Hot Ptah

This is a rather random collecion. Some of the albums are pretty good, but few are among the artist's best work. Some of the albums are odd obscurities in the artist's output (such as the Spann and Little Richard). The Muddy Waters album is one of the three studio recordings that he made at the end of his life, which were well received, but it does not contain any of his classic sides, which were recorded much earlier. This would be the equivalent of a set of jazz albums with Miles Davis represented by "Water Babies", Count Basie by his small group "Basie and Zoot" album on Pablo, Dexter Gordon by his late Columbia album "Gotham City"--that is the kind of collection it is. Not exactly bad music, but not a representative collection of the best of the genre, or the best by the artists.

I find it odd that "Ghetto Walk" was never released before this box set. It is much more of a major work to me than much of the "Big Fun" album, Side 2 of "Water Babies", and some of the later material on "Circle in the Round" and "Directions", to name some of the official releases from 1974-80 which contained vault material. I think that the previously unreleased material on this box is generally stronger than the previously unreleased material on the other Miles Davis' boxes, although the "On the Corner" box has its revelations too.

Sun Ra--Space Is The Place, from the album "Space Is the Place".

There is also an account of Sun Ra's Impulse days and how they ended in the book, "The House That Trane Built", the history of Impulse Records.

I want to participate. I will need a disc. I will send you a PM with the information.

Is #12?: Julia Lee - Mama Don't Allow It June 16, 1947 Julia Lee (vocal,piano) accompanied by Bobby Sherwood (trumpet) Vic Dickenson (trombone) Benny Carter (alto sax) Dave Cavanaugh (tenor sax) Red Norvo (xylophone) Jack Marshall (guitar) Red Callender (bass) Sam "Baby" Lovett (drums) #5 sounds like Fletcher Henderson to me, either Fletcher's band or someone else's band arranged by Fletcher. I am not coming any closer to a guess so far. I hear Sidney Bechet on #9, but can't place the recording otherwise.

I am only up to track 8 but I am loving this BFT!!!! This is one I will play for pleasure long after this test is done. I think that track 8 is Eddie South, Stephane Grappelli--violins, Django Reinhardt, Roger Chaput--guitars, Wilson Myers--bass, on "Dinah", recorded in 1937. I have this on a CD reissue entitled "Eddie South In Paris 1929 and 1937", on the Disques Swing label.

The first cut on "Mudfoot" is really exciting--Arthur Blythe's "Miss Nancy." I was fortunate to see The Leaders live in a small club. I sat right in front of Lester Bowie. Great performance by all.

I received your disc today, thanks. I have sent a PM to you.

Happy Birthday!

The wonders of the telephone, which can take us close to Chuck Nessa's home!

I think that there is something to what the initial poster wrote about. I have been going back and listening to some of the jazz which was newly released when I first became enthusiastic about jazz, in the 1970s. I was struck by how accessible some of the music is, even though it is uncompromising. The McCoy Tyner Milestones, and albums by Carla Bley, Arthur Blythe, Charles Mingus, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Dexter Gordon, Johnny Griffin, Stan Getz, Thad Jones/Mel Lewis, Mary Lou Williams, and many others, were all full of substance musically, but also had an immediate appeal to me, the young listener who did not know what he was doing as he floundered around in jazz. I also explored Cecil Taylor, Roscoe Mitchell, Air and other artists who did not have many catchy, finger popping tunes. Maybe I don't know what is out there now, but there seems to be an attitude among many artists releasing new jazz albums that complicated time signatures and harmonies are the reason to record. Since they can play a piece in 13/4 time with difficult harmonies, they do. Their albums are interesting on some level, but I don't play them repeatedly. How to come across with the direct emotional appeal of Dexter Gordon or Stan Getz while playing contemporary harmony and difficult time signatures--that is something which many jazz musicians of today have not figured out how to do, in my opinion.

I think that Gary Mc Farland's "Profiles" qualifies.

I think that Gary McFarland's Impulse album, "Profiles", has never been reissued on CD, and I think it should be.

Probably right on both counts, but getting the chance to hear that much Michael Ray is the draw for me. I really like the other Sun Ra Horo, "Unity", a 2 LP big band session. That one really deserves to be reissued on CD.

Wonderful BFT! I love playing it in the car, and I learned a lot about appealing music unknown to me. What more could you ask, from a BFT!

I had also never heard of Turner Parrish, and find his playing very appealing.

Who put this discography together? While this is a large list, there is a significant number of dates omitted for which I own CD-Rs that have been made from personal private tapes and private open reel tapes that have yet to be transferred to CD-R. I can give more information re personnel, tunes, timings but so far I see there is no mention of: 5 July 1973 Newport JF in NYC 22 July 1976 Ravenna, Italy 13 October 1977 Rome (with Lester Bowie) 12 May 1978 Public Theater, NYC 7 September 1978 Ann Arbor JF, Michigan ? October 1978 Zurich JF 23 September 1979 Detroit Institute of the Arts 9 November 1980 Stadthalle, Freiburg Ger On a minor note, the specific date for the Molde JF in 1980 is August 4th. I also have a couple of dates from 1981 but I see the discography ends the previous year. But if that information is wanted, let me know. Archie Shepp appeared at the Ann Arbor Jazz Festival on September 21, 1978, not September 7. I was there and I have the original poster for the festival.

I saw him live outdoors at the Kansas City Blues and Jazz Festival, within a year or two of the year 2000. He was very compelling and enjoyable. I also liked his dark green formal men's hat. A real "pine top". I thought that showed a nice sense of humor.

I would like to participate. I will need a disc.

From your response to my comments about #2, it is from a Maybeck solo piano recital disc. I am looking at a list of all of the Maybeck discs and trying to decide, from the Maybeck discs I do not have, who might have played the way that the pianist is playing on #2. I come up with Hal Galper as a possibility.

I have rarely been as intrigued by a Blindfold Test, or enjoyed the music on a Blindfold Test so much, while having absolutely no clue as to any of the songs, artists or even soloists. Here are my impressions: 1. A good way to start a Blindfold Test, with a likeable, pleasant mood, which draws in the listener. I have no idea who any of the musicians are. It is very well played and of high quality. 2. A solo piano concert in front of a fairly small audience. At first I thought of the Maybeck series of solo piano recitals. However, the applause at the end does not have the sound qualities of Maybeck series applause, so I don't think that this comes from the Maybeck series. This applause is too unstructured and rough sounding to be Maybeck applause. You can really hear the smoothness and richness of the room when you hear Maybeck applause, and this applause sounds like it was recorded in a basement with old linoleum on the floor and metal folding chairs. The pianist is not just someone who can put together boppish runs fluently. This pianist is a thinker, a conceptualizer. There are not that many of those. Mal Waldron is the type of pianist I am referring to, or Muhal Richard Abrams--they are thinkers. Ultimately I cannot identify the pianist, but I very much want to know who it is. 3. This is the type of off-the-wall oddity that is just made for Blindfold Tests. It sounds like a tack piano, but played with a wild imagination that is off the charts for any tack piano recordings I know of. This might be considered the all time revolutionary recording in the history of tack piano. Again, I can't wait to find out who it is. 4. Great! I love this stuff. On my first listens I wondered if this was the earliest recorded use of vibes in jazz history. But then I read your comment that it is a celesta instead. I had an idea that Jeff Cromwell would identify this one, and I was not disappointed. 5. I love this type of piano playing, and think that I know the major famous artists in this genre. I do not know this pianist, and will be very interested to find out who it is. 6. I really like the quirky composition and the sound of the trombone. The pianist plays beautifully. I cannot identify them. 7. I love the jazz of this time period, and think that this is a very successful track. I am not familiar with it, and can't identify any of the musicians. I am surprised that I do not know this, as I listened to a ton of jazz from this era during my early burst of jazz enthusiasm. 8. Monk's "Bye Ya", played by one of those pianists who is a thinker, a conceptualizer. This is an original interpretation, quite unusual compared to the way that Monk is often played. I like it a lot. No idea who it is. 9. This is the most unusual version of "Old Man River" I have ever heard, by a wide margin. I kept thinking, who would record something like this? After having gone over all of the usual suspects in my mind, I have concluded that this must be an original thinker who I have never heard of. I will be very interested to find out who it is. 10. This is a wonderful version of "Willow Weep for Me." Both the vocal sections and the instrumental sections really work for me. I can't identify anyone on it, but I keep replaying it. 11. I love this type of swing music! I can't figure out who is playing the violin. The only soloists I know from this era are Joe Venuti, Stephane Grappelli, Eddie South, Stuff Smith--it's none of those. It's an exciting violin solo, whoever it is. No clue as to any of the musicians. 12. The reed soloist is Dolphy-like. I am surprised by your comment that it is not Eric Dolphy. Your hint that two of the musicians worked with him does not help. I find this to be very intriguing, and I cannot identify anyone on it. 13. A South African jazz piece. I would only be making wild guesses if I threw out all of the big names from South Africa known to me. This piece is very beautiful, with deep feeling. I love it. 14. No idea who this is. Jeff Cromwell says that it is Sam Rivers. I did not hear that on my own. A great Blindfold Test, with many moments to savor from a pure enjoyment standpoint. Also, there are many moments which inspire thought, curiosity, wonder. I can't wait for the Reveal!!!

Of course.

Professor Craig Thompson has published an article in The Journal of Consumer Research about the "hipster phenomenon as a marketplace myth". http://onwisconsin.uwalumni.com/departments/unhappy-hipsters/ The parts I like are: "...the kinds of culture that Thompson calls 'indie'. This is an area of culture that requires a great deal of investment--if not in money, then in knowledge--to learn the cultural references that will make them fit in with other members of the indie community....'They are becoming a taste culture, and they have to acquire considerable...knowledge and cultivate particular aethestic tastes and sensibilities. They also form a network of social relationships and gain status within those networks." Subsitute the word "jazz" for "indie" and I think that this is a description of any online jazz board community.