JSngry

I continue to get a kick out of Jonas Kullhammar. Only 40, but attitude to spare!

who's the kid in the chair?

I like his hair. And he's got that Bill Perkins stonefacecrazyeyes thing going on. Not saying that I go out of my way to listen to him, but don't tell him that...

New to me, but glad to lean, they sound useful!

What are yoga bricks?

Jimmy Heath was organic to his time/place, he was playing bebop when it was still a new-ish kind of thing. And his palate grew over the years, grew quite a bit actually. And as a writer? That cat matters. Junior Cook, hell, Junior Cook was with the "classic" Horace Silver band when they were the "classic Horace Silver band". If you don't have a Horace Silver record with Junior Cook on it, well....that's just weird. Really weird. And see, we have records of all this, lots of records with Jimmy Heath and Junior Cook. I don't get tired of their records, but I don't live in them either. Lots of other things happened before, during, and after. And at some point, a cat like Eric Alexander, yeah, he plays really really well, but I just don't care because I got other records to go to get that, records by people who did it when it was a look at the then-now, as opposed to the now-then. I like watching old TV shows. I don't like watching new TV shows that redo old ones. I really don't understand why this is a problem, it's not complicated. If people like Eric Alexander, good. You have plenty of records to listen to. And if people don't, good. You too have plenty of records to listen to.

Thanks! That does kinda line up, the Mercer/Coral chronology. but the next question is...how did some other certain recordings (namely, the Ellington/Strayhorn & Pettiford selections) go to riverside, which of course would become Prestige...just how messy was all this?!?!?!?!?!

You can use your own photo, then upload it to the site as an attachment (there is a size limit, which I cannot recall at this moment). From there, you can insert it in a post.

What is this "Up-To-Date LP"? Was that an American label? Ah, I see, on of THOSE labels: https://www.discogs.com/label/104260-Up-To-Date-Records

Looking up the mysterious Chubby Kent...Discogs has just one record of hers, and it's on Vogue: https://www.discogs.com/artist/1560527-Chubby-Kemp?noanv=1 But it seems most likely to be a Mercer date? So again, there's this weird nexus between Mercer-Prestige, Mercer-Vogue, Prestige-Vogue, Prestige-Metronome...does it all go through Leonard Feather? and Mercer did two(?) records for Coral in 1958-59...do we know when the sale took place? https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/mercer-ellington-albums/5013-stepping-into-swing-society.html

Been stockpiling for a while now, looking forward to being where you are with it. Indeed, enjoy!

I buy Aim. It's a dollar a tube these days and tastes good. AND it has fluoride! And I totally agree about the generational thing, every generation has people who redefine what "it" is, or, not even redefine, they create it in their own image, they become iconic. So yes, Mays/Mantle/etc. But also Vada Pinson, who should be a charter member in The Baseball Hall Of Very Good. Likewise, sure, Rollins, Trane, but also J. Heath, Golson, Mobley, Cook, some of whom can get every bit as much love as "The giants" just because they are their own sweet selves. It's not an Eric Alexander thing, though, it's an if Eric Alexander is Vada Pinson, then who are the Mays/Mantles of HIS generation thing? I think it's time we just admit that "jazz" in the sense of Eric Alexander (and not just him, but all of "those guys" is no longer a growing music, it's a style to be pursued towards essentially known ends. Various ends, but known ends. It's also time to admit that "jazz" as played by all those "?" people is not ever going to appeal, viscerally, intellectually, in ANY kind of way to the Eric Alexander people. Just face it and let it be what it be. Everybody wants to get argumentative about why don't somebody like what I like, and I can answer that - because they don't like it! It's not a hard question! Now, my personal bitch is this - among those "?" guys, who is THEIR Mays/Mantle. I've yet to hear one there, either. Giants no longer walk the Earth. None of these people today are giants. They just tall, that's all. Tell you what, though, I've goofed on Malaby before for his attire and funny shit like that, but when I roll these names around in my mind, he does stand out as somebody who consistently brings the spirit, or at least that manifestation of it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_broil

Ok, let's compare how times have changed - Eric Alexander is now 50. He's made a bajillion records, all of them pleasing to his fans, but none of them have "rocked the world", so to speak. And I get that that's not what his fans are looking for out of him, and that's cool. Follow your bliss and all that. But the time Sonny Rollins was 50, hell, he had rocket the world several times in several different ways, and was already having to deal with a bunch of bitching an moaning that he was washed up, or at least past his prime. For that matter, by the time Hank Mobley was 50, he had made all the records he was ever going to make, period. Sonny Stitt at 50 had, at the very least, established himself as a player who was prone to coasting but could pretty much rise to any occasion if properly inspired. You can certainly point to a handful of Sonny Stitt records as being among the highest quality of individual expression in an unmistakably personal voice. And hell, Gene Ammons didn't even make it to 50, never really created anything except himself, and remains beloved amongst a wide cross-section of "jazz fans". And no, it's not really fair to compare Eric Alexander to Sonnys Rollins & Stitt, Hank Mobley, or Gene Ammons. But if there's a point to be made, that's it - there's no comparison. I don't understand the defensiveness about the people who enjoy Eric Alexander. I too enjoy pleasant, predictable outcomes, it's why I buy the same toothpaste every time out.

Of course not, but life is short. After a while you learn to play the odds.

And the Serge Chaloff session was done for Futurama, was it? I'm thinking the common thread here might be Leonard Feather?

Honestly, I don't see why anybody would get passionate one way or the other about Eric Alexander. He does what he does, and if you like it, it'll always be like that. And if you don't like it, it will also always be like that. He's had more than enough time to make it otherwise, so as far as "waiting to se what comes next", that horse done left the barn. If you're riding it, happy trails! No. Next question?

And many of those singles show up on the 10" LPs. But not all off them do.

Well hey, cassettes or USB turntables. A little more work/time, but you know what they say, everybody's gotta be someplace.

Here's one old fogey who has heard the first three and remain,uh...uncompelled.

I would say just be thankful that all the available data is made available to you. After you have that, you can make it work for you any way you like. The Miles marathon sessions LPs, I put those into session order on cassettes. Same thing with some Bill Evans session. Why? Because I wanted to, and especially because I could. A bit of a pain with LPs and cassettes, but, you know if you're not part of the solution, sit down and STFU (or something like that...). Once you buy a record, you can do whatever you want to with it. Digital exponentially simplifies everything. I really don't understand the complaint about CDs. Gee, all you gotta do is select what you want and BOOM, there it is, CD-R/playist/whatever just as you like it. If it was any easier, it would be illegal.

There ya' go. It was a baseball card that played the TV show.

London Broil? Wrapped in foil? That's a very tasty treat. London Broil wrapped in foil is a thing we all should eat.

yes, those are all good. Only Laubrock is, to me, a relatively new name, though. Malaby is 54, Eskelin is 59. I've been hearing them for decades. Laubrock is only 48! Not quite old enough to feasibly be my daughter, although I suppose I was capable of impregnation at 14. She can play, though. But I'm looking for young people - really young people - who can make a case for me accepting that everything I know and expect is not really...necessary these days. Hell, I'm getting more out of modern "classical" music these days than I am modern "jazz". Sure, that's because I'm late getting to one and have been immersed in the other for decades, but, when I heard AACM, I knew that there was no going back, not that anything old was wrong, jsut that there was now more to consider and new ways of considering it.. Now, all I hear is going back. Oh well... But Ingrid Laubrock can play. I get that not everybody likes "this type of thing", but she can play her instrument, she's has options at her command and is making choices. But Bird was 25 when he did Koko. Roscoe has just turned 26 when he did Sound. Again, different times, but what are the 20-somethings of today doing with themselves to claim their own distinct (and distinctly valid) reality? I'll be as grumpy and old as I have to be unless and until I see some action on that front.

Sonny Rollins was 25 when he recorded Saxophone Colossus. I know, different world, different times. But that's the point, isn't it?