The Magnificent Goldberg

Two albums downloaded from Amazon UK this afternoon Coumba Gawlo - Takussan Live in Dakar - Sabar Coumba Gawlo - La diva a la voix d'or: 23 ans de success: disc 2 - Sabar Got this in Paris in June but found that disc 2 had the same music on it as disc 1. Today, looking at the discs, I see they were manufactured by Princo Budget, which may be indicative But this disc is bloomin' fantastic! Haven't got onto the Takussan set yet. That's from 2004. MG

Ramona the Dancer Norman Simmons Betty Carter

This afternoon Blue Mitchell - Mainstream (promo) After many years of thought, I've concluded that this is Blue's best album. With Jimmy Forrest, Walter Bishop, Larry Gales & Doug Sides. Jack McDuff - Steppin' out - Prestige (green label) Aretha Franklin - Songs of faith - Chess (Vogue France) MG

Epicurus Epictetus Spud Murphy

Ah yes! And 'Beginings (first minute of a new day)' appears on 'From South Africa to South Carolina'. MG

This morning The Skatalites - Return of the big guns - Island Stanley Turpentine & Shirley Scoff - Common touch - BN (Liberty/UA) now Pharaoh Sanders - Journey to the one - Theresa MG

Hard to think of, except by accident. Mark Whitfield's 'True blue' doesn't contain the tune 'True blue' (though Tina Brooks' album of the same name does ) Nor does Hank Crawford's 'True blue'. MG

Bonnie Clyde Clyde Ankle

Ralph Richardson Ralph Malf Motor Mouf

The Bag Lady Papa, who had a brand new one Poppa Stoppa

Four Men With Beards Men at Work Blues Menn

LOL!!!!! MG

This afternoon Percy Mayfield with the Phillip Walker Blues Band - Hit the road again - Timeless now Hey - don't try getting images from Jazzwax.com. You get hung and can't close, move or minimise your browser window. Gotta shut down in a mo. Now playing Leroy Vinnegar - Leroy walks again - Contemporary (Vogue UK mono) MG

Oeps! Never seen this album before and I have a few of his albums. It took me until 1996 to find a copy - in a used record shop in somewhat rural NJ, south of Newark. Hard to find. Good luck. MG

But the Capitol/B&W sides can be got, and so can the Imperials. Though I agree 100%. I haven't got the Mosaic. Am I missing anything? MG

Now just finishing Willis Jackson - Star bag - Prestige One of his very best! But never on CD. next Hank Crawford's back - Kudu (Polydor UK) MG

I'm not sure this was invariably the case. The Beatles meant nothing on the R&B singles chart (as opposed to the Stones, who did have a few R&B hits). So when musicians like Willis Jackson whose albums were definitely aimed at the black community, recorded their songs, it doesn't seem to me like a good strategy for cashing in; you don't cash in on something that's unsuccessful. MG It's possible that Willis Jackson or others who appealed to a black audience didn't have a primary interest in recording Beatles songs, but perhaps their record companies did. Even then, rock (and funk) had put a devastating hit on the jazz market and everyone was looking for a crossover success, however it might happen. You may be right that it was the producers who got these songs recorded by Gator and others. But these musicians had always been interested in playing white pop songs like 'Glory of love', 'Angel eyes', 'She's funny that way' and 'South of the border' etc etc. I saw the Beatles songs as being part of that thread of entertainment jazz. MG You may be right also. The only way to know would be to ask any of the artists or producers who are still around and hope for a straight answer. I just looked up the sleeve of Gator's 'Really groovin'', in which he notes that he was on his regular summer gig in Atlantic City when Frank Sinatra, who was singing in the club next door, came and sat in with his band. Gator was pleased he'd thought they were that good. Note that he recorded, or had recorded, 'Where are you' in Feb 1960 (though it wasn't released until after 'Really groovin''. I'm sure Gator and the band knew Sinatra's book rather well. Bob Porter did say that Prestige wanted hit records but the context in which we were talking implied R&B hits, not pop hits. But obviously, Bobby Weinstock wouldn't mind wherever the money came from MG PS I don't think the Beatles were played much on black radio. Probably the exception was 'Come together'; 'Abbey Road' made the R&B album charts for a few weeks in early '70, a couple of months after it went onto the pop album chart, by which time Syl Johnson was already putting together 'Is it because I'm black', which included 'Come together', a song with some relevance to the black community in those days.

So far this morning Shirley Scott & Stanley Turrentine - Blue flames - Prestige (Ace UK) now Donald Byrd - Blackjack - BN (UA dark blue label) My second copy - can't remember what happened to the original, which I got before 'Mustang' and which persuaded me to rush out and buy that one, too. But I still prefer this album. MG

Cow Cow Davenport Bulldog Drummond Skatalites

I know you're right, Bev, but I prefer to be wrong. As a grumpy old man, I feel one of the big problems is that no one seems able to do a job nowadays. This is partly because employers have deskilled the concept of a job and relegated it to a series of tasks; not the same thing at all. But I reckon they've done this because they're getting by on qualifications, rather than talent. Now, I don't want an unqualified dentist filling my teeth, but I don't want to do business with a business with an untalented manager who is 'qualified'. MG

I'm not sure this was invariably the case. The Beatles meant nothing on the R&B singles chart (as opposed to the Stones, who did have a few R&B hits). So when musicians like Willis Jackson whose albums were definitely aimed at the black community, recorded their songs, it doesn't seem to me like a good strategy for cashing in; you don't cash in on something that's unsuccessful. MG It's possible that Willis Jackson or others who appealed to a black audience didn't have a primary interest in recording Beatles songs, but perhaps their record companies did. Even then, rock (and funk) had put a devastating hit on the jazz market and everyone was looking for a crossover success, however it might happen. You may be right that it was the producers who got these songs recorded by Gator and others. But these musicians had always been interested in playing white pop songs like 'Glory of love', 'Angel eyes', 'She's funny that way' and 'South of the border' etc etc. I saw the Beatles songs as being part of that thread of entertainment jazz. MG

Grabber Ma Nigel Molesworth Fotherington-Thomas

This afternoon's vinyl Harold Vick - Straight u - RCAVictor (Dynagroove) Hank Crawford & Calvin Newborn - Centerpiece - Versatile (Buddah) Bobby Bryant - Earth dance - PJ MG

Is that Beckhams or Beechams? Curious minds want to know. MG