HutchFan

I'm listening to "Fatha" Hines in two duo situations. Now: Up next:

Joe Lee Wilson - Secrets from the Sun (Inner City; licensed from Sun Records) and Cat Anderson - Cat Speaks (Classic Jazz; licensed from Black & Blue)

Now spinning: Eubie Blake - Rags to Classics (Eubie Blake Music, 1972) My LP is the Stash reissue

I heard that album for the first time only recently, and I really enjoyed it. Me too. And -- without the chanting/singing -- it's quite different than the version heard on Clifford Jordan's Glass Bead Games.

More Max on wax: Real Gone Music reissue

Now on my turntable: Max Roach Quartet at the Jazz Workshop: "Speak, Brother, SPEAK!" (Fantasy/OJC) with Mal Waldron, Clifford Jordan, and Eddie Khan; rec. 1962 Three KILLER LPs.

True. Can't argue with that.

I'm with @bresna on this one. I think Stitt's entire Cobblestone/Muse series with Barry Harris & Sam Jones (and various drummers) is terrific. The two Cobblestones you mentioned are routinely named as some of Stitt's best -- and they're probably the most overtly "boppish." But I think the records that follow are every bit as interesting -- and more varied. Blues for Duke, 12!, My Buddy, and Sonny's Back. I listen to these as much as any Stitt records. That's my 2 cents.

I really enjoy the voice of A. Grace Lee Mims on this album. Her sound reminds me of Ellington vocalists like Adelaide Hall ("Creole Love Call") or Kay Davis ("On a Turquoise Cloud"). Not a typical "jazz voice"--but also not unprecedented.

Another album by Japanese pianist Takashi Kako: Passage (Trio, 1976) duo with percussionist Sabu Toyozumi

More Japanese jazz: Takashi Kako - Legend of the Sea-Myself (Trio, 1977) with Masami Nakagawa (as, fl); Keiki Midorikawa (b, vc); Masahiko Togashi (perc); and Kenji Murata (vo, 1 trk only) This is ECM-like music in the sense that it's obviously influenced by 20th c. European art/classical music.

Yeah!!! THAT. There's lots of other great stuff on Gramavision too. Oliver Lake. Bob Moses. (When Elephants Dream of Music is a stinkin' masterpiece.) Billy Hart (especially Oshumare, another brilliant record). Somebody needs to get on that. To the best of my knowledge, ALL of those Gramavision albums are out-of-print. I don't even know who owns them.

What's that sound like, Rab? I've never even seen it before. I'm listening to Bill Evans this morning: and

Great idea. No idea whether it's feasible -- but I imagine there'd be some amazing music there.

Ah, I see. Bummer. It deserves to be more widely available.

That's top-shelf JoeHen. 👍

That's great to hear. I'd love to see Mosaic tap into THAT audience of potential buyers. How about John Carter's "Roots & Folklore" series on Gramavison & Black Saint?!?

Fantastic album! "Jungoso"!!!

I agree. Obviously, there is a sizable number of people who love Braxton and Threadgill. Mosaic made those sets, and they sold out. But it's also just as true that there are fewer jazz fans of those artists. From my perspective (as a listener), these numbers related to breadth of appeal mean nothing in terms of how important or meaningful an artists work is. Sometimes great artists sell millions and have many, many fans (Ellington); sometimes great artists sell very little and have small but dedicated audiences (too many jazz artists to name). There is no relationship between the quality of art and the breadth of its appeal. None. But I will admit that Mosaic's decision to make sets dedicated to Joe Henderson's and Freddie Hubbard's BN material sorta bummed me out. They felt "safe." All of the music was/is readily available. When Mosaic released Blakey's Complete 1960s Jazz Messengers set in the early 90s, most of that music was not available. There was a sense of discovery, of pulling something "fresh from the vault." It was different. Most likely, Mosaic is no longer in a place where they can produce anything other than low risk sets -- and most of the stuff from the BN vaults has been presented. I get that. Things change.

I hear you. The whole "let's pretend that the 70s didn't happen and jump back to the 60s... so now we've gotta wear suits and ties" schtick definitely had it's negative effects. I suppose it's not surprising that so much of the music advanced under the "Young Lions" banner is ignored now. A lot of it hasn't held up.

Speaking for myself, I wish Mosaic would do MORE sets like Braxton and Threadgill -- and John Carter & Bobby Bradford and Liebman & Beirach. MORE stuff from the 70s, 80s, and 90s. But your reaction sorta "proves my point" that jazz artists from these decades are less likely to appeal to a very high percentage of jazz listeners. So it's riskier for Mosaic to create sets dedicated to them.