Sundog

Lord, you know I'm an athiest, and I know we agree not to talk to each other, but please tell me he didn't just forget to add the final "A" to that "ABB"... That would be the Allman Brothers Band Just want to clear that up before rumors get started!

Don't you guys in Michigan have anything better to do? Actually, back in the day, me and a buddy of mine who played organ would sit around and play ABB and Bob Seger tunes until our fingers blead. Of course, I still love to play one of those band's songs. I'll leave it to your imagination to consider which band that might be...

The cover of Little Wing that "DGS" refers to is absolutely one of the most honest, pure, emotional, pieces of music I've ever heard. No show-boating, riffing, or other unnecessary bullshit. Just Stevie coming to terms with his own legacy, and the obvious connection to Jimi. It's no tribute, it's Stevie saying thanks to Jimi in the only way he could. I believe this song is on the album, The Sky Is Crying which also contains a nice cover of "Chitlins Con Carne". Stevie had good taste in guitar heros!

Hey, It ain't easy to brew beer that tastes exactly the same from batch to batch. You have to give credit to these large multinational brewers. At the very least, their process is under control. Tastes like water every time! Give me a Pilsner Urquell, Bass, Samuel Smith, or an Anchor product and I'll be happy. I will occasionally "slum" with a Miller Lite just to reset the old taste buds.

As long as the floor is totally intact you have no worries. Have a liscensed professional come out and take some measurements just to be sure. If you want to put something over the old tile that's cool. Just remember do not compromise the old tile in any way. Not to be an alarmist, but you might want to consider testing your basement for radon levels since you spend a lot of time down there. Anything over 4 picocuries per million should be mitigated. A radon test should cost you between $175-250 depending on the layout of your house, which effects the number of monitors needed to perform a valid test. If you do need to mitigate, a "typical" cost would be $1500-2000. FYI- As a point of reference, I'm no expert on these matters. My brother however, has been in the environmental business for 20 years.

Meridian makes a extrememly high end player that supports DVD-A. Also Denon makes a respectable player for 1/10 the price of the Meridian. I'm not sure the format is going to make it, however, those lucky enough to hear a truely top end presentation of DVD-A have nothing but good things to say.

Unfortunately, I didn't catch any of the show. Hoping for a rerun on the local NPR station.

It's not a problem whatsoever. Just wondering what the deal is? After all, it's not like it was a gift. I payed cold hard cash for the "privilege". Anyway, the music is transcendent, and the packaging is a little screwy. I'll live.

Thanks Ed. Probably just wanted to maintain the same aspect ratio of the picture as you pointed out above.

FYI- Jim Hall is being featured this week on the Nancy Wilson hosted, jazz profiles show on NPR. As always check your local listings for details.

So, I'm listening to my Mobley Mosaic yesterday for the first time, and I take a close look at the front cover insert on the CD cases. It appears that the picture was truncated. About 15% of the left hand side of the picture seems to be missing. Is it just my set or do others have the same cover? Maybe this was intentional and not a defect? Interesting design choice. Sorry if this has already been discussed. P.S. Why did I wait so long to get this one?

For everything he's done, I enjoy his acoustic blues work the most. Looking forwarg to hearing this one.

These guys are quite good, I've seen them a couple of times live and have enjoyed them immensely. They actually opened the Chicago Jazz fest last year, had a 12:30 pm slot. Too bad they couldn't play at night. They deserve the exposure. A band worth watching.

Rollins is renowned for coming in late and sneaking up on the beat. Not sure it's the case on the particular tune mentioned. However, it certainly wouldn't be uncharacteristic of Sonny's style.

What do people think about the Jim Hall & Pat Metheny disc? It's been awhile since I've listened to this, however, I seem remember liking it more than I thought I would. I'm going to have to take this one to work and give it a spin today.

Not exactly knowing your musical tastes makes it tough. My two favorites from the list you provided are the Stanley Turrentine and Gerry Mulligan sets. People have dogged the sound on the Turrentine set from time to time. I have a very revealing system and the sound quality is not even close to being a deal breaker for me. The music is kickass. Buy this one now, or buy it later. But by all means buy it! In the last year I really started to explore big bands. Gerry's Concert Band is quite simply one of the most versatile groups ever put together. Forget about the fact that this is a fairly new release and is bound to be around for awhile. Buy this one sooner than later, the music is that good. I just picked up the Mobley Mosaic about a month ago. Haven't cracked it open yet so I can't comment. Saving this one for a rainy day.

Yeah the stuff with Desmond floors me! I just listened to Glad To Be Unhappy the other day.

It's always the little things that blow me away about a "Jim Hall" performance. A deceptive passing chord, one slightly dissonant note placed perfectly among the most beautiful phrase, the fact that each chorus he plays is more revealing than the last, or something like that unison lick you refer to. It all seems so effortless.

I've been listening to a lot of Jim Hall recently. All of it quite by accident, since none of the dates have been under his name. I'm constantly amazed by the beauty of his solo lines, and the uniqueness of his accompaniment. The guy has that "Midas Touch". Sure would like to hear your opinions of his work as a leader and as a sideman, or anything else "JH-related". P.S. Just finished listening to Without A Song from Sonny Rollin's The Bridge. That song sums up everything about Jim Hall that I like, better than any words could ever say. Give it a spin if it's been awhile.

Yes BW, I'm afraid that's it. I'd say it's pretty ugly (it looks more like 70s Blue Note than 1962 BN), but I'm sure there are those here with a sentimental attachment who like it. What is that, some kind of Santa Fe gee-tar? It sure looks like everything on the cover is goin' east.......... Music-wise I've not heard this one and am looking forward to checking it out. It looks to be a little lightweight as far as the "western thematic concept", but how bad can it be w/Higgins, Hancock and Workman on board? If anyone can polish a turd, they certainly can! B) Nothing spectacular. Grant's in good, not great form. A welcome addition to my collection. However, I really glad I waited for a sanely priced domestic version.

I just usually just put on the source and let it rip. Once in a while a while I use the program function to remove consecutive alternate takes (but not always). I rarely use the random function on any of my CD players. If I want random I listen to the radio.

Melvin may be a little rough on his axe, but he ain't got nothing on Willie Nelson. Then of course there's always Pete Townsend, who's at a whole other level.

Melvin is not exactly known for his finesse. Don't get me wrong I love his playing. But whenever I hear him play I imagine that he's wrestling with his guitar. I've never seen him live, but it seems like Hardbopjazz's comments might validate my imagination. Think I'll go put on some Melvin right now. I needed an excuse to listen to some Hank Crawford.

Another good resource is The Ultimate Guitar Chord Big Book by Don Latarski. It's one of those big chord reference books. It is organized in a very practical manner. It includes "drop two" voicings for strings 1-4 and 2-5 which are some of those elusive jazz chords you speak of. This is a very thorough, usable reference book. Highly recommended. In general, Arnie Berle's books are very good. Just enough theory to get you on your way, without confusing matters. Not sure if your interested in performing solo chord melody arrangements of songs or not? It's very satisfying style to play, and you will become an authority on chord shapes. It's a necessity when performing in this style. This is really one of the best ways to discover alternate voicings of chords. It takes time, not for the faint of heart. However, it pays serious practical dividends. One last comment. Learn how different chord types are constructed. Learn those chord formulas!!! Once you know that, you don't need any books. Your imagination will be your guide. Good luck!

One of these days I'm really going to explore this genre. I've heard all the players that you've mentioned, at least at a cursory level, and really enjoyed every single note. So much music....