[Sets you wish Mosaic would do]

What great suggestions! I'm with you Dr J on the Lucky Thompson/Milt Jackson Savoy sessions-recently found a near mint "Jacksons'ville" original. This set would have to include the original cover art!

How about an Al Cohn/Zoot Sims box?

[Horace Parlan Mosaic]

Oh Yes, the Parlan set is magnifico! Actually, it was this set (on vinyl) that made me go nuts & seek out the lp versions of oop Mosaic boxes! The Parlan really is one of the best, and I too wonder why it is so seldom mentioned-along with the Tristano/Konitz/Marsh set!

[Shorty Rogers Mosaic At Last!]

Hint: it's not too hard to get reasonably priced originals of all the Shortys... BLACK LABEL Atlantic, ahhhh... I actually had a harder time finding "Clickin' With Clax" than the others... And do you really wanna be w/o those original "Martians" covers? Methinks not.

clem

The domestic Atlantics yes, but then you'd have to find the UK-only lps, the Pacific Jazz & Capitol lps, & last but not least that 10-inch Nocturne! Even then you wouldn't have the unissued material. Although the original covers are way cool, I'd have to consider the Mosaic an essential purchase (and the sound on these lps is terrific)! I have only begun to delve into this set, but it is proof positive that these "West Coast Jazzmen" got a bad rap from some of the critics.

B)

[Shorty Rogers Mosaic At Last!]

After much searching, I scored a mint Shorty Rogers LP set! Of all the out-of-print Mosaics I've added to my collection, this has been the toughest to find for a reasonable price (I paid $175). The last time I located a copy for sale it was $300-and when they do show up on ebay the price gets higher. I remember reading on the old bnbb that poor sales made this a rare one, but it is such a great set I can't believe it didn't sell. For me, this is West Coast Jazz at its' finest! As for sound quality-the music just leaps out of those grooves-Pepper, Rogers, Giuffre, Shank, Sweets Edison, Shelly Manne et al swing like mad! So I'm a happy camper. And I got to wondering: what is/was the toughest Mosaic for you guys?

[Miles Blackhawk LP set]

I'm also pre-ordering! As for the original-I just sold a still-sealed 6-eye of "Friday Night" and won't miss it a bit! Way too much editing & not very good sound quality either-it's gonna be great to finally have this material on primo vinyl!

[Blue Note Biography]

Now that I have read it, I have to agree-it's a good general overview of the label's history but nothing earthshaking for the hardcore BN fan. Knowledgable discussion of many key sessions and interesting anecdotes though.

[Greatest Finds]

Recent Great LP Finds:

Joe Henderson "Mode For Joe" M- NY label 20 bucks!

G. Mulligan Sextette (w/Zoot) "Mainstream Of Jazz" orig. Emarcy Near Mint $10

"C. Brown & M. Roach" M- orig Emarcy (blue print back) $25

Eldridge/Gillespie "Trumpet Battle" VG++ Verve $9

H. Rumsey's Lighthouse All-Stars 10 inch Contemporary Red Vinyl ! VG+ FREE!

also B. Goodman & Ike Quebec 45 Sessions Mosaic lp sets for bargain prices

[New Mosaic Schedule of Releases]

I'm eagerly awaiting the vinyl Blackhawk set-moreso now that I've heard how great the cds sound! This is a rare treat for those of us into the quintet with Mobley (can't wait to hear "No Blues" on premium vinyl). I'm definitely in for the Roy Eldridge set too-7 discs of just great music! And the Mulligan, and the selects, and...

[Blue Note Biography]

Picked up "Blue Note Records-The Biography" by Richard Cook (of Penguin Guide fame) a few days ago. This is the first US printing, but the book was apparently released in 2001 in the UK. Anyway, it's an interesting story of the label's history-from the beginning right up to Norah Jones! From the preface: "It is a discussion, primarily, of the music this company recorded & released, in the context of the culture of jazz and beyond, and a tale of what happens to the legacy of a tiny operation in the bigger, grander world of the global music business."

I have only read a couple chapters so far, but this is a good read-should be of interest to most of this board. Includes a list of all BN releases too.

[Albums that define the Blue Note Sound]

OK, here we go-

I have to start with Blakey's "A Night At Birdland" & "At The Cafe Bohemia", these albums set the standard for all the live jazz recordings that followed .

then: "Moanin", "Blue Train", "Somethin' Else", "Soul Station" & "Roll Call", "Whistle Stop", "GO", "Cool Struttin" and "The Sidewinder" (I might even throw in "Cornbread"). These are not necessarily listed in order...

[Name some Blue Note cds you find overrated]

I have to admit I'm shocked by the disdain (by some) for Whistle Stop, Cool Struttin', The Sidewinder and (gasp) Somethin' Else! I mean, DAMN, those albums define the "blue note sound"-don't they? Oh well, to each his own I guess.

[Album Of The Week: June 1 - 7]

This really is a great choice of albums! When this latest reissue came out I was listening to blues almost exclusively, and this one kind of got me back into the wonderful world of jazz. It's all about the blues when you get right down to it. Kind of nostalgic too-one of the first record albums I ever bought was "Ambassador Satch" back in the day...

[Complete Miles & Trane Mosaic LP Set]

I strongly agree with the praise for the Mosaic Miles/Trane lp set-the sound is terrific to my ears! By the way, I do have excellent copies of most of the original Columbias, some sound as good as the Mosaics and some don't in my opinion. For example, I have a mint six-eyes stereo copy of "Someday My Prince..." that beats any reissue I've ever heard-but the live recordings are better on the Mosaic. If you collect albums get the originals (be prepared to shell out big $ for mint 1st pressings), if you want the music get the Mosaic.

[Bennie Green Mosaic Select]

Got the new Bennie Green Mosaic last week- it's an excellent set! Soulful bop that moves and grooves, and doesn't get boring. There is great tenor throughout these sessions (Charlie Rouse, Gene Ammons, Ike Quebec & Stan The Man-and the unsung Eddy Williams). Sonny Clark is on three of these sessions also. Here's a big "thumbs up" to Mosaic for this one, oh and the sound is terrific on these discs too!

[Entry-level turntables]

Not knowing what the budget is, you'll be hard-pressed to find a new table with more bang for the buck than the Musichall MMF-7, which comes with a $400 Goldring cartridge. I've seen these for $750 or so on Audiogon, but even for $899 this is a heck of a setup for the money! Another option is to go for a good used turntable-I see decent Technics for less than $300 fairly often. Either way you'll be able to enter the wonderful world of vinyl.

[Choose your favorite Conn]

Glad to see I'm not the only fan of "The Transition Sessions"! As much as I love the other finalists (hard to not choose True Blue) the Transition Sessions has it all:

Great Music

Great Sound

Rare Tracks (2 discs worth)

Byrd, Watkins, Silver, Joe Gordon, Burrell, Blakey, Taylor and a guy named Mobley (all at their early best)

This one has become my all-time favorite Conn!

[Blue Note 10" Rarities]

I went for the McGhee/Tal Farlow, although I like the other McGhee just as much. Hard to choose between these two-on one you get Brew Moore, Drew & JJ; the other has Gryce, Farlow, Silver & Percy Heath! Howard McGhee is all but forgotten these days, or so it would seem, but he is one of the greats for sure. Love this series of Conns and play them fairly regularly-but I don't have the Melle (yet).

[Mosaic Blackhawk LP Set in June]

Just received an email from Mosaic saying there will be a 6 LP Miles @ Blackhawk set released in late June! Good news for some of us...

B)

[More TOCJ's for sale]

On a completely unrelated matter...hey Kevin, nice avatar! I just scored a near-mint copy of that very lp, one of the harder-to-find 60's Blue Notes. "Blue Leo" - yes indeed!

[Smaller Speakers]

Monitor Audio B2 reviewed in Feb/March Audiophile gets my vote. List is 399 and it has some bottom end.

I heard earlier version of this speaker and it blew me away. Coherent sound, reminded me of being in recording studio. This is the one!

Another vote for the Monitor Audios- these definitely fit the criteria, small size & reasonable $, and they sound great. I have seen them @ $100 less than retail.

[Mosaic sales]

I remember reading on the bnbb that the Shorty Rogers set was one of the poorest-selling Mosaics (though it's hard to understand why). These days it is one of the most valuable sets-funny how these things work out...

[Bobby Jaspar]

One of my favorite lp's with Jaspar is his "Tenor and Flute" lp on Riverside with George Wallington, Idrees Sulieman, Wilbur Little & Elvin Jones. There was a Japanese reissue of this a while back also (on vinyl that is).

[Any Comments on H.R.S. Sessions?]

Here's another thought, if you enjoy vinyl that is - The Ventura/Phillips set is still available and is a beauty, IMO

Vinyl is one of my main addictions. Thanks for the tip on the Capitol, it's on my list. I do have the Ventura/Phillips, and it is one of my all-time favorites (it really got me interested in the small-group swing thing). The H.R.S. is definitely targeted for purchase now...

[Any Comments on H.R.S. Sessions?]

Well, I think that settles it-I'm gonna get this one next! Like Ubu, I'm coming mostly from bop & later styles of music. Thanks for the input...

[Any Comments on H.R.S. Sessions?]

Lately I have really become interested in small-group swing, though most of what I've been listening to is of late 1940's to mid 1950's. I'm seriously considering the H.R.S. Sessions as my next Mosaic-comments on this set would be appreciated (and how is the sound quality on these).