A Lark Ascending

I've never even heard of that one! Thanks for bringing John's name up. He's excellent. I saw John, with Ron Matthewson on bass and and Martin Drew on drums, at Ronnie Scott's in London, England, in 1974. They were probably billed as the John Taylor Trio. They were backing up Zoot, who was in his usual fine form too. The temporary Quartet gelled very well, and it was a superb evening. I wish they had been recorded, partly because Zoot's recordings at the time (done in the U.S.) had a mediocre rhythm section, and the one at Ronnie's crapped all over it. I especially remember being blown away by Ron's bass playing: he could do the Ron Carter thing and also the Richard Davis, as well as being his own man. Zoot was looking on in amazement. One tune that I still remember from that night is Fat's Waller's "Jitterbug Waltz"; I'd never heard that tune before, and it was an unlikely selection, but Zoot really dug into the tasty chord changes, which were tailor-made for him (no pun intended). Added: I lie, that selection was on the LP that Miles did with Michel Legrand back in 1958. Ron Mathewson was a beautiful player, sadly long out of action due to illness. Only saw him once with Jimmy Giuffre in the upstairs room of a pub in Nottingham. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Mathewson

Only a couple of years old but I don't see this marvellous disc mentioned much: 'Aurora'

One of my most played CDs of the noughties: The version of 'Estate' is gorgeous.

Second of Downing's 'station' books I've read. This one is set in Berlin (and various points beyond) in early 1939 from New Year to the invasion of Czechoslovakia. A good thriller by someone who has clearly studied the gazeteers of European cities in the 1930s. Would appeal to anyone who likes the writing of Phillip Kerr or Alan Furst.

just wndering bev - are you referring to Redman or Alexander here? Alexander. I have some of Redman's 90s albums but lost interest. I should probably listen to something more recent. There's plenty of warmth in Alexander but it doesn't mean we all hear it; nor should we have to. I don't have the musical knowledge to go all analytical so just have to work on gut-reaction. The fact that he has similarities with George Coleman perhaps explains why I enjoy him. I've always loved Coleman's playing and we don't hear much of him these days.

It is indeed. Have you read Kazuo Ishiguro's 'Never Let Me Go'? Works in a similar sort of distorted near future. The title comes from the tune much beloved of jazzers. Indeed I have read it and liked it very much. I think Ishiguro must be into our sort of music. His recent story collection Nocturnes is based on the experiences of musicians, most of whom are in Great American Songbook mode, rather than classical or pop. He wrote the lyrics to some of the songs on the last Stacey Kent album.

a) vs. = why does it have to be a competition? Maintaining the spirit of the cutting contest? I'd hope music can be about more than 'who's best?' b) I've several of his records and saw him last year. I've always found him a very enjoyable player (especially on ballads), some records more engaging than others. He's working well inside the frontiers but so what? As Schoenberg once said in a very different context, there's still plenty of fine music to be written in C major (or words to that effect).

I could be wrong here but I seem to recall reading an interview with him talking about how he came into music and jazz was not a big part of it...though late-period Coltrane was a huge inspiration. Unlike a lot of well known avant-gardists he didn't do the bebop/big band or whatever route before breaking away into the freer areas. If I'm recalling that right it might explain why he doesn't have any obvious jazz reference points. He's certainly not 'greasy' (more woolly!)! Always interesting to hear him with Kenny Wheeler's bands where he seems to provide a very different and distinct colour. He's also played regularly in Charlie Watts occasional bands - largely mainstream affairs but Parker still does what he does.

Some nice ones here on the BBC News site: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8442877.stm I got the magic call at 9.30 last night that we weren't expected in today. A golden opportunity to catch up on paperwork. All the usual grumbling - why has the salt run out, why isn't my road clear etc. The Beeb wheeled out the 'why do the schools have to shut' 'controversy' again (as they annually wheel out the 'scandal that the GCSE pass rate had gone up/gone down'). They should have been sat in my heads office at 10.00 a.m. yesterday as angry parents demanded he shut the school and allow them to collect their kids (I expect he spent today fielding calls from angry parents about the place being shut). I've taught in this school for over 30 years and it's only been closed by the weather 6 times maximum! We sure know how to make storms in teacups. Went into our county town, Truro, today and it was like a ghost town. Shopping was almost pleasant. Not much snow about near here so don't know where everybody was. Doing their tax returns while 'working from home'? I lived in Newquay for 3 1/2 years at the turn of the 60s/70s and it snowed once! Gone by lunch time! Back at work today (though half the kids didn't turn in); one of the few schools in the area that did open. The weekend is looking threatening - heavy snow predicted for Saturday and Sunday. The trouble is we rarely get weather like this (or not in recent years) so it's not cost or time effective to have the sort of contingency plans you'd get in Canada or Finland. If this was regular for 5 months we'd adjust accordingly. ******** The pictures here are absolutely gorgeous: http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/nottingham/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8424000/8424941.stm

It is indeed. Have you read Kazuo Ishiguro's 'Never Let Me Go'? Works in a similar sort of distorted near future. The title comes from the tune much beloved of jazzers.

Hope that includes sleeve notes and liner notes. Well, it was nice to have musical accompaniment for the day. But the exam board regulations I was trying to decipher were a bit like trying to read a piece by Anthony Braxton explaining his music!

Some nice ones here on the BBC News site: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8442877.stm I got the magic call at 9.30 last night that we weren't expected in today. A golden opportunity to catch up on paperwork. All the usual grumbling - why has the salt run out, why isn't my road clear etc. The Beeb wheeled out the 'why do the schools have to shut' 'controversy' again (as they annually wheel out the 'scandal that the GCSE pass rate had gone up/gone down'). They should have been sat in my heads office at 10.00 a.m. yesterday as angry parents demanded he shut the school and allow them to collect their kids (I expect he spent today fielding calls from angry parents about the place being shut). I've taught in this school for over 30 years and it's only been closed by the weather 6 times maximum! We sure know how to make storms in teacups.

I agree. I've been lucky enough to see him many times (solo, in small groups and in larger ensembles) and he can be absolutely mesmerising. He used to do a regular afternoon session with hand picked musicians at the Appleby Festival in a small church (well known from the recordings that have been issued). He also took a group into the main marquee on a Saturday afternoon for 50 minutes. As it was a mainly bop/big band type festival, the marquee emptied the moment the group before finished, leaving a few dozen listeners. I have several records by him but they don't get played much - on record I prefer to hear him in a larger group context like the London Jazz Composers Orchestra or one of Barry Guy's other bands; or the two discs he did with Roscoe Mitchell on ECM a while back. One of those musicians I can't claim to be even close to understanding but he keeps drawing me back. Now Brotzmann is the one who loses me!

Love the deer shot, Aggie87. **************** What a difference 6 months can make...July and 30 minutes ago: And an hour later... The snowflakes are dancing!

Quite - not seen it this bad for 20 years! We only had a light dusting when I set out at 6.20 so I got in fine. But it came down non-stop from about 8.00. The school was shut at 12.00. Took nearly 2 hours to get home. My, the trees look pretty, though!

No idea how it works but I've had the same experience. I did an old Nic Jones album that has never been on CD last week. Spotted it straight away. I think, as you say, it must just recognise the number of tracks + the timings (though this must be approximate).

Outside of the British Isles I've always found this period of European history (roughly the fall of Rome to the start of the First Crusade) hard to get a mental map of...get all my Henrys, Ottos and Fredericks muddled up. I really enjoyed Holland's 'Persian Fire' and this is certainly interesting, but I'm finding it somewhat breathless and overwritten. The characters come across like cartoon figures in a perpetual state of action, the events ever-momentous. He's trying to evoke the sense of fear and anticipation in Europe as the millennium approached and the Second Coming descended. But I'm a bit irritated by it. Reminds me of quite a lot of recent TV history - high action to stop viewers switching over to special-fx films.

I've never even heard of that one!

One of the ironies is that what westerners consider to be 'real' 'world' music is often not what local people are wanting to play or listen to. They conform to western assumptions about 'authenticity'. Seeline and MG will know more about this but I think I'm right in suggesting that a fair few African performers (for example) make acoustic only recordings for a European-US market when their music at home embraces a much wider range of technology. Which is a way of saying, don't worry about if it's 'real'. Musicians have been sprinkling influences as icing sugar for centuries (Mozart and his 'Turkish' influences, for example). What matters is if it produces interesting or attractive music. And that will vary according to the ear of the beholder. ***************** In jazz you get musicians who have studied or emerged in another sphere (e.g. a 'folk' or 'roots' music) and then get interested in jazz; musicians who start in jazz and then become aware of other music that lies in their heritage and start to bring it in; and musicians who take music from spheres outside their own immediate cultural background and add it in. In theory the first two should have the best chance of being 'real', the latter should produce 'exotica'. But I'm not sure it actually works out like that all the time.

I've plenty of gripes with the BBC but I don't resent paying for it because it does things no commercial station in the UK does. I just wish it would pay more attention to its 'public service' remit. It's very good at serving the classical/intellectual end of things (on radio, that is); and has also got the knack of serving the populist end. The trouble is that it has allowed its ratings-chasing to dominate. I'd hate to see it lose the licence fee and become yet another completely commercialised concern. Sadly, I can see that happening in the next few years, not because it will be good for UK listeners and viewers but because the Murdochs of this world and other vested interests want it swept out of their path. You won't get programmes like Alyn Shipton's in Rupert (and sons) world.

I think you'll find that the BBC is funded by Satan himself.

Blue Note already have her signed up for an initial release called 'Purr Away With Me'.

Anyone with a memory for the eclectic days of the early 70s will be sad to hear Tim Hart died over Xmas. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/dec/29/tim-hart-obituary Never my favourite band of that ilk, but 'Parcel of Rogues' and the Tim Hart/Maddy Prior record 'Summer Solstice' introduced me to a fair few folk songs. Unlike Fairport, they succeeded in cracking the USA in the early 70s and came close to making folk-rock a pop success ('All Around My Hat')!

Missed this when it was recently broadcast so got the DVD. Watched the first three episodes (1900-1918) over the last three evenings. Excellent popular history. Nice to know UK TV can be about more than "Strictly Come X-Factoring, Get Me Out Of Here".

Amerocentric, heck... it barely -- and unsurprisingly -- ventures outside of the five boroughs. Which five boroughs? NYC http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borough_%28New_York_City%29 Ah! Je compris. Merci.