". "Discography" is a term that refers to the data that is kept relating to recording sessions (personnel, dates, song titles, etc)...

For the non-computer savvy (me), what software is being used for their sound samples? I just tried to listen to some of the new Dexter CD on Steeplechase ("Loose Walk"), and I couldn't get it to work. I'm on a Mac, with Real Player and Quicktime...

BTW, Charlap appears on those Phil Woods discs that came up in the search.

Jo Jones Sextet / Boulevard Distribution, Inc. Boulevard / Contact info

Cadence (NY) sells Venus CD's for $20. http://216.73.15.27/cgi-bin/FMPro?-DB=Cade...nd=Begin+Search

This one was harder for me than the 60's poll, where Soul Station stood out (for me). However, I think I would also say Peckin' Time, perhaps followed by Curtain Call.

I do love a few of those others, but I've gotta say Soul Station.

I can't stand the sound of new strings, so I put off changing them for as long as I can. Depending on how much I play a particular guitar, that could range from a year to even longer. I wipe mine down every time I finish playing, and they last a long time. As long as they play in tune, I'm happy. I just don't want that really bright sound you get with new strings, in fact it can take weeks for a nice "broken in" feel and sound to occur for me. I've bought some used guitars that had disgustingly grimy fingerboards and necks, so I know some people don't wipe them after they play. It's just a good habit to get into. Generally, I like flatwounds, although I have some roundwounds on one of my guitars, for a change of pace. I prefer about a 12-52 set, but I've gone with 11-50 on occasion.

I've had a lot of amps (surprise ), including some Fender tweeds (the original Bassman with one 15" speaker, for example, which I sold for $400 20 years ago...), and an old tweed Gibson with a 15" JBL. Right now, I have a '64 Twin Reverb and a reissue 4X10 tweed Bassman. The Twin had been messed with before I got it, and it's never been a very good amp. The Bassman gives me the sound I like, although I should probably start looking for something lighter. Anyway, I don't play professionally, so I don't have to move it that often. BTW, its about tone for me with this baby, not volume. I don't think I've ever gotten it above "4". AB, I remember when I got my first carved-top Gibson (a '64 Super 400CES). It didn't hurt that it had been owned (and "played in") by Robben Ford, but there's something about a spruce top, and an ebony fingerboard, and pearl inlays, and gold plating, and... Hmm... I think I'll go play.

SWEET! Those are wonderful, comfortable guitars. They may be light, but they bite! I used to have a 1960 ES330, which I found locally via an ad in the paper for (drumroll...) $200. Clean, with the original brown Lifton case. I sold it a couple of years later for $450 (circa '83 or so), and was so proud of myself. Now those go for about $3K. I might add that I've always kind of shared Duke Robillard's philosophy (as stated in a Guitar Player magazine interview years ago). He likes to enjoy a guitar for awhile, and then try something different and let other people enjoy the ones he's played. The only problem with that is, you sometimes allow yourself to let go of something that you really regret later.

Well, 1988 was a long time ago, and I don't have the greatest memory in the world, but I would think more like $2000 (maybe $2500 for an exceptional specimen) at that time. Of course, we ARE talking about NYC- the "mecca" of high prices. People are always talking about how rare 150's are (the notes on the LP cover of Rene Thomas' "Guitar Groove" stated that only a few existed in the world), but that's a misconception. You can almost always find one for sale if you know where to look. The truly rare model was the ES250, of which only a few dozen were ever made. Those are well into 5 figures now (and yes, I sold mine for a lot less ).

hbj, I think $3K might have been a little ambitious for an ES150 (unless it had been really clean) back at that time. Of course, it was probably worth a little more than $400! (sorry ). At any rate, we've all done things like that, I'm sure. I once traded 2 guitars plus some cash to George Gruhn for an ES250, and when I saw the prices he put on my guitars I almost fell down. Live and learn indeed. I also think back to some guitars I sold for lower-market value, which are now worth ten times what I sold them for. Ah well... Lon, As far as I know, Gourley has used an ES150 for most of his career. There were so many players that used those (or other models with that pickup added) due to Christian's influence. Charlie used the 150 and the 250, BTW). I still say you should try out the Tiny Grimes 4-string version (ETG150). Every bit as loveable as a digital piano!

I never met a Gibson I didn't like. B) What do folks think of the new D Angelicos? I think they're ok, but those headstocks are huge! I haven't had the pleasure yet, but I've heard nothing but good reviews.

First of all, let me say that I consider myself lucky, for a couple of reasons. I've been able to afford some nice guitars, and I started "collecting" (although I've never owned more than a few at any given time) back in the 70's, before vintage archtops became major investments and museum pieces on an international level). I've always had a serious "thing" for vintage Gibson archtops, and I've bought/sold/traded a few dozen over the past 30 years. I was also very fortunate to own an old noncutaway D'Angelico New Yorker back in the 80's (eventually decided to trade it away). To me, every archtop guitar has it's own personality, especially if you experiment with different models. I love that about them. I also love the way they sound, feel, look, and yes, even smell (okay, I'm odd). Anyway, it's hard to choose a favorite, because each model has it's own design factors that make it special. I love the sound of 18" guitars like the Super 400 and the D'A NY, but they're not as comfortable to hold and play. The Johnny Smith model is great, with its wider fingerboard, slightly shorter scale, and that great mini-humbucking pickup. And speaking of pickups, it's pretty hard (IMO) to beat the sound of the old Charlie Christian pickup. The ES-175 is probably the quintessential affordable/reliable/workhorse type Gibson archtop, but for an axe with a P90 (single coil) pickup, I always liked the ES-350. Despite what you see in my avatar, I guess if I had to pick an all-time favorite, it would be my L5CT(ES), or "George Gobel" model. It's an L5 with a thinner body (about an inch thinner than a standard L5), and a cherry red finish. Mine was modified with humbuckers before I got it, but even unplugged it just sings, and it practically plays itself. 24 3/4" scale, and so comfortable to play. Adrian Ingram, who wrote "The Gibson L5: It's History And Players" (as well as Wes Montgomery's bio) asked me for photos, so it actually ended up being included in his book (b&w, unfortunately, although the color photos in that book were generally screwed up somehow).

I was going to mention, five tracks on the Smith were originally released on the (LT series) LP "ON THE SUNNY SIDE". I like the fact that the whole CD is Smith/Burrell/Bailey, even though from three different sessions.