Ed S

PM sent regarding the Art Ensemble of Chicago set

Just messaged GP about the Coltrane sets. Hope they're still there for the taking

My set arrived unexpectedly this morning and I just started listening. I ordered my set by credit card on January 11th. FWIW, I have received set number 0056.

Guess I missed this thread 15 years ago, but boy did it bring a smile to my face. Back in 1975 or 76, I saw Brian Auger and the Oblivion Express in a place called the Outside Inn in the Sunset Beach area on Lake Erie south of Buffalo. Back then and still today, there were lots of summer cottages and party bars and this was one of them. Given the year, I would have been 18 or 19 year old at the time. Several friends and I made the trek down there to check them out. It was a hot summer weekend night and one of those shows that started at 10 PM or so - so it was a vibe to which I had never been exposed. I'd seen a jazz concert about 6 months earlier - at Fredonia State College, about 45 minutes from Buffalo, in a concert hall. I didn't have my drivers license, so my parents drove me and my younger brother to the show. THIS was totally different - it was a bar, it was me - on my own - with friends, and an experience I have never forgotten. It was simply an electrifying and exciting performance. I'd never heard anything like this live and remember just being blown away. This was the Oblivion Express with Alex Ligertwood on vocals - who I thought was excellent - and Jack Mills on guitar. Long jams, total groove, the Fender Rhodes, the organ, long improvisation.....call it whatever you want to call it, but for this 18 or 19 year old kid - it was jazz and jazz is where I leaning with my listening. This show was a major push in that direction and in that sense was life altering - at least to me and my musical tastes at age 18. The live music and feel of this event was captured on the two volumes of Live Oblivion. I picked up the LP shortly after the show. Some time later, volume 2 was released. I still have the LPs and now also the CDs - which I am playing as I write this. The current song playing is "Maiden Voyage". Outstanding.

Happy to have received this set from my wife Kelly for Christmas. We celebrated Christmas today (12/26) as driving bans subsequent to the massive blizzard that hit the Buffalo area prevented one of my sons - who lives near me - from being at my house yesterday. Ironically, it was my son who lives in the Hudson Valley area who was able to be with us. But he just arrived on Thursday before the blizzard hit the area and has been snowed in ever since. Anyways, things are getting back to normal and today's the day I received this set. I'm listening to it now and it sounds terrific. I have much of the stuff on the set, but have not listened to it for a while. As such, I'm really digging the music AND the sound. Can't wait to play it at full volume as right now, I'm in my basement and it's to late to play it at an optimal volume. My set number is 1491, if than means anything to anyone. Back to listening...

It is, and I like it! I'm going to pre-order as well.

I've got a bunch of stuff by Jonas Kullhammar that I really enjoy. If I'm not mistaken, he used to post either on this board or the Blue Note board

I'm going to have to give Mosaic some props for my second consecutive excellent ordering experience. My last one was the Armstrong set back in August. I saw that the Tristano set is back in stock at Mosaic. So around 11 PM on Tuesday, October 4th, I ordered it. So for all intents and purposes, it was a Wednesday the 5th order. I got acknowledgement of the order on Wednesday the 5th. On Friday, the 7th, I got the "note added to my order" that included the shipping notice and tracking number. I had chosen US Mail. The projected delivery was Tuesday the 11th before 9 PM. I checked the tracking today and to my surprise, the changed the delivery to today, the 9th, by 6 PM I walked outside around 11 AM and voila! there it sat in my garage. Of course this was a domestic order and I realize that unfortunately, international orders don't do so well in comparison. Looking forward to diving into the set later this evening after the completion of the Buffalo Bills game. Go Bills!

Right around the time of his passing, I suggested a Complete Blue Note Recordings of Chick Corea. As I imagined it, It would include his dates as a leader and sideman. So: The Song of Singing The Circle stuff Early Circle Circulus Complete "IS" Sessions Now He Sings, Now He Sobs Jazz for a Sunday Afternoon With Blue Mitchell The Thing To Do Down With It Boss Horn With Wayne Shorter Super Nova Moto Grosso Feio With Donald Byrd The Creeper With Elvin Jones Merry-Go-Round ( three songs, I think - but just the sings with Corea) With Bobby Hutcherson Total Eclipse With Bobby McFerrin Play I emailed Mosaic. The response I got was that while it would make an interesting set, Chick's recordings were readily available. Not sure if they are any more available than Henderson, Hubbard or Mobley. I do think they are missing an opportunity as I think the name appeal of Corea would sell a bunch of sets. Now that he' passed, perhaps more so. Plus in Mosaic quality remastering and a top notch booklet. But what do I know?

I'm sorry to hear that. I was hoping that your set would have arrived by now and hope that it will arrive soon. Shipping should not be this challenging, especially international shipping. I have bought many items from Europe and Japan - CDs and bicycle parts in particularly - that arrive within a reasonable time. Those are sales from individuals, Amazon and places like Paris Jazz Corner. My one instance of a good experience noted above was my first since Mosaic outsourced their shipping. They really do need to clean up their act.

I know that throughout many of these individual Mosaic threads there are many comments about Mosaic's shipping operation. I'd guess the majority relate to international shipping situations, but I've seen plenty of domestic as well. I myself, while never having had a set I purchased never ship, take too long, or get routed around the county for weeks, have never gotten the full set in information that lets me know that my order was received, that a tracking number was created, the order was actually shipped and then through the tracking process, know when my set would arrive. Never. Until now. Seeing that the Armstrong was back in stock, I decided to place an order on August 24th. Within a few minutes, I received an acknowledgement that my order had been received and was being processed. I also received an order number and a complete order summary. The next day - August 25th - I received the USPS tracking number that was created via email as a "note added to my order". I checked on the 26th, and my set was on its way with a delivery date of August 29th by 8PM. I received it today, August 29th at 9:30 AM. BTW, the booklet is number 2,192 of 3,500 sets if that matters anymore relative to order of distribution. Looking forward to diving into it when I get home from work.