HutchFan

Another brilliant Santana album, IMO.

Oh yeah!

Superb.

Rooster - Thanks for sharing those interviews. Very interesting! IMO, Maupin's contributions to Bitches Brew are incalculable. That rumbling, dark, brooding sound sets the record apart from so many others. It's part of what makes Bitches Brew so unforgettable.

More Shepp: I have the 2007 Enja reissue (with a couple nice, long bonus tracks), but the original cover is a much more potent image, I think.

and

Hooray for KB ! ! ! ... I love BOTH of those.

Spinning this again:

My favorite version of the NYJQ -- with Sir Roland, Frank Wess, George Mraz, and Grady Tate.

Another plus for Borboletta: the presence of Airto & Flora Purim. I didn't know until recently that the butterfly design on the cover of Borboletta was Santana's "tip of the cap" to Purim's Butterfly Dreams.

Jim, thanks for all that you do with the forum. It's not right that you're having to pay out-of-pocket. I just donated.

I think of Tim Conway and there are a lot happy memories from my childhood. When you're seven, The Apple Dumpling Gang is a real side-splitter. R.I.P.

More Mal:

I'm not familiar with that one. I suppose I should check it out. I am familiar with many of Kral's recordings from the 70s. The two that she made for Choice -- Gentle Rain and Where Is Love? -- are both ... uh, choice, in this listener's opinion. (Sorry. Couldn't resist. )

and

Speaking of Strata-East ...

Disc 1

A wonderful record.

The Richard Sussman Quintet - Free Fall (Inner City) and The L.A. 4 - S/T (Concord)

NP: Jessica Williams - Portraits (Adelphi) Earlier: Bob Brookmeyer - Through a Looking Glass (Finesse)

You'd get no argument from me on that point.

I think there's something slippery & elusive about New Rags, and I mean that both positively and negatively. ... I agree that it's not his best. The two LPs that came immediately after it -- New Directions and Special Edition -- are probably my favorites from DeJohnette-as-a-leader on ECM.

Working from home today -- so I can spin some vinyl while I work. Earlier: The John Lewis Group - Kansas City Breaks (Finesse) with lovely flute work by Frank Wess Now: Jack DeJohnette's Directions - New Rags (ECM) with John Abercrombie (g), Alex Foster (ts, ss), and Mike Richmond (b)