Ken Dryden

Did Meg Ryan also have substance abuse issues? That could contribute to her aging. Every time I see plastic surgery like Ryan’s I think of the woman in the film Brazil!

One set I would snap up in a heartbeat would be a Toshiko Akiyoshi boxed set of her recordings for 91 Records. I am not sure how many remain in print or if the label would license them at a reasonable price. I hope Mosaic is considering a boxed set from either broadcast archives or soundboard recordings. An example is the Phil Woods set they issued of all unreleased music. Bill Goodwin is digitizing all of Phil’s shows at Dizzy’s and hopefully some of those will see the light of day. The archives of various jazz festivals, live syndicated series and artist’s own recordings could have some potential for profitable sets. Again, the licensing issues may be the biggest challenge. I would love to hear some of the live tracks broadcast in the NPR series Jazzset without the annoying voiceovers and fade-outs that include complete concert sets. Younger folks may love downloads or streaming but I prefer physical product. When a new Mosaic set is announced and I have the artist in my collection, I place my order, even when I have most or all of the music.

Mosaic Records has done a great job, uncovering both and overlooked music and presenting it with detailed discographies and liner notes. While not all of their releases have been of interest to me, I skip those and hope that they sell out. Mosaic has run into problems like disorganized tape vaults or not having full access to them, only to have the licensing label “discover” additional unissued music after a Mosaic set is issued, then they issue their own expanded CDs. Everyone is entitled to their opinion about an artist or label which would make a dream set. I have extensive collections of Geri Allen, Mary Lou Williams and Marian McPartland, but since so many of their titles can be readily found at a budget price, it may be hard for Mosaic to justify creating a box for any of them at this time. But then again, the Monk Blue Note and Black Lion LPs were readily available at reasonable prices when that early boxed set was issued at the dawn of the label. Female instrumentalists have long been underrepresented, though that has changed somewhat over the past several decades with release of numerous titles by various labels. If Mosaic keeps going for another decade maybe we will see one as the subject of a set. The bottom line for Michael and Scott is can we license the music we seek at an affordable price and is there sufficient potential interest in the subject for us to make a decent profit. I remember the number of sets where they had sales to reduce slower moving titles, which usually were licensed from Capitol. They haven’t revealed their formula because it would likely raise licensing fees or encourage labels to create their own boxes. I think they have done a great job of keeping their prices very reasonable for what we get in a set. I have seen no indication in this thread of a bias against female instrumentalist sets. I could envision a Renee Rosnes set, though it seems unlikely in the near future.

I find these new vinyl issues way overpriced and I'm not sure the ones I've heard have been all that great. The high price per disc whether it is a new release or a reissue (and I have no interest at all in LP reissues that I already own on CD) makes me unlikely to any of them from any label.

Until someone becomes a stakeholder in Mosaic and assumes the risk from a poor selling set or series of sets, outside advice from anyone about projects to pursue is almost worthless.

While Dorothy Donegan is of interest to me, she recorded for a number of different labels and the focus would probably be a 4-5 CD set at most if Mosaic pursued it. I wonder how much she would sell, given the limited interest in reissuing her older LPs.

Years ago I saw Jerry Coker in Knoxville opening for Dave Brubeck, when Coker was part of the UT faculty. It was a fine set, except for his wife Patti’s attempt to sight read the lyric to Brubeck’s “In Your Own Seeet Way,” with the composer sitting just offstage.

I haven’t become a paying member yet but it was interesting hearing a rare dub of the Art Tatum Trio on the air circa 1943-1944, something that was unknown when Arnold Laubich and Ray Spencer published their Tatum discography.

When D’Arnaud is activated by the Braves, Ozuna needs to be given his walking papers. He is as about as useful as Pablo Sandoval was at the end of his career with the Braves.

Where can you find this cd? The only copy I see today is on eBay for a ridiculous price. it’s been on my Discogs want list for some time.

Marian was open to inviting guests outside of jazz. She wanted to get Floyd Cramer and Keith Emerson, though neither ever made a guest appearance. Even though Emerson played a little jazz, he sounded like he wasn’t comfortable in that setting, according to what Marian shared with me. It would have been interesting if he had gone on the show.

I couldn’t stand Paul Schaefer. He was a complete disaster on Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz.

The Braves need to bite the bullet and release Ozuna. The guy can’t hit anymore and his weak arm makes him a liability in the outfield. If he remains under the Mendoza line, that could happen.

Sometimes the artist knows better than the producer about sequencing. When The Art Tatum Solo Masterpieces was issued as a CD boxed set, it was in the order of recording. I liked it better than my earlier LP set.

My comment was more directed at film critics. One in particular from years ago regularly praised films that I hated. The 100% opposite taste comment was not something I considered to a two way street. I still remember wasting time and money seeing the unfunny comedy Between the Lines in 1977. I was coming up with better lines from the audience and getting more laughs, too. We finally gave up on it after twenty minutes or so. We should have noticed all the scowling faces from the previous showing as people exited and one woman remarked, “What a waste!”

That was certainly true for me when I started collecting Jazz. There is also the occasional writer whose taste is so opposite mine that I can easily skip any recording or film which received high praise from him or her.

A review might prompt you to check out an unfamiliar artist or possibly re-evaluate one that you dismissed in the past. There simply isn’t enough time in the day to sample ever new release, let alone hear it all the way through.

Unless there is a photo of a jazz journalist or I actually met them at a JJA meeting, during IAJE or in a jazz venue, I often had no clue as to the race of the writer.

It is hard to imagine any writer thinking of himself or herself as a “gatekeeper.” I write about artists whose music I enjoy and have no clue what the racial breakdown would be of artists I have reviewed, interviewed or made the subject of features. A lot of assignments have been entirely up to editors. I do have complete editorial control of my radio program. This new JT owner reminds me of those who buys a restaurant then immediately make drastic changes to the menu. Soon they are gone. BTW, wasn’t Crouch fired for habitual late copy?

Apply to write for JT and tell them you "identify as African-American" since that seems to be acceptable for so many other categories these days...

Another great loss to the world of jazz.

I let my Jazz Times subscription lapse years ago. One of the last straws was a writer who couldn't tell the difference between Herbie Hancock's "Dolphin Dance" and McCoy Tyner's "Passion Dance," neither of which is an obscure composition. The idiotic rambling memorial piece on Wayne Shorter in the magazine by some editor none of us has ever heard of was pure shit, like it was someone who barely knew how to write about jazz. I won't be subscribing or even visiting their website. It's a safe bet they will alienate many of their current subscribers with the writers they recruit and the magazine will be circling the drain within two years.

There are some strange people running businesses, but it will be interest how the lawsuits in this case are resolved.: https://thisistrue.com/weenie/?awt_a=6Ckr&awt_l=MIOW6&awt_m=K5iuP0ZUNyAPkr

Looks like I need that Fritz Pauer LP.

Both Jimmy Heath and Benny Goldings published autobiographies, so maybe we should check them.