Brad

This may not help you answer your question but you also need to get the flavor of the man. In my view, the book by Robert Reisner, Bird: The Legend of Charlie Parker, does that. I'd pick that up. Amazon has it in paperback for $12.60.

I never really cared for fusion but I would be stupid to deny that it has a place in jazz and that it is a style that will be remembered. If you ask is it a predominant style historically, I would say no, in that swing, bop, hardbop and avant garde are the principal jass movements.

I'm only familiar with the Sonny Stitt Roulette album that's on the Mosaic but based upon that, count me in.

Catesta said it all. If your memory is anything like mine, you won't even know that you bought a new house by then

I'd second Larry's recommendations on Earl Hines. I find his latter playing more appealing and his solo recordings more so than his group work although his Once Upon a Time on Impulse! that came out last year as part of the Verve LPR series is first rate. Regarding Budd Johnson, I have French Cooking as well as Off the Wall that was released in Japan earlier this year. In fact I liked Off the Wall so much that I'm thinking about putting a song from there in my BFT when it's my turn.

The Mosaic Vee Jays sound amazing to me. I never had any of the Japanese reissues so I can't compare. From a sound point of view, they're my favorite Mosaics.

What about the Allen Eager? That's very fine. Not exactly historical but very, very good if you love Tad Dameron are the 2 Dameronia LPs Uptown put out. They're just fantastic. The arranging and the playing are fantastic.

I don't have Blue Spirits so I'll pick that up. I had (and sold) Night of the Cookers. In my view, it's a stinker and merits the criticism. Solos don't go anywhere and everything is way too long. It's just bad.

Another from me on this one. He does have amazing energy and this group is really tight; giving Bird a new twist, but not straying too far away.

45. I used to live in Stamford so I'm trying to support the local economy. 46. Heck, I don't need no stinkin' reasons.

Yup, that's a great site. The place to decide it all.

I believe if that they overproduce but their license before they can sell all those copies, they'd have to destroy them. BTW, the number of the set doesn't really mean that much since they don't necessarily go in order.

Agree with Dave on this. It's a very nice album. Nothing original I think is coming out but it's real solid stuff. Even those who aren't crazy about flute will enjoy this one. He also just recently made an album with Jerry Dodgion that is quite impressive.

I'm waiting for the Johnny Hammond Smith, the Mabern and the Mance. CD Universe seems to be out of the Shirley Scott (darn!). The Johnny Smith from last summer was really soulfully spectacular.

Disc one of the Shank Cooper Select. Just great music.

Yes, they're excellent. I never broke a cd but I did break the Charlie Parker box, twice (!) and they replaced it each time. I'm sure they'll do the same for you, no questions asked.

Keeping Harlem's Storied Jazz Past Jamming By SHERRI DAY Published: May 29, 2004 With the big-band era long gone and hip-hop music dominating radio charts and dance clubs, what's an old jazz master to do? Jam. On a recent Monday night in Harlem at the New Amsterdam Musical Association, which claims to be the oldest jazz organization for black musicians in the country, a 13-piece band sliced through the silence on a residential block with the sounds of "Satin Doll," "Pennies From Heaven" and "Take the 'A' Train." William Pyatt, 75, a tenor saxophonist whose cheeks bulged as he leaned into the mike, took frequent solos. Albert Sheldon, 79, tidy in a three-piece suit, closed his eyes and swayed, his shoulders twitching as he extended his red and white accordion. Emmanuel Grier, 63, delighted the crowd with a one-handed solo on the conga drums. And W. Morris Mitchell, 76, who travels from his East New York home on a senior citizens' Access-a-Ride shuttle, kept the melody on the piano. Most of the musicians at the jam session are longtime members of the music association, a blue-collar bedrock of jazz history in Harlem. Black musicians who were not welcome in the local musicians' union because of their race founded the organization in 1904, jazz historians said. These days, the old-timers - none of whom were alive when the organization began - are trying to rebuild NAMA as it celebrates its 100th anniversary. They also want to inspire new generations to play jazz. "I like to keep the legend alive," said Fred Staton, an 89-year-old tenor saxophonist who has played with Billy Strayhorn, Art Blakely and Billy Eckstine. "If we don't, no one else will." Since it began in a small apartment on West 53rd Street, the association has long been a gathering place for musicians. In 1922, it bought the brownstone on 130th Street between Lenox Avenue and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard that still serves as its headquarters. Musicians like John Handy, Dicky Wells, Sonny Greer, Fletcher Henderson and James Van Der Zee, the legendary Harlem photographer and sometime saxophonist, could often be found in NAMA's basement playing cards or tuning up in rehearsal rooms. The legendary poet Langston Hughes was also a frequent visitor. "It stayed open 24 hours a day because musicians play all night," said Delilah Jackson, a Harlem historian. Although, for a time, Jelly Roll Morton lived in a room on one of the upper floors, association members said, most members were not marquee names. "Too many times the history of an art form is only told in terms of the Duke Ellingtons and Thelonious Monks, but throughout music's history, there have been the people who have been behind all those stars and who played a role in creating the atmosphere that has made Harlem a home for jazz for the last century," said Loren Schoenberg, executive director of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. "Organizations like the New Amsterdam Musical Association have brought together all the unsung heroes of jazz music for decades." The onset of racial integration in the 1960's began a slow deterioration in the viability of the association. Able to join the local union, musicians no longer needed NAMA to get jobs. At the same time, many members were losing work because black hotels and resorts in upstate New York closed after patrons began opting for vacations at white-run establishments. The rising popularity of rock 'n' roll and pop music also hurt NAMA's members because there were fewer requests for live jazz bands. By the 1980's, when drugs and violence plagued Harlem, the group's aging members found little reason to visit its headquarters. But in 2000, a handful of members pledged to resurrect the organization. They paid about $8,000 in back taxes, replaced a leaky roof and spruced up the main performance space on the brownstone's garden level. They decorated the walls with mirrors, plastic treble clefs and pictures of entertainers who had performed there. The association also started a membership drive - it now has 40 members - and began raising money to continue restoration of the four-story brownstone. "I don't know how much time we're going to have,"' said John E. Johnson, 67, who became the group's president in January. "People are dying left and right around us. I said, 'Let's get rolling, regardless.' " Mr. Johnson is also seeking donations of instruments and volunteers who are willing to teach music to neighborhood youths, since the association gives lessons to children on Saturdays. Willie Mack, 72, is the group's premier instructor. While he wants his students to gain an appreciation for jazz, he is willing to settle for dedicated musicians. "I try to teach them the fundamentals, and then from there, with a good background, they can go into whatever they desire," said Mr. Mack. Members also want the association to regain its status as a neighborhood hot spot by holding regular performances. The signature event is the Monday night open-mike jam session, where members serve as the house band. Many of the singers and instrumentalists brave enough to step up to the microphone make the scene seem like "American Idol" on Geritol. On a recent Monday night, when a singer who identified himself as Mr. Blue approached the stage, an audience member yelled, "Break out the Viagra." Mr. Blue appeased the crowd with a sultry rendition of "A Sunday Kind of Love." Several vocalists sang blues standards. There was also a spirited rendition of "Fly Me to the Moon." And the band members, most of whom did not need sheet music to play the tunes, never missed a note.

Don't forget to talk to your wife once a day. Right , so she can order the next set for you

Take 5, here's a recent discussion of Mosaic Boxes. If you're into jazz, Mosaic is indispensible. They put out stuff you can't get anywhere else and will never get anywhere else.

I'm not sure that makes sense historically since you're coming to listen to Bird from a post or late bop point of view. I believe that most of us when we think of Bird, think of the revolution or evolution (more correctly) that he and Dizzy wrought. That comes from the mid to late 40s. If you're looking for an entry point, something like the 2 cd set that Rhino put out, Yardbird Suite, is best. That was my entry point.

I'm going to second what most have already said. The Complete Savoy and Dial is essential and by the way includes more than those labels: the Red Norvo set with Bird and Dizzy, a tremendously important set. To start out with anything less is to cheat yourself. However, if you don't want everything, Proper has the Boss Bird set. Don't have it so I can't say. I don't have the Verve masters but if it's completeness you want, I'd go for the 10 CD box put out several years ago. I'm not that high on the Verve material as the Savoy-Dial. I can take the string material in small doses. Don't get me wrong, it's good and better than any other kind of string sessions done by other but it pales in comparison to Savoy-Dial, a key part of any jazz collection as there is (the Hot Fives and Sevens, being another key).

My son is ADD and for years we fought the medication. We tried many different things but none seemed to work. I can't tell you how many meetings we had with this neurologist, that psychologist or this school administrator. I believe that "educators" don't want to tolerate someone who is different and not easily manegabel and will cry ADD at the first sign. Eventually, we did try it and it has helped quite a bit. My son has other learning difficulties so it's not just the ADD. He has trouble concentrating and things like Concerta help a great deal. However, I think 3 is a very early age to put someone on a mind altering drug so I'd fight it or find out more. It's not easy but hopefully things will get better. I've read and heard that it is sometimes hereditary so I think it's possible that I may have it. When I grew up in the 50s, people who had trouble concentrating adjusted. I believe that's what I did, if I have it. I was certainly no great student in my early years. I don't know if you outgrow these things but concentration is not one of my problems. The point I'm trying to make is that today people are very different and just want to use medication/drugs to solve all problems. Tolerance would be helpful but generally seems to be in short supply for these kinds of problems.

According to Verve, as posted by montg, the Granz box set is coming out on October 5, which just happens to be my birthday. Is there a lucky coincidence there? Something to look forwrard and I know what I'm getting for my birthday

Those guys are so different, just musically, so there's no way they could even be similar plus Moose is so wacked out, there's no way that could be the same.

Dan, Since the cops don't seem to work, it would seem the next best thing is, unfortunately, a court. They must be violating some noise or nuisance statutes. It's unfortunate to have to resort to something like this but unless the cops step it up, you don't seem to have many other options. You shouldn't have to put up with this.