John Tapscott

I like P.D. James. The book is certainly very good and thought-provoking, IMO, and ends with a bit of much-needed hope (which Sal indicates has been captured in the movie.) Glad to hear that that book seems to have translated well onto the big screen. That doesn't always happen.

Another thing to mention is that I've never known really driven people to accept defeat gracefully. They just don't. I don't think Ali was very good at admitting defeat; neither were Gary Kasaparov nor Bobby Fischer in chess. They hated to LOSE. Maybe Belichick is the same. I don't think he's got any kind of a life outside of football. I'll bet Belichick is cheesed off at the Pats ownership. The Pats paid the price for being cheap at wide receiver. It would have even been worse if Vinateri (sp?) had done them in.

Thanks Jim for the link. That's a heavy solo. Hawk's best years may have been behind him by then, but man, he could still PLAY!

I generally agree with Dan's assessment. Some players might have picked up on him and extended his tenor work, but he obviously wouldn't have had the wide-spread influence that he's had to date. He would have remained a rather shadowy underground fugure (another name that comes to mind is Tina Brooks). As for the second question, I don't think jazz "styles" would be much different, but they would have a different inflection or a somewhat different color. Jazz wouldn't have the distinctive and pervasive 'Trane sound; maybe it would be more reflective of Sonny Rollins or Ornette Coleman or Miles Davis particular sound. It seems to me that what 'Trane did was to take what others did first and and extend it to its logical conclusion (or maybe to the breaking point). In other words, complicated bop was being played before Giant Steps, modes and soloing with mininal harmonic motion were being explored at length before the Village Vanguard, free jazz was around before Ascension. Jazz was already going in a certain direction and was going there inevitably and Trane grabbed the pieces and went with them full-bore. That's not to diminish his importance at all. In fact, it's incredible that he could do what he did in 10-12 years after he hit his stride. 'Trane was the person in in whom all these threads culminated, and so naturally he's the one people are drawn to and emulate (especially saxophone players to whom "Trane's technique and intensity is awe-inspiring). What I'm saying is that I think Coltrane's is a bigger influence on the sound of today's jazz rather than the styles of jazz. All the above "styles" would still be with us but played with a somewhat different sound.

After holding out for a while, I recently bought three Lonehill releases. I enjoy them all Clark Terry/Bob Brookmeyer Quintet Complete Mainstream Recordings Jimmy Cleveland Complete Recordings Miles Davis Quintet featuring Barney Wilen - The Amsterdam Concert

...Not to mention her toast! And her terrific playing. Melba's "Reverie" solo on the new Quincy Jones Jazz Icons DVD is great. A very nice, full sound.

Just got mine today. Man, this is great stuff, even better than I had expected! Sound is superb. Thanks for the recommendations. It's threads like this that remind why I so enjoy being a member of this Board.

42. I have 'em all. The last one, James Williams, was recorded just before Carl Jefferson died. There's not a poor (or even mediocre one) in the lot. One I really like is the Andy LaVerne. And don't overlook the Hal Galper.

Peter: It just occured to me that by taking along a complete set of Bird, you wouldn't be leaving out Pres altogether, since you would get a taste of him on some of the JATP sides. Just the thought of everything Billy Higgins has played on, both in scope and in number is nearly overwhelming, ditto Chambers and Flanagan. You would need a fairly large boat to get you to the desert island.

Happy Birthday, Nate, from a fellow Canuck!

Haven't received mine yet. Ordered 12/15. I've been having problems lately with missing and or late CD shipments. (usually take 7- 10 days from the U.S.) Don't know whether it's the time of year, or problems on one side of the border or the other.

Literally, I'm sure. But seriously that is a great set! Myself, I am enjoying a set on the other end of the volume spectrum - the Joe Pass. It is a fine set.

Yes, Dan, that's me. Thanks for the kind words. I don't mind being "outed", but in front of this hip crowd, I'm a little nervous about it. My reviews are not that technical. They're more for the average jazz listener, rather than the knowledgeable folk on this Board. You'll notice that I stick to bop, hardbop, big bands and mainstream, stuff I feel a little bit qualified to review. I enjoy much of Andrew Hill's music, but would find his recordings hard to review. In any case, it's something I enjoy doing when I have the time. I often find that if I listen to a CD several times, especially before I go to bed, I wake up the next morning and the review almost writes itself. That happened with the new Phil Kelly CD.

Just a heads-up if you want to pick up this CD at post-Christmas sales. I'm kind of surprised that neither of these gentlemen have been the subjects of an AOTW (at least as leaders). So now we'll get them both. Haven't heard this in a while, but I like it. Looking forward to giving it a spin or two.

Yeah, I wasn't put off by the cover at all. In fact, I thought it was Ok. In any case, the only thing that really matters to me is the music. After checking out the samples, it's on my list for '07!

I love seeing the ex-CFL'ers like Garcia do well in the NFL. And I dig those crazy boots Garcia wears. I've never seen anything quite like them. They look more like toe slippers than football shoes. Oh, it would be wonderful to see the Eagles beat the Cowboys this week. Wasn't Terrell Owens a real thorn in Garcia's side when they were together in SF? Time for a little payback.

Great British alto player. I have him as sideman on several records, especially one Jon Eardley LP on Spotlite I can think of; also as soloist with London's Trinity Big Band on their Cuban Fire CD. I don't think I have anything by him as a leader. Closely associated with Ronnie Scott. Found this: www.jazzmasters.nl/king.htm

You're right. From the website 1. I'm attempting to help Art Pepper fans assuage their guilt and correct their bad karma by paying for their collections. 2. I'm introducing truly unreleased and unheard Art to people who want to hear it. # 1 kind of bugged me. If you order the CD it's almost like you're admitting your guilt. (I am guilt-free with regard to Art Pepper. All of his music in my collection is legit and was paid for by me). However I did order it because of #2.

This is generally where I stand. Time has shown shown that the extreme opinions about him are off base. He's neither the Savior of jazz nor the devil incarnate. I would hope no one would take his word or his music as gospel, though there are parts of it that I enjoy and I think have some lasting value. Take what you like and leave the rest. I do think he's more than a good trumpet player; in fact I think his trumpet playing is his greatest strength, far more so than his composing. In the right circumstances (eg. the House of Tribes CD or Live at Blues Alley, he's about as good as any trumpet player anywhere these days). I doubt many would want to get on the stand and go head to head with him. One odd thing is that for all he says about the value of swing, much of his writing never really swings freely or swings hard. On one Marsalis Cd which I really enjoy, Blue Interlude, the most swinging writing is by members of the Septet, rather than WM himself.

No doubt this is a move to make room for Casey Printers and his salary demands. I don't care who else the Argos have on the field, if they don't have a decent QB, they won't go anywhere, except down. It would be extremely foolish, in my view, to bring back Damon Allen next year. He is so slow now with both his release and on his feet. And none of the current back-ups have shown enough potential to play the position consistently. Once in a while Bishop got lucky with a bomb or two, but it seems like the Arena Football League is his niche.

Thanks Garth. I've just ordered it. It looks very good. I have lots of Pepper on LP, but not much on CD, so if this lives up to expectations, it will be a very welcome addition to my collection.

Happy Birthday, Jim!!

Sad news, indeed. I really enjoy Kenny's playing. Certainly one of my favorite clarinetists and jazz musicians. Sackville just released a new Davern CD called "No One Else But Kenny." It's a good one and I'm going to listen to it again right now. RIP, Kenny.

Yes, the Joe Henderson might be the closest of all to what I would interpret as a hard bop big band CD. And it's a good one. Danny D'Imperio's Big Band Bloviation Cd's Vol 1 & Vol 2 might qualify, too. I'll probably think of some more. Here's one. "Presenting the Thad Jones- Mel Lewis Big Band" (their first album on Solid State and IMHO, the best album they every made).

It struck me this morning that perhaps the key to Herman's leadership was not only a keen insight into what the public wanted to hear, but an even keener sense of what charts musicians loved to play. And when musicians love to play a particular chart, there is a fire and intensity to their playing which goes beyond "professionalism." I think that's what you often hear in a Herman Herd.