John Tapscott

Even something positive and in today's terms, "affirming"? (although I somehow doubt that is the gist of it!!! ) Must say that I have a number of Uptown CD's and am positive to very positive about all of them. Wish they would re-issue that Frank Wess/Johnny Coles "Two at the Top" date. It's a dandy.

I am listening to Discs 1 & 3, since Disc 2 is missing in my set. Sound is lovely, music is grand. After I finish listening to these CD's, I am returning it to Amazon for a replacement set. The packaging is nice, but a bit awkward. I'm not crazy about in-between size sets that don't quite fit anywhere properly. But I'm sure I'll find a place for it. A very nice set.

Just now listening to the latest release - Happy Reunion - it's a very nice Ellingtonian date!

Peter: I originally bought them through John Norris. Over the past year I have ordered them directly from the Woodville Records website. They accept Paypal, etc. The service from London is excellent. Sometimes I've had the CD within a week; other times it takes a few more days. With the exchange rate a CD runs about $16 Canadian, so it will be about the same in US$ (and that includes shipping). http://www.woodvillerecords.com/Home.htm

I have the following Alan Barnes CD's on Woodville http://www.woodvillerecords.com/CDs.htm Alan Barnes/Scott Hamilton/David Newton - Zootcase Bruce Adams/Alan Barnes - Spontaneous Combustion Alan Barnes Octet - Harlem Airshasft Greg Abate/Alan Barnes - Birds of a Feather Ken Peplowski/Alan Barnes - Doodle Oodle Scott Hamilton/Alan Barnes - Hi-Ya just received the latest - Ken Peplowski/Alan Barnes - Happy Reunion - haven't heard it yet. I respectfully disagree with John S's assessment. I don't find them disappointing at all. I enjoy them all, but I would most highly recommend Harlem Airshft and Doodle Oodle. If you're looking for more fire check Birds of a Feather. P.S. The real jewel in the Woodville catalogue is Simon Spillett - a hard-core Tubby Hayes follower. Both his CD's are excellent.

While this makes sense, I have to say that it can work both ways. While I hardly to listen to any jazz on radio these days, I used to listen to quite a bit. I lived in Halifax, Nova Scotia for 10 years and got to know a fellow there named Don Warner who broadcast a weekly cross-Canada jazz show for over 30 years. His personal collection was pretty broad, though on radio he tended toward high quality mainstream, as Winn does, but with perhaps a bit more big band. It was a popular show, CBC's most highly rated jazz show. OTOH, our own Board member Ted O'Reilly broadcast jazz for 6 days a week, 3 hours a day (longer on Saturdays, I think) on Toronto's CJRT for 35+ years, and played a very eclectic mixture of jazz styles, always tastefully and always of high quality. It too, was a popular show, esp. after CJRT strengthened its signal to reach more of Southern Ontario. So you can drop in Braxton and Morton sometimes without it being too jarring. I enjoyed and learned much from both shows. In any case, those were the days when the men behind the microphones and those doing the programming (usually one and the same) really knew and loved the music.

Used to work quite well, didn't it, Ted? Those were the days. And you could actually talk jazz with a knowledgable person (or persons, including other customers) face to face, and not on one of these new-fangled chat boards!

Shipping times from the U.S. to Canada (especially from the west coast of the U.S.) to middle Canada are taking an exceptionally long time. 3 weeks now waiting for a couple of orders from Worlds Records. From the Eastern part of the U.S. though, still near normal (7-10 days).

Wow! When you need ladders to get to them, it's pretty large indeed. Seems to belong to this one guy, Mike Winn, who does an internet jazz show. A big Ellington fan, from what I can gather. http://www.therealenjoymentofjazz.com/index.html

The whole DVD is remarkable.

The shipping costs have risen so much that I generally order only when they have a shipping sale, which I believe they had twice last year. Obviously one can't wait for a shipping sale when it comes to running low/last chance sets.

Sonny Rollins - The Complete Prestige Recordings

Why does this always happen when I'm tapped out?

The MJQ has really grown on me over the years. I really enjoy their music, and though I have several of the LP's, I will be getting this set. Really looking forward to it. I think this is an excellent choice for a Mosaic set.

Yep, another The rhythm section (Byard, R. Davis, Dawson) really "provokes" Woods on this date; Davis in particular plays some incredible stuff. Not sure Woods and the r. sec. were really on the same page for this date, but Woods pushes through it and responds with some great playing.

Yes, I've always liked that one. I keep waiting for it to show up on disc. Has it? It's one of my favorite Woods (and IMO one of his best). Part of it came out on a single Novus CD in the early 90's (with some of the best and longest tracks left off). It wasn't called "Live at the Showboat", though, something like "Phil Woods Live." My understanding is that it has been released in full on CD only in Japan (rare and expensive). I agree with Peter Friedman's general comments above.

Peter, that's just how I feel, too. However, my last CD order was a week ago.

I have it, and haven't listened to it for a while, but Larry's assessment is pretty much what I remember. A solid, if not spectacular date. Of the saxophonists Billy Pierce really impressed me. You get what you expect from Coleman and Henderson (ie. very good), but Pierce really stands in there and stands out, as I recall. Will pull it out for a listen.

Thanks for posting. That does look very interesting. Not quite sure I'd go along with the reviewer's first sentence in which he calls Lovano, "one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time". /i] I enjoy some of Lovano's CD's, and really enjoyed hearing and seeing him live, but I have never quite thought of him in these terms. Hmmm... maybe I'll have to think about that a little more.

It is sad what has happened to Detroit, but one could argue that in this case, the market did exactly what was "right". It punished incompetent, fat-cat and greedy management, shareholders, unions. The "market" is for automobiles and consumers were "right" in gravitating towards better quality foreign-made automobiles. If the market hadn't worked, we'd be still driving Detroit junk like the Vega, Pinto or Omni.

Very enjoyable and uplifting music. Heart-warming. Unpretentious. Brings a smile to your face. Just like a Friday night out with a friend relaxing and enjoying some good jazz. I had to listen to it a couple of times to adjust to the sound quality. Not that's there's anything wrong with it; in fact, it's really quite good. I don't quite know how to put it, but the sound is very open and spread out, as opposed to the focus of a studio recording. Thanks to Ted and Jim.

Had the 2 LP set once upon a time. Actually thought it was pretty good. But then a friend introuced me to 'Trane and Miles' earlier music and my tastes soon changed from fusion sounds to more swing-oriented sounds. I sold all my fusion records. If someone threw BB my way, I'd probably listen to it again. But I'm not going out of my way. I'm just not interested in that style of music anymore.

Link, please.

Yes, I have found Newbury to be just fine. I received my Rollins box right a couple of days after Christmas - sooner than I expected (and it had to cross a border). Everything I have ever ordered has always arrived (eventually); even a Mosaic order that was for some reason sent first to Great Britain and then arrived a month later in a large British mail bag. The rather extreme inconsistency in delivery times is what puzzles me.

Better grab 'em quick if you want them. (Thankfully, I have Woody's Mosaic set). Wounded Bird sometimes deletes titles quite quickly.