Alexander

I heard a piece by William Grant Still on NPR a while back. It reminded me of Bud Powell in some very significant ways. I was interested to note that the piece dated from the twenties...

I don't think it's hyperbolic to say that Pops was an heroic figure. His life was triumphant. He was flawed, yes, because he was human. But his humanity was his greatest asset. That and his unbelievable talent. A giant may have feet of clay, and still be a giant nonetheless.

Waaaay back when I worked at B&N in Rochester, a couple of books on Tijuana Bibles came out. Our manager at the time was a MAJOR prude. He was the kind of person who'd say: "I'm no prude, but..." and then proceed to remove items he regarded as offensive from the shelf. Anyway, when he got wind of the Tijuana Bible books, he threw a fit and had them removed from the store (there hadn't been any customer complaints that I knew of, btw). Anyway, some months later our beloved manager decided to move away. I thought it would be funny to shortlist some of the books he found so offensive and drive him crazy during his last few weeks at the store (this guy had a sixth sense when it came to finding this kind of stuff. He could walk into a room and make a beeline for any remotely purient material, screaming: "Where did this come from? How did this get in my store?"). Bear in mind, shortlisting isn't the same as ordering. When employees put a book on the short list to be ordered, a manager had to approve it (most did it without really reading the list, however). So the books I ordered came in, and for a while it was working like a charm. The manager was fit to be tied! Then he figured out who was behind it...that wasn't so funny...

I like the guy with his hand over his mouth! He doesn't look disgusted, just...queasy.

Damn! Don't you people have anything better to do? Seriously, belated congrats on the odometer rolling over.

What I love about Fellini is that he evokes so many primal emotions that it's difficult to talk about it except to another Fellini-phile. Bergman, Cocteau, Renais, Renoir, Truffaut, Visconti...all great filmmakers, but all pretty easy to talk about. Only Fellini, for me, really hits one on a gut level...

Hellyeah! GREAT disc!

The above is probably the coolest film poster I've ever seen! Gotta get me that!

For the longest time, I couldn't get through "8 1/2." I'd rent it, get through the first tape, and then fizzle out before it was over. It wasn't until I saw it on the big screen that it finally hit me. It loses a lot on a small screen, IMHO. "La Dolce Vita" is still my favorite Fellini film. It's that fountain scene! Ouch!

And the follow-up "Way Mo' Mojo."

Being a New Englander for roughly five years of my life (and still considering New England my spiritual home) I will be pulling for the Pats. I've had my heart broken so many times (by the Sox, usually) but still I keep coming back! It'll be a competitive game, but I think the Pats will take it...

Is it just me, or does this look like a Civil War-era photograph of a sharecropper?

I'm always fascinated by cultural and travel guides about America for foreigners. It's so interesting to see how Americans are seen by others and it see what "ordinary" manners, beliefs, customs, and practices are amazing to non-American eyes! I can certainly see where people around the world think of all Americans as rich. The culture shock for someone from an extremely poor country must be staggering when they visit America...

I, too, have heard Negro Bluesmen (particularly Mr. Mickinley Morgenfeld) referring to his "MoJo" working, but that it "just won't work on you." By this I infer that Mr. Morgenfeld's "MoJo" is broken. Does anybody know of a shop that services "MoJos?" Or would it be more sensible for Mr. Morgenfeld to simply replace his "MoJo" with a functional model?

Wait a minute...!

I got this today. The recording quality is poor for the most part (there's quite a bit of surfice noise), but the music is outstanding. Hard to say which dates are best. The whole thing was new to me, so I was unsure what to expect. The tracks with Sonny and J.J. are a treat, of course, but I was also knocked out by Lockjaw and Big Nick. Once you get past the sound, it's well worth it...

Over the summer I wrote roughly a dozen reviews for this magazine. The new issue came out recently (it seems to come out a few times a year) and of the dozen reviews I wrote, only one was printed. No big deal right? These things happen. C'est La Vie. Except that the one review that has my name on it ISN'T THE REVIEW I WROTE. I wrote a middling review of Al Basile's "Red Breath." What was printed was a GLOWING review. It's horribly written too (I'm not claiming that my review was brilliant, but it was better than the crap that replaced it). A few phrases from my review were lifted and used in the rewrite, so I know that whoever wrote it read the original. I'm pretty pissed at the moment. So I don't think I'll be writing anything for "Jazz Improv" in the future...

Congrats guys! You deserve it! I like that list, by the way. It's nice when someone doesn't limit his list of favorites to a "top ten" or "top five."

For me, jazz *is* political, and always has been. Art *is* political by its very nature. Look at the Impressionists and the Modernists. Look at the Cubists and the Abstract Expressionists. Heck, look how sales of superhero comics go up during republican administrations! Anyone who imagines that art and politics reside in separate camps is fooling him or herself. Art is human expression. Politics is a human activity. Politics is inescapable.

I've heard other people talk about the first time they heard "Dance to the Music." I agree that it's a great track, I love it myself, but I am interested in hearing just what it was that made it such a groundbreaking single. Obviously coming to it decades after its original release (when so much was influenced by Sly), that initial reaction is somewhat dulled. I've heard people compare "Dance to the Music" to the first time they heard James Brown's "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag." These two tracks seem to have changed the way people heard music. How so?

"Oh goody! The Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator!"

I agree. The rock/rap press is hyping "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below" as the hip-hop "Sgt. Pepper." Not quite, but it is a step in the right direction (more experimentation). "Hey Ya" is a great single, the same way "Light My Fire" by the Doors or "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison is a great single. It's easy to get sick of these songs, but they endure because they're just so damn catchy!

Sorry...Motown doesn't count as a "guilty pleasure." Too damn good!

I feel for you, I really do. My daughter is almost four years old now, and I remember well the long, long, LONG nights when she had to be fed every two hours. A preschooler is a walk next to a newborn. It does get better. She'll settle down. She'll need to eat less often. The tummy troubles will pass (try giving her a tiny bit of pear or apple juice. When my daughter was a baby she was often constipated and a little extra fiber goes a long way towards keeping things moving). I always found that feeding time (my daughter was on formula from the start, which meant that I could share in the feeding) was a good time to do a little listening. Just remember that her little eardrums are delicate, so keep the volume down...

Incredible!