erwbol

I have a near mint (disc and artwork) copy of the Connoisseur of Dance With Death. No scratches under lamplight. It's a US pressing so no EMI copy control, but I would have to ship from Europe. (Same for Andrew!!!.) Shipping would be €6.25 for a single CD (, and probably more for both discs because the weight then exceeds 250 grams). PS From a sonic and monetary perspective you're probably better off getting the recent Japanese budget reissue that's now out-of-print (TOCJ-50282, link), though these 2012 remasters were not as well received here as the SHMs a year later. (Possible rolled-off-top according to some.) To my ears the Japanese disc clearly has a full(er) dynamic range, so you have to crank it up a bit, and though the Connoisseur is a bit more trebly, it does not contain what I would perceive as extra information in the top end. If you're going to listen on a nice stereo in your living room I'd get the Japanese disc. For earbuds in a noisy environment mp3s of the Connoisseur would possibly be a better choice.

I thought the A Love Supreme Complete Masters 3 CD set released late last year was a part of this 60th anniversary celebration. At least that is how it was presented in the press release. It said more box sets celebrating Verve's 60th were to follow in 2016. I assumed this announcement applied to the wider Verve Music Group.

So no more previously unreleased Coltrane? Pricks!

Black Fire, Andrew!!!, and don't forget Lift Every Voice.

I recently picked up the 3 disc version at Concerto in Amsterdam so it wouldn't get damaged in transit. Very nice though fragile packaging. I like the use of non-session photos like the one of John and Alice at the Blue Coronet Club from early 1964. I'm very happy with this. This is what the 2002 deluxe edition should have been (had those original session tapes been located then). The sound beats any CD Impulse has put out in the US/EU in the past. Unlike the awfully loud and boosted Originals remaster, you can actually crank up the volume a bit on this, though not as far as on the Platinum SHM-CD. That said, the Platinum SHM-CD with its flat transfer (of, I presume, the UK flat transfer copy first used for CD in 2002) does have more warmth, a better midrange and deeper bass. This ultimately makes for a more impressive and satisfying listening experience. The new Complete Edition also has the highs somewhat lifted (though not resulting in a white hot trebly sound). So yeah, more treble, less bass, less warmth, but good enough. I personally think the now out-of-print Platinum SHM-CD (UCCU-40003) was totally worth it at a little under $30. Also, the introduction by Carlos Santana was actually a lengthy quote worth reading from his recent 2014 autobiography, and not the kind of nauseating new age mumbo jumbo I expected from him. Hearing the entire session with Archie Shepp and Art Davis progress enhanced my appreciation for the 10 December, 1964 session. I have yet to listen to the live performance. Perhaps I'll wait a little until my copy of the Jazz Icons DVD Live in France 1965 arrives.

Tonyrefail Squat Cobbler marries Dutch Apple Ass.

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That red bust must be where Lon stores his new $1000 headphones.

In Europe, Amazon's packaging for CD's that fit through a letterbox is as thick as a postcard.

Is the oblong foldout of the 3 CD set made of hard or soft material? I'm wondering if the packaging will survive shipping (through amazon.de). Otherwise I will have to pick this up in-store. Amazon.de's current price is only €21.99.

Fargo season 1 borrowed too much from the film (story, setting, quirky accents). The same Coen humour was attempted, but not always carried out to perfection by the cast. Martin Freeman was a poor substitute for William H. Macy, Bob Odenkirk played Bob Odenkirk with a moustache and police uniform on, and Collin Hanks is a god-awfull actor (see Dexter). Only Bill Bob Thornton would have succesfully fit in the Coen film.

Nobody's watching Fargo season 2? More consistent and better all-round than season 1, I believe.

The following Mosaic box set is running low. On content that is! Some eBay clown is selling an EMPTY Woody Shaw Muse box for $100! No CDs, no book. Just a piece of cardboard. Asshole profiteer (cdsundays from Ottawa Canada). http://www.ebay.nl/itm/THE-COMPLETE-WOODY-SHAW-MUSE-SESSIONS-MOSAIC-BOX-SET-EMPTY-BOX-ONLY-NO-DISCS-/221942270623?hash=item33acca4a9f:g:w24AAOSwNSxUyp1H

The MoFi hybrid SACDs are the real sonic revelations in the Miles Davis catalogue: e.g. Milestones (mono), Sketches of Spain (stereo), Nefertiti (Teo Macero mix), Bitches Brew (Teo Macero mix). And now Filles de Kilimanjaro (order placed, hopefully will arrive soon).

The Bad Plus at the Bimhuis tonight. Excellent musicians and with a sense of humour. Reid Anderson showed off his singing voice.

Composition 40B from Willisau (Quartet) 1991. Everytime I hear this track I am struck with how perfect it is and how hard it swings.

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/03/what-isis-really-wants/384980/

Ash vs Evil Dead season 1. An book bound in human flesh and inked in blood that is a gateway to hell is used to summon a deadite plague and all sorts of demons. And, no, it's not on BBC News 24. "The book itself is harmless, unless wielded by someone either very evil, or very stupid."

Eric Dolphy - Muses (Marshmallow Export, MMEX-159-CD)Sound ranges from very good (three tracks) to atrocious (one or two tracks).Some very good Dolphy here. Don't know what you're missing, etc.

The Wayne Shorter box set does not contain new remasters according to this review in German on Amazon.de. RVGs and even the poor 1987 McMaster of Odyssey of Iska. This does not look good for the CDs you linked to be issued next month. If you want more of the the new transfers that are the basis for the SHM-CDs, pay a visit to the HD Tracks store. Some of the listed titles are available there (e.g. Total Eclipse). Although you have to live in the greatest country in the history of the universe to be able to purchase them (and I believe use a VPN to even view them when browsing from the UK). For everyone else there is (Russian) bittorrent.

Guys, no selfie videos. Please.

John Scofield & Joe Lovano Quartet at the Bimhuis tonight, with Bill Stewart on drums and Ben Street on bass. The band was on fire for most of the two sets. Scofield, Lovano and Bill Stewart were great. As Lovano was announcing Mr. Puffy near the end of the second set, some guy a few seats next to me dropped an empty beer glass left of Scofield on the stage. Lovano joked they should name it Mr. Butterfingers instead. Scofield was agitated but made a joke about it. Then he launched into a blistering performance of Mr. Puffy, dedicated to his late son, and the band followed suit.