wesbed

Wesley Snipes = Black Cock-whacka Hey. I think this gangster thing works.

Mike: I just took a look at the BRIAN screens via your website. This looks very cool. I will continue reading...

By chance, I hadn't listened to Tina Brooks in quite some time. Since listening to 'Redd's Blues' recently, I've gone back and listened to more Brooks. I listened to Brooks on his own albums. I listened to Brooks with Jimmy Smith on 'Cool Blues' and 'The Sermon.' I listened to Brooks with Freddie Hubbard on 'Open Sesame.' I listened to more of Brooks with Jackie McLean on 'Jackie's Bag.' It's interesting and unique, to my ears, how much Tina Brooks' tenor saxophone sounds so much like an alto saxophone. If you compare Brooks' sound to, say, that of Dexter Gordon, it's hard to believe that both played the same instrument. One of Tina Brooks' shining moments, to me, is his version of Stranger In Paradise from 'The Waiting Game.'

The Complete Capitol Recordings of the Gene Krupa and Harry James Orchestras (#192)

Am I alone in thinking this is a particularly poor album cover? Sheesh, it looks like Rod has a pair of female legs growing out of the right side of his deformed ass. Ol' Rod can reach over, touch his own sexy leg, and get a thrill. It's Rod Stewart starring as 'The Man With Four Legs.' He roams the streets, fights crime and keeps the city safe. Once he gets you in his leg lock, your criminal activites are as good as finished in this town.

I like the recent McMasters very much. I don't mean the material he did in the 1980s and early 1990s. Rather, the more recent late 1990s to current material. I believe Ron does quite a good job. The bass sounds natural and the highs sound natural. Sometimes, when listening to a McMaster, I hear a little bit of a distorted sound. Which, to me, is where Ron 'cleaned' the recording the best he could without altering the original recording. Malcolm Addey is my favorite remastering engineer, of course. Tamaki Beck (the Fantasy K2 series) is my next favorite choice. In many cases I enjoy Ron McMaster as much as or more than Rudy Van Gelder. All of these men do well with their efforts. I'm happy they continue to do their good work. I'd like to discover that Rudy Van Gelder has found a way to rid his art of its electric bass and overly-forward high frequency tendencies. I just know Paul Chambers wasn't playing the electric bass on those 1950s/1960s sessions.

Life's better out West. Maybe.

I've been working my way from the back of the Mosaic catalog. I'm trying to purchase the more affordable/older sets first. The Max Roach hasn't yet made its way on to my 'older' list. Likewise, the Capitol Jazz, being one of the oldest in the Mosaic catalog, is not on my 'most-affordable' list.

But, no Malcolm Addey. I checked the Mosaic discography. Who is Kevin Reeves?

No.

Please! I don't need persuasion to purchase another Mosaic.

I wonder how much money xricci will obtain?

I purchased this set just before it went OOP. I took a chance, along with positive opinions from this Board. Yes, it's quite a good set. One of the better Mosaics, in my opinion.

Krupa/James now in the Last Chance category. I wonder when Mosaic loses the lease on this material?

I recently placed an order for all the new Conns (except the Horace Silver). To keep the shipping cost to a minimum I chose to have all the CDs shipped at the same time. I like CD Universe and believe the website provides a good service. The CD Universe web page says all the Conns are available and should ship within 1 to 2 days. After placing my order, however, the status of the Andrew Hill, on my order, is backordered since 10/5/2004. And, you know, without the current batch of Conns in my possession, I've got nothing to listen to.

Sometimes a certain session comes back and you enjoy it all over again. I purchased Freddie Redd's "Redd's Blues" when it was released two years ago. I read several poor reviews of the session yet enjoyed the session very much. Recently, I placed an order for the latest batch of Connoisseurs. I was reminded of when I placed my order for the batch of Connoissuers that included "Redd's Blues." I decided to play "Redd's Blues" and was reminded of why I've always enjoyed the session. To my ears, it's very enjoyable to hear Jackie McLean and Tina Brooks on the same session. Brooks, on tenor, sounds so much like McLean's alto, while, at the same time, sounds very individual and distinct. Often I'm amazed how much Brooks' tenor saxophone sounds like an alto saxophone. Freddie Redd provides me with memories of Monk. Like, Redd comes as close to an approximation of Monk as he can. Yet, leaves Monk to be Monk and retains his own Freddie Redd style. Freddie Redd's tunes remind me of the style of Horace Silver. Not that Redd's piano sounds like Horace Silver's, rather, Redd's style of arranging the instruments reminds me of Horace Silver (with a touch of Monk). To my ears, "Redd's Blues" is a nice set of well-written tunes. It's interesting to compare the sylish playing of McLean's alto saxophone alongside Brooks' tenor. I'm wondering if there are other listeners who enjoy this session and consider it special?

My pick is Tony Scott.

I will try some other software tonight when I get home from work (Nero, Roxio). I want to see if other software will let me play the CD on my computer. I'll check to see if any friends know about this form of CD protection. If I can't find a way around the protection, I believe Verve has just lost potential sales to me. Unless the Anti-Piracy label and software is removed in the near future. This kind of thing is expected to increase sales of recorded music?

Unfortunately, when I press 'ok' the warning screen goes away but no music starts playing. I tried to 'play' the CD and up pops the warning message again. If I look at the CD from Windows or try to view the files in Media Player, there are two folders on the CD, both appear to contain nothing.

This is the warning message I get on my computer screen when I attempt to play the CD.

Today, I purchased the Verve remaster/reissue of Jimmy Smith's 'The Boss.' I attempted to play the CD on my computer. To my surprise, Windows Media Player will display only an FBI Warning on my computer screen, saying that it's against the law to copy the music (or something to that effect). I can find no way to play this CD on my computer (yet !). I didn't know that 'playing' the music I purchased was against the law. Here is a picture of the back cover of the Jimmy Smith Verve reissue. It includes the FBI Anti-Piracy warning label.

This is not fast food (and not cheap!). However, I've heard/read the restaurant offers some of the tastiest food available. Ruth's Chris

I don't have a reason for it but have been enjoying the hell out of Jimmy Smith in recent days. Jimmy with Lou Donaldson, Jimmy with Tina Brooks, Jimmy with Kenny Burrell. I've been enjoying Jimmy Smith via the RVG series exclusively. Maybe my interest in Smith is a result of the current political scene? Jimmy Smith provides a warm, soulful sound, full of hope and prosperity in opposition to current world events. I still need to get my copy of Groovin' At Small's. B-)

Bah! Damned beginners.

I received mine today. I haven't listened to the music yet. The Mosaic site says there were 7500 copies planned. Mine is #2826. From the evidence at hand, I'll say Mosaic may not sell even half of the planned amount.