JSngry

Ok, here's the deal - LTB made some chili last night, as well as a pumpkin pie. I was cleaning up afterwards, while eating a slice, and I came across a stray onion bit that hadn't made it into the chili. So I popped it into my mouth along with the already-in-progress bite o'pie, and guess what? It was GOOD!!! Damn good in fact. So I got to thinking - pumpkin's in the squash family, right? And there are many squash casseroles made with onions, as well as with nutmeg, cinnamon, etc. So why shouldn't pumpkin and onion work, hmmm? Even in pie form. Of course, I'd think you'd want to use sweet onions, or at least saute them before pieing them, but hey, it ought to work, right? If anybody's tried this, or has a recipie, or has even heard of such a thing, please post here. I told LTB what I had done with her pie, how I'd enjoyed it, and how I'd like to take it further, and she gave me that look that she always gives me when I say stuff like that. Which means that it's just a matter of time, but I'm gonna have to work like hell for it. The woman has integrity with a capital "n"! Pumpkin/onion pie - an idea whose time has come! ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????

What was your gig at the phone sex office?

Then Christmas will never come.

December 25?

Try the caramel shake at Jack In The Box.

Somebody shoot Vinnie Testaverde and put him out of our misery.

Prick up your ears!

Yeah, I'm hearing through the local grapevine that Tina Brooks is on here. Haven't had that definitively confirmed, however.

I'm like you, John. Dug her muchly on "Street Life" and kept waiting to find something else that did it like that. NEver happened. I'll keep an eye out for this one. Sounds like something I could put to good use.

The last 3 are "essential" imo, and the first is pretty damn good.

You'll find the answer here: http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/dr...c462641n2t4.jpg

I say that the string bass was probably traumatized from being fingered.

That sounds like the one all right. "Glen Island Special" I've heard. It's a good'un too. So that was Beneke? What happened to HIM? 1939, eh? Interesting...

Maybe not a "great" record, but it'll be better than you expect, Tony. Joe & Chick are both in excellent form, and Chakka does no harm. As for clarke, yeah, he's on upright, he's miked direct, and he's got that low action sound. But do did damn near everyother bass player under the age of back then. I'd say go for it, if only for Joe & Chick. Especially at used prices.

Heard this on KNTU while driving home from work this AM, and during the tenor solo (not Beneke, probably Al Klink then, right? And a good one it was, too), the drummer starts playing on the ride cymbal! Just like Papa Jo on those Basie sides. I couldn't believe it! So, who was this drummer, and when was this recorded? This might well be the least "Miller-like" of all the Miller "jazz" sides I've heard (although it still "rocked" more than "swung", to use Lon's apt (and non-derogatory) description). Not a bad side, actually, but shot way up on my curiositymeter by that little maneuver of the drummer. TOTALLY unexpected. As always, thanks in advance!

This was one of the ones I found "used" in a Hastings.

Then get me the damn game for Christmas!

Amen.

I found it to be an uncompelling but nevertheless pleasant listen. It's still a bit "derivative", but at least it's derivative of something more modern. And if it turns out to be the rumblings of a populist something-or-other that's newer, bigger, and bolder than more rehashed hard bop, then I'm all in favor of it.

Again, this wasn't directed at me, but a very interesting clue. Might 7 and 12 feature the same drummer, then? (that question is for the group, not necessarily for Milan B-) ). Yeah, I'm reading here that #7 is that Jo Jones trio album on Everest. I've never heard it, but I'm not surprised. Papa Jo was indeed a master of the brushes, but in all honesty, this cut is not as relaxed as what I would expect out of him, even at this tempo. But Buddy Rich on #12? THAT I could believe, albeit unfortunately so . Maybe it's Buddy's late-40s bebop big band? That seems possible, since it's definitely Giuffre's arrangement, at least not the one he did for Woody. Now, if it IS Buddy's band, the candidates for soloists would be Earl Swope on bone, either Alan Eager or Warne on tenor, and I don't know who on trumpet. Was Red Rodney on that band? Might need to have a relisten with that in miond, which I'll try and do this evening. As for the Hartman/Williams "controversy", it's Williams, undoubtedly. He's working out of a different bag than we've come to know of him, but there's certain syllables where the enunciation is unmistakeable Joe. But in other parts, it sounds like Earl Coleman on a bad day.

Oops, that was another one. Sorry. AMG calls Tivoli "a gem", though. FWIW.

Seems like I remember Richard Davis being on the Tivoli side. But I'm not sure.

My disc arrived from John Bon Thursday, and I listened to it once Thursday night and twice yesterday while on the road (GREAT road music, btw!). Thanks to John for getting me the copy, and many thanks to Milan for compiling such as interesting, challenging, and above all, enjoyable BFT. Usual disclaimers apply, haven't read others' comments, etc. TRACK 1 - WHOA! Old wine, different bottle! The Miller version is what everybody knows, but this tune was around for a while before his crew gt hold of it, put a more elaborate arrangement on it, and created an iconic version of it that remains an irritant to many to this day (and a source of joy to many as well). This version has a Basie feel to it in spots in terms of its riffy exuberance, but I don't know Basie ever having recorded this. No matter, a lively rendition, and the tenor player, if not Buddy Tate, is definitely coming from the same place. Great to hear this, so refreshing from the old warhorse! TRACK 2 - The only two jazz altoists that I'm aware of from this era who could pull something like this off are Jimmy Dorsey & Rudy Wiedoeft, but I couldn't tell you if this was either. No matter, this stikes me as "Hot Jazz" of the best kind. The arrangement is a gas, especially that interlude. This si the kind of thing that you can't reproduce today - the subleties of the timing and phrasing are of a time that has long passed. But the original still brings great pleasure. Trombonis speaks a limited vocabulary with total confidence and command (another reason why you can't reproduce this today - how can you play like this knowing of everything that has come since? That's a "proplem" those guys didn't have! ), and that altoist is a freak, in the best way. Loved it! TRACK 3 - Oh, I should know this one! But I can't call it... Tune's one of those "Blue Lou" things where the A-section is spent on two chords waiting until the last minute to resolve to the tonic, a tactic that is always good for building a groove on. Everybody keeps it mellow, and the drummer keeps the pocket just right. The pianist gets the most out of the changes, I think, GREAT playing by him/her. Not necessarily a "great" cut, but a darn nice one, and "smooth jazz" of the best kind! TRACK 4 - "Sleepy Time Gal", of course. What a GREAT rhythm section! Swinging their ASSOFF!!! "Buoyant" is the word that repeatedly comes to mind. Miles' use of two-beat swing is coming right out of this kind of thing. Clarinet trio on the opening melody suggests Lunceford, as does the feel of the entire piece. That sax soli is pretty eye/ear-opening! Did benny Carter write this arrangement? The modualtory section just before the out chorus is pretty dan "modern", as is the out chorus itself. Beautiful stuff! TRACK 5 - Bird, of course. If the point is to show the connection between Bird's use of double time and the previous number, it works, but know that Bird's music involved a lot of chromaticism. Nevertheless, a most interesting, illuminating, and delightful juxtaposition that shows how things never really change as much as they do evolve. TRACK 6 - As long as Lester Young's music can be heard in it, I will want to keep living in this world. TRACK 7 - Not my favorite cut, but GOOD LORD that drummer's got the brush thing happening! Buddy Rich, Shelley Manne, and Ed Thigpen are the first 3 names that come to mind. There's a "driven" quality to it that suggests Buddy, but I could easily be wrong. Oscar PEterson on piano? Don't know! TRACK 8 - "Hi-Ho Bernstein!" - a "private joke" line I tell myself at "society" events where the customers want to hear some "swing music". Indeed! Charlie's supposed to have gone to Minton's after the gig and complain long and loud about how square Benny was, and I wonder if some of his lines here aren't a kind of dig at Benny. Those striaght quarter notes are just a little too "cruel", if you know what I mean... But Benny decides to swim rather than sink here, which was not always the case! And I'll say it again - Lionel Hampton is simply one of the most amazing musicians in the annals of jazz! TRACK 9 - A Basie airshot, I think, and one that adds to the relatively scant recorded evidence that Jack Washington was a BAAAAADDDDD muthashutyomouth! What I wouldn't give to be able to experience that Band in person! So much unrestrained, inexhauastable, joyous power! TRACK 10 - Always a treat to hear John Gilmore! And always a treat to hear a great Fletcher Henderson chart! TRACK 11 - I hear a lot of people say that Billie didn't really have that great of an ear for harmony, but listening to this cut should dispell that notion as so much nonsense. The melody has some "unusual" notes, and she hits them with total ease. So there. If her life had gone in a differetn direction, she could have been on of the greatest pop singers of all time. As it was, she became one of the greatest artists of all time. Here's she's filling both roles. Much love. Shaw's bands of that era always had one of the more relaxed and elegant feels of the bunch, and this one is no exception (very nice writing, too). However, as nice as Georgie Auld/Tony Pastor (which one is it?) sounds here, imagine what would have happened if Prez had been able to make the date! TRACK 12 - Too much spirit, I'm afraid. "Four Brothers", possible by some Chubby Jackson side project, but it's just too much... Somebody shoot the drummer, please! TRACK 13 - Now THIS is more like it! One thing I can't help but notice is how much more fluent Flip is with the chromatic changes that the rest of the soloists (except for Burns); but Bill Harris is playing another type of game entirely, and it's one that gets some people arrested in some places! This whole unit was so ALIVE, so in the moment. You can hear in in Chubby's little hoots and hollers (pre-Mingus, btw), and, what I inevitably end up noticing, Dave Tough's dumming, which is always right in there responding and commenting. What a great BAND this was! TRACK 14 - Hot Lips Page? Nah...Pretty distinctive style, but one that I don't know well enough to name. REAL old-scholl tone and phraseology, but with that boogie-woogie beat (can't tell you the pianist, either). The whole thing is like prototypical R&B in a lot of ways, which given the style of the trumpeter shows you that the more things change... TRACK 15 - Now here's one where repeated listening pais off, I hope. My first impression was that this was some obscure Earl Coleman offshoot, but second time through I heard some enunciations that rung a bell, and third time through confirmed it - this is Joe Williams! I remember a Savoy LP of the late 70s of Joe pre-Basie that I never got around to hearing, but that would be my guess. Wild! This whole type of singing has its roots in Eckstine (check out that tag!), which in turn springs from Sinatra's breakthrough of treationg a pop song as a dramatic, artistic vehicle rahter tahn "just" a song. It's a style of singing that seems to be an accquired taste for may, especially today, and frankly, it took me a while to accquire it, but I have. This is not a particularly good example of what the style can produce, but as an example of just how big a breakthrough Jow Williams' mature style was in terms of combining urbanity, blues, and the Eckstine-ish sensibility into a total package, it's a fascinating document. Plus, it's a great song! TRACK 16 - Oh yeah! Louis Jordan! In some people's eyes, the showmanship and such still obscures what a great, genuine talent his was. The singing here is darn near perfect, as is the alto onthe introduction. Listening to the singing, the level of sublty and nuance in every aspect is about as high as it can be. This is a song that has become a classic, and in this neck of the woods, you can still hear "chitlin' circuit" bands doing it, and a lot of them don't even know who Louis Jordan was. That'sa drag, but it also speaks to how deep and timeless he was. Underestimate him at your own risk! TRACK 17 - Definitely has that RCA studio sound. Basie? I've just got the American Bluebird issue, BRAND NEW WAGON, and this isn't on it, but damn if this doesn't sount like Jo Jones & Buddy Tate. FIERCE! TRACK 18 - I have this one on a Stash issue. What a NASTY groove! And who is/wasJohn Sparrow? This guy was playing gutbucket tenorlike nobody;s business in 1942! and then there's Lady Q and John Jackson, and all that other Kansas City goodness. If you can't dance to this, you ain't got no legs. A great cut! TRACK 19 - You must be headin' north, 'cause you'e puttin' on your Illinois Jacket! (sorry, old joke, couldn't resist...) Well, yeah, there it is. The tune I recognize s the title to "Jammin' The Blues", and I recognioze Jacquet, but not this particular performance. Crowd sounds too placid for JATP, but maybe not? Altoist shows a bit of the "tightening up" the alto sound that bop introduced, saame w/the trumpeter. But they'r not boppers by any means (not at this stage, anyway) whooever they are. And then there's the man himself. What a big sound - rough, but not ragged, fully intense, but never raucous to the point of losing control. The high notes are never random squeals, they're properly fingered and executed altissimo notes. "Reed biting" and such are other ways to produce these notes, and Jacuet uses it here to get that REALLY hugh note, but it's like anything else - if you don't know what you're doing, you can't control it. And Jacquet is TOTALLY in control of his instrument. And he's bending the horn to his will, a will that has undeniably erotic implications. That's not all it has, but it definitely has that. This introduction of a sexual element that was at once raw and totally controlled opened a lot of things up, some of them good, some of them not. But tell you what, stuff like this might sound tamer today than it did then, but by no means does it sound tame. TRACK 20 - Speaking of Eckstine.. Speaking of indefatigable spirit... Speaking of boundless power... Speaking of a new day... TRACK 21 - Not keen on the alto intro, sounds a little choppy to me, but the singer is SUPERB. Not so much "jazz" as "jazz formed", She sings pretty striaght, but her phrasing is smoooooth, and she sounds like she could play with it some if she wanted too (or would be allowed to). That piano solo is a GAS - just 8 bars, but the architiecture is perfect, and the note choices very shrewd. Also like how the bass goes into a walk behind that solo. The whole thing sounds to me like a jazz group masquerading as a pop band! TRACK 22 - OH LORD HAVE MERCY!!!! I am SO in love! This woman's pitch is a little off at times, but DAMN, that phrasing sounds like she's a liquid being poured into the song, and she's so liquid that she leaks gracefully into some spots that the son didn't know it had. This is a continuation of the Sinatra/Eckstine approach continued with a feminine perspective. Definitely not Sarah, WAY too vulnerable. Check out 1:18-1:19. DAMN! Check out the "flame" at 1:50. DAMN! Check out the way the vibrato unfolds rather than remains constant. DAMN! This woman is singing with SO MUCH feeling. Beautiful horn writing too. That intro is downright haunting. And the countermelodies behind the vocal, very understated, but totally perfect. The whole thing hits that zone from the git-go. Perfect, in spite of the singer's pitch. sometimes that don't matter, and this is one of those times, at least for me. I have no idea who this singer is, but it's defintiely somebody I want to explore further. TRACK 23 - All right, hip, sassy, very urbane, the kind of thing that people who have no idea about jazz in general can nevertheless hook up with, as can people who are. Hines-ish piano, sining that only sometimes needs the original melody, attitude to spare, and sophisitication that makes itself readily apparent w/o any need to flaunt it. Perfect "cabaret jazz", if that means anything. I'm not real familiar with this genre, but Hazel Scott and Nellie Lutcher are two names that come to mind, whether accurately or not. No matter -VERY nice! TRACK 24 - Oooh, this is a wierd one. The saxes have a real difference of opinion with the rest of the band about the timing of their phrases with the rest of the band, maybe even amongst themselves. Not enough to sound wrong, but enough that I noticed it and kept noticing it. Otherwise, I dunno, sounds like one of those L.A. big bands made up of a ixture of vets and younger players. Maybe that Capp-Pierce thing? Definitely some well-seasoned players on hand, though. Sweets on trumpet? The tenor doesn't have much space at allto play in, just 8 bars, but he takes his own sweet time anyway, leaves a WHOLE lot of space. Gotta love that, that's being VERY well-seasoned. The lead altoist is definitely coming out of Marshall Royal, but Marshall would have never let that timoing discrepancy pass. Unless this is from so late in his life that he was basically just playing for kicks. And the final drum fill seems to fumble ever so slightly. So we might have some vets who are a little off their game in terms of getting it righ in every way. Feel and precision don't necessarily exclude each other, especially in this genre and (what I think is) this generation. Oh well... Hey, this was a GREAT complilation, and with 24 songs on one CD, perhaps the most "value packed" BFT I've come across. Since it contains a lot of music in styles that I'm not all that converrsant with, this one will get more "regular" listening than usual. Once I learn who everybody is, I'll be even more into it, as well as into doing some much-needed homework! Thanks again, Milan. LOVED it!

Were they used or "used" or used? Some, but not all, still had the strip across the top of the jewelbox.

If you read Jazz Times back in the last century, you'll know what I mean when I say that hardbop, in his reviews of NYC club dates & concerts, is somewhat attempting to be the Ira Gitler of the Neo-Cons.