Christiern

Colando's "thinks" (I like that term and dig its application here) show an impressive æsthetic sense, imagination, and a keen eye for seeing beauty where others might not. Interesting stuff, indeed, Jim.

By how much did it miss Crawford?

Ken Burns: Why did the chicken cross the road? Well, there was this train...

The one in the striped outfit ain't bad, either.

There you go.... Dan Gould: Because he was fucking hyped up on steroids and Novitsky was on his motherfucking tail you fucking moronic ass wipe.

I was at WNEW when MLK was assassinated. William B. Williams (a great guy whose secretary I stole when I moved on to WBAI) was the leading on-air personality and I guess Klavan and Finch were next on that list (also great guys). As I recall, we were simulcasting Am and FM back then. I was a guest in Collins' "Purple Grotto" in 1973, when I was moving around the country on a book tour for Bessie. He was broadcasting in Pittsburgh at the time. Shortly after I left WNEW, they decided to try having female djs, the major one being Allison Steele. She made a funny goof one day while doing a fact-sheet-based ad lib commercial for a hair preparation. "Girls, you know how hair on the whole is curly....." Well, the "w" in hole just did not come through on radio. Anyone here remember Klavan and Finch?

I owe much to radio. I did my first broadcast in 1953, on the Danish radio, to present tapes of Humphrey Lyttleton's band that I had made in London a month before. I ended up doing several shows for DR and it prepared me for my next radio job, which was in 1955 when U.S. Armed Forces Radio & TV Service (AFRS) at Keflavík, Iceland hired me as a classical music dj because I could pronounce the names of European composers and performers. It was a full-time civilian job, so course I ended up doing jazz, pop and even country shows. The station was located in a quonset hut on the base, very different from the large Danish facilities, where one had engineers to fiddle with the knobs, watch the vu meters, etc. The AFRS experience prepared me for American radio but my next job was at WCAU in Philly, also a big station. There I wrote and produced programs but was not on the air. A year later (1959) I landed a great (albeit low-paying) job as the morning dj on WHAT-FM, which I think was the country's first 24/7 jazz station. I was on the air from 6 to 11 every morning, Monday through Saturday, and from 9 to 12 on Sundays (all for $100 a week!). Thanks to a great write-up in Jazz Review by John Szwed (then unknown), I was able to move on to NYC where I did Voice of America broadcasts and worked at WNEW and WNCN before going to WBAI. From WBAI I went to London and the BBC, preparing all kinds of programs for the American market--a great experience. That was my last salaried job (1967). Since then, my broadcasting experience has been limited to one TV show, The Jazz Set, which ran for about 20 weekly shows, 13 of which were carried coast to coast by PBS. While at WHAT, I also drew some ads for our monthly program guide... I consider myself fortunate to have worked in radio at a time when there were no play lists, one simply played whatever one's mood called for. On my WHAT Sunday show, I focused on 78s and actually played 78 rpm discs, placing them on the turntable as I spoke over the air--it was like playing records for a friend.

With alacrity.

Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln used to live down the street Max's grandson is still there, I believe), in the same building as Charles Tolliver. Harold Vick lived in the next block, Paul Motian lives up the street from me. A few years back, I could have name Sonny Greer, Coleman Hawkins, Horace Silver, Babs Gonzales and many, many more who lived in my 'hood. But that's New York.

And here he is in March, 2005 (seated) with Ira Sullivan, Von Freeman, Eric Alexander, and Johnny Griffin. and at that same event, still performing and looking good at age 93!

GA Russell: The chicken crossed the road and died late yesterday afternoon. Many people had come to love this bird when its picture appeared as the cover of Poultry New in 1988. RIP ValerieB: It was a lovely chicken. We exchanged looks last year at a Birds of a Feather gathering in Sacramento.

Very sorry to hear of Franz's passing. He lived a full and productive, hopefully satisfying life. Here is a photo of him (his back, actually) taken September 7, 1961 at Chicago's Bird House jazz club, where I recorded Franz as a leader and a sideman. This is a break during one of the sideman sessions. Franz is listening to Lil Armstrong (that session's leader) while with Pops Foster speaks to Preston Jackson, and Darnell Howard and Al Wynn listen to drummer Booker Washington. Here's a link to the Franz Jackson web site.

I finally found a lightbulb that allows me to hear what Wellman Braud is really doing on those old Ellington sides.

I agree, Chuck, knowing full well that I will never named for anything, because I have been quite critical of Mandel and others in this bunch. Will they give Crouch the vote? He, of course, was more than critical of Mandel. Like all such award entities, this one is severely skewed by considerations that bear little or no relation to the subject at hand. If a Grammy becomes a dust-collecting, lusterless knickknack before you can say "leonard feather," imagine the shelf-life of this thing.

I have been approached by several people in my building who are into jazz, including Oscar Pettiford, Jr. (son of bassist) and Peter Washington (bassist). Quite a few jazz players live in the immediate neighborhood.

BERIGAN: Being a gullible kosher chicken, to get away from a finger-snapping, foot-thumping, quill-wielding Dane of ill repute.

So, may we now continue this thread?

BARACK OBAMA: The chicken crossed the road because it was time for a CHANGE! The chicken wanted CHANGE! JOHN MC CAIN: My friends, that chicken crossed the road because he recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the other side of the road. HILLARY CLINTON: When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken to cross the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure -- right from Day One! -- that every chicken in this country gets the chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn't about me....... DR. PHIL: The problem we have here is that this chicken won't realize that he must first deal with the problem on "THIS" side of the road before it goes after the problem on the "OTHER SIDE" of the road. What we need to do is help him realize how stupid he's acting by not taking on his "CURRENT" problems before adding "NEW" problems. OPRAH: Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why he wants to cross this road so bad. So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I'm going to give this chicken a car so that he can just drive across the road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens. GEORGE W. BUSH: We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road or not. The chicken is either against us or for us. There is no middle ground here. COLIN POWELL: Now to the left of the screen, you can clearly see the satellite image of the chicken crossing the road... ANDERSON COOPER - CNN: We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the other side of the road. JOHN KERRY: Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against it! It was the wrong road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken's intentions. I am not for it now, and will remain against it. NANCY GRACE: That chicken crossed the road because he's GUILTY! You can see it in his eyes and the way he walks. PAT BUCHANAN: To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American. MARTHA STEWART: No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer's Market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information. DR SEUSS: Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, the chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I've not been told. ERNEST HEMINGWAY: To die in the rain. Alone. JERRY FALWELL: Because the chicken was gay! Can't you people see the plain truth? That's why they call it the "other side." Yes, my friends that chicken is gay. And if you eat that chicken, you will become gay, too. I say we boycott all chickens until we sort out this abomination that the liberal media white washes with seemingly harmless phrases like "the other side." That chicken should not be crossing the road. It's as plain and as simple as that. GRANDPA: In my day we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough. BARBARA WALTERS: Isn't that interesting? In a few moments, we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time, the heart warming story of how it experienced a serious case of molting and went on to accomplish its life long dream of crossing the road. ARISTOTLE: It is the nature of chickens to cross the road. JOHN LENNON: Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together, in peace. BILL GATES: I have just released eChicken2008, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your checkbook. Internet Explorer is an integral part of eChicken. This new platform is much more stable and will never cra...#@&&^(C% ......... reboot. ALBERT EINSTEIN: Did the chicken really cross the road or did the road move beneath the chicken? BILL CLINTON: I did not cross the road with THAT chicken!...... What is your definition of chicken? AL GORE: I invented the chicken! COLONEL SANDERS: Did I miss one? DICK CHENEY: Where's my gun? AL SHARPTON: Why are all the chickens white?...... We need some black chickens Can you come up with more?

Jim has been posting snippets from his old Down Beats, so I thought it might be interesting to have a thread devoted to retro news. Here's a starter...

Is that little homophobe creep still round, Jim? That said, thanks for posting this, Jim. They were an interesting pair, too soon forgotten.

Just to get back on track....

It was a beautiful day in New York for an early Cinco de Mayo parade past my house.

You just gave me an idea, Allen. I mean, for my Bessie Spears book...