Vincent, Paris

Unfortunately, I don't own any of these Marshmallow records. I found them while browsing the internet but never saw any of them in the Parisian stores. [sent you an email]

... Jymie Merritt on bass; Charlie Rice on drums. Five tracks composed and arranged by Tadd Dameron. I wish the 'Golden Boy' album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers was among the Colpix reissues.

Brownie, I don't know if it is the same jam session you're looking for but Japanese Marshmallow has issued a tape of a jam session with Tony Fruscella recorded at Gene DiNovi's house, Brooklyn, in 1952. here is the link (scroll down) The line-up is impressive and there are a few samples. Gene DiNovi has released several albums on that label, so we can assume that this issue was done from the original tapes or acetates.

Born George Joyner.

Does anyone know if bassist Don Moore, who played and recorded with Jackie McLean during the sixties, is still active and how to reach him ? Thanks in advance.

This might be the wrong thread to ask but does anyone know why Hank Mobley did not show up at the Jazz Messengers concert at the Toronto Jazz Festival in July 1959 ? Does anyone has details about that ?

Clora Bryant is one of the 7 musicians featured in the book "Central Avenue Sounds/Jazz in Los Angeles" published by University of Columbia Press There is a 25-page interview in which her career is detailed.

You know, there's something I can't understand about people like Lou Mecca. This is the kind of guy whose records are looked after by people who are ready to pay so many $$$ and this guy is still playing and nobody is recording him ! Lou Mecca website How many copies of his self-produced CD has he sold ?

It seems obvious to me that they scanned the covers from the booklets they were able to find, which means from various sources. It may be the same for the music. I wouldn't be suprised if it had been copied from Japanese CD's, Mosaic boxsets, old US first edition CDs, etc. I am not sure that EMI/Capitol (or whoever ownes the masters) sent them a whole set of tapes covering the whole Blue Note catalog. I believe they did the collection from their own sources.

Year, I agree with you about Freddie's comment - but I think you got an idea of the feeling on stage during those nights!!! The "night of the cookers" happened between a European tour Lee Morgan did with the Messengers (it is during that time that the BBC filmed the group in London, the one with Gilmore) and the "Rumproller" recording session, both time when Lee's playing was still very strong. But, year, Freddie was really afraid by that cat ! [ And I got your package this morning. Thanks for everything. I look forward seeing you soon ]

Regarding the "Night of the Cookers" session, Freddie Hubbard said recently that he recorded with Lee Morgan at that particular time because he KNEW Lee had been down for a while, was not on top shape then and so he would be sure that Lee wouldn't be able to beat him !

Hi Bertrand and Cali, One of the best recollection we have about Lee Morgan's troubles is the one by Bennie Maupin in his liner notes to the Lighthouse boxset. He writes that, when he joined Lee's quintet : "his chops were still healing after an unfortunate altercation that left him with a busted lip and some very looth teeth". As far as I know, Bennie Maupin went with Lee in 1970 (probably spring, even if he had recorded with him earlier for BN) and the session we refer to as "The Stroker" was recorded in september/october 1969. That's why I assumed that his troubles and his weak playing on this date are related to this incident. Lee was beaten in front of Slug's which opened round 1965-66 I believe. Now, something I'd like you to consider. I was recently browsing through the book "Blue Note Jazz Photography of Francis Wolff" (the one in color) and I was struck by a picture. On page 43 is a photography of Wayne Shorter shoot during the recording of "Night Dreamer" (april 29, 1964). This is the same picture which was used for the Connoisseur reissue of "Etcetera" designed by Patrick Roques in 1995. On the background of this picture is someone who has a bandage all around his head, as someone who has been injured. His face is cut on the "Etcetera" cover (see above) but it is NOT in the book. Unfortunately, it is much darker printed in the book than on the CD booklet, but it seems to me that this man could really be Lee Morgan. We know Lee is on 4 of the 6 tracks from "Night Dreamer", and on the picture, he sat next to Shorter. Judging by their position, it cannot be Elvin Jones (there's no drum in front), it cannot be Reggie Workman (no bass) and it doesn't seem to be McCoy Tyner sitting at the piano. So, could it be Lee ? Could you check into the book and let me know what you think about it ?

Cali, Could you please develop on or quote the liner notes you mentionned ?

You might be interested to read this (pictures from the session included).

Untrue. I recently called and they said they just distribute the Definitive material. They don't produce it. Planet Music went bankrupt, that's why the site is closed. Fresh Sound is independent and well.

You're right... This is the Definitive "version" of the Sony/Columbia Legacy set.

The Ubatuqui CD is available through Fresh Sound for 8.80 € only.

Nathan Davis is alive and well. See if website to get in touch : Nathan Davis According to the following page, Thornel Schwartz seems to be out of this world... but he has a nephew who plays the guitar who's a Benson fan as well as his uncle's.

You know Alfred Lion or Frank Wolff offered a record date to Spaulding through Duke Pearson but they wanted him to do a kind of Lou Donaldson funky boogaloo album and Spaulding turned it down.

I don't remember if anyone posted this before or not, but Fresh Sound has reissued 5 albums from the Dauntless catalog : Sunday Afternoon With Babs Gonzales At Small's Paradise Babs Gonzales Featuring: Babs Gonzales (vcl) with Johnny Griffin (ts), Clark Terry (tp, Flgh), Horace Parlan (p), Buddy Catlett (bass) and Ben Riley (d) West Side Story Bossa Nova Bill Barron Orchestra Featuring: Willie Thomas (tp), Kenny Burrell (g), Steve Kuhn (p), Kenny Barron (p), Henry Grimes (bass), Charlie Persip (d), Jose Soares (perc) The Country & Western Sound Of Jazz Pianos Steve Kuhn & Toshiko Akiyoshi Featuring: Steve Kuhn (p, harpsichord), Toshiko Akiyoshi (p, celeste), John Neves and Dave Izenzon (bass), Barry Galbraith (g), Pete LaRoca (d) Colors In Sound - You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet! Sal Salvador Big Band Featuring: Sal Salvador (g), Jerry Tyree, Jerry Kail, Burt Collins, Al Stewart (tp), Ray Starling, Dave Moser (mellophone), Roy Wiegand, Pete Vivona, Eddie Bert (tb), Andy Marsala (as), Charlie Mariano, Joe Farrell (ts), Nick Brignola (bars), Dave Frishberg (p), John Beal (bass), Steve Little (d) - arranged by Larry Wilcox. Sings Somewhere In The Night Teri Thornton Featuring: Orchestra conducted by Larry Wilcox Dauntless on Fresh Sound

Just received this from Fresh Sound : Pete Jolly-Jan Lundgren Quartet (FSR 5038 CD), features the line-up of two pianos in the quartet. "Collaboration" shows Pete Jolly (p, right channel), Jan Lundgren (p, left channel) along with Chuck Berghofer (bass) and Joe La Barbera (drums). The album was recorded in Hollywood, California, 2001. Jan Lundgren's site More information at: Fresh Sound Records

LA Times Obituary follows : "April 22, 2003 OBITUARIES Teddy Edwards, 78; Bebop Tenor Sax Player Was in L.A.'s Jazz Scene By Lynell George, Times Staff Writer Teddy Edwards, the bebop-era tenor saxophonist considered one of the crown jewels of Los Angeles' Central Avenue jazz scene of the 1940s, died Sunday in Los Angeles after a long bout with prostate cancer. He was 78. Because Edwards remained loyal to Los Angeles as his home base and inspiration rather than heading to the more lucrative jazz mecca of New York City, his contributions have often been minimized or obscured — sometimes by the very East Coast-based players he had influenced. Despite his West Coast address and a career marked by scattered fits and starts and missed opportunities, he is widely credited with recording the first bop solo for tenor sax, on the recording by the ensemble of trumpeter Howard McGhee of "Up in Dodo's Room," and with influencing a sturdy line of tenor players as diverse as Sonny Rollins, Stanley Turrentine and Joshua Redman. "He was one of the first to play full-blown bebop," said Steve Isoardi, editor of "Central Avenue Sounds, Jazz in Los Angeles," a comprehensive oral history of the era. "There were people here earlier, like Coleman Hawkins, who had bands that were just passing through." But Edwards and McGhee, Isoardi said, were local. "And in regard to shaping the young guys coming up, you can't overstate his influence." Born Theodore Monroe Edwards in Jackson, Miss., Edwards moved to Detroit in 1940 at the urging of an uncle who wanted to expose his nephew to a range of professional opportunities. It was there he first picked up the alto sax. Within months, he was collecting a string of paying gigs. He ultimately fell in with various touring bands in Michigan and Florida, where he was exposed to hard-playing proto-boppers McGhee, Wardell Gray and Al McKibben. Eventually, Edwards settled in Southern California, taking advantage of the wartime boom and finding his place in the kinetic music scene that had lighted up along L.A.'s Central Avenue. L.A. was a 24-hour town, dotted with crowded clubs and after-hour rooms where the space between R&B and jazz was narrow. It wasn't uncommon for jazz musicians to perform alongside or become members of R&B bands. Consequently, Edwards honed his craft in various settings, picking up the tenor saxophone and learning how to blow hot and cool: blues-inflected or soulful. After playing with R&B singer Roy Milton, he was invited to join McGhee's ensemble, where his signature sound and improvisational style began to take shape. "He always reminded me of the old saxophone players, like Prez [Lester Young], Dexter Gordon and all those guys," said L.A.-based jazz pianist Art Hillery, who was from Edwards' hometown. "He just had that big sound." Up until then, the horns of Hawkins and Young had set high standards for the tenor. "Dodo's," with its Charlie Parker-like speed and jutting lines, played on tenor rather than alto, took the scope of tenor playing elsewhere. "He was known for his originality," said Central Avenue alumnus and L.A. jazz great Buddy Collette. "He always went his own direction. There are always people who want you to sound like someone else. But Teddy had this fast, choppy sound, and they wanted him to sound melodic. But he went his own way. He always wanted to prove something. 'I can make it on my terms. I don't have to do studio work!' " Edwards became known for a charging, up-tempo, bluesy style. But he was equally effective coaxing a sweet, burnished tone out of the tenor. "I'm trying to learn how to make love to the thing now," Edwards told The Times in 1995. "I could always run up and down the horn, but when it's all boiled down, I'm at my best when I'm playing a pretty song." His most famous tune, "Blues in Teddy's Flat," recorded in 1947 for Dial Records, became a jazz standard, though Edwards told The Times in 1992 that he had earned $41.27 for the recording, "and I haven't seen another quarter since." Another recording, "The Duel," was an energized follow-up to another famous saxophone pairing — "The Chase" by Wardell Gray and Dexter Gordon. The 1947 recording pitted Edwards against Gordon in a classic "cutting session," testing the prowess of the soloists as they traded a flurry of searing, one-upmanship blasts. Ultimately, Gordon became known as king of bop tenor. As the Central Avenue scene slowed, Edwards looked toward other options. He joined a high-profile power quintet led by Max Roach and Sonny Stitt, but when pressed to choose between staying home with his young family and going on the road with the ensemble, Edwards chose family, and he was replaced by Harold Land. Working the local scene, he also became part of Howard Rumsey's original Lighthouse All-Stars. Like many jazz musicians who remained on the West Coast, Edwards pieced together a living playing clubs, casuals and parties. He recorded a smattering of solo dates for the Contemporary, Pacific Jazz and Prestige labels, but none of them were as pivotal as his early work. Through the '60s and '70s, Edwards shared stages with Benny Goodman, Milt Jackson and Sarah Vaughan. His Brass String Ensemble, for which he started writing in 1976, allowed him another creative outlet. Though Edwards had been battling cancer and other ailments, he continued to work well into his 70s. Singer-songwriter Tom Waits toured with Edwards in the early '80s and recorded the "One From the Heart" film score with Edwards in 1992. Waits also resurrected Edwards' career in the early '90s when he hooked up Edwards on the Antilles label and sang two of Edwards' compositions on the album "Mississippi Lad." Waits said Monday he was "sad because he was a good friend. I loved him. "I think music is going to miss him as one of the architects of bebop. That tone of his is just unmistakable. He sounded like he was drinking champagne on a train, you know what I mean?" Edwards is survived by a son, Teddy Edwards Jr., and a sister, Velma Diaz-Infante, both of Los Angeles, and numerous nieces and nephews. Plans for services are pending. The family requests that contributions be sent to the Teddy Edwards Memorial Scholarship Fund, Compton College, 1111 E. Artesia Blvd., Compton, CA 90221. Link to LA Times online

Last time I saw him (at the New Morning, Paris), he was playing with bass-player Victor Bailey some very loud and boring jazz-rock but he played the best he could and was marvelous on the soprano.

Dolphy did !

Jackie McLean says he played on free forms as soon as 1956 with Donald Byrd when both of them were part of George Wallington quintet !