John Tapscott

Just got my HINI shot at the local hospital 90 minutes ago. Since I do some work at the hospital I'm considered staff, and got priority Took five minutes. Some people are lining up 3 and 4 hours for a shot, especially since a local 13 year old boy died a couple of days ago from the swine flu.

George Shearing Live Capitol Recordings

Have a great birthday, David!

I am generally positive on Eric Alexander, but not always. I have perhaps 8 of his CD's plus some sessions on which he's a co-leader or sideman (eg. with Grant Stewart or One For All). Sometimes I really enjoy his playing; other times I can hardly wait 'til his solos are finished. His tone, though technically perfect I suppose, doesn't always get along with my head (as opposed to Grant Stewart, for example, whose tone always seems pleasing to me). Occassionally it seems like Eric's almost playing for playing's sake, if I can put it that way. Also like he's trying to cram everything into one solo and doesn't edit himself all that well - like a writer who just keeps going and going with no paragraph breaks. (Yes, I know 'Trane could be like that - but honestly, though Eric's very good , he's no 'Trane.) Now having said more negative than positive, let me say that there are some Eric CD's that I like very much - like "Dead Center" on High Note, on which the van Gelder studio brought out the warmer side of Eric's sound.

Happy Birthday! Have a great day!

I'm pretty sure this box will make you a big fan of late Pepper. Great set, great music.

Happy Birthday!!

Thanks for the wishes, everyone! No GA, I haven't been to an Argos game this year. They're really awful, perhaps the worst Argos team ever, and that's saying something. Every Toronto sports team SUCKS this year - Blue Jays, Argos, Raptors, and especially the Maple Leafs. This is a hockey town first and foremost, and Southern Ontario is in shock at how pathetic the Leafs are this year, from goaltender out they look disorganized and befuddled, the worst team in the NHL. Not one win so far. And our adopted NFL team, the Bills, is just as bad as the rest (T.O in T.O. yeah, great!)

Happy Birthday Ken!! I enjoy reading your reviews.

Sonny Rollins - The Freelance Years (Riverside and Contemporary)

Here are a few who I really enjoy (the order is unimportant except for # 1 who is my favorite pianist) - Kenny Barron, Tommy Flanagan, John Hicks , Earl Hines, Barry Harris, George Cables, Art Tatum. A couple of the more recent pianists I admire include David Hazeltine and Tardo Hammer.

I kind of feel the same way, Lon. There seems to be a certain exaggeration (deliberate?) in some of the caricatures, which makes you say, "There's a grain of truth here, but it's taken to the extreme. People are not really quite like this. Close sometimes, but there's something not quite right here." I think it may have to do, as was pointed out above, the age of the writers, who would have been very young in the 60's or not born yet at all. So they're sort of projecting backwards to the era, saying "This is what people must have been like,", taking the worst stereotypes of the era and applying it to all the characters. Again, perhaps it's deliberate. I think it's hard to really identify with any of the characters in the show. To me, they're all jerks, but that's what makes it fascinating.

Yes, I watched it. I'm usually off and on in watching "Mad Men". If the Sunday Night NFL game is any good I watch that. But Indy was running away with it, so I watched most of last night's episode. Before I read your post, my thought was this was one of the best episodes I had ever seen. I can't get the picture out of my mind of Don's smashed and bandaged up face at the end and how he walked into the office as if nothing had happened. And Betty's absolute non-reaction to his injuries as he came home, told her he had signed the contract and headed up the stairs. Leaves you wanting more.

Count Basie - The Complete Decca Recordings - 3 CD's (GRP) - a great set , even better, I think than the America's #1 Band set on Columbia (though I'm glad I have them both).

Dexter Gordon Select - George Cables ! for the whole set

Count Basie and His Orchestra - America's # 1 Band (Columbia/Legacy)

It would have been neat if the music on the tape had been Ayler or late 'Trane.

I can't but I'll say hello anyway. The best to you and John for a good gig! I'll play a Carl Fontana CD and think of you tomorrow night. Maybe a Rosolino CD, too. I think of John as more in that bag. Oh I know, I'll play the Uptown Trombone Heaven CD with both Carl and Frank.

Gerry Mulligan Select

Randy Weston Select

Earlier this year, I went through a period of about a month or two when nothing sounded interesting to me, not even my favorites. It's was the first time in 35+ years when I didn't really care whether I heard jazz or not. I always take a number of discs with me on my summer vacation, and I did so this year, but I didn't feel motivated to listen to them at all. Everything sounded flat and dull. Nothing seemed to excite me. My attitude to jazz kind of mirrored my spirit, which felt rather dull and gloomy. But I persisted and dutifully listened to a CD or two a day. Thankfully, the interest has returned again and I actually felt it happening one day as I listened to Kenny Dorham Live at the Cafe Bohemia. So I thank Mr. Dorham and freinds for that. I guess the lesson is stick with it, even through the low times, and know that the spark will return.

Haven't heard it so can't comment on sound or music, but one thing that's a necessity for most big band recordings is to capture the bite of the trumpet section. If the engineer misses that, the whole recording can be a bit of a downer.

For sure. I never saw Cannonball "live." I was only 20 when he passed away - hard to believe it's been that's long. I was starting to explore the breadth of jazz at that point after having listened to mostly big bands for several years. I went out and bought the "Somethin' Else" LP. I recall playing it in my college dorm room that fall, and the fellow next door heard it, and said, "You listen to some really weird sh**"!" I took it as a compliment. What I really enjoy now is seeing Cannonball in performance on the recent Jazz Icons DVD.

Happy Birthday!!

I received a shipping notice for the Gordon Select, also, even though I was told by someone at Mosaic AFTER I placed my order that it had been listed on the web site in error, and that I would be receiving notice that it was in fact unavailable. In the interim, I ordered another copy from Amazon Marketplace, and if I receive both, I'll have a copy available for someone here. I'll post in this thread if that comes to pass (no PMs until then, please ). Obviously, they found a few. Plus there seems to be a bit of confusion in the Mosaic ranks these days. I wonder who's in charge over there? I'm not being hard on them, just making an observation. They're feeling the pinch like everyone else. In fact, it's amazing to me that they're still issuing new sets.