Rooster_Ties

I think "Aura" is probably one of the most important albums Miles recorded after his comeback. Now is it anywhere near as important as his dozen best albums prior to 1975??? -- probably not. But, it's still a pretty darn interesting album, and much of it has some real merit - in my opinion. I can't cite specific track names as I don't have the disc handy, but I'd say half of it has some really amazing writing in the charts, and soloing too, for that matter. Some of it gets a little thin occasionally, but no matter what else you think about it - "Aura" was and is easily one of the most challenging things Miles ever did after 1980. Find a used copy, or get it cheap on eBay - but I think it'll mostly be worth your attention. It's not a perfect album, but it has it's moments -- lots of them in fact -- and probably more of them than almost any other Miles album from the 80's until his passing. Also, sometime in the next year or two, Columbia will surely be coming out with a new single-CD release of Miles' "Jack Johnson", probably with a bonus track or two. (The “Complete Jack Johnson” box is due out in September of this year.) By all means, get it first - when you decide to get some electric Miles from the 70's. Initially I liked it better than Bitches Brew, and some days I would probably stick with that assertion.

As someone (me!) who is attempting to change careers for the first time (I'm in my mid-30's), after 10 years with the same employer in the same functional area --- I'd be particularly interested in hearing how other people have undergone big career changes in their own lives. I worked in Information Systems (computer software design and implementation, but not much actual ‘programming’) until earlier this year, when I was laid off. Now I’m trying to venture out into something related to historic preservation, or urban planning or perhaps some sort of a support role with an architecture firm. I've even given some thought to trying my hand as an archivist of some sort, or perhaps something similar to being a museum curator?? Beyond (obviously) lots of interest in Jazz and 20th Century Classical music, I have fairly deep interests in historic architecture and design, particularly of the first half of the 20th Century -- so I’m trying to find something somehow related to those interests, despite the fact that I’m not a designer myself, nor am I much of a musician (though I’ve sung in the Kansas City Symphony Chorus for about 7 or 8 years). FYI, I have two Bachelor's degrees, one in Computer Science and the other in Music (history and vocal performance). In my case, I'm finding it really difficult to break out of my shell, and really go for it - especially in this economy. Despite what my on-line personality may seem like, I'm actually a fairly introverted person, and a bit shy when it comes to discussing topics that I'm not already well-versed in. (I’m an “INTP” - for anyone here who knows the Myers-Briggs personality tests.) Getting over my own fears is probably my biggest hurdle to cross. Also probably doesn't help that I'm a career "generalist" (but one who isn't interested in going into any kind of a management role), in a word that pretty much wants specialists -- or at least that's the way it was (and even more so it still is) in Information Systems. PS: Hey Dan!! - can you hook us up with a sample of the fruits of your golden throat?? I'm wondering if I've heard your voice before, and just never realized it was you.

Well, now. Isn't THAT interesting...

Picked this up recently on eBay, and just got it in the mail yesterday. Had a bunch of "drivin' around town" stuff to do, and discovered it in my mailbox as I walked out the door. Got through the first 4 or 5 tracks in the car, and I was very pleasantly surprised by this disc. Maybe it helps that I know at least half of the tunes from their Beck versions (but it's not that I'm a Beck fanatic, as I don't own any Beck CD's, I just know what I've heard on the radio over the years). Listening to the rest now, with about the last 1/3 of the disc yet to go. Not my "album of the year", but based on the feedback I had read in this thread, I'm liking it quite a bit better than I had expected to. Pretty solid disc, IMHO. For context, perhaps I should add that my favorite organ players are Larry Young and John Patton, particularly when they're with more adventuresome horn-players, and I dig MMW quite a bit, though I tire of the repetition in their music at times. So In that regard, Lonnie Smith's "Beck" album isn't really all that progressive, but it's got a good groove to it, and the playing is fairly imaginative, particularly from Lonnie and Fathead. I wouldn't run out and buy "Boogaloo to Beck" at full-list price, plus shipping. But if you find a good deal on it somewhere, it's probably worth it, especially if you at least know some Beck off the radio. By the way, the disc is like 30-seconds shy of 79-minutes long. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but there's a ton of music to be had on this disc. Is it too long and rambling?? - or nearly a double-album for the price of a single?? Depends on how much you like it, I suppose.

I totally agree. Probably 75% of the time they're fairly close to what I would probably say about most albums. Still, it's nice to bitch about particular reviews you don't agree with, even if by doing so one isn't trying to throw out the baby with the bathwater. I think the AMG is GREAT!!! Not perfect, not by a long-shot. But for a free on-line resource, it's amazingly useful, and some errors of fact and/or judgement are probably to be expected.

It's gone. Anybody here grab it??? If so, let me know what you think when you get it.

Well shit, here's one right now on eBay with 6 days left to go, and it's already bid up to $33.33!!!! this ain't cheap on eBay Somebody grab the cheap one from half.com, please. You'll thank me. -- Rooster T. PS: All the usual disclaimers apply.

Truthfully, I think the AMG has much of the Patton catalog upside down, ratings-wise (that's just my opinion), at least when talking about his BN output. 'Boogaloo' and 'Understanding' are (I think) among his very best work (I'd give 'em 4-stars each, at least), where 'Blue John' is just a 3-star record to me. The AMG has them just about flip-flopped. AMG's ratings for John Patton's BN output... 1963 Along Came John (4-stars) 1963 Blue John (4.5 stars) 1964 The Way I Feel (3-stars) 1965 Oh Baby! (4-stars) 1965 Let 'em Roll (5-stars) 1966 Got a Good Thing Goin' (4.5 stars) 1968 That Certain Feeling (3-stars) 1968 Boogaloo (2.5-stars) 1968 Understanding (2-stars) 1969 Accent on the Blues (3-stars) 1969 Memphis to New York Spirit (3-stars)

Tyrone Washington

Good price, great disc, and it's otherwise out of print (though not impossible to find). I've seen it go for up to maybe $15 on eBay ($20 tops, maybe) Here's one right now at half.com for $8 plus $2.50 postage. Ed Palermo Big Band: "Plays The Music Of Frank Zappa" 4-star AMG review (click here) Warning, Palermo has a somewhat sweet tone, not unlike David Sanborn, but the playing and arrangements (in particular) are really outstanding. This is one of those discs I pick up extras of whenever I find 'em used, just to pass along to people who I know would like them.

Changes for me from year to year. I went through a HUGE phase about a year or two after I first got into jazz, where at least half of what I listened to was Miles. Then - about 4 years later - I moved away from Miles almost completely, and got interested in other things. (And I'm only not getting back into Miles, now that all the box sets are coming out, one by one.) Any more, I seem to be getting really interested in a particular time-frame, and I'll explore that area with wild abandon. Lately it's been 1965-1972, but about a year ago I was really big into 1956-1962. A couple years before that it was about 1963-1968. Had a big "Sun Ra" phase several years ago too. But overall, I don't seem to have any one particular artist that really dominates over all the rest.

The on-line version of AMG gives "Lush Life" only 4.5 stars, not 5 -- but that's still way overrated in my book.

I listened to Lush Life a few times myself (I think on loan from a friend a few years back), and I had the same reaction as you do, Conn500. It was a nice enough disc, but certainly no 5-star outing. I'd be curious to hear it again, and see if my reaction was the same. At the time, I would have given it 3.5 stars, at most.

To get more specific about suggestions from the Miles 65-69 box, there are a couple things that I can listen to multiple-times at a sitting, and never get tired of... I don't know which show this would go in better (#1 or #2), but the rehearsal sequence for "I Have A Dream" (from disc #5 of the Miles box) is simply stunning. I know it's almost 7 minutes long, but you could probably pull a very tasty 60 to 120 second segment, which (for anyone who hadn't heard it yet), but who was familiar with the "original" (later recorded) version from "The Prisoner", might be an eye-opener. It was recorded on Jan. 25th, 1968 (along with a nice rehearsal sequence for "Speak Like A Child", which is only 2.5 minutes long). Other ideas from the same Miles box, "Riot" from 1967 is only 3 miuntes long, and is a great Herbie tune. Also, I've alwayed loved the slower alternate take of "Pinocchio", which is about 5 minutes long. Another suggestion (not from the Miles box), is the alternate take of "Goodbye to Childhood" from the Herbie BN box. (At least I think that's the tune, and I don't have my Hebie box handy). In any case, there is an alternate take of one tune from "Speak Like A Child" where Herbie's solo is completely solo, with no horns and not even bass or drums. Really stunning.

As far as suggestions for dates with Herbie as a sidemen for your second show, definitely don't overlook Joe Henderson's "Power To The People" from May of 1969 - with Herbie mostly on electric piano, though he might be on acoustic on one or two tracks (I'd have to check to be sure).

I just skimmed an on-line discography of Herbie's work in the 60's, both as a leader and as a sideman (no doubt it wasn't complete, I'm sure), but most of it is there. If you're open to non-Blue Note recordings, I would have to strongly suggest including something from the Sorcerer or Nefertiti sessions (with Miles), perhaps one one of the alternate takes from the Miles 65-68 box?? If you're only looking for suggestions of his 60's BN sideman work, maybe a track from Wayne Shorter's "Etcetera", which is my personal favorite of all of Wayne's BN dates. There's so much incredible Herbie on record from that decade, it's really hard to know where to begin.

I've never seen it, but have the soundtrack on CD. Anyone here seen it before?? Must be a trip.

from http://www.ejazznews.com New Releases: Sun Ra in SPACE IS THE PLACE: 30th Anniversary (Posted by: editoron Monday, August 11, 2003 - 06:01 AM) Director's Cut on DVD "An artifact of a time when the hangover of the late 1960's met the disillusioned 1970's; black power and free jazz collided with the fashion sense of SUPERFLY. SPACE IS THE PLACE is the PUTNEY SWOPE of jazz films." -Jon Pareles, THE NEW YORK TIMES "Outer space is a pleasant place A place where you can be free There's no limit to the things you can do Your thought is free and your life is worthwhile Space is the place" -Sun Ra Sun Ra and the Intergalactic Myth-Science Solar Arkestra in SPACE IS THE PLACE Director's Cut of legendary cult Sun Ra film gets 30th Anniversary release on DVD with extremely rare Arkestra 1970 Home Movies! Includes written introduction by Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore, video interviews with director and producer and moreŠ On October 28, 2003, Plexifilm will release the director's cut of legendary film SPACE IS THE PLACE (1974) for it's 30th anniversary starring other-worldly jazz bandleader Sun Ra. With over 20 minutes of added footage, the film has been restored to its original theatrical length, reintroducing several subplots heretofore omitted in the previous video version. Plexifilm's DVD release will be a must-own for any Sun Ra fan and cult film buff: on top of the restored director's cut of the film, the disc also contains 10 minutes of never-before-seen footage taken from extremely rare home movies of the Arkestra's trip to Egypt in 1972 where they played in front of the pyramids, as well as psychedelic projections for the band's live performances shot by Richard Wilkinson, the Arkestra's light and sound coordinator. These wonderful vintage images will be rounded out with liner notes by Sun Ra biographer John F. Szwed, written introduction by Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore as well as video interviews with director John Coney and producer Jim Newman and an essay by John Coney. The DVD will be priced at $24.95 and will street on October 28, 2003 with an order due date of September 12, 2003. After having traveled through space in a yellow spaceship propelled by music, Sun Ra finds a planet he believes could serve as a new home for the black race. Returning to earth, he lands in Oakland, California circa 1972 and has to fight The Overseer, played by Ray Johnson (from 1971's DIRTY HARRY), a supernatural villain who pimps out the black race. Sun Ra offers those who would follow him into space an "alter-destiny," but the Overseer, the FBI, and NASA--who are after Ra's Black Space Program--ultimately force him to return to space before the destruction of Earth. Cosmic blaxploitation ***** sociological critique, SPACE IS THE PLACE defies categorization. It is at once a platform for Sun Ra's radical racial philosophies, an indictment of the government's policies in Vietnam-era U.S., cult camp flick, sci-fi movie and concert film with unforgettable performances by the Intergalactic Myth-Science Solar Arkestra featuring June Tyson chanting "Calling planet Earth!" Since its extremely limited release in 1974--the film played very briefly in San Francisco and New York--SPACE IS THE PLACE has become an underground cult legend spoken about but never seen and if so, in poorly dubbed bootlegs or in the severely adulterated 1992 VHS version. Reminiscent of other 'black' films of the time--it has been compared to Melvin Van Peebles' SWEET SWEETBACK'S BAAD ASSSSS SONG (1971)--the film has a vast mystical quality channeled through the music and words of Ra himself. Although the mystic and mythic foundations of SPACE IS THE PLACE are similar to another cult classic of the time, Alejandro Jodorowsky's THE HOLY MOUNTAIN (1973), the film started as the brainchild of producer Jim Newman who convinced Ra to make a half-hour PBS documentary. From these beginnings, SPACE IS THE PLACE grew into something which John F. Szwed in his liner notes describes as a "revisionist Biblical epic" and spawned an album of the same name on Blue Thumb records as well as Szwed's highly acclaimed eponymous biography. SUN RA is considered a giant in twentieth century contemporary music. He pushed the envelope of what music could be: from his mystical philosophies to his band's dress, both of which were an outer space vision of Egyptian costume. Although claiming to be sent from Saturn to save humanity, it has been documented that Ra was born Herman P. "Sonny" Blount in Birmingham, Alabama in 1914. After playing in many Birmingham based bands throughout the 30s and 40s, Ra relocated to Chicago. In the early 50s, he changed his name to Le Sony'r Ra and slowly expanded his band, which included many players still in high school whom he taught himself. In 1956 Ra established his own independent label, Le Saturn Research, which started releasing records under the name Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra and continued to release over 100 albums. Ra explored the vast possibilities of music from exotic instrumentation and composition, from big band, vaudeville to bop, and from the beginning of the sixties his music was labeled as "free jazz" which was being explored by such musicians as Albert Ayler and Ornette Coleman. Always a maverick, Ra did not like the term "free," as he claimed his music was very structured and composed. Ra also pioneered the use of electronic instruments such as moogs and various synthesizers‹-he bought one of the first electric organs, the Hammond Solovox, in 1939. Extremely prolific and forward thinking, Sun Ra was a true visionary. Ra has been highly influential to many popular musicians from Parliament Funkadelic's dress and stage act, the MC5 who incorporated his lyrics into "Starship" off their first album KICK OUT THE JAMS, and more recently to Yo La Tengo's anti-war mini ep which covered "Nuclear War". About the DVD Edition: The film is presented in its original Director's Cut with over 20 minutes of restored footage and and includes: 10 minutes of never-before-seen Arkestra home movies from his 1972 trip to Egypt, as well as psychedelic projections and other vintage footage shot by Richard Wilkinson, the Arkestra's light and sound coordinator Video interviews with director John Coney and producer James Newman Liner notes by Ra biographer John F. Szwed, author of SPACE IS THE PLACE: THE LIVES AND TIMES OF SUN RA Written introduction by Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore Essay by director John Coney Sun Ra in SPACE IS THE PLACE A North American Star System production Starring Ray Johnson, Christopher Brooks and The Intergalactic Myth-Science Solar Arkestra with June Tyson, John Gilmore, Marshall Allen and more Directed by John Coney Produced by James Newman Edited by B. Progress, Frank Namei Written by Joshua Smith All Music Arranged, Composed and Conducted by Sun Ra U.S.A. 1974 82 minutes Color 16 mm DVD release date: October 28, 2003 Catalog No. 010 Price: $24.95

Well, Pat's older brother Mike lives here in Kansas City, and is very active on the local jazz scene (he’s a trumpeter, with a small handful of leader dates under his belt). I'm sure I could easily pass your disc along to him sometime. Best guess is that it would probably NOT be good to specifically ask him to pass it on to Pat, but rather just hope that he digs the CD so much that he feels compelled to give his bro one. (I'm guessing he's real tired of people going through him to get to Pat. Or who knows, maybe not?? - I could check with some other people who actually know Mike.) I'd be glad to strategize this with you (maybe think of some other ideas), if getting Pat to hear your disc really is of some value to you guys. Also, I know several local guys (musicians mostly) that actually know Mike (and have played with him dozens of times over the years), if that's maybe a better angle to take. (I've never actually spoken with Mike before, though I've heard him play several times.)

Never heard of it, but the very brief description from the AMG (All MOVIE Guide) sounds interesting... Is this similar to the multi-camera/multi-image stuff in the Woodstock movie???

I was looking for a better poster for "Beneath The Planet of the Apes", and found this - and had to share!!!! Is this cool, or what?? B)

OK, nothing obscure about the five "Planet of the Apes" movies. But the second one in the series (and arguably the worst of all five - and possibly the most obscure) had several scenes that I absolutely remember to this very day. First the set up... Since I was born in '69, I never saw any of the "Apes" moveis in theaters, and I only vaguely remember ever seeing maybe just one of them on TV as a teenager (perhaps the 4th one -- which I think is the best of the series, after the 1st one, of course). SOooo.... The summer after my freshman year of college (1988), I'm waiting tables at Denny's -- on the NIGHT shift. And on my nights off, I stay up all night watching movies, so I can keep my internal "sleep/wake" clock set right. And so, not having ever seen any of the Planet of the Apes movies before, I rent ALL of them - and do a marathon "Apes-fest" one evening/night - for like 7 or 8 hours straight. Anyway, several times during the 2nd movie - "Beneath The Planet of the Apes" - the mutant humans are worshipping "The Bomb", which is the very last nuclear warhead left over from a prior generation. The scenes are set underground, in a very "church-like" cave-like environment. And all through many of the last scenes, for what seems like 2 or 3 minutes at a stretch -- there is this amazingly bazaar church-organ music, along with the "mutant" congregation singing -- in praise of "The Almighty Bomb"!!!!. And the music sounds like a cross between the "two marching bands at the same time" aspects of Charles Ives (think the 2nd movement of "Three Places in New England"), crossed with some of the ugliest block chords ever played on any church organ. When I first heard this, as a mere 19-year old, I was repulsed, and strangely mesmerized by the shear beauty and ugliness of this music, all at the same time. (And the strange "Bomb" in place of "God" lyrics were suitably wacko as well.) Anyway, I've only seen the 2nd "Apes" movie one other time since then, but man, that "church-music-from-hell" sure as hell made a BIG impression on me. Gave me something to hang on to (and mentally refer back to), a couple years later when I was first exposed to Schoenberg's "Pierrot lunaire", and a whole shitload of other atonal delights.

I remember renting this one back in the late 80's (when I was in high school, probably a senior), lookin' for a little T&A, as I recall Sure, there was some of that (I think) - but more importantly, what a FRICKIN' weird and REALLY BAD movie, as I recall. Only saw it once, but it left an impression as well... Link: Satan's Cheerleaders (1977, USA) I won't reproduce the plot and review here (but you can go to the link above), as the details of the film are pretty unimportant.

OK, this movie came out in 1973, but I was only 4 years old then - so I must have seen it on TV on the "Late, Late, Late Show", or else some Saturday or Sunday afternoon on that one station in every town (usually on the UHF dial) that always played old movies instead of sports, cuz they didn't have no network affiliation. Anyway, it must have been the early 80's when I first saw this, and how the hell I still remember some of it - after having only seen it that one time, or maybe twice (at most) -- both times in the 80's -- is totally beyond me. Anyway, here it is (from http://www.allmovie.com/)...