HutchFan

Claude Hopkins - Crazy Fingers (Chiaroscuro)

Mulgrew Miller - The Countdown (Landmark) with Joe Henderson, Ron Carter & Tony Williams Bill Hardman - Home (Muse) with Mickey Tucker, Junior Cook, Slide Hampton, a.o. Richie Kamuca - Drop Me Off in Harlem (Concord) with Herb Ellis, Dave Frishberg

The Jazz Odyssey of James Rushing, Esq. with Buck Clayton & His Orchestra (Columbia LP) One of the great voices in music.

Al Haig - Piano Interpretation (Seabreeze) Superb solo piano

Continuing my Al Haig mini-bender with: Duke 'N' Bird (East Wind); solo piano / Ornithology (Progressive); trio with Jamil Nasser (b) and Frank Gant (d) Yesterday evening, I listened to the four Al Haig tracks on: Various Artists - I Remember Bebop (Columbia, 2 LPs)

Next up: Barney Kessel - Just Friends (Sonet)

First spin of a new-to-me LP that I picked up a few days ago: Jimmy Knepper - 1st Place (Blackhawk) with Bruce Forman (g), Mike Richmond (b) & Billy Hart (d)

Elvin Jones - At This Point in Time (Blue Note)

Frank Foster - Swing! (Challenge) with Mickey Tucker, Ted Dunbar, Earl May & Billy Hart

I'm jealous, Dan. I've eyed that LP many times online, but never found it at the right price. Sounds like you caught a plum.

Frank Foster / Frank Wess - Frankly Speaking (Concord) Man, this sounds good!

Al Haig on Spotlite: Un Poco Loco / Expressly Ellington

Good one, jazzbo. Always fun to hear Shorty Baker in any context. NP: Mal Waldron - Black Glory (Enja) with Jimmy Woode & Pierre Favre. From the same June 1971 Domicile gig that produced Mal Waldron Plays the Blues. IIRC, these were the first Enja recordings. If so, they got off to one helluva start.

Really insightful, Jim. Right on. Scott -- I think Jim's talking about the "commodification" of music. Packaging it and (usually) sterilizing it, so it can be sold in massive quantities. Honestly, I think the fact that "the majors" completely ignore jazz is one of the reasons that the music itself is so vital. Musicians aren't under any pressure to sell and produce "product" because there's absolutely no "market" for what they're doing. This hasn't always been the case. In the 70s, jazz musicians were under pressure to make fusion records that would sell in large quantities. In the 80s, the pressure was to put on suits & ties and perform in a narrow area of the enormously wide jazz spectrum. These were market pressures. Now, from what I see, I don't think there's pressure on artists to make any particular kind of music. It's ironic. Because only music-lovers are paying attention, musicians are free to make any kind of music that they desire. That's why there's so much diversity now. People who are primarily interesting in making money and "moving product" aren't even in the picture. Or at least that's how I think about it.

NP: Cecil McBee - Music from the Source (Enja)

This again: Michael Carvin - The Camel (SteepleChase) Sonny Fortune throws down.

Abdullah Ibrahim Orchestra - African Space Program (Enja) Adbullah Ibrahim [Dollar Brand] (p); Carlos Ward (as, fl); Sonny Fortune (as, fl); John Stubblefield (ts); Roland Alexander (ts, harmonium); Hamiet Bluiett (bs); Cecil Bridgewater (tr); Charles Sullivan (tr); Enrico Rava (tr); Kiane Zawadi (tb); Cecil McBee (b); Roy Brooks (d, perc) / Recorded 1973 Brilliant!!! (I only wish the quality of the recorded sound were better.) The original LP cover is more evocative than the reissue:

Terrible, terrible news.

Michael Carvin - The Camel (SteepleChase)

Orrin Evans - "...It was beauty" (Criss Cross)

Stanley Cowell Trio - Sienna (SteepleChase)

Mal Waldron Plays the Blues: Live at the Domicile (Enja)

Earl Hines Plays George Gershwin (Classic Jazz)

Franco D'Andrea - Nuvolao (Carosello)

Frank Kimbrough - Solstice (Pirouet) Beautiful.