felser

I've thought the sound on the Collectables Atlantic stuff has seemed pretty good overall. Collectables came a long way from their early needle-drop beginnings, though they will never be an audiophile label. Of course, with the warehouse fire, there won't be audiophile vintage Atlantic stuff anyways.

Several used copies on Amazon, and I believe also on half.com. Really an outstanding date, highly recommended. Agreed. "Effi" is particularly spectacular, the cut I use to try to teach the uninitiated about listening to jazz. And the whole first side plays like a suite (although it isn't). What a lineup of then-young lions: Charles Tolliver, Gary Bartz, Stanley Cowell, along with Jymie Merritt.

'Musa - Ancestral Streams' and the previously mentioned 'Illusion Suite' would be my picks. He became a very different musician (very accomplished, but much less adventurous) to my ears after signing with Galaxy in the late 70's.

I like the "For Losers" side, feel like the other side was outtakes scraped together, and poor ones at that. They had the sometimes far superior "Kwanza" outtakes available.

PM sent on the following: Birth Control - Live (Sony SBM remaster) $8 Birth Control - Hoodoo Man (Sony) $5 Truth & Janey - No Rest for the Wicked (Rockadrome) $10 Truth & Janey - Erupts! (Rockadrome) $10 Spencer Wiggins - The Goldwax Years (Kent) $10 Johnny Shines - Standing at the Crossroads (TEstament) $6 Red Noise - Sarcelles (Futura Red French cd issue) $10

Free-ish interpretations of spirituals. Not all that it could have been, but definitely worth a listen or three, imo. Billy Harper is great on this album (I believe his first with Roach), which alone makes it worth listening/owning. Billy's always great, but I found myself not hearing enough of him on this album. I like to hear lots of Billy Harper. ME TOO !!!! :tup :tup :tup :tup

Free-ish interpretations of spirituals. Not all that it could have been, but definitely worth a listen or three, imo. Billy Harper is great on this album (I believe his first with Roach), which alone makes it worth listening/owning. Wonderful version of "Were You There When They Crucified My Lord", which is the highlight for me.

I loved the 1964-1968 Hollies stuff (the 1963 stuff was amateur covers of American R&B), especially "Look Through Any Window", "I Can't Let Go", and "Bus Stop". Can live without them after that, though I like "Long Cool Woman" and the occasional other song. Couple of quick notes that no one else seems to have mentioned: - The difference in the Hollies after 1968 was no Graham Nash. Together they were great, apart they were both twee. I'm not nearly as grossed out by "He Ain't Heavy" and "The Air I Breathe" as I am by "Our House" and "Teach Your Children"!. - "Long Cool Woman" was not intended to be a Hollies single, was going to be an Allen Clarke solo record, then was rush recorded. Some sources say it was just expected to be a throwaway track. My wife loves it, so we enjoy hearing it together on the radio. - Here is the great lost (in the USA) Hollies song, "I'm Alive". Went to #1 in England in 1965, but bombed here. Hollies arrived in US top 40 with their next 45, the awesome "Look Through Any Window". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39MV3xwvKh8 Here is their version of "If I Needed Someone", which is really good, but really Beatlesque. Only went to like #19 in England due to George Harrison backlash, didn't dent charts in America. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tpKGcWvce4

PM sent on Ahmad Jamal set.

You should be more concerned with records he's put out recently like "Songs and Stories" and late 90's albums like "That's Right" and "Standing Together" all of which are pretty bad. Except for a legit, dirty funk tune on "That's Right" called "The Thinker" which was more CTI like than anything he's done since. If you seperate Benson's playing from the horrid backing of his smooth albums, it's passable but still nothing like Benson at his peak when he really stretched. Benson still stretches but we never get to hear it cuz he shows up at clubs and jam sessions and blows everyone away with his guitar playing. Saw him live in Philly twice in the 70's, once pre-magastardom at Just Jazz, once mid-megastardom at the Mann Music Center. He was great both times.

Can't imagine why no one ever took the cellophane off and played the sucker. Which one is Gene Norman's cousin?

The real All-Stars of CTI have mostly left us. Here is the personnel and cuts per the DG website. To me, the CTI all-stars would be Freddie Hubbard, Stanley Turrentine, and George Benson, not Randy Brecker, Bill Evans (sax), and Russell Malone. Worth $34? Can't imagine it, if you live in the world of limited financial resources like most of us. "Players include Randy Brecker on trumpet, Bill Evans on sax, Russell Malone on guitar, Hubert Laws on flute, Airto on percussion, George Duke on keyboards, John McLaughlin on guitar, and Flora Purim on vocals – and cuts include "Misturada", "Sugar", "Mister Clean", "Bimbe Blue", "Use Me", and "Blues March".

There is a made for (cable) TV movie about the Monkees that is actually very interesting, as it focuses primarily on their quest for artistic freedom in the confines of their commercial world. Used DVD can be had dirt cheap on Amazon Marketplace. Remember that they took Hendrix on tour as their opening act at one point! Their music from "Last Train to Clarksville" to 'Head' has actually held up remarkably well. I still pull it out and listen to it. http://allmovie.com/dvd/daydream-believers-the-monkees-story-22014

Awesome! Thanks so much for sharing this. I regret that I have never had opportunity to see Weston live, one of my most major "misses" here in the Philly area.

I agree with that. The song selection wasn't especially inspiring either. Definitely less than the sum of it's parts and a disappointment for a mid-60's Blue Note with the artists involved.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0002IQ9QY/ref=sr_1_1_olp?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1302375569&sr=1-1&condition=used This isn't a bad price for a two CD set.

PM sent on the Aunt Mary and the Freedom's Children.

PM sent on The Groundhogs - Hogs on the Road (Plastic Head) $5

I'll take the Searcher's version of "When You Walk in the Room" for my choice of guitar riffs. Originally written and performed by Jackie DeShannon. Quite a pedigree for quite a song:

No,Jim, that's the punchline to "How many jazz singers does it take to sing My Funny Valentine".

Would like to get Magic Sam's "West Side Blues" and "Black Magic" and Junior. Wells's "Hoodoo Man Blues" and "Live in Boston", but find myself balking at pulling the trigger as they are all a good bit pricier than I tend to go on blues CD's. If anyone has these laying around and would be interested in selling or trading them, please let me know. Or in the case of the first three, feel free to tell me I'm nuts, they're classic, and I need to just go spend the money to get them new off Amazon.

The Giant is Awakened. It would indeed be nice to have by itself, but it does appear in whole on West Coast Hot along with one of the Carter/Bradford Flying Dutchmans, which is shorn one track. Magnificent album(s). isn't WCH out of print? Yes, it is long out of print. That Tapscott introduced us to Arthur Blythe, who arrived on record fully formed. Magnificent stuff.

Me as well. And me. We were soooooo close. gregmo I'll jump on this bandwagon. Would make a great 2-CD set.

Looks like somebody bought the new Complete Aretha on Columbia box set :rolleyes: