Christiern

This should satisfy your curiosity.

You seem to forget that I was quoting a black person who was quoting another black person. Anyway, a friend told me top check out JC this morning--seems they are finally discovering what I pointed out a couple of years back. Ironic that you now have joined DEEP in exile, don't you think?

I found some pictures (1950-1953 vnitage).... This is the wire recorder I used to own This is my first tape recorder And here is the turntable-cum-tape machine... Note that the wire recorder also had a turntable.

The spindle protruded between the two reels and the turntable fit right on top. I don't recall how the tone arm was attached, but the damn thing worked! I had a Magnavox tape recorder that was driven by my Philips turntable. It was triangular and had two feet that rested on the board, just free of the turntable. The audio was hooked up to one's radio. It was a cheap and unsatisfactory solution. It used small reels and what one recorded could only be played back on the same gadget. Before I purchased my B&O tape recorder, I had their wire recorder, which was pretty cool.

I remember that B&O model with the turntable--they were always innovative. I had the first tape recorder they made, a big black box with a small, green eye-type volume indicator. That's the machine I used when I recorded the Ken Colyer band, Monty Sunshine Trio, etc. in 1953. I also used it to record Humphrey Lyttleton's band in London a month earlier. Fortunately, I had the foresight to buy a B&O ribbon microphone, so the sound is pretty good. (I was working for Fona at the time). Apropos Henrik Johansen, his father manufactured toilets and I recorded the Sunshine trio (with Lonnie Donegan, and Chris Barber on bass) in a fairly large bathroom at the Johansen home. As for Storm P, I don't think his humor translates easily--it was very Danish.

Sammy Davis, Jr. and Carmen McRae are Jacko-like? Please explain.

We don't know if some arrangement hasn't been reached with the artist or estate. When Karl Knudsen used to come over here and stay at my apartment, he spent many hours on the phone and around town talking to widows, lawyers, etc. to obtain rights for Storyville releases. Often, he could have released material with impunity, but he had an honesty that, I'm afraid, is not a character trait among record company owners. I know little about Proper and Definitive, beyond the fact that they exist, but are they the labels that pirate U.S. reissues like Uptown's Mingus set? If so, they should be put out of business, IMO.

Lon, that's the same disc. I do have quite a bit more of Ruby on tape--she was a remarkable person, but I guess you can hear that! Sorry to hear that you only have the original version of my book--it is a source of embarrassment to me.

Thanks, Mark. Just one thing, there is no companion CD, the one containing excerpts from my Ruby interviews was just something I burned for you. Chris

When they offer you something gratis and then want your credit card info, I immediately quit the site.

You forgot to mention the white powder on page 287! %$#@ Jesus Powder, I calls it. BTW, did you ever read the damn thing?

Ain't rationalization wonderful? No one is passing judgment re royalties, merely pointing out the legality issues.

Your loss, IMO.

Whenever I get upset over this sort of thing, I think of how the record and music publishing companies (and RIAA) have ripped off artists for close to a century. If Roberta Flack's attorney hadn't spotted it when she signed with Atlantic, artists would probably still be charged a percentage for "breakage," an issue that went away with the 78s.

Right, again, Mike. There was a time when Columbia issued esoteric releases (especially under Lieberson); no one thought for a minute that they would sell enough copies to absorb the cost, but it didn't matter, because such sets lent prestige to the label, just as classical music did. BTW it was suggested to Columbia that they sign Duke Ellington to a contract that would allow him to record his extended works whenever he felt a need to, or simply to give him a guaranteed outlet. It would be a retainer of sorts, designed to encourage/subsidize a major composer and preserve important music for prestige rather than profit. Columbia's policy of recording dead composers for prestige was cited as an inspiration. The suggestion was turned down. I recall several Columbia sets, like Eleanor Roosevelt's reminiscences on "My Husband and I"; an elaborate boxed release focused on the Wild West, with a great booklet; and there was one that featured readings of the Bill of Rights by James Earl Jones, Orson Wells, and others. These were prestige items. Now it's all "product" and the people who call the shots see only the bottom line.

When you buy a used copy the royalty has already been paid (or should have been). If you buy a promotional copy, you are on the receiving end of an illegal sale.

Mike: "As long as the owner is doing the copying and keeping the copies, there's no problem. But if you aren't the owner, then the copies are illegal." Exactly my point.

If, arguably, misguided.

It would be nice if you liked Lew well enough not to rob him of royalties.

It's good that you are up-front about it, Kevin. It's been awhile, so I don't recall the details, but I remember it getting rather nasty and that Bob was way out of line, a very different person from the one I remembered knowing in the early 60s. I don't think Bob is a jerk, but I grant you that he acted like one on that occasion, even if there was some provocation. Your point about probably supporting artists who are less than nice is a good one. I have met only a handful of artists (more in pop than jazz) whose personality rubbed me the wrong way, but I have not allowed it to impair my enjoyment of their work. Since I am prone to being as outspoken (undiplomatic) as Bob was back then, I'm sure there are artists who saw/see me as a jerk, but that's the way it goes.

Indeed, Mike And, "ejp626," no one here is trying to tell Kevin what to say or not say, but when you get personal and call someone a "jerk," you have to expect a reaction from those who either agree or disagree. I was around when Kevin felt offended and I think he made somewhat of a mountain out of a mole hill. Sounds like you are contradicting yourself, btw, for aren't you telling some of us what we can't say? Do you get "shivers" reading your own post on the subject?

I remember the Brookmeyer flare-up at JC. He did overreact, but--as I recall--not without cause. It was not enough to make him deserve the poisoned pixels aimed at him here. I guess overreaction begets over reaction--we've all seen that happen. Getting back to the subject at hand, it sounds to me like the disgruntled reissue producer has an axe to grind and that it goes beyond the Brookmeyer album. My feeling is that one should not put out an album that the artist doesn't want released. Then, too, I have to wonder why Bob was paid an advance--I have produced many albums for reissue, but I have never heard of the artist being paid an advance. Hey, it's difficult enough to get an advance on new material.

Thanks, Mike. Although you missed this particular performance, you description of Wilson tells me that it would not have surprised you. "Charicature" is an apt way to put it. Like you, I never had any enthusiasm for Wilson, even when she was at her best, but I also never saw her as a jazz singer. I know that's a blurry distinction, but compared to, let's say Sarah and Billie. BTW I'm still trying to have Roadrunner get their act together, but I will probably have to switch to another ISP. Miss the list a lot.

Gil's current theme is African drums.

Mike, you did not comment on Nancy Wilson--I'm curious to hear if she sounded as painfully embarrassing to you as she did to me. BTW, I think you summed up the show perfectly. I know that we should all be grateful when TV turns to jazz, but when they do it with as little thought as went into this show, perhaps an hour of something else might be preferable. This would have been a better show if it had been reduced to a half hour and trimmed by someone with a good pair of ears.