HutchFan

I know that I'd buy a Denon/Baystate Roach set in a heartbeat if someone like Mosaic did their thing. Do you think there'd be any market for it? I know that that more contemporary (i.e., post 1960s) stuff doesn't necessarily sell as well as the older stuff. Or at least they haven't concentrated on it as much. But it's not like we're talking about an obscure guy from some far-off corner of the jazz world. It's MAX ROACH for god's sake.

Another below-radar release by this same quartet: Confirmation, released on the Fluid label in France. Recorded 1978. Discogs entry here. Subsequently, Billy Harper left Roach's Quartet and was replaced with Odean Pope. (I love Harper, but I think Pope is a superb tenorist too.) Roach then started making record for Soul Note. (The first of these is the excellent and also under-appreciated Pictures in a Frame.) I suppose Roach's series of Soul Notes are more well known than the LPs Horo, Denon, Baystate and Fluid. But only just! At some point, Columbia gave Roach a shot. (FINALLY, a "major"!) I think he made two records for them. Chattahoochee Red is EXCELLENT, but it seemingly vanished without a trace. (Not surprisingly, Sony has never reissued it.) The other LP was made with Roach's percussion ensemble, M'boom, not the quartet. Missed opportunities right and left.

Jerry Gonzalez and The Fort Apache Band - Crossroads (Milestone) R.I.P. Larry Willis I hear you, gents! There's no musical bender better than a Duke Ellington bender!

Sounds very interesting. Thanks for the heads up.

LP 1 - originally released as High in the Sky (Vault, 1970); with Leroy Vinnegar & Donald Bailey

Al Grey & Jimmy Forrest together is always a trip worth taking. Earlier: 32 Jazz CD edition; originally released on Muse Barron never quite seems comfortable with the 70s-electric-jazz idiom. His music flows so much more naturally when he's at the piano. You hear that stark contrast here, as Barron switches back and forth between electric kybd and a piano on each track. NP: Cobham, on the other hand, is completely at home in electric jazz. I think Crosswinds is the best record he's made.

Lovely.

with John Surman, Eddie Gomez, and Jack DeJohnette Oh hell yeah.

All hail the HIGH and MIGHTY Hawk!

Didn't know that Sir Roland is on that one. Makes it even more enticing.

The way that Pieranunzi deploys the horns makes the band sound much larger than a quintet. Reminds me a bit of Kenny Wheeler.

Wonderful.

More Richie Beirach: with violinist Gregor Huebner & the WDR Big Band

Jeremy Steig & Eddie Gomez - Rain Forest (CMP, 1980) CMP released some excellent music back in the day (including this LP). They typically featured exquisite recorded sound quality too. Regarding Art Farmer's To Duke with Love. Nice to see it getting so much love. Couldn't agree more. It's one helluva record.

Earlier this week, I saw King Crimson on their 50th Anniversary Tour. Good stuff!

More Marty Ehrlich:

I'm hoping that the Braves will do better in the NLDS series starting tonight than they did last year, when they got swept by the Dodgers. During the regular season, the Braves won 4 of 6 against the Cardinals. Hopefully, that'll hold up in the playoffs. That was a BRUTAL way to lose. I admire the Brewers for even making the playoffs. They could have easily folded after Yelich's injury. But they didn't.

Recorded in Helsinki, March 1974, with Finnish musicians