RainyDay

I know who you're talking about Dan. She was very thin, had dark hair and spoke quietly like a librarian. I'll never remember her name but you're right. She was very funny. Almost like a female (and considerably less abstract) Steven Wright. Was it Rita something....? Rita Rudner. She's good. I think she has a talk show on some off brand network. Haven't seen it.

Don't get me wrong. I've seen Rock's earlier work and laughed my behind off. I felt like last night was about just being a shock jock. Brandon mentioned subtlety and I had written that in a sentence I deleted. Pryor could be in your face with his language but his messages were sometimes subtle. Pryor also modulated his act with quiet bits in between the raucous ones. Rock is a smart guy and last night he didn't come off as smart and that was disappointing to me. And the last thing, I really appreciate comics who come from a self-deprecating place. It's what made Pryor so funny. He talked about other folks like a dog but saved the worst for himself. It's a way to pull the audience into a more intimate place. I never felt I connected with Rock in any way last night. When he started to talk about his daughter, he went into that ridiculousness about strippers. A daddy's job is keep his daughter off the pole? It wasn't funny to me. There were too many bits like that for me. I remember laughing in a few places but I don't even remember what about. Oh, well.

I caught a lot of it and I can't quarrel with the top two. I think Janeane Garofalo should have been further up the list. I think Richard Lewis should have been further up the list too. Dennis Miller before Stephen Wright? I don't think so. What is the love affair with Robert Klein? Never thought he was funny. I have a soft spot for Dom Irrerra and would have liked to see him a lot further up the list. I did enjoy the clips, though.

I was honestly disappointed. At times, it felt like he was preaching or lecturing. And I thought his bit about rappers was an interesting change in tune. In a previous HBO special, he said that Tupac and Biggee were not assassinated. He said "those n*****rs got shot!" And he didn't convey much sympathy. Now, he's trying to build a case that no one cares about who kills rappers but if someone was killing rock stars, Bruce Springsteen would have cops circling his house. If rock stars were trying to kill each other I suppose this position would have some authenticity But Tupac's killing has been linked to the LAPD, whose off duty officers provided security detail for Suge Knight's criminal enterprise, also known as Death Row Records. There has been so much ink and celluloid about this issue I was really surprised to hear Rock come off the wall like that on this issue. Yes, a bunch of folks saw Tupac get shot, but no one is willing to say what they saw. That's not the cops fault. And no one is going to talk if this mess involves the cops protecting one of their own. Seems to me, there is much more material to mine in the LAPD angle than simple indifference to rappers' murders. In the current Rolling Stone, Rock talks about how he wasn't EXACTLY threatened but how many folks told him he shouldn't have made certain comments in earlier comedy routines about rap artists. In light of that, it felt like he was ducking and covering his ass in this routine. I dunno, maybe I had unrealistic expectations. With all the stuff going on in the world and in the US, to spend so much time on rap ( he did like three different riffs on rap--murders, rap is hard to defend, and women who don't think rap songs are about them) seemed like a real waste of time. And I confess that part of it is probably generational. At the end of Rock's routine, I found myself really missing Richard Pryor more than ever and wishing he was able to work.

The noise is supernatural, isn't it? Even the little quakes have that sound of a million slamming doors or something. I've lived with quakes my whole life, even in the Pacific Northwest when I was a kid. Hate the things. I was at work when the Paso Robles quake hit last year and we felt it in SF. Everyone got disoriented from the swaying. When you don't realize the floor is moving, you think you are having dizzy spells. Kind of like the mass flat tire phenomenom on the freeway. Just another way for nature to remind us all who is really in charge. Not us.

I was driving in my car and all of a sudden I feel like I am on a LSD trip and my car is wobbling...I stop and get out of the car and think...shit I have a flat!! I didn't see anything and shrugged it off and went home. When I got back it was all over the news. No, I don't feel anything less than a 6.0 these days. I dont know how far exactly I am from a fault line, but I live in CalEfornia so I figgure it's gotta be close! That thing about the flat tire is sort of amusing. A while back, a former co-worker was driving on the freeway and thought she had a flat tire. She pulled over and noticed all these other people pulled over looking at their tires. Then she found out there had been an earthquake. Where you live has a lot to do with what you feel. Some years ago, there was a 4.0 in San Ramon or Danville, somewhere out there. The epicenter was under a golf clubhouse. It pulled the clubhouse apart and a house nearby had significant damage.

Where were you at 5:04 PM on October 17, 1989? Been feeling all those little swarms in Berkeley, Moraga, Hayward, etc. that have happened lately? I'm less than three miles down the hill from the Hayward fault sitting on good old Oakland sand. Rock and roll, baby.

Wayne Shorter is great but half the fun of seeing him is seeing him with Brian Blade who is just out of this world.

Too early here to know. I usually don't watch the 30 minute elimination round. Right now I'm pissed that the Daily Show no longer comes on at 7 PM. Who's brilliant idea was that?

I'm curious about the Fantasia attitude you refer to. I think she is kind of refreshing. I tend to like Laytoya's singing better but last night Fantasia knocked me out. I'm with Randy, probably the best performance ever on that show. Certainly the best I've seen. And none of the guys do it for me. George is just okay. Ruben really had an ability to sing just about anything thrown his way but George is just okay with me. I was a Clay fan as well. Know what I like best about this show? It has just about eliminated any credibility given to the singing style made popular on Star Search--the soulful yodel. I can't stand that. Mariah does it now and Christina A and anyone singing in that dreadful hip hop drone. Ladies who have real singing chops sound just awful with all those vocal gymnastics. The ones that can't sing just sound silly. That style is not embraced on Idol and I'm grateful for that.

For that matter, all racial, ethnic, gender slurs are just ignorant and not acceptable to me. Who needs that crap?

I hope you didn't think I implied you did 'cos I don't think you did. I was speaking in general terms of commentary I've read on AAJ, JC and here.

Fantasia was wonderful last night, head and shoulders above everyone, including Latoya. I was very moved by her Summertime. As for Quentin, I am beyond fed up with his black hipster doofus routine. It's contrived and it makes him look like a phony and a fool. He made everyone else on the judge's panel look like geniuses.

I think it's unfortunate that folks on one board trash another. And I've seen it happen on all three that I have had any involvement with. It feels so high school. Folks here trashed AAJ when Mike became annoyed with "O" folks going to AAJ only when this site crashed. Folks at JC think theirs are the most sophisticated in musical tastes. I see all of that talk as just trash talk and something that belongs on a sports website. As for politics at this site, I would say the opinions are not only informed, discussions are actually civilized, for the most part. When some knuckledragger (and I don't know who that would be here, thankfully) starts calling any one of the half dozen or so women who post here the "c" word or the "b" word, I'm outta here. I won't make any dramatic exit speeches either, I'll just be gone. As I've said elsewhere, the internet is not a place where I go to act out my alter ego. This is real life to me and what I don't stand for in real life, I don't stand for on the internet. Bottom line, I'm here because I'm a jazz fan. And because the world is going to hell in a hand basket, I feel the need to talk about that too. Ciao, baby.

The board absolutely welcomes female participation. Just some folks seem to prefer it in the form of bumping, grinding, and showing off hooties and extraordinarily limited wardrobes. I can only speak for myself, of course, (as a 30-something, workin-class-rooted, urban, overeducated, underpaid, mongrel American usually identified as white (though I'm Native American enough for some scholarships, I hear) and self-identified as essentially Irish-American, though I don't look it) anyhow, speaking from that very complicated position, I really do lament the cavemanesque unsubtlety of some of the sexual stuff here. But I don't think it should be interpreted as hostility to women so much as lack of taste and discernment, and, let me assure you, it's not just women who cringe sometimes. --eric Here's to cringing, then. I'm glad I have some company.

Okay, I'm chiming in again but I have to mention Kenny Barron. I've seen him a few times but the best was a couple summers ago in SF at a small community theater in the Mission District. He talked about his musical roots and influences and played in the styles of his heroes and mentors. He talked about how Dizzy loved to play the piano and after sets when they were jamming and fooling around, Diz would kick Barron off the piano so he could play. It was an exceptional afternoon. Another time some years ago, he played a duet with Bobby Hutcherson at this tiny little Oakland venue, that no longer exists, near Jack London Square . Those two guys had a blast that night. It was small and intimate. It was the first time I'd ever seen Barron. He is one of my favorites. Such an elegant style.

How could you forget it, considering the charming people you met that night. Well, okay, that too.

Let's see, I'm female, middle aged, middle class, black...oh, well. I might add however, the recent appearance of bumping grinding, big chested, and now naked women makes me realize how this site isn't exactly a place that welcomes female participation. And no one answered the question posed on another thread, but why WOULD a man want to be indentified with an avatar of a female posing in a provocative way? I could understand if it was a photo of a female jazz musician on stage or a record cover, since this is a jazz site. In my experience, men who engage in posting risque photos of women, among other similar classy behavior, are announcing that they have manhood and maturity issues. If you are fifteen, you wouldn't understand that. If you are over 30, you should consider therapy.

Okay, I'll stop chiming in but I keep reading more names I'd forgotten. Back when UC Berkeley had a jazz festival, I had a chance to see (and meet) some wonderful artists.

Oh, yessss, Ornette on November 8, 2002. It was a dark and stormy night I remember well.

I guesss it depends on how you define great. I can't believe I only saw Miles once. One measly time. Miles Mingus Pharoah Sanders McCoy Herbie Ron Carter Freddie Elvin Betty Carter Joe Zawinal Wayne Shorter Yusef Lateef Ahmad Jamal Shirley Horn Jon Hendricks Sarah Vaughan Count Basie Bobby Hutcherson Joe Henderson Brian Blade Kenny Garrett Ray Brown Gato Barbieri Eddie Palmieri I THINK I saw Tito but I can't remember where Sun Ra Roland Kirk George Shearing Prince Lasha Sonny Fortune Art Ensemble of Chicago I THINK Cannonball or maybe I just wish

Yup. The beating of the Korean man didn't even make sense. But I was glad to see Tony S. shake the snot out of AJ. Spoiled little slacker. I also noted how the counselor was pulling strings for AJ. I loved the reference to AJ as "Fredo."

Dunno. Yoshi's discontinued their Sunday afternoon 2 PM family set the first of this year. Currently, they have 7 PM and 9 PM sets on Sundays. Maybe they are bringing back the 2 Sunday PM set and axing the 7 PM set? The 2 PM set was a great bargain for families and a chance to see some of the musicians interacting with the kids. I went with and without kids and usually enjoyed it. Only thing is, some artists get into education mode and don't play as much, which some folks (adults sans kids) find annoying. I dig listening to artists talk about what they do. If they leave Oakland, it will really break my heart.

Does anyone subscribe to Rolling Stone or Motor Trend? There's an insert that is supposedly an excerpt from a new book by Rowland Samuel called "Men of Metal." It's about giant humanoid robots made from parts of the British Mini Cooper automobile. These giant robots have been reportedly seen roaming the Oxford countryside at night a la Big Foot. Except these robots help wayward motorists. The excerpt has photos and diagrams. It's apparently a big promotional hoax for the Mini. Samuel Rowland doesn't exist. They've gone to great trouble to create web links to the mad Oxford scientist who supposedly built these things http://www.r50rd.co.uk/research/internal/v2i/engin/ and there is even a link to the book publisher Casson Publishing, which also doesn't exist. Clever yet pretty lame. A tiny car so powerful it can run a 12-foot robot. Whaaaaa? Time for the annual massacre of chocolate bunnies.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?...1448EDT0586.DTL You can't make this stuff up. As reported in today's SF Chronicle: