The Magnificent Goldberg

Also Hank Jacobs, who made a good organ album ("So far away"), the Soul Sisters, Joe Thomas & Bill Elliott, some decent Baby Washington, and a GREAT Ernestine Anderson album, which I just HAD to play twice on the trot when I first got it - something I never do. Lots of Sue stuff was reissued on Collectables; some has come out on Ace. I didn't know Sue was a Detroit label. Its addresses in the fifties were 125 St, NY and Riverside Drive, NY. MG

Orrin Keepnews Bob Weinstock Leonard Chess

Jug's finest period of work, in my view, was in the approx two years between his prison sentences. In that short period, Jug made 25 LPs as leader or co-leader and the overall standard is exceedingly high. I have 24 of them and I can only count two as being a bit below par - "Preachin'" and "Live in Chicago" - mostly a matter of personal taste I think, rather than a statement of quality. Here's a list, including reissue details. BOSS TENOR - PRESTIGE 7180 - 6/1960 (OJC297) VELVET SOUL - PRESTIGE 7320 - 6/1960,6/1961&9/1962 (not completely reissued - some on "Organ combos" (PRCD24071), some on "A stranger in town" (PRCD24266), one never reissued. ANGEL EYES - PRESTIGE 7369 - 6/1960,9/1962 (OJC980) NICE 'N COOL - MOODSVILLE 18 - 1/1961 (PRCD24079) JUG - PRESTIGE 7192 - 1/1961 (OJC701) LATE HOUR SPECIAL - PRESTIGE 7287 - 6/1961&4/1962 (OJC942) SOUL SUMMIT VOLS 1 & 2 (with Stitt, McDuff, Etta Jones) - PRESTIGE 7234 & 7275 - 6&12/1961&1,2&4/1962 (PRCD24118) GROOVIN' WITH JUG (with Holmes) - PACIFIC JAZZ 32 - 8/1961 (PJ CDP7 92930) DIG HIM (with Stitt) - ARGO 697 - 8/1961 (OJC708) (originally issued by Argo, then Prestige, as "We'll be together again") BOSS TENORS (with Stitt) - VERVE 68426 - 8/1961 (837 440) JUST JUG - ARGO 698 - 8/1961 (OJC395) (originally issued by Argo, then Prestige, as "Live in Chicago") UP TIGHT - PRESTIGE 7208 - 10/1961 (PRCD24140) BOSS SOUL - PRESTIGE - 7445 10/1961 (PRCD24140) TWISTIN' THE JUG - PRESTIGE 7238 - 11/1961 (PRCD24071) MELLOW GRAVY (with McDuff) - PRESTIGE 7228 - 1/1962 (OJC326) BOSS TENORS IN ORBIT (with Stitt) - VERVE 68468 - 2/1962 (314 549 371) SOULFUL MOODS OF GENE AMMONS - MOODSVILLE 28 - 4/1962 (PRCD24079) BLUE GROOVE - PRESTIGE MPP2514 - 4/1962 (never reissued) (originally recorded by Argo, unissued, then issued on Prestige, but not until 1982) PREACHIN' - PRESTIGE 7270 - 5/1962 (OJC792) (originally recorded by Argo, then issued on Prestige.) JUG & DODO - PRESTIGE 24021 - 5/1962 (PRCD24021) (originally recorded by Argo, then issued on Prestige.) HOUSE WARMIN' (with Howard McGhee) - WINLEY 6005 - prob 5/1962 (many reissues on various cheapo labels. Also issued on Chess.) BAD BOSSA NOVA - PRESTIGE 7257 - 9/1962 (OJC351) SWINGIN' THE JUG - ROOTS 1002 - c1962 (dunno anything about this) SOCK - PRESTIGE 7400 - 11/1954,11/1955,4&9/1962 (not completely reissued - some on "A stranger in town" (PRCD24266). A compilation of some mid fifties cuts with half of a session with Mal Waldron, never issued as a separate album - a crime, because this is some beautiful material. You can get the whole session by getting "Stranger" and "Angel eyes". My personal favourites are Boss tenor Soul summit Jug Nice 'n cool/Soulful moods Groovin' with Jug Boss tenors in orbit Bad Bossa nova and the session with Mal Waldron, which I think I'll make into a CDR to play it all together. But I love everything, really. I have almost everything he recorded. MG

Funny--same thing happened to me yesterday. But when I uninstalled and reinstalled, it worked. Go figure. Damn! I could have avoided all that trouble, just by taking my PC to France! MG

Men Without Hats Men with big hats Women with big hats

King Curtis - Blow man blow! The Capitol years 1962-1965 - Bear Family MG

Billy Sunday Monday Michiru Tuesday Weld

Don Patterson - Movin' up - Muse Lowell Fulson - Chess Blues Masters twofer series (Checker recordings) MG

One that I can think of is Herb Abrahamson, who ended up pretty much down and out after being bought out/forced out of Atlantic Records. I believe that Jerry Wexler took his place at Atlantic. It's not quite like that. Herb left Atlantic in the Korean War - he was a naval dentist. Jerry took Herb's place then. Herb came back after the war, but couldn't get it together. Ahmet started up a label specially for him - Cat - I think "Sh-boom" was the only successful record on the label. Herb's wife, Miriam, was Atlantic's company secretary or financial controller or something like that - not a nominal job, anyway. I can't remember without looking it up whether they divorced before, during or after Herb's move away from the firm. But there was purely personal stuff as well as business stuff going on at the time. But he did end up down and out. MG

Thing is, you can't give up when you don't have any computer security - and it's a Sunday, so you can't go down the local shop (where the new PC came from). Well, she's gone now. I asked my wife what she was going to do, and she didn't know, after a couple of hours woman to woman. So that must be good, I guess. MG

An hour and a half here and I'm feeling slightly better. Thanks guys. First thing, trying to update AVG virus software, I get a message that the update failed because a .bin file wasn't present. The programme gave no help about what action to take. So I uninstalled it and downloaded another copy. Tried to get update; same message. Bollocks, I thought, I'll install the security software from my ISP that I got the other day when we got the new PC. Couldn't work out how to do that, so I rang their technical help line and a lady talked me thrugh that. But it's a 90 day trial and, when i first got broadband from them 3 years ago, I used up my 90 days, so when I rebooted after installing it, it said "you have 0 days cover". OK, I'll download the non-free version of AVG for a 30 day trial, which will give me time to think about what I can do. So I did, but I hadn't unistalled AVG free or the ISP software. So halfway through the installation it tells me to uninstall them. I didn't think the ISP stuff would be a handicap, so I didn't uninstall that, just AVG. Then I couldn't find out how to restart the installation. I went onto Grisoft's site and tried to access the help stuff. But I got a "page can't be displayed" message. Just then the ISP's connection software popped up to say I had a problem with my connection (oh fuck, that's all I fucking need) and if I followed the instructions, it would fix it for me (oh, all right). So I followed instructions and, at the end of the process it said it couldn't fix it. Thanks. So I phoned the ISP technical desk again. Got the security software uninstalled but the guy said their conenction software was telling me lies, because my connection was OK. "Well," I said, "I definitely couldn't get Grisoft's help page". "What did you do then?" "Tried somewhere else, and it worked." "So it's OK." (Well, no it isn't, actually.) So I asked him if he could recommend any free anti-virus software because I wasn't going to buy his firm's. So this was a good bloke. He said he used AVG himself at home but suggested, since I was having trouble with AVG to try Avast. I did and got that. And of course, I had to run a virus scan when it was up and running, 'cos I'd been out ther with no protection all morning. And that took two hours. And just after I'd started the scan, my daughter and #2 grandson turn up and she's in tears - another crisis with son-in-law! Stayed for lunch, after which I was dismissed up here so my wife could talk to her. Don't know what the outcome will be... Worried. But y'all help, and thanks. MG

Basically, record company proprietors/executives are entrepreneurs, middle men. In left wing terms, parasites. They find what's out there that they can make money out of. It's not like it was a really creative job, y'know But Jerry had a good nose to find it and much better than OK taste - for a parasite. When I was fifteen - summer of '59 - I had a little argument with myself. I said that I could just advance order 45s being issued over here on the London label which had been sourced from Atlantic, whether I knew anything about the record - artist, song - and never having heard it on the radio - and know that I'd like it. I also said, in argument, that that notion was rubbish, because how could a business, a bunch of businessmen, as described above, unfailingly provide what it was that I wanted? The idea was completely counter-intuitive. But I did it anyway. So the first single I picked up under the new experimental regime was the Drifters' "There goes my baby"; two weeks later, it was Ray Charles' "What'd I say". I'd never heard of either - remember where I am. So it worked. Would those records have been made if Herald, Savoy or one of the other NY R&B labels had picked up the Atlantic artists? I'm pretty certain they wouldn't have. MG

If Atlantic is mentioned in this respect more than other contemporary labels, I think it is probably because there is a lot more money involved when it comes to Atlantic than, say Riverside, Prestige, or Blue Note. Atlantic's roots were in jazz, but it blossomed in the pop field and where there's a lot of money, there's often also more creative bookkeeping. True - but there's another factor. If you're doing a news or current affairs programme about this issue, who are you going to mention? Wilson Pickett, Ray, Aretha, Ben E King? Or Fontella Bass, Sugar Pie DeSanto, Muddy Waters, Little Walter? Atlantic artists get mentioned because they're more recognisable names. MG

Thanks for those three posts Allen. I don't disagree, though $75K doesn't seem a lot of money (but for doing what?). I think, as Chris said, Atlantic were no better and no worse than the other firms in that sector of the business. MG

Incredible! MG

Thanks - I needed that! MG

ARRRGGGGHHHHHH! MG

Gene Ammons - Blue groove - recorded by Argo but only issued on Prestige Philly Joe Jones - Drum song - Galaxy - with Harold Land, Blue Mitchell & Slide Hampton Slide Hampton - Sister Salvation - Atlantic (London Jazz Series UK) mono - I've thought this series had the coolest looking label ever since I bought my first MJQ albums back in 1960. MG

Not a bad deal at all, if you can get it every week. Interesting site, VBII. Saved in favourites. Thanks. MG

I saw them at Lennie's that early that week. I remember Lennie (the host) announcing that they would be recording the gig on the weekend. Of course, I bought the album when it came out later. $400 dollars was pretty good pay at that time, easily the equivalent of 3 or 4 times that now, although they played six nights and a Sunday matinee, which was typical in those days. The transportation costs probably include air fare. There was a motel up the street from the club, and usually the club took care of providing rides to and from the club, and it wouldn't surprise me if Lennie's also got them to and from the airport as well. Dawson was a local musician, and no doubt provided his own transportation. Wow! To judge by the album, the trio gave value for money! I think it's some of the best playing by any of them. Thanks Jack. So, would Milt & Illinois have flown up from New York? I thought it would only be three hours or so by car. Or does "to Ill" mean he was flying from/to Chicago? MG

Been playing another Mosaic - ths one does exist The complete Lou Donaldson fifties BN recordings On LP Quartet, quintet sextet - BN Toshiba Wailing with Lou - BN Toshiba LD+3 - BN King GXK Sunny side up - BN King K18P Midnight sun - BN Rainbow on CD Swing & soul - BN TOCJ Lou takes off - BN TOCJ Blues walk - BN McM Lightfoot - BN JRVG The time is right - BN JRVG Gravy train - BN (presumably McM but it don't say) I think the only part of this set I haven't got is the material with Clifford Brown, which I ought to get sometime. Perhaps an alternative take or two. MG

Groove Holmes - Swedish lullaby - Sison Music With the snappiest of his versions of "Killer Joe". Wottagruve!!! MG

All the very best Ed. MG

Been playing my way through another Mosaic Select that will never see the light of day The complete Muse recordings of Richard "Groove" Holmes. On LP Shippin' out Good vibrations Broadway (and on CD) Blues all day long Hot tat The first four would (just) fit nicely on two CDs. The last is over 47 minutes. So that's a pretty good bunch for a Select. And the music is great! (And it's another set that would require Mosaic to get away from its B/W formula - particularly the photo of the delectable Alicia Lashley.) MG

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