T.D.

Listened (twice) to discs 5-7 of JJ. Also very good, some differences from discs 1-4. More bluesy and extroverted arrangements, sidemen also include Freddie Hubbard and Clifford Jordan. It's a fine package. Apparently the set was always a slow seller for some (presumably extra-musical) reasons.

The music and playing are very good. Stylistically, many of the arrangements (IMO) remind me of Gigi Gryce. Main thing is (and it's my opinion of many J J releases), it's overall on the "restrained" side of hard bop, almost like West Coast Jazz (which I like) sound in many places, not a lot of burners or hard-swinging pieces. Nothing against Bobby Jaspar (who's on almost all of the sessions) or Tommy Flanagan (who's on the majority), they're in excellent form. I listened to the first 4 (of 7) discs last night, which have mostly Elvin, sometimes Max on drums. The last 3 discs add Nat Adderley on most sessions and substitute mostly Cedar Walton on piano (sometimes Victor Feldman), drummer mostly Tootie Heath. Discs 5-7 are more assertive in places. Overall it's a really nice set, subject to the "restrained" proviso.

Following it up with one of my Mosaics whose price has cratered in the secondary market.

Can't say right now. Looked like a no-brainer based on the personnel, but the 2 tracks posted on bandcamp didn't slay me on a cursory listen. That collection thread on the Mosaic sub-forum is making me reassess collecting recordings, and I may get much more selective...🤔 I will have to listen to the 2 available Youtube tracks from their only album:

Sep. 20, DL/vinyl/cd Don't know whether to call it a reissue or new release, will say reissue due to vintage: INCREDIBLE LONG-LOST PERFORMANCE BY THE MYTHICAL BLACK ARTIST GROUP RECORDED LIVE IN PARIS, 1972. THESE RECORDINGS ARE BAG'S FIRST OFFICIAL RELEASE IN 50 YEARS AND ONLY THEIR SECOND ALBUM - ISSUED IN COLLABORATION WITH THE GROUP AND INA. LIMITED LP EDITION WITH 20 PAGE BOOKLET. REMASTERED FROM THE ORIGINAL TAPES. https://wewantsounds.bandcamp.com/album/for-peace-and-liberty-in-paris-dec-1972

RIP, definitely a character. I never heard that much of his music, and that via radio rather then recordings, but I read two of his (1980s) mystery novels. They weren't bad, but I didn't keep up with KF's writing and never noticed that he wrote many more books.

Only takes a few keystrokes to investigate this... https://aaronjohnsonjazz.bandcamp.com/

I'm in the "underwhelmed by San Francisco" camp, IMO the weakest of the Land-Hutcherson collaborations I own. Also very light on the '70s material and passed on the Select...combination of clips I've heard and general scepticism about the era. Maybe should reconsider, since I've expanded my horizons over the past few years.

+1. That single disc will be added to my "synthetic" box set. Now! must have been left out of the Mosaic because of the vocals?

👏

True. But no credit to the piano tuner or lack thereof...

This was cheap, only 1,000 yen but shipped from Japan so part of bulk purchase. Strange record indeed, but I find Lennie kind of weird so no surprise there. I like Lennie's overdubbing - for instance I recently listened to a bunch of Conlon Nancarrow's player piano music - and enjoy it on other (Tristano) recordings too. OTOH, I recall not enjoying Bill Evans's overdubs...haven't listened for ages so will have to try them again. Drummer Nick Stabulas on two of the trio selections (Roy Haynes is on the other two, no problems there but he's low in the mix) sounds strange and kind of heavy on the cymbals, but I overall like the trio tunes because they're not as motoric/metronomic as some Lennie trios can sound. Along those lines, I just reread an Ethan Iverson essay on Tristano that has interesting observations on Lennie's rhythm sections among other things.

That one's on the agenda for tomorrow! Meanwhile,

This slipped under the radar and I just noticed it. [Tubby's Kingston] Tashi Dorji / Dave Rempis + MATCHESS (feat HALEY FOHR & LULA ASPLUND) Wednesday, June 19, 2024 7:00 PM 11:00 PM In anticipation of alter ego albums Hav/Stena to be released on Drag City in September 2024, Matchess (AKA Whitney Johnson) enlists Haley Fohr (AKA Circuit des Yeux) and Lula Asplund to turn down the energetic temperature and settle into a mellow expansion of sound. With three marimbas, sine waves, viola, voices, and electronics, the trio will invite us to experience sonic doubles in our bodies and minds. Their individual practices in experimental music, sound art, and performance will invoke the “two against three” principle to alchemize a fresh collaboration on this tour of the American East. Saxophonist, improviser, and composer Dave Rempis has been an integral part of the thriving Chicago jazz and improvised music scene since 1997. With a background in ethnomusicology and African studies at Northwestern University, including a year spent at the University of Ghana, Rempis burst onto the creative music scene at the age of 22 when he was asked to join the now-legendary Chicago jazz outfit The Vandermark Five. This opportunity catapulted him to notoriety as he began to tour regularly throughout the US and Europe, an active schedule that he still maintains to the present day. Joining Dave is Tashi Dorji a Bhutanese guitarist and improvisational musician known for his avant-garde and experimental (read: deeply gnarly, finely arty) approach to music. Tashi’s idiosyncratic take on the instrument, one defined by movement and profound openness to technique, adds up to a post-colonial disembowelment of guitar traditions that stands Tashi next de- and re-constructionist giants as various as Derek Bailey, John Fahey and Bill Orcutt.

Classic OG recording...I have only the more recent P-H Chen on Telos.

The label's website also ships worldwide: https://www.nobusinessrecords.com/rivbea-live!-series-volume-1-sam-rivers-kalaparusha-mcintyre-malashi-thompson.html

I searched with Google Lens. It's a promotional picture ("lobby card") for the film Truth or Dare. Photographer was Steven Meisel, but I could find no other credits. I've not seen the film and never will. 😉 Madonna is a taste I never acquired.