neveronfriday

Kindred spirits ... surely. Just quickly: Is that an American "medium nose" or a German-style "medium nose"? If it is the latter, we're actually (statistically) talking about a very large nose. Just wanted to clear that up.

Yes, you're probably right, and I like that quote. But ... there are many bands out there who haven't been gobbled up by the industry yet. I have no idea if the Mars Volta have, but here goes an anecdote. A few years back I walked into this rather small venue which had this wild-looking poster up front, screaming "The Mars Volta! Live!". I had never heard of them and actually just wanted an hour of relaxation after a tough day at a conference. To say I was blasted out the door backwards again as I tried to get in is an understatement, but when I had finally managed to grab hold to a table bolted to the floor, I noticed this: I didn't really like the music I heard, but it had so much raw power and a fun (partly ... if you consider some of their gloom and doom tracks) vibe to it that it turned out to have been one of the most refreshing musical experiences of the past years. I loved that concert. Everyone in there was about 100 years younger than me, but the band swept me away completely. What an evening.

I'm actually thinking of changing that to AlwaysOnSaturday. Or FrequentlyOnSunday. Let me have a Caracas Libre while I consider my options.

Do this: a) Walk to next mirror (unless you removed them all ... as I did); b) and have a look at your profile. c) Large nose = common ancestors very likely! Welcome to the family. d) Stubby, average ... something = common ancestors not bloody likely.

Ah, you remember the old moniker. Might be confusing for a lot of people. Re Ringo: I've always been a gut-feeling kind of guy and what has fascinated me about his playing is that you can actually hear that he was having fun. I have absolutely nothing theoretical or else to back that up with (although I often notice that loose and relaxed approach to what he was doing), but there are so many tunes that just ooze that "fun" vibe and that is something that - in my eyes (to my ears) - has become more and more rare. There are too many highly-skilled drummers out there today that have had excellent schooling from before they were able to walk and are today, often at a rather young age, able to play things that people a decade or two before them wouldn't have been able to wrap their brains around. And then they start playing ... and it bores me. To. Death. It all sounds so forced and so damn polished, every note placed meticulously and every other tune streamlined to death. Sometimes you can even predict this or that change just because their upbringing and teaching told them to shift the beat, to insert a radically different break or to entirely drop out of a song just to "surprise" the listener. It's like watching those formulaic slasher films in which you just know that someone had planned that one single scene nobody was supposed to expect. Nevertheless, if you have seen more than 5 or 10 of those films, you know that it's time for that "surprising/let's trick the audience" moment ... again. Predictable. Boring. Tiring. In short, I never get/got that feeling when I listen to Ringo play, and that makes him an excellent drummer in my book. Everyone else's mileage may vary considerably on this. You know, I've ranted and raved against Charlie Watts' style for ages, simply because I thought he played the same beat over, and, over and over again, but today, as I have grown older, I'm beginning to appreciate that approach a lot more as well. Yes, predictable like hell, but so much better than all that modern wanking too many players display who are, unfortunately, idolized by the next generation of drummers growing up. Note: Yes, there is a slew of excellent drummers today as well, I know, but ...

I'd modify that a bit: "Maybe we'll start to see some more decent Garner audio releases too!" The estate's policy has lead to a multitude of absolutely crappy Garner releases from all around the globe. It's really difficult to sort through that slush pile to find stuff that has halfway decent sound. Yes, it odes exist, but ...

Ringo Starr, warts 'n all, is/was a severely underrated drummer. Yes, quirky at times and - as he often admitted himself - not good enough here or there, but what he laid down on those tracks just fits. Some of it is actually quite difficult to get just right. Ringo contributed a lot to that group sound, added to its charm (the only word I can think of right now) and I often try to imagine what it might have sounded like, had modern and technically brilliant (but often completely lifeless) drummers such as Chad W(h)ackerman, Terry Bozzio, Gregg Bissonette, that Rush dude or any of the others played for the Beatles. Makes me shudder. I neither know nor care if it was more by accident than anything else, but Ringo very often just seemed to come up with what was near perfect for a song (and in that way, he was actually a very musical drummer). Or it's all just because I've heard so much of the Beatles' music that I simply couldn't imagine them without Ringo's contribution? No idea.

Hm. Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that? Compared to many others here (I started a thread on audio equipment as deus62 here a few years back), my system really sucks. Old Marantz A-class (I'd call it "consumer") amp and one of their CD players, a pair of pretty decent Dynaudio speakers (1.8 MkII). That's it. Cost a fortune way back when ... today, on eBay, you could probably get it for a lot (!) less. I'm happy with it, but in my dreams, I'd buy ... and ... upgrade ... *groan* Never enough cash. The important thing: If the music sounds good to you on the system you have, that's a good system for you, no matter what it cost(s). Cheers!

Thanks! I haven't seen "probity" used online since, uhm, 1992? I like the sound of that word.

Yeah, before I get booted off here: As a collector (who also happens to like music, first and foremost ... what a coincidence), I bought both the mono and the stereo boxes. Yes, not everything is perfect, but I got my money's worth, much more so than with one or t'other Mosaic set that I was sonically (more than) displeased with. And although hearses don't have luggage racks, I'm taking ALL of my Mosaics AND the Beatles remasters with me. I know, good riddance, as some of you might say, at least in case of the Beatles. Seriously though, the Mono mixes are what attracted me to the Beatles eons ago, and I, personally, am enjoying the hell out of that box. The stereo remasters reactivate some of my schizophrenic tendencies at times, but they are equally good. On my system, which is middle-of-the-road for about $8000 or around there, this stuff sounds (almost) tremendous. Finally, a bunch of sound engineers who didn't go over the top or go with the flow. In my mind, what they produced is proof for the fact that we old farts (yep, that includes you) need to be catered to. I'm old-fashioned enough not to give a hoot about the other three trillion people. And crickets? I lived in Venezuela long enough to know what they should sound like. They've only lost the tips of their wings here or there, so no complaints from this side of the pond. Cheers!

Be allowed to keep it? You said yourself that aloc changed his own avatar; nobody forced him to. Likewise, Berigan could choose to change his (which he has done from one that some people considered really offensive (why the Joker is offensive is beyond me) to this one, which is just childish but also somewhat funny.) I guess I just have a thick skin. I don't get upset by people who I know completely disagree with me politically using a silly picture as their avatar. Is it a political statement outside the political forum? I guess so. Are we going to be that strict with the rules? In that case, I know of some aliases that should be deleted, post-haste. A couple people should probably be banned right now, too. Then we can institute a massive crack down and everybody can tip-toe around trying not to offend each other and the moderators can have fun censoring the crap out of everything. Let's get rid of all material that could be deemed sexist or sexual in nature. Any avatar that is suggestive at all or any pictures in a signature. Might offend someone. In fact, let's just do away with the ability to post pictures. Too risky. Let's get rid of all material that could be offensive to a certain religion or belief structure. I'm sure that would make the Catholic contigient here very happy. In fact, let's not talk about religion at all. Too much of a slippery slope. Politics, too. Let's get rid of it. Let's get rid of all material of opinionated nature that might upset those who don't share that opinion, be it about art or music or literature or movies or TV or sports or what have you. Want to say you think Wynton sucks? Sorry, can't do it. Might offend somebody. In fact, let's just not talk about art at all. It's too subjective. "Boy, the Browns really stunk up the joint yesterday, didn't they?" Deleted. Sorry, might offend someone. No talking about sports. Too much emotion. Won't this place be splendid then? Gosh, I'd visit every day just to see a couple people talking about... nothing. I'm being a bit mean-spirited, but I just get tired with the notion that somehow people think they have a right not to be offended by something. Yes, it's bending the rules a little bit to have an avatar that is political in nature. Same with a signature quoting a political figure (what constitutes a political figure? Could Bono be considered a political figure or is he simply an artist?) But c'mon people. TURN OFF THE COMPUTER. It's not that big of a deal. Hm. This is the result of not having a clear stance on what goes and what doesn't. That's all. One day it's this, the other day it's that, depending on the moment. I've seen you take a clear stance for complete free speech, and I've seen you rant against the results of that stance. Gotta make a decision at some point. Sorry. You may kick me off now.

Sad, but more than understandable.

If anyone sees an Amazon.fr preorder link, let us know here. Each new box is usually much cheaper (around Euro 30.- instead of Euro 40.-) when ordered a few weeks/months before.

A great set! Now listening to: Various Artists: Jazz In Sweden 1949-1961 - The Legendary Years (Rhino) disc 1 Disc 1 contains superb recordings by Harry Arnold and his Swedish Radio Studio Orchestra from 1957-61, among the first rate soloists are: Bengt-Arne Wallin, Benny Bailey, Ake Persson, Arne Domnerus, Bjarne Nerem, Lucky Thompson, Bengt Hallberg, Egil Johanssen I bought myself both of these boxed sets after having heard about them here first, in this thread. Thanks for the heads up, guys. Great stuff. P.S.: Why do these Japanese boxed sets (Jazz in Sweden) never have English notes anywhere? Even the French usually put in an English section into their booklets. But not the Japanese. Argh!

The item was sent by mail ("Canada Post, 1 x 0.675kgs, Small Packets Surface, 1 to 3 months"). The postage was a bit stiff but well worth it at this speed. I'll keep them on my bookmark list for dependable shops. Like you said, well-stocked on imports, so it's a place to check out for specialty items I might not be able to get elsewhere (anymore) or for unique items like the OP set that have not (yet?) appeared in Europe.

Vote #01.

I don't know how they (grigorian.com) did it, but I got this boxed set in less than 30 hours in my mail box ... out in the boonies in the south-western-most corner of Germany. Very impressive. I wish everyone around the globe was that fast and reliable! Because I had everything besides the unreleased material already (I have the old Verve CDs with the drumless trio and the Thigpen trio side by side), I just spent some time comparing sound (I used the Porter songbook) and am quite impressed. The new Canadian box is also good on the sonic side of things. Glad I ordered this box although the packaging (sleeves) is poor. It's a budget-priced set, so it's good enough for that, mind you. I'm glad I obtained the tracks I didn't have yet and my OP collection has had another glaring hole filled. Thanks to everyone here who altered me to this set! Cheers!

Just wanted to thank (!!) Dave James for getting the ball rolling. Because of this thread, I was able to trade the Woody Herman Capitol box (highest-up on my personal Mosaic wish list) for a Mosaic gift certificate. Edward, who contacted me because of my post here, went out of his way to get the box (in excellent shape) to me within the blink of an eye, perfectly wrapped and very safely packaged! A great and very pleasant man to do business with! Thank you, Edward! And, again, thanks Dave!

$40 sent. Can someone/two or three more people cover the rest?

Thanks for mentioning the page here, Hans. @Everyone else: I am looking for any original (!) - meaning not reformatted by anyone - text files, saved web pages, whatever ... - you might have of sets before # 142 (Woody Shaw). I have some of those that some people have "reconstructed" from other sources and whatnot, but I'd be interested if anyone has managed to save sth that was online on the Mosaic website (especially the very first 20 sets or so). The Internet Archive has not yielded that much re those early sets (or I'm too dumb ... quite possible) and so far, Mosaic has been a bit unresponsive (no problem with me ..., I'm quite sure they have better things to do). Maybe they did not publish these kinds of discographies on their earliest site(s)? Please help, if you can, by contacting me via PM. Thanks!

Happy returns, Hans!

My take (only): I have 18 external drives at the moment (mostly 1TB ones) ... and I'm constantly waiting for another one to fail. External drives are a gamble, no matter what model/make/... you buy. My experience: If they last 3 months, they'll last for a few years. Because these types of drives have become so cheap, I've followed a very simple rule: Buy two, mirror drive one to drive two and, if one fails, immediately buy a new one to mirror to. I haven't had any problems since I started doing it that way. I end up buying a new drive every few months ... and that's it. Hell, that's less expenditure than comes with a decent dinner at a few-stars restaurant.

Flurin, sorry, just remembered your mail when I read this ... sorry. Been too busy with getting into mud-wrestling fights with the state legislature. A new OP "fan"? Who might've thunk it? There's a definite need to get the OP trio with Ed Thigpen (and, of course, Ray Brown) out as a Mosaic set, hopefully with better sound than some of the Verve remasters. I'm a huge fan of the London House sessions, but (although the original tapes might leave much to be desired?) the Verve 'boxed set" (more of a layout and design clusterfuck) is just too thin in the sound department. I do believe a decent engineer can get more out of it. Some of the earlier OP CDs by Verve (f.ex. "Plays Porgy & Bess") are fabulous, sonically. I am one of the (very) few that believe that OP did better in that trio setting than the "classic" one before that. YMMV. I'd spring a huge amount for a complete (alternates at the end, not one after another as, f.ex. again, "Plays Porgy & Bess" is about as complete a gem as it stands with perfect sequencing) Mosaic boxed set. So, no need for me to answer anymore as you bought it all, hook. line and sinker? > P.S.: Glad you got with the programme. V.

I'd foot the bill for another (currently available) Mosaic set for the "#196 The Complete Capitol Recordings of Woody Herman (6 CDs)" ... let me know how, when, ... etc.

Any idea what the release date will be? The 1957 set did come out. But the European Union has just voted to extend copyright protection from 50 to 70 years. The compilers of the Trésors du Jazz series, André Francis and Jean Schwarz, are elderly gentlemen. So that, I'm afraid, is that. Yes, a true tragedy. One of the world's best reissue series (maybe) down the drain because of a completely delusional music industry with - unfortunately - still enough pressure-group clout to cloud judgement. Sad. Let's hope these two find a way around that ... there are possibilities. And, before the 70-year copyright defenders get on my case ... I know the arguments. In this single case, a lot of the work these two have done for the jazz community might never, ever appear for purchase. I, for one, am not happy about that.