JSngry

Right?

Try Ray Brown on the two ballads on Way Out West.

"Speculation" is really all we have right now. Accusations and defenses, none of them proven in court yet. The press release went beyond just an alert, it invoked outrage about things like overdubbing and editing, which, seriously? that never happens, even on jazz records, even, maybe, on Ornette records, ever? And we have one pretty serious difference of opinion - the press release characterizes the encounter as "teaching sessions" and the System Dialing remain firm that, no, this wasn't us showing up and taking lessons with Ornette, we were there to do work, and that's the one thing that's out there I that feels right to me, and has me a little pissed off about the press release, like they aren't just trying to stop the release, or to get paid, they're looking to besmirch the other musicians, turning the business maneuver into something else entirely, like they're saying that these guys are beneath Ornette, which, I don't think anybody would not stipulate to that, and yet they played together and got a damn good record out of it, how embarrassing that must be. And oh yeah, also to promote an upcoming tribute album with Sonny Rollins, Savion Glover, and Patti Smith. As for fans not buying the album, yeah, don't. Download it or get a burn from a friend. Unless/Until they sic the government on everybody who bought a copy and waterboard them into giving up everybody they've made copies for, that genie's done out of the bottle forever. So, yet, get that shit off the market RIGHT NOW! That press release did not sit well with me, obviously. Seemed to be about Reputational Dick Swinging than anything else, and where was that coming from? Leads me to wonder if it was as unauthorized by Ornette himself as the record probably was.

This milk has yet to turn, in either smell or taste. Six weeks after expiration date. WTF?

Which I guess raises the question - who was Boston Moody?

In my closet. Seriously.

Here's another "odd" thing, perhaps, to me any way - all the "entertainment press" (such as has been covering it), has turned this into an Ornette Coleman vs. Jordan McLean thing, whereas it is Amir Ziv who has handled the only, to this date, response from the defendant's side. Also, when I had problems with the website when ordering, it was Mr. Ziv who handled most of the correspondence and driving the transaction to a successful completion. I got the impression that Mr. Ziv was, like, the "main guy" as far as handling the business of the label goes. And yes, he is named in the suit as well, but press (i.e. - The Court Of Public Opinion) is pivoting into some kind of Ornette vs Antibalas The House Band Of Fela The Musical kind of thing, which pushes all kinds of Original Black Creator vs White Opportunist Bloodsucker buttons, and when that starts happening, nobody even wants to hear the other side of the story, their sympathies have made their minds up for them. There are all kinds of racial/ethnic, cultural, economic, and generational things that are bubbling underneath what on the surface seems to be a pretty simple "he said this, no he said that, ok, let's see your evidence" lawsuit. It was the press release that got me. People don't do press releases unless they want to court public opinion in advance. More buttons standing by, awaiting pushing.

Quite underrated, indeed! I guess I need to keep looking for a clean pressing.

I look at it like the purpose of a press release is to get people on your side, to take a side, make a decision, like, yes, I think I would like to see this movie, or yes, I want to see Ornette win this lawsuit. I don't like to take sides until I'm more or less fully informed to my satisfaction, which at this point, I am not, not even remotely.

From the same issue:

Here t'is:

It turned around backwards when there was a press release for the lawsuit. If you don;t want people asking questions, don't put ot a freaking press release that paints a one-sided story and expects to be taken at face value, If you put out a press release, you are inviting further speculation and investigation, as well as using emodistraction to manipulate the target audience, almost all of whom know and love Ornette, and almost none of whom have any sympathy for The Deceitful Antibalas Thugs. You're simply providing a template for people to create their own Poor Ornette to walk around with around their necks in Shared Martyrdom. Jazz People love them some martyrdom, give 'em a black t-shirt with some dead face on it, they'll wear it damn near everywhere. If that's not emodistraction, then what is?

Did you get a clean-ish copy of this? If so, is it an American pressing? Over the last few years, I've gone through three looking for one that's not making popcorn while the music plays and have pretty much given up.

Nellie Monk, maybe, just guessing.

.500 gets me hot. Or has Brenda been messing with the thermostat again?

Required Listening. No, that's not my opinion, that's documented fact. It's also probably bootleg as hell,, so steal it where you find it (figuratively, that is)

Those are facts, yes, but they are not all the facts. Among facts not yet known (and I do repeat myself): What, if anything, did Ornette say during the course of these encounters might have planted the seed (or cunning or of naivete) that it was gonna be ok with him to put this out like this? If you don't think that Ornette would never come up with all kinds of "music belongs to the world" and "this is OUR music, not mine" type things, then think again. If those things were said, do recordings of them exist? If they do exist, what legal standing will they be given, and, then, how will they be interpreted by what kind of judge or jury? Is Ornette really in any condition these days to remember any of this on a non-challengeable legal basis? For that matter, was he is any kind of condition to be recording under non-guardianship-sponsored circumstances even then? If not, then how did that happen in the first place? Was Denardo incompetent, distracted, or was he just like, hey, Ornette gonna be Ornette, when movable shit happens, that's when we'll deal with it (and I would not blame him one bit for that if he was, truthfully)? Assuming more cunning than anything else on the part of System Dialing, and also assuming that they are not idiots and/or career suicidalists, who gave them the feeling that whatever happened, they would come out of it ok? With whom did they consult to feel this certainty/rightness, and what kinda money we talking about here, anyway? What and whose? Where does Adam Holzman fit into all of this? Not asking that to impugn his integrity, no indication that it's impugnable at all, but he's on the record, worked on the post-production, and has yet to file suit or, to my knowledge, been asked to comment. He either feels screwed also or not, right? The revealing of the above facts will only be relevant if the suit goes to trial and/or is not settled before a verdict. I think they're very relevant, not to the "headlines", but to the reality of how things work, which is usually ugly on some level at some point at some time. I know we all love Ornette, I know I do, but geez, would you like be the guy's guardian? Would you like to protect him from himself? And for that matter, would you like to have worked with him over however much time, come away with some, imo, pretty significant music, and then be told to just never mind, hand it over right now buster, it's OURS, and OURS is not yours? Respect be damned, this is music, and the music business. You want respect on demand, go see your local wedding band. Otherwise, be ready for anything. Also consider this - between the intellectual property rights nihilsts and post-Boomers in general, there seems to be this unspoken...hatred (perhaps literally) of "the establishment" just sitting on shit and either not continuing to contribute or just getting out of the way period. I don't have that much trouble imagining a scenario where the cats did the sessions in good (enough) faith, made the record, then got their rug pulled out from under them, and then them saying, hey fuck you Ornette, you talk one game abut music and then deal another game in business, you are a great artist, this is great music, fuck you if you don't want it released, here it comes anyway. If it fucks us up our perpetual ass, so be it, we still gave the world one more great Ornette Coleman record, which is more than you were going to do. Now if that type of attitude scares you, well, it scares me too, but at least as much because I totally understand the impulse as much as I do the needs of a civilized society to not act on it. But if you want the real story, there it is, where are we all in terms of all of that? If there's a settlement, yes, it will have all been one big Brain Wiiliamsy emodistraction. It really was/is just about the money. How trite (necessary, but trite). Otherwise, there' a lot of unanswered questions here about a lot of things, so...let's look for some more facts other than the bright primary colors we're now having waved in our faces.

Uh-oh... Then again, can't blame a man for trying, chicks don't respect you if you don't at least try, or so went the common wisdom of the day.

I know what you mean. I've also heard it claimed that Rahsaan ripped him off with the whole singing-while-playing, but that to me seems a bit too simplistic. To me, it seems like the lines he plays are extremely competent, but not particularly "creative", if you know what I mean. Not implying that it's a "gimmick" per se, I've seen no indication that he's anything other than wholly and admirably dedicated and sincere, it's just that...what next, then? And I feel so guilty saying that, because he plays so much more music than did popular-zone Herbie Mann, but I'm kinda like, Herbie Mann, meets expectations. Lower expectations, sure, but still, expectations met, you can just walk on by/through all that and just be happy to be happy in a guiltless fast-food kind of way. And Herbie Mann almost always had solid bands behind him, bands that it seems like you could still go see Herbie Mann even if you didn't like Herbie Mann because you knew the band would make it worth your while.

Serious question - I know this got withdrawn at some point (or at least never "officially" reissued), but did Paul Bley ever pay Ornette for this one (other than for the gig itself)?

That's what I thought...

Yeahyeahyeah, nobody's disagreeing with any of that. But that's not the real story here, that's the Brian Williamsy emodistraction.