T.D.

+1. I didn't expect too much from the CD, being packaged with a book purchased at a discounted price, but was (pleasantly) shocked by how good it is.

Richly deserved and no surprise. I'm mostly a hockey fan...back in the old days, when an NHL team had a chronic malcontent the club would endeavor to trade the player to Winnipeg, as the most undesirable destination. Pity there's no comparable franchise location in MLB (as far as I can tell).

+1. Lowballed a bid on eBay a couple of weeks ago and missed; the set sold well under list. It's something I'd kind of like to hear, but way too big a $ investment and I seriously question how many times I'd listen to most of the discs. I also recall a thread in which some posters whose judgment I respect expressed reservations about the box.

+1 on all counts. In the mid 20-oughts, all the US auto mfrs did the same thing, only to go bankrupt in the economic downturn. Anecdote: when I started in the finance business in 1983, I learned that Wall St. considered all the US automakers so stupid that their stocks traded at puny multiples of book value, and the investment community preferred that the car companies pay out the largest dividends possible rather than reinvesting the profits and pissing the money away. (This was a shocking letdown, as I grew up in the Midwest and had high respect for those industrial titans.) I don't think a heck of a lot has changed.

Earlier today: NEXUS Percussion - April 22, 2018 3:00 PM at the Redeemer Lutheran Church [Kingston, NY] NEXUS is made up of four master percussionists internationally revered for virtuosity, innovation and extraordinary music out of the broadest array of percussion instruments imaginable. PROGRAM: Prelude: Pauline Oliveros (1932 - 2016) The Greeting Meditation (1972) (performed before the beginning of the concert) Program: Lou Harrison (1917 - 2003) Solo (To Anthony Anthony Cirone) (1972) NEXUS Echoes of Spirit (2018) Traditional Zimbabwe (arr. NEXUS) Tongues (late 1970s) Steve Reich (b. 1936) Drumming Part I Drumming Part I (1970-1971) *** INTERMISSION *** Traditional (arr. NEXUS) Ancient Military Aires (Ancient) The Long Roll Three Camps The Downfall of Paris Hell on the Wabash Steve Reich (arr. Garry Kvistad) Mallet Phase (2012) Ragtime Xylophone Music Selections George Hamilton Green (1893 - 1970) (arr. Bob Becker) Caprice Valsant (1927) Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) (arr.Ford T. Dabney and Yurika Kimura) Castle Valse Classique (originally titled Humoresque)(1894) George Hamilton Green (arr. Bob Becker) Just A Kiss From You (1921) George Hamilton Green and Victor Arden (arr. Bill Cahn) Dotty Dimples (1921)

I was also surprised, but the pic is captioned "Ore, Mobley, Tolliver" on several web pages. And from Tolliver's own site: "With a career that has spanned five decades he has recorded and/or performed with such renowned artists as Roy Haynes, Hank Mobley, Willie Bobo, Horace Silver, McCoy Tyner, Sonny Rollins, Booker Ervin, Gary Bartz, Gerald Wilson Orchestra, Oliver Nelson, Stanley Cowell, Herbie Hancock, Andrew Hill, Louis Hayes, Roy Ayers, Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, and owned the trumpet chair with the great Max Roach for some years."

Purchased a couple of weeks ago but just arrived, so I'll count it:

I've used something very like this from Parts Express. (Links to cheaper items at bottom of page; I'm at work so can't be specific.) I imagine hardware stores have similar items.

Sun Ra, "Artyard in a Box". Recent purchase, glad I acquired it as I didn't own any of the constituent albums. "Sleeping Beauty" and "The Antique Blacks" are favorites which I greatly enjoy.

Finally got here and I went. Greatly enjoyed, but laughter was muted by the historical # of underlying deaths. Should probably watch again when it comes out on video to catch more details. For instance, I totally missed that the concert pianist was Maria Yudina! Agreed that the Zhukov character was most hilarious (I thought of reading his biography a few years ago, but never got around to it). Among minor characters, Paddy Considine as the radio executive Andreyev. Surprised at the utter ineffectuality of Malenkov, and will have to read some history to decide how much was artistic license.

+1 on all this, including the cable-speaker contacts. The brand I'm familiar with is DeOxit. My father was an audio hobbyist who bought a lot of used older/vintage gear from flea markets, eBay and the like. I have personal experience of many amps and receivers that initially sounded like crap and improved tremendously after contact cleaning. Bears repeating that it's also worth cleaning personal gear that's been sitting in the basement or garage, even if for just a few months IMO.

Much of March in my area has been snow hell (well over 4 feet fell, most nights around 10 deg. F). A few warmer sunny days recently, and took great pleasure in listening to "Springtime Again" by Sun Ra and the Arkestra.

I think it [Death of Stalin] is coming to my sticks area soon!

I e-mailed the Mosaic info address. Both MC and Scott kindly and quickly (esp. considering they likely thought it a dumbass inquiry ) replied. There was only one copy of each Select (Tolliver, Rivers big bands), and they sold. I expected as much, so did not ask whether they were complete sets.

Thanks, guys. I'd be shocked if complete copies of those Selects survived four days of the open house sale, but I will inquire to Scott.

Thanks, John.

Damn. Rivers Orchestra and Tolliver Big Band are Selects I really want...but no way I could have made the trip.

I live in the hinterlands so can't speak to trends, but the two semi-local German restaurants I know of (Mid-Hudson Valley area NY) are doing very well. Granted, they rely heavily on craft beer sales and have made some menu updates (e.g. veg/vegan options). I agree that the traditional "stodgy" German restaurant is fading.

Thinking of picking this up, several years behind the curve as usual. Looking at the track listing, I see a lot of pieces with vocals. All other aspects look fantastic, but to date I've been less fond of Parker's work with vocals (admittedly small sample size, though). Should I go for it anyway?

I'm out in the hinterlands so can't speak to trends, but over the past 2-3 years the local (mid-Hudson Valley, NY) shops that deal in used CDs have greatly expanded the book side of their business and significantly shrunk the CD side. [Added] Same shops also sell vinyl, which seems to be faring much better than CDs.