John Tapscott

Evans was at his best, IMO, with Philly Joe Jones on drums. I enjoy recordings by many of Evans' trios. I think Marty Morell was a good drummer for Evans. But my favorite Evans recordings are with Philly Joe. He always gave Evans the necessary kick in the a$$.

I wouldn't say that the clip Moms Mobley posted above of the Kenton Band is an example of slick.The road bands (Ellington, Basie, Herman, Rich, etc) played together so much that they went beyond slick to something else, I don't know - the heart of the music perhaps? Yes, they were together but their togetherness went beyond slick and became somewhat loose again. IMO slick comes from the bands that don't play together all the time, but are made up of musicians who can read "fly sh*% on paper" as they say, who go into studios for one off type projects. It's great to be able to play that way and pull off some really difficult music at short notice, but more slickness comes from that kind of scenario than from the true road bands (of which there really aren't any there days). The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra is somewhere in the middle of this I think, not quite a true road band, but certainly far from a studio band, and if I had to take a few of their recordings to a desert island, I think I would choose the live dates.

If he had been only "lost", it would have been much more than I witnessed. When I saw the band (Thad Jones-Mel Lewis) around 1978, Thad Jones didn´t even have his trumpet. He just "conducted", a big disappointment for me, since I was a young guy, already had heard Thad Jones´ trumpet on records and was lookin forward hearing him with HIS Big Band. Well , after so many years, naturally my musical insight grew, and now I understand what it means to conduct, but then I didn´t understand what´s about music if you don´t play your instrument.... IIRC, Thad had an accident around '77-78 in which he crashed through a plate glass window and cut his lip badly. He couldn't play for a while and that's probably when you saw him without his trumpet. During the recovery he even took up valve trombone to ease the pressure on his lip. But I really don't think he played all that much from the time of his accident until he died some 8 years later.

, later I noticed there must have been something about his conducting, because after he died and Mel Lewis continued the band for a short time, nothing was happening. Sad, because Mel Lewis was a helluva drummer, but the band without Thad wasn´t the band anymore. My point of view is significantly different.

Thad is in great form on this one. Lots of solo space.

Yes, the Mosaic is a splendid set. This will be much cheaper.

Thad's Little Rascal on a Rock from Great chart of course, and this version includes a remarkable piano solo by Jim McNeely.

Happy Birthday GA! Interesting CFL season, eh?

Likely both.

Bill: This one if you can find it- Straight Ahead, The Story of Stan Kenton by Carol Easton Quite different than Sparke's book (though they complement each other quite nicely). Easton tells you all you need to know (and sometimes more) about Stan the Man. Kenton hated the book and apparently refused to autograph it, but a friend of mine who knew Kenton says it is pretty much spot-on. (I hate this cover, the original was much better, but I couldn't find an image that would fit). Thanks John. Have put in an order for a used a copy at 48p from an Atlanta supplier. Even with the shipping charge of £2.80, it's still peanuts! P.S. Atlanta supplier can't supply. Too good to be true, I suppose. Bill: I'll bet the U.K. library system has it somewhere. Kenton was quite popular in England.

Bill: This one if you can find it- Straight Ahead, The Story of Stan Kenton by Carol Easton Quite different than Sparke's book (though they complement each other quite nicely). Easton tells you all you need to know (and sometimes more) about Stan the Man. Kenton hated the book and apparently refused to autograph it, but a friend of mine who knew Kenton says it is pretty much spot-on. (I hate this cover, the original was much better, but I couldn't find an image that would fit).

I love Doug Watkins. The way he digs in on "Blues for Philly Joe" is, for me, the epitome of gutsy, swinging, big bottom bass playing. (I see that Paul Secor mentioned him above). But yes, you should check him out.

Happy 60th. Have a great day!

I recently read the book. I've read a couple of other Ellington biographies. I don't know about racism and all the rest. It doesn't really bring us any new insights into Ellington. (I admit to being a bit surprised at the extent of Ellington's financial problems - a recurring theme with many jazz musicians, it seems, especially with the IRS). I thought Teachout really raced through the last 10 years of Duke's life, as if he couldn't wait to get the thing finished. Overall there is a rather negative tone to the book and I often found myself wondering whether Teachout really "enjoys" Ellington's music. (Not that I believe a bio should be "hero worship" and Ellington was no saint, but there is something a bit "off" with the book and I can't quite name it).

When I saw the question I thought immediately of Miles in Europe, but IIRC it was 30 min/side more or less, and therefore not nearly as long as some mentioned above.

It's hard to answer Rooster's q, because Gerald's post PJ recordings are so darn consistent. All of them are worthy of attention and all contain some compelling music, no matter what the label - Trend/Discovery, Mama, Mack Ave. You certainly couldn't go wrong with sidewinder's choice of "Theme for Monterey". I would add this one as a personal favorite (not that it's necessarily 'better" than others), but it really appeals to me.

Not this, but the LP. Can't post the LP.

Herman has 3 as well, right? Capitol, Columbia and Philips.

Surprised there are ten left.