Ken Dryden

Of the new batch, Lou Blackburn's The Complete Imperial Sessions is the one that got my attention. Great stuff with Freddie Hill on trumpet and Horace Tapscott on piano.

I don't know whether or not Michael Cuscuna actually likes The Three Sounds and Les McCann or not, but I think he has to consider whether or not such a set by either Harris' trio or McCann will sell enough copies. I think the earlier edition of the Three Sounds is far better than the later groups, as the change in drummers definitely gave the group too commercial a sound. McCann's music has never been of much interest to me, though I imagine that his stuff would sell if they would reissue his Pacific Jazz titles.

Reminds me when Amazon had a blooper in the listing of a CD by a Japanese jazz pianist, listed as Crapping Music instead of Clapping Music...

I dunno, I'm not familiar with those guys so I'm not going to completely dismiss the very notion of bowed bass. It's possible it's just him. Then again, I'm not too crazy about any bass solos... except very very short ones. You're not familiar with Milt Hinton (probably one of the most recorded bassists in the history of music)? Or Michael Moore (known for his work with Gene Bertoncini, currently with the Dave Brubeck Quartet and also on a fair number of other recordings)? You really should check them out, as their work is far superior to any Paul Chambers' bowed solo.

I just imagine a cartoon with this caption: "And this wall of shelves is for my Mosaic jazz boxed set collection, that's why there isn't any furniture in my house..."

Thanks for sharing the 20% discount code for DeepdiscountDVD.com. I just saved $105 on my order.

The ladies might give him too hard a time!

It took awhile to nail down a final time for my interview with Geri Allen, but she was working on the final stages of recording and remixing her upcoming CD. I had no problems talking with her, she seemed very friendly. I'm sorry that I missed a recent opportunity to hear her at the Atlanta Jazz Festival. I don't know how to access Paul's interview with her.

Updated with additions. Please note that the list is also updated as items are confirmed for trades. Not all items requested in this thread have resulted in trades, so if you see it listed, it is probably still available.

The word from my Telarc publicity contact is that Geri Allen's CD Timeless Portraits and Dreams will be released on August 22.

You're probably just sayin' that, in case you ever happen to end up on a speaking pannel with her sometime. If Paul de Barros is the interviewer, it will be worth reading. I don't pull punches, though there are probably a few artists that I'm not eager to run into at IAJE after some scathing reviews (not that I write that many). I contribute to Coda, All Music Guide, Allaboutjazz-New York, Allaboutjazz.com and Hot House (NY). Once in awhile, I also do liner notes (1-2 a year at best).

I got a review copy a few weeks ago, but I really haven't had time to explore it very much. It looks very thorough.

It's due out this month, but it is not strictly a trio affair. Telarc sent me an advance to help me prep for my interview with her, which was the source for my recent Hot House article. It's a great CD, with a lot of variety!

No matter how U.S. copyright law reads, I can't imagine any musician or label making a fuss about a CD owner making a personal copy on Ipod or a CD-R exclusively for his own use. For example, some folks might not want to take CDs into a hot car, preferring to leave CD-Rs instead. Not only would a label have trouble tracking such dubbing by individuals, I think it would probably be laughed out of court in most jurisdictions. Making copies for anyone else is another matter. I don't burn CD-Rs from my vast CD collection for anyone. I don't have the time to tie up my stereo and my computer doesn't have a burner.

I can't say that any of the Tyner CDs that will be included in a Mosaic Select set is among my favorites. Better are his solo Blue Note efforts, the duet with Bobby Hutcherson, and meeting with Jackie McLean (It's About Time). My guess is that Mosaic is giving some folks a chance to save up their money for future projects by promoting them way in advance. I doubt that their relationship with EMI has deteriorated all that much and I doubt that Blue Note will focus on much of the material that Mosaic seeks to lease these days.

Perhaps if Manilow had attempted some standards, maybe things could have loosened up. In any case, it would have been a better outing than the recent, ridiculous Michael Bolton CD Bolton Swings Sinatra, issued by Concord. The late Carl Jefferson is spinning in the ground...

From Mosaic's website: Future Projects Mosaic Select: McCoy Tyner (3 CDs) This set contains all six sessions recorded by Tyner for Blue Note between August 1968 and September 1970. This includes "Expansions," "Extension," "Asante" and three sessions not issued at the time which later appeared on the double album "Cosmos." This was one of Tyner's most overlooked and highly creative periods. The first three have been reissued on CD, though I don't know if they're still in print at this moment. They should be easy to find. A little tougher to acquire may be the 2 LP set Cosmos, though I can't imagine it would be a long, hard, expensive search.

I have two of the earlier editions of Tom Lord's Jazz Discography on CD-Rom Version 5.0 $180 via 1st class mail, insurance is extra Version 4.4 $150 via 1st class mail, insurance is extra This valuable research tool is of great help to serious collectors, writers and broadcasters. I am also open to trade proposals, if you wish to send a PM with a list of jazz LPs and CDs available.

Part of the problem you may have with Chambers' bowed bass solos is that he really wasn't in the league of Milt Hinton, Michael Moore and others who have far better technique playing arco bass. Then again...maybe you just don't like bowed bass solos!

It may be a problem similar to proposed DVDs of television series, which also require royalty payments for music included within them. The issuers want to pay a flat rate, the music publishers want a per piece royalty, in case the DVD is a hit. Therefore, nothing happens. It may be that the that huge conglomerates holding long unavailable material are just too short-sighted, looking only for the next megahit, instead of producing income from stuff they already own and would have minimal costs to make available as CDs.

The Oslo set by the Mingus Sextet is complete, as on earlier releases: So Long, Eric Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk Ow (sometimes labeled Parkeriania) Take the A Train On the last track, Jaki Byard takes a wild stride piano solo, but it is Dolphy's wailing bass clarinet that steals the show.

While I like the early Mothers, they're hardly my favorite edition of Zappa's many bands. I enjoy the musicianship of later bands, including the 1984 and 1988 touring groups, as well as the Grand Wazoo Orchestra and the short-lived group featuring Jean-Luc Ponty. I do feel that some pieces like "Advance Romance" and others featuring Napoleon Murphy Brock had a tendency to go on too long. It's also sad that many of the live bootlegs that have turned up have never had a proper commercial issue made from Zappa's master tapes.

Sounds like it would be fun. Is there a touring schedule available?

I just reviewed the Dolphy DVD for Coda, though I'm not sure which issue will include it. The mislabeled "Blues Improvisation" is actually Dolphy's "245," which was recorded the year before for his Prestige album Outward Bound, his debut as a leader. Also, bassist George Joyner is better known as Jamil Nasser. The Mingus portion is also good, though there are some brief dropouts and distortion in the footage (particularly if you look at Mingus' bass strings). But I haven't looked at my Shanachie VHS copy of the 1964 Oslo concert, so it may have been in the original source. In any case, if you are an Eric Dolphy fan, you'll want to pick up this DVD. It's available through ejazzlines.com.

Actually, the worst Mosaic decisions I made are the ones that I didn't buy, though some of the early oop sets that I missed have been pretty much reissued in full on individual CDs. I'm sure that anyone dissatisfied with a Mosaic will have no trouble selling it for a reasonable price and might even make a profit if it is out of print. The smartest Mosaic purchase for me? All three volumes of The Complete Commodore Jazz Recordings, while they were still available. A total of 69 LPs, with no more than 2500 of each set manufactured.