Ken Dryden

Jazz Icons does it right with detailed liner notes and lots of photos as well, to go with the excellent re-mastering of the vintage videos.

Euclid Records has some jazz LPs, both new and vintage things that have often never been reissued on CD.

My third order arrived today, with some backorders from the first two yesterday. I received a Daedalus catalog today and they seemed to have a few Concord/Fantasy cutouts that I don't remember seeing at Oldies, including the still fairly new Monterey Jazz Festival series, nearly every one except for the Brubeck.

I reviewed a Terry Gibbs/Buddy DeFranco CD of Steve Allen's music. Evidently Gibbs sent Allen a copy of my review after I submitted a tearsheet to Fantasy. A few weeks later I received a gracious personal note from the composer along with some other CDs of his music. I regret never getting around to interviewing him, I'm sure it would have been fun and informative. He was even joking the day he died. I read that after he had a minor traffic accident on the way to visit his son, he quipped, "Some people will do anything to get my autograph." I reviewed a Terry Gibbs/Buddy DeFranco CD of Steve Allen's music. Evidently Gibbs sent Allen a copy of my review after I submitted a tearsheet to Fantasy. A few weeks later I received a gracious personal note from the composer along with some other CDs of his music. I regret never getting around to interviewing him, I'm sure it would have been fun and informative. He was even joking the day he died. I read that after he had a minor traffic accident on the way to visit his son, he quipped, "Some people will do anything to get my autograph." ___________ I also feel fortunate to have seen Bill Evans in concert in 1979, while I've snapped up nearly everything I've found that he recorded, though I'm still missing a few sideman appearances.

I believe they are restocks of earlier sellouts and possibly additional titles, but he didn't offer those details. Obviously things are moving briskly. One thing to note to fellow board members. I was overcharged for several titles (more than $5.98) even though they were saw cut. Oldies issued a credit after investigating my query. Check your packing slip!

I have the same reservations as Steve. Why should I pay a ridiculous price for a CD-R that won't last as long? I also have a problem with buying downloads, too much money for inferior sound, while if you ever get tired of the music, there's no resale value with a download and your options with selling a manufactured CD-R are probably limited to private sales. A contact at Oldies.com just told me that they recently got in 50,000 more cutout CDs from the Concord/Fantasy catalog, so snap them up while you can and avoid CD-Rs and downloads.

PM sent on: Chubby Jackson The Happy Monster (Cool Blue) $7 Marty Paich Picasso of Big Band Jazz (Candid) $8 Herbie Harper Quintet - Five Brothers (VSOP) $5.50 Oscar Peterson Trio at Newport - $5

I got a kick out of Lee Konitz "Meets Gimmy Giuffre"....

I just found a copy of guitarist Martin Taylor's Skye Boat (Concord), with Peter Ind and Jimmie Smith.

My third order from Oldies included a few movie DVDs as well.

Svend sounds like a young man on this CD. Remember that the seemingly ageless Stephane Grappelli didn't quite make it to 90.

PM sent on: Mose Allison: Down Home Piano Red Garland: All Kinds of Weather

I like Marian McPartland's version of "Turnaround."

In spite of growing up during the 1960s, the Beatles have never made into my music collection. So I guess another round of reissues won't change a thing. I rather keep growing my jazz collection.

I've long owned and enjoyed 'The Riddle." Brubeck told me a few years back that another session with Smith remains unreleased, it was tentative titled "Witches' Brew," recorded long before Miles' 'Bitches Brew.' It seems doubtful that Columbia will get around to issuing it.

Watch out, your joke might offend someone....

One rule I have for my April Fool's releases: never use a real record label, save them the headache. Of course, I've had some fun reactions, particularly over Fourplay: Nocturnal Mission (a reader was incensed that I included Clay Aiken as a guest vocalist), Michael Bolton Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook (which caused a promoter who should have been known better to call me in order to track down the label to get the account), plus George Winston: Dirty, Dirty, Dirty-George Plays Jelly Roll and Yanni: A Tribute to Art Tatum. It's too bad they didn't run any pieces this year, though I had submitted a pair. Maybe next year.

This isn't jazz, but check out the price on this 2LP bootleg record of Frank Zappa: http://cgi.ebay.com/Frank-Zappa-200-Motels...14#ht_500wt_975

I'm interested in the following: $7 each: Sylvia Cuenca The Crossing Etoile Records Nathan Davis The Other Side of Morning Tomorrow International Eric Alexander Sextet Full Range Criss Cross

You can't go wrong with any of Eddie Higgins' recordings for Venus, as he has become a favorite of Tetsuo Hara. I second that both he and Meredith are extremely gracious people. My one chance to hear Eddie was at the Atlanta Jazz Party a few years back. Great fun!

PM sent on: Blue Mitchell A Sure Thing Riverside OJC $5 Alex Sipiagin Prints Criss Cross $7 Seamus Blake Way Out Willy Criss Cross $7

I can think of a number of Blue Note CDs by Donaldson which are no longer in my collection. A lot of it was commercial schlock.

Kind of Blah is more like it...

Unless you need the money immediately, I'd hold onto the Farmer/Golson set, as it is easily going to be worth more than $20 disc within a few years.

Lenny Breau & Richard Cotten: Pickin' Cotten Erroll Garner: Mambo Moves Garner