StarThrower

Why do people keep using the word "push" here? As if exposing kids to music, culture, etcetera is the domain of zealots. And if you're going to assume that kids like hooks and catchy melodies (who doesn't?) there's plenty to be found on jazz recordings of all kinds. To my mind, this is one of the best kept secrets about jazz when it comes to the general public. So many beautiful melodies to enjoy from Monk, Duke, Coltrane, Mingus, Horace Silver, Thad Jones, McCoy Tyner, Joe Henderson, Weather Report, Pat Metheny, MJQ, Tad Dameron, Wes Montgomery, Wayne Shorter, Oliver Nelson, and on and on...

Only an idiot would try to shove their taste in music down someone else's throat. I suppose there are some obnoxious people who attempt this kind of thing, but I'm not one of them. As I already stated, corporate media and advertisers are constantly bombarding children with all kinds of of shallow, useless garbage. My intention in giving a kid some jazz recordings is only to expose the child to something of excellence and lasting value. It doesn't matter if the kid doesn't take to the music wholeheartedly, or the specific artists aren't to his/her taste. It's a matter of exposing a child to something of substance and intrinsic value. And the joy and satisfaction that results when people actually study, practice, learn their craft, and create beautiful music. And of course with a child, the more immediate impact of just hearing some exciting, well played music. And yes, the drums! I loved that stuff as a kid too. My mom's stepfather gave me the Rich vs Roach record when I was 10. And Sing Sing Sing is on there! I don't see any difference between this and exposing a child to some classic literature. It's not about forcing anything down a kid's throat. It's just a matter of exposure and education, so kids can make up their own mind based on something else besides ignorance.

Minoat, from Mal Waldron's Enja release Moods. Fantastic cornet solo by Terumasa Hino.

I will give this a listen, Chuck. I'm always interested in finding some more good stuff from Duke. Thanks! Right now I've got a buzz on and I'm listening to Wayne Shorter's The All Seeing Eye. Man! This is some great music! And Nat Hentoff wrote some really interesting notes.

I'm not really interested in the my music verses yours game. I don't put jazz above any other form of musical expression. It's just another form, and I want to share it. I've always listened to all kinds of music. I don't really care about genres or styles. It's the individual artistic expression coming from within that moves me. It just so happens that many of these artists happen to play jazz. I'm not a jazz zealot out to show lost souls the light, so they can throw away their pop records. My approach is "here's some other stuff." You can add it to your collection and I hope you enjoy it. If not. C'est la vie.

Because I rarely see the kid. I live in upstate NY, and he lives in Louisiana. And frankly, my sister and her husband don't have the musical knowledge to do this. I don't have any kids, so I decided it would be a nice thing to do for my nephew.

I think your missing the point. My objective is not to convert anybody. It's simply about exposing a kid to something else. As everyone knows, especially in America, our own vital culture and artistic heritage is buried by the river of shit flowing from corporate media. And I would never tell a kid he shouldn't listen to whatever he wants to. My folks weren't pushy, and they never did that to me. And besides, I'm offering my sister and her family a gift of music. Everyone gives gifts to their family members, and nobody interprets it as proselytizing. It's not like I'm gonna call them two weeks later and quiz them on the music. It's a gift I want to share, and I'll leave it at that.

No, he wouldn't listen to that stuff. He's 78 years old, and he likes the older stuff. He's old enough to remember when Take Five was a hit. And he likes Satchmo, Ella, etc...

I wish I knew, but it wasn't me in the car. It was my Dad, and I don't think he knows more than one or two jazz tunes.

I'm getting him a Metheny Group DVD. He can watch it with his dad. I got him the one with Antonio Sanchez, Richard Bona, and Cuong Vu. I attended one of the shows from that tour, and I had a great time. I love all of the Weather Report stuff, but for a 10 year old, Heavy Weather will be fine. It's loaded with catchy melodies.

I don't really distinguish between "old classics" and new stuff. It's either good stuff or it isn't. As far as taking him to hear live music, that'll be up to his parents. They only live an hour away from New Orleans, and they're taking him to NYC in July.

I think he will, because he's a smart, sensitive kid. I'm just gonna go with the CDs I picked out. I'm betting he's gonna love Roland Kirk. That Mercury stuff has so much soul and personality, it's got to strike a chord with anyone who's got even the slightest interest in good music. I'm not gonna send him everything at once. A few CDS at a time. And I'm not gonna say shit. I'll let him take it from there.

Hey, I love pops! If I could find more current jazz with that kind of originality and personality, I'd get the kid some new records. But I haven't heard too many original voices in recent years. At least when I was first getting into jazz 30 + years ago there were some young cats with their own sound. Metheny, Scofield, Frisell, Steve Coleman, Kenny Garrett, Jaco, and drummers like Joey Baron, and Smitty Smith. I'm not hearing too many that stand out these days.

I'm not opposed to current jazz. But it's got to be somebody with their own voice who has something to say. Great players who remind me of somebody older just don't do it for me, and I'm not interested in buying their records for somebody else. I know a lot of people like Chris Potter, EST, etc... but they don't do it for me. Michel Camilo is on my list, and I think he's great. Especially the big band album I listed. I like John Hollenbeck a lot too, so maybe I'll get one of his records for the kid. And Esperanza Spalding. She's so damn talented and gorgeous, it's hard not to pay attention.

Best blindfold test ever!

If they're needle drops, they cleaned up the noise pretty good. Anyway, they're packaged handsomely with nice photo and notes. I'm enjoying the music, especially Message To Our Folks, and Shepp's passionate tenor playing. I haven't listened to all of the music yet.

Anybody familiar with the supposedly 24 bit remastered mini sleeve editions on Sunspots label? Have these BYG/Actuel albums ever sounded good on CD? Most of the recordings I have sound brittle, but I couldn't resist the new Charly Art Ensemble 3-fer, and Shepp Yasmina/Malcolm CDs when I spotted them this past weekend in a local store.

From my local independent record store this past weekend: The Awakening-Mirage Archie Shepp-yasmina, a black woman/poem for malcolm Art Ensemble-a jackson in your house/message to our folks/reese and the smooth ones Thelonious Monk w/ John Coltrane

Yeah, I don't want to go on overload and get the kid all scatterbrained. So that's why I'm going to spread things out over time. I don't expect a 10 year old to absorb all of this music, but at least he'll have the recordings and can grow into them. His parents are conscientious, appreciative folks, so I'm hoping they will act as curators, and keep this stuff around for him to enjoy as he matures. If they don't, at least I can't say I didn't try. And maybe I'll exchange a couple of the 60s titles and replace them with some different era recordings to give a broader exposure to the entire history.

My dad, who along with my mother, spends the winters in Baton Rouge with my sister's family. My sister's 10 year old son Cole is a very precocious kid. My dad was driving him somewhere and he had some jazz music playing on the radio. When my father went to change the station, my nephew asked him not to, and told my dad he liked the music. I've been thinking about this ever since, and would like to take the opportunity to expose my nephew to some jazz recordings. The rest of my family members don't know anything about jazz, so it would be a shame if my nephew never received any guidance. I had a similar experience as a kid when my mom's step father gave me the Rich vs Roach album, and some drum instruction books. It really captured my imagination. I got a little carried away over the weekend and bought him a bunch of classic jazz recordings and a coffee table jazz book with nice photos and the basic history chronicling the birth in New Orleans through the fusion era, Pat Metheny, etc... Here's a list of the recordings I bought for a basic, beginner jazz library: Miles Davis-Kind Of Blue Dave Brubeck-Time Out John Coltrane-Blue Train Horace Silver-Song For My Father Oliver Nelson-The Blues And The Abstract Truth McCoy Tyner-The Real McCoy Roland Kirk-Domino/Reeds And Deeds Weather Report-Heavy Weather Michel Camilo-One More Once And I was thinking of picking up the One Night With Blue Note DVD. I realize this is a lot to lay on a 10 year old kid, even if it doesn't come close to representing the entire evolution of jazz history. I decided I would take the incremental approach and turn this into a ongoing series of installments. I'll start off by sending him the jazz book, along with Time Out; Song For My Father; and either Kind Of Blue or Blue Train. You never know what will capture a kid's imagination? He may take to the more extroverted music on Blue Train, or maybe the subtleties of Miles will draw him in? Then I plan to continue the series in six weeks or so with a few more CDs. What do you think?

I'm stunned! I've been a big fan for almost 25 years. Brozman always seemed to have so much zest for music and life. He had an incredible amount of knowledge concerning traditional music from around the world. This is really sad news.

From Grooves Inc. Hat Hut titles for 7.42 Steve Lacy-Blinks Zurich Live 1983 Vienna Art Orchestra-A Notion In Perpetual Motion Ray Anderson/Han Bennink/Christy Doran-A B D Mal Waldron-Moods Enja 24 bit remaster

The Door is on your list. That's one of my favorites, and one of the first ones I bought, along with Momentum. I ordered a copy of Snips from an Amazon vendor. I couldn't pass up a new 2 CD set for three dollars! Lacy is the only musician who can keep me listening to soprano sax continuously. Mainly because I don't hear soprano sax, I'm just listening to his unique voice coming through that straight horn.

Thanks for the info! I've been on a Lacy binge lately, so I'm looking for more good stuff. He must have recorded 60 or more albums?

Amazon has a listing for a 1976 Lacy solo album under the title Snips. Looks like the same material as Hooky, but the write up says it was recorded in NYC. The label is Jazz Magnet. Anyone know what the deal is? http://www.amazon.com/Snips-Live-Environ-Steve-Lacy/dp/B00004UERB/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1366863988&sr=1-1&keywords=steve+lacy+snips