The Magnificent Goldberg

Lotta music on that one - 25 mins per side. RVG used to advise against that length. Was originally issued as 'Jammin' in hi fi with Gene Ammons'; I suppose they retitled it to fit in with a dance craze, though the music doesn't This morning Hugh Masekela - Waiting for the rain - Jive Afrika 'Stimela (coal train)' never fails to get me. Masekela and Barney Rachabane at their most sublime. MG

£7.99 for a new recording is pretty standard. Their budget reissue label is £5.99. They discount for bulk orders of entire CDs: over £20 for 10% discount on whole order over £40 for 15% discount on whole order over £59 for 25% discount on whole order over £200 for 35% discount on whole orderAh, I hadn't noticed the discounts. Thanks again. MG

Not very user friendly. Why not write complaining about user friendliness? I usually get a quick response from Amazon UK when I complain. Not always a solution... MG

Oh, it must be that the material I'm downloading from them is giving me a false impression. I see. Pretty good. I note that Hyperion charges by the minute or something, as the different movements on the Debussy String Quartet all cost different amounts and you don't get a discount if you buy them all (Though who would want to buy just one movement?) Thanks. MG

They didn't like shaggy cats either. MG

Just ordered some books from Amazon UK sellers and the UK rates havedn't changed and aren't different for sellers in the US from those in the UK. When you go into the sellers' offer lists, in my experience you can see the postage charge (in faint print, so perhaps it's not noticeable) just under the offer price. MG

My discography sez 'no'. MG

So much music, so little time. Noted, y'all. MG

Thanks Bev - so not even e-music does information? Mostly what I download from Amazon is African material. Not yet getting into classics, but might go that way in time. MG

Also Grant Green - Feeling the spirit That's the lot, I think. MG

I've talked to Amazon UK about getting sleeve notes and/or the reverse of album sleeves with their downloads and they say that they're limited to what the individual record companies provide. That answer would make sense if some of their material had sleeve notes and some didn't, because you can't expect every company in the world to make the same decision about this. So I conclude that they're probably lying and that the way they deliver downloads is unsuitable for including pictures and text (though I obviously don't know that). You get no sleeve notes with iTunes, either (or gravy with one meat ball). I know several people here download classical albums and I find it hard to imagine they do so without sleeve notes. So, which firms deliver decent information along with the music on downloads? MG

Yes - I actually bought that BECAUSE it was on JAM. Well, that Sudo discographical site I linked to earlier says this: LES McCANN: LES McCANN'S MUSIC BOX JAM, JAM 019(LP) UNDER LICENSED BY OFFICE CUBIC (P)1984 M.O.E. RECORDS RECORDED: MAY 25 thru 27, 1984 RELEASED: AUGUST 1, 1984, USA J-ISSUED: POLYSTAR CO., LTD., PSCW-1159(CD) RELEASED: NOVEMBER 26, 1992, JAPAN Does MOE Records mean anything in connection with Toshiko? MG

Ahhhh... MG

Thanks - pursuing... MG

49 CD set!!!! Outrageous! Most of the day, I've been listening to The complete Felsted mainstream collection - Solar MG

OK - I bet you get more in mine than I got in yours MG

Here's a link to a pretty good Les McCann discog in which it's stated as JAM019. http://users.rcn.com/bobfreed/www/lesdisco/a47.html Here's a link to a Japanese discog site which gives a US release date of 1 Aug 1984, only 9 weeks after it was recorded. http://sudo.3.pro.tok2.com/Quest/cards/L/LesMcCann/index.html It came out here, though, the following spring. So maybe JAM013 was issued as a promo but not really issued because it was too soon after 'The longer you wait'. Could you send me or post a link to the e-bay site where it was sold, please? MG

Strange. All the discographical references I've found are to JAM019, but I don't have that, only the UK issue on PAL3 (Virgin Paladin), so I don't know. Maybe it was issued on 013 first. See, if you were flogging something on e-bay and made a mistake with the number, why would you manage to pick a number that didn't have a release attached? And WOULD someone flogging a record on e-bay make a mistake with the catalogue number anyway? MG

JAM was a small company issuing records in the late 70s/early 80s. I've always been interested in their records and have a few more than half of their output. According to trademark sites on the web, it isn't owned by anyone now. I thought I was the only one interested, until John Tapscott posted that he was playing one a couple of days ago. Well, I know Dan has one or two... I've listed all the albums I know about, but there are three gaps. Can anyone fill them in? JazzAmerica label 5001 John Abercrombie Trio - Straight flight (1979 - licensed from Discomate Records, Japan - orig title 'Direct flight') 5002 Blue Mitchell - Last dance (Apr 1977 - licensed from Discomate Records, Japan - by 'Best of the West') 5003 Toshiko Akiyoshi - A tribute to Billy Strayhorn (Apr 1978 - licensed from Discomate Records, Japan) 5004 Michael Urbaniak - Jam at Sandy's (Jun 1981) 5005 Lew Tabackin Trio - Black & tan fantasy (1979 - licensed from Discomate Records, Japan) JAM label 001 NY5 - Music for violin & jazz quartet (Dec 1980) (CD issue UBX1004) 002 Jimmy McGriff - City lights (Dec 1980 & Feb 1981) (CD issue JAM PSCW1147) 003 Toshiko Akiyoshi/Lew Tabackin Big Band - Farewell to Mingus (Jan 1980 - licensed from Victor, Japan) 004 (if this ever came out, it was after 006, as it's not listed in the catalogue) 005 Jimmy McGriff - Movin' upside the blues (Dec 1980 & Jun 1981) (CD issue JAM PSCW1157) 006 Toshiko Akiyoshi/Lew Tabackin Big Band - Tanuki's night out (1981 Licensed from Victor Japan)) 007 Phil Upchurch - Free & easy (Jun 1981) (CD issue Moe (Japan) PSCW1148) 008 Gene Harris - Hot lips (May 1982) (CD issue JAM PSCW1166) 009 Jimmy McGriff - The groover (Jun 1982) (CD issue JAM PSCW1160) 010 Arnold Sterling - Here's Brother Sterling (Jul 1982) (CD issue JAM PSCW1161) 011 Phil Upchurch - Revelation (1983) (CD issue Moe PSCW1158) 012 Les McCann - The longer you wait (Apr & May 1983) (CD issue JAM PSCW1149) 013 014 Red Holloway - Hittin' the road again (1983) 015 Gene Harris - Nature's way (1984) (CD issue JAM PSCW1169) 016 Jack McDuff - Lift every voice and sing (1984) (CD issue JAM PSCW1167) 017 Herman Riley - Herman (1984) (CD issue JAM PSCW1170) 018 Phil Upchurch - Name of the game (Oct & Nov 1983) (CD issue JAM PSCW1162) 019 Les McCann - Music box (May 1984) (CD issue JAM PSCW1159) 020 021 Phil Upchurch - Companions (Aug & Sep 1984) (CD issue JAM PSCW1168) All the CD issues appear to be Japanese. Anyone interested in this company? Anyone know anything more about it? MG

The April Fool BFT109 is now taking orders 15 track BFT and 2 bonus cuts by a very obscure band included in the BFT itself. Roll up! Roll up! Please let me know whether you would like a CD or a DL. MG

Prince isn't looking so well these days... MG

Despite what I said, I've got it and love it. I just don't think it's a merging of two kinds of music; just a jazz record with an unusual approach. MG

Pharoah Sanders - Pharoah - India Navigation MG

I don't know what a classic band is. Ray Charles in person - Atlantic with John Hunt, Marcus Belgrave, David Newman, Hank Crawford, Edgar Willis & Teagle Fleming (+ the Raelettes) Sonny Stitt - Just the way it was, live at the Left Bank - Label M with DOn Patterson & Billy James Groove Holmes - Living soul and On Basie's bandstand - Prestige (both from the same gig) with Gene Edwards & George Randall Jack McDuff - Live - Prestige with Red Holloway, George Benson & Joe Dukes - although this apparently had to be re-recorded in a studio with an invited audience the following day 'cos of a technical fuck-up - so, does it count? MG

Oh, so that's why I never complain about my lo-cost hifi MG