Alexander

I really prefer the politically concious rap from the late 80s/early 90s to a lot of the stuff today. Give me some Public Enemy or Arrested Development anyday over Chingy or Nelly. And as for 50 Cent, the Gangsta thing is so over... Yeah, the images of women in hip hop videos has gotten out of control.

Important disclaimer: This is not a "jerk" story... I remember going to see Joe Henderson sometime in the early to mid-90s. After his set, I remember watching him stand in a corner of the room while people milled around. A little boy walked up to him and got his autograph, and Joe graciously signed it. I remember thinking that I should go talk to him (my aunt Suzi knew him, so I even had an "in"), but I didn't think he'd want to be bothered (but if he didn't want to be bothered, why was he hanging around the bar after the set?), so I didn't talk to him. And now he's gone and I regret that I didn't take the time, because I'll never have that opportunity again...

I'm a big Harris fan, so I picked it up on Tuesday. It's quite good, but I must say that I was a little disappointed. I saw this group live last summer and they KICKED ASS. Particularly bassist Darryl Hall and drummer Terreon Gully. Hall was on electric bass at the time, and he has a beautiful PHAT liquid sound on that instrument. For some reason, Harris switched Hall to acoustic bass by the time they recorded this album, and the difference is audible. Moreover, Gully was a MONSTER live. He was all over the place. He's much more restrained on the album. When touring, Harris was trying out an electronic mallet instrument called a MalletKat which he was alternating with the vibes. By the time he recorded the album, he seems to have decided that he didn't like the MalletKat anymore, because he doesn't use it at all. While I think he could have used the MalletKat less in performance (it did get a little tired after a while), I would like for him to have used it for texture on the album in addition to vibes and marimba. I realize that these are all artistic choices that Harris made, and I respect that. It's just that the concert was so good, that I'd hoped the album would be a little...better. Still, I do enjoy it and I agree with the 70s Bobby Hutcherson vibe... My biggest complaint is the cover art...looks like someone went to town with Photoshop!

These three songs were the defining songs from the summer of 86 (all of which I liked at the time): Papa Don't Preach - Madonna Nasty Boys - Janet Jackson Sledgehammer - Peter Gabriel I still like the Gabriel song, and recently picked up the new edition of "So." Great album!

Here are some good 80s songs by 60s artists: "Watching the Wheels" - John Lennon "Sexual Healing" - Marvin Gaye "You Can Call Me Al" - Paul Simon "Sweetheart Like You" - Bob Dylan

I have never been one to allow an artist's personal failings to affect my appreciation of his or her art. I can, and do, enjoy the music of Miles Davis despite his horrid treatment of women and the music of Stan Getz despite his alcohol fueled spousal and child abuse. I enjoy the poetry of T.S. Eliot despite the fact that he was an antisemite and the novels of Luis Ferdinand Celine desipte the fact that he was a Nazi collaborator. Django Reinhardt was a first class flake who skipped out on nearly as many gigs as he played (as did Hank Williams), Bird stole from friends (and nearly anyone else he could take advantage of), and Bud Powell did some really hateful things (such as leading George Shearing into an intersection and then leaving him there). There is really no excuse for such behavior, but that doesn't affect my ability to enjoy the art created by these men. I think somebody should make a compliation album titled "Great Artists, Lousy Human Beings." There are certainly enough people who fit that description to make it a two-CD set at least, possibly even a box set.

"Fight the Power" - Public Enemy "Love Shack" - The B-52s "Walk This Way" - Run DMC

Well, the discussion thread seems to have petered out. I know that thanks to the good people at German Customs, the disc was delayed for some of our European friends. The disc can still be discussed on the discussion thread, but I thought it was time to get the answers up for the people who've been living with it for a while. 1. Body and Soul - Jimmy Rowles from "Stan Getz Presents...The Peacocks" A couple of people got this one. The most impressive was (I think) Brownie, who identified Rowles by his left hand! Amazing! This is a beautiful recording, and it was always my intention to start my BFT with this track, even before I settled on the piano theme. 2. Mr. Jelly Lord - Jelly Roll Morton Trio from "Birth of the Hot: The Classic Chicago 'Red Hot Peppers' Sessions, 1926-27" Again, several people got this one. Johnny Dodds was on clarinet, Baby Dodds on drums. 3. What Love Is This? - The Bad Plus No one got this one. The track was an exclusive from iTunes. 4. In a Mist - Bix Beiderbecke from "Singin' the Blues" This is one of my very favorite solo piano recordings, plus I thought it would make for a nice curve-ball. Those who are very familiar with early jazz got this one easily, others found it a little harder. 5. Satin Doll - Bud Powell from "Paris Sessions" Gilbert Rovere on bass, Kansas Fields on drums. Not one of Bud's best sessions by a long shot, but still full of his trademark wit. I have a special fondness for this one, so I included it. I was a little surprised that some people had a hard time with this, since I feel that Bud has a very distinctive sound. 6. Just One Of Those Things - Art Tatum from "The Complete Pablo Group Masterpieces" Divine. What more need be said? Red Callender on bass, Jo Jones on drums. 7. Lush Life - Bobby Timmons from "This Here is Bobby Timmons" This one stumped a lot of people. A lovely recording, and proof that Timmons could do more than play hard bop. 8. The Man I Love - Bill Evans (right channel) and Bob Brookmeyer (left channel) from "The Ivory Hunters" Whatever God you believe in, pray to him or her that this disc be reissued soon. It is magnificent. I had a lot of you going with this one for a while, but someone got it. I'm very impressed! Percy Heath on bass, Connie Kay on drums. 9. Nagasaki - Albert Ammons and Meade Lux Lewis from "The First Day: Blue Note's First Recording Session of 1/6/39" I had you guys running up and down blind alleys thinking that this was Fats Waller! A friend of mine (a pianist) guessed James P. Johnson, so don't feel bad. Someone got it eventually. Fun little track, isn't it? 10. Blackbird - Brad Mehldau from "The Art of the Trio, vol. 1" Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. Easy one. I had to make one track easy! Seriously, it's a nice rendition. I always recommend this album to people who aren't into jazz, but are looking for some nice piano music. My wife LOVED this track. 11. Someday My Prince Will Come - Keith Jarrett from "Up For It" This is such a beautiful recording, if only someone would just tape Jarrett's mouth up! I love this album regardless of Jarrett's horrid bleating, which gives you an idea of how well he plays here. For those who thought Jarrett was just self-indulgent solo performances, the Standards trio (with Gary Peacock on bass and Jack DeJohnnett on drums) is a pleasant surprsie. I chose this track because the bleating only came in half-way through the performance, and that would mean at least five minutes where you'd be wondering. As soon as Jarrett starts his show, it's all over. I'm impressed that some were able to identify this recording by Peacock's bass playing. I'm not sure I could do that. 12. I Should Care - Thelonious Monk from "Monk Alone" I'm surprised that it took so long for people to start getting this one. I thought Monk would be a gimmie. 13. Phantom of the Bopera - The Fred Hirsch Trio from "Live at the Village Vanguard" Now we come to the three tracks nobody got. This is from a wonderful 2002 live album on Palmetto. Drew Gress on bass, and Nasheet Waits on drums. Highly recommended. I also recommend Hirsch's most recent disc, "The Fred Hirsch Trio + 2" with the same personnel and Ralph Alessi (trumpet) and Tony Malaby on tenor sax. Great stuff. 14. Blue Wail - The Uri Caine Trio from "Blue Wail" Another one nobody got. This is from a 1998 album on Winter and Winter. I first heard Caine with Dave Douglas, and was moved to pick up his own work. This is probably the best place to start, as it is the most immediately accessable. 15. Body and Soul - Jason Moran from "Modernistic" Frankly, I'm shocked that nobody got this one. Great album, great pianist. And that's it! I want to thank everybody for their participation in my BFT. I had a blast putting it together and reading your responses. This was a wonderful experience that I won't soon forget. Ciao!

There's a great scene in the "Great Jazz Day" (or whatever) documentary in which Benny Golson is talking to Horace Silver about this very issue. Golson says that whenever he dreams a melody, he always intends to remember it and use it, but that he always forgets it in the morning. Well, one time he got up and wrote it down, intending to develop it the next day. When he wakes up, he runs to his horn (or piano, whatever he writes on) and plays it. As he plays he realizes that the tune sound familiar... It's the verse to "Stardust!"

Well, gosh...isn't that why they called him "Bird?"

Okay, my argument with Chris Rock...and now for that matter...about Lenny Bruce is that had it not been for Bruce breaking ground there wouldn't have been a George Carlin or a Richard Pryor...or a Chris Rock for that matter (although I have been known to exploit the transgressive power of the "F" word...as in my very first publication "Meditations on Crime and Fucking"...for the most part I tended to lean more towards the absurd in my humor rather than the obscene). You also have to remember that Bruce had a reputation as an "angry young man" and his humor should viewed in that light (it's often "stick it to the man" funny or "I can't believe he said that " funny rather than "ha-ha" funny).

There's a long story involved here, but the upshot is that I met Chris Rock *years* before he got famous when we were both auditioning for SNL. As we had a lot of time to kill, we (among several other people) started discussing this very topic: Who was the most influential comedian of all time? We had it narrowed down to Lenny Bruce (number 3 on this list, I believe) and Richard Pryor (number 1). For various reasons, I was most loudly championing Bruce, while Chris was arguing in favor of Pryor. I don't recall whether or not we settled the dispute (I think someone's name was called, ending the debate), but I think it's funny that not only did Comedy Central settle it (Pryor over Bruce), but that Chris Rock is now #5 on the list! Funny, I don't see *my* name anywhere. Ah, my brush with greatness... I could've been a contender!

PODOLIANTSI, Ukraine - At age 33, Leonid Stadnik wishes he would stop growing. He's already 8 feet, 4 inches. Recent measurements show that Stadnik is already 7 inches taller than Radhouane Charbib of Tunisia, listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the tallest living man. He's also gaining on the 8-11 Robert Wadlow, the tallest man in history. Yet for Stadnik, the prospect of becoming a record-holder would be little comfort. "My two-year-old suit's sleeves and pants are now 30 centimeters (12 inches) shorter than I need," said Stadnik. "My height is God's punishment. My life has no sense." Stadnik's height keeps him confined to this tiny village 130 miles west of the capital, Kiev. "Taking a public bus for me is the same as getting into a car's trunk for a normal person," he said. Stadnik's unusual growth began after a brain operation at age 14, which is believed to have stimulated his pituitary gland. Since then, life just keeps getter harder. Although he once was able to work as a veterinarian at a cattle farm, he had to quit three years ago after his feet were frostbitten because he wasn't able to afford proper shoes for his 17-inch feet. This month, he finally got a good pair, paid for by some local businessmen. Their $200 cost was the equivalent of about seven months' worth of the tiny pension that Stadnik receives in the economically struggling country. Stadnik sleeps on two beds joined lengthwise and moves in a crouch through the small one-story house that he shares with his mother Halyna. His weight of about 440 pounds aggravates a recently broken leg, and he suffers from constant knee pain. Despite his aches, he tries to keep himself busy with the usual routine of country life. He works in the garden, tends the family's cows and pigs, and helps neighbors with their animals. To relax, he cultivates exotic plants and pampers his tiny, blue and yellow pet parakeet with his huge hands. Bronyslav, a neighbor who refused to give his last name, described Stadnik as the "most unselfish, diligent man of a pure soul." His friends, in turn, treat him with the same sort of soft good humor. They're trying to organize a trip for him to the Carpathian Mountains to show him that "there's something in the world taller than you," Bronyslav said. Here's a picture of Leonid Stadnik trying to dial a cell phone!

Groucho: And remember, when you're out there risking life and limb, through shot and shell...we'll be in here thinking what a sucker you are. -Duck Soup Chico: Let's-a put-a da house here. Groucho: No, it'll have to be here. I don't want junior crossing the tracks on his way to reform school. -The Coconuts

It's big of all of us. Let's be big for a change.

Man, that's what I call LOVE.

At least replace it with a hot YOUNG Bardot... If Bardot offends you, perhaps you'd like to try Anita Ekberg or Sophia Loren...

30 minute albums bite, IMHO. (With a few exceptions, here and there, of course.) I actually think that the 40 minute album is the perfect length. Too many recent jazz CDs go on WAY too long!

"Think you can lick it? Get to the wicket, buy you a ticket, GO!"

I should add that there are plenty of wonderful records that Bix played on (great clear through). Didn't mean to imply that all of Bix's records were bad, just that some of them (all side-man appearences, I'm pretty sure) are awful.

I was listening to some Bix records last night, and I was marveling at how BAD some of those records really are. Not Bix's performances...but the records themselves. Bad arrangements, bad sound, BAD VOCALS. But when Bix solos, he cuts through all of it. It's like finding a diamond in a pile of garbage. It's amazing how you'll find yourself sitting through two minutes of crap (and I was often laughing at how bad some of those songs were) just to hear fifteen or twenty seconds of absolute perfection...

No doubt they were expecting to find special orders for Al Qeda operatives. And for all I know, thats what they found!

"What do you make of this?" "Well, I can make a hat...or a broach..."

We did ours back in January... B)

And people wonder why more women don't hang out around here...