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DrJ

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Posts posted by DrJ

  1. Belatedly seeing this news. Another giant gone.

    A sad, sad physical loss for all of us, but as others have said, his music is timeless and lives on. Hopefully he's at peace now.

    Think I'll spin his Savoy dates with Milt Jackson tonight and have a drink in remembrance.

  2. Well, I shared some of the trepidation but I'm not going to make any comments until I actually see and hear the product. Mosaic's vinyl has always been high quality in the past, so I will give them the benefit of the doubt until problems are apparent.

    Also: while the general comment about sound quality is reassuring, it's after all quite an old live recording and that could mean that fundamental limitations in the source tapes might trump any "finer" problems with the mode of vinyl production.

    So just too early to call it yet for me!

  3. IN 'N' OUT is my all-time sentimental favorite, the first of Henderson's 60s Blue Note recordings I ever bought. Someone commented on the band sounding not quite all together, but I'd spin it this way: it sounds like they just showed up, pealed off the sport jackets, ran through the high points of the tunes quickly in preparation, and then just DOVE IN without over-thinking it, falling back on their (excellent) instincts.

    For example, I love how Dorham and Joe aren't ever quite on sync during the (chop busting) melody portion of the title track...it sounds, well, REAL - not overly rehearsed or worked out, basically like you're in a club and the musicians have spontaneously decided to just go for some fairly tricky tunes they once played together but haven't rehearsed into submission.

    So there's a wildness, a looseness, an on-the-edge thing in IN 'N' OUT, that ISN'T heard on any of the other Henderson Blue Notes (great though they are).

    Also, just carefully listening to the remarkably on-form and unbelievably powerful rhythm section througout IN 'N' OUT alone is a wonderful way to spend an hour.

    Finally, doesn't hurt that the compositions, loose though many are, are uniformly superb.

    I love that recording.

  4. Well, having had a chance to listen to the Fuller QLP set for a while, I can weigh in with a hearty "thumbs up." Let me first say the CD set was no slouch - the LPs have the edge, though not by a ton. Basically, it's all in the details. All the instruments just sound more real and present. Fuller's 'bone benefits most of all - there's a richness and visceral presence lacking from the CDs.

    In fact the LP set fidelity is so good you can actually hear some of the flaws in the original master tapes that aren't as readily revealed on the CDs. This is most noteworthy on side 1, where you can hear some distortion (sounds like the tapes were recorded just a little too hot, even hotter than was RVG's norm, plus there's some tape wear/aging issues). Still, these are very minor distractions given that overall the sound and resolution is superior.

    Also worth mentioning that this set was dead Near Mint condition just as advertised by good ole Euclid Records. Close to Mint.

    A winner.

  5. If you have a bead on the Mosaic for $60, do not hesitate, grab it. That's a fantastic price for a great set.

    One personal opinion - as much as I love Louis' story telling, I actually don't think the spoken intros on the AUTOBIOGRAPHY set are particularly interesting, in fact they're even mostly boring to me...they don't exactly sound like they're being read from a script but they are generally quite bland and generic sounding compared to, say, Louis' engaging live stage show patter (even the bits that he did over and over for years, somehow he managed to keep those fresh sounding). So personally I don't think one is missing anything important by those having been excised on the Mosaic.

    Grab that Mosaic set...best $60 you'll ever spend.

  6. Honestly if it's truly only VG condition in terms of how it plays, not really a great deal IMHO. Not a bad price either, but a true VG (per Goldmine rating) is kinda trashed audio wise.

    However, if it LOOKS VG but plays VG+ or NM on the other hand then you got yourself quite a deal!

    Do let us know.

  7. Hey, personally I don't think you could find a better showing than the recording TONAL WEIGHTS AND BLUE FIRE, under the leadership of trombonist Frank Lacy and recorded for the Tutu label (I believe a subsidiary of Enja in Germany, but not sure). Carvin is ALL OVER that one, those two guys make a really great combination. The music touches on "out" at times but is fundamentally not avant garde IMHO. This is one of my favorite jazz recordings in the "nobody's ever heard of it" category.

    Last I checked this CD was available from Cadence (www.cadencebuilding.com), otherwise quite hard to find.

  8. One of the few jazz artists I've had the pleasure to meet personally...after a show with McCoy Tyner's Big Band at the Blue Note in Greenwich Village. What a warm, genuinely kind man, in addition to his obvious talent. Damn, I'll miss him.

  9. Jazzmoose Posted Today, 12:15 PM

     

    Rod posts his one liner about contraception, and then porcy tells us about a Klimax amp?

    *Ahem*  Sorry; I'm feeling particularly goofy today, I guess...

    It must be Bechet's piercing (giggle giggle) soprano on that SUMMERTIME CD that has turned your brain to mush, Mark! :crazy:

  10. Now you guys have me curious, I don't seem to remember any signature from "Boxman" on my set but it definitely has the Tristano "bonus" single in picture sleeve (it's not an EP). I'll have to look when I get home.

    I also never recall hearing that the Tristano single was only included in the first run of boxes...it doesn't really make sense to me that they'd do it that way to be honest, why sell later copies that would be 2 tracks shy of complete - are you sure?

  11. I dig it, at least most of it...no QLPs for me sadly, sidewinder, but good-sounding CDs! :D

    I have no major heartburn with Kenton in general, unlike many.

    To me it's admirable that he was so willing to go his own sometimes odd way, to stand apart from the crowd, even when at times the concepts were with hindsight overly ponderous or just plain goofy. For example, who else in that era would have given Graettinger the kind of exposure Kenton gave him (I know that's from after the material in this particular Mosaic box but just making a point, he gave LOTS of people a chance when others may not have)???

    To put it another way: there's an old baseball quote attributed to Lou Brock that goes something like "Show me a guy who's afraid to look bad and I'll show you a guy I can beat every time."

    Kenton was a guy who wasn't afraid to look bad. He had some laugh-out-loud failures but also a lot of successes as a bandleader as a result of his chance-taking and die hard individualism IMHO, and many of both are in this boxed set.

  12. But I do know one thing - unfortunately, if you don't or haven't pledged you don't have much of a say in the matter. This goes for all public radio.

    gps

    I'm a perennial supporter (with pledges) of public radio, for what it's worth. I do it because I think it's the right thing to do, but I'm not at all sure that really gives me any more of a voice than anyone else though (nor am I sure that people who don't pledge basically should feel they have to "put up or shut up").

    In fact I'm sure my contributions don't give me any more clout than non-pledgers. How are the two connected? It's not like when I send in my pledge check I get to pick the play list for one of the local station's jazz shows, heck they don't even ask me for my opinions on what should be played.

  13. I've been pleased as punch with my Ikea Billy shelving with CD inserts...they hold something like 700-800 CDs per unit, are well built, and because of the way the inserts are designed the weight of the CDs won't make the shelves sag (even though they're the usual particle board)...at least mine haven't after about 3 years of continuous use.

    If they're going to be placed in a "cosmetically sensitive" area of the house they even have various finishes and the option of frosted glass doors. Last of all, you can get an additional top unit that makes an ideal place to store/display any of the LP-sized boxed set outer covers you have.

    Look here for more info/pricing/options: IKEA Billy

    I wall mounted mine to eliminate chance of tipping.

  14. Oh one more thing, I had nothing to do with your less than red carpet welcome here...I'm sorry people jumped on you but that wasn't me, I was fine with having you here and enjoying the discussion until you got sarcastic and baited me.

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