Joe M

I trust David more than those who are accusing him of cashing in.

I've been contacted by two different promoters. The problem is they are extremely expensive. $2500 for 8 weeks of promoting one record on 100 jazz stations. Considering our last disc cost $6000, including hiring Ron, studio time and mixing, and the cost of 1,000 discs, that's a lot of money. We broke even on our first run of 1,000 discs. We are not anywhere near breaking even on our second run. Add $2500 and we're further in the hole. It's just not possible unless we can get a label behind us. My immediate plan is to get the next CD (and the current one for that matter) in the hands of the guys that have syndicated shows, like Parlocha. We already got our record into the hands of Jim Wilke (who also listed the album as one of his top 2003 releases) and he's heard on over 60 NPR stations nationwide. Not bad. Bonnie Grice and Parlocha are the other big ones I'd like to get. Oh yes, I know it's terribly expensive and not likely to get you a lot of sales, but if you want airplay nationwide that's what it takes. But nationwide airplay isn't what a lot of artists really need - you need to ask yourself what your goal is and be reasonable. If you want to get "signed" to a label - you need to ask yourself why and if that is realistic. Jazz is a way to turn a big fortune into a small one very quickly. I know people who have spent 25k on a independent cd, radio, print promotion, and have little to nothing to show for it. Maybe that wasn't the right move for them.

If you're really interested in getting airplay you should at least consider hiring an outside promoter to work your record. Most of the jazz promoters are good people and you stand a lot better chance of getting airplay going through them than just sending out a cd to stations and following it up yourself, UNLESS you're really going to put in the time and effort needed to do a good promotional campaign and make the calls (lots of them) that you need to. There's a lot of JUNK that gets sent out to stations and you don't want your record to get lost in the junk, a promoter can help you there because they talk to the PD's and MD's every week and know them and what they like and don't like. Organ trio records often do well at radio, timing is the key though. Sometimes we won't have a new organ record for months, and then all of the sudden, there's three of them out at once. Also, since Jazzweek changed to the new monitoring system with data provided by Mediaguide the charts are VERY accurate, down to individual spins. The technology is amazing, they're able to detect each time a station plays one of your tracks. Of course this means you need to have your CD in the Mediaguide database too. PM me if you'd like more info and I'll also give you contact info for KFSR in Fresno, CA. http://www.kfsr.org (and check out our online interview with Dr. Lonnie Smith)

As one of the few people who apparently HAS seen this DVD, I'll say, I don't think Branford is trying to use ALS as his religious statement, or anything of the sort. He's approaching it as a composition, he even says so, talks about it quite a bit in the commentary. ALS can stand on it's own as a piece of music. Branford's not doing anything to take away from what Coltrane did, or from his faith or anything of the sort. BTW, Alice doesn't seem to be too "upset" about Branford playing her husband's prayer. I find that interesting.

I understand that people are very protective of things they feel strongly about, and I am well aware that people feel strongly about ALS and I understand why they feel that way. I will not though put ALS or any other music up on an almost glowing, spiritual pedastal, like some people would. If you believe that ALS was "given" to Coltrane by God, that's fine, or that he was somehow inhabited by the holy spirit during the writing and recording of ALS, but that's a matter of your own faith. I think ALS is Coltrane's expression of his religious feelings through his art, and yes, it should be treated with respect, but I will not worship Coltrane, or his music, no matter how great it is, or what sort of "spiritual" vibes you may get after listening to it. Instead I will appreciate it for what it is and leave it at that, and let anyone else feel whatever they'd like to in that regard. It may be a great, even profound expression of one man's journey and his faith, but in the end it is still, to me at least, music. Were he alive today, I think Coltrane would be appaled to know that there is (was) a "Church of Saint John Coltrane". To me, that's NOT what Coltrane was about, nor his music.

hmmm .... so Wynton was at the center of the jazz world - or was that Lincoln center .... am I missing anything? Exactly, Wynton's critics, in order to be able to tear him down and use him to explain away all of these other things and problems with the music, are actually building him up as a more important figure than he really is, which is what they accuse their opponents of doing. If Wynton didn't exist, his enemies would have to invent him.

I've read the liners to ALS, I've listened to it's hundreds of times, read the book, all that stuff. I know about the spiritual connection, all of that stuff. BUT, it's still just music, just like Handel's music is still just music, just like Bach is still just music, no matter the connection to faith. People want to make Coltrane a god, or some sort of deity. But the truth is he was a man, an immensly talented musician, who later in his career explored his faith through his music. And that's what it is, MUSIC. And clem - you write a lot but say little. (just like Wynton!) You're the one with the fascination with Marsalis here, bud. Paranoid people always need to construct a villan, and that's what all the Wynton haters have done. He's a way to explain away all the problems in jazz, why the music you like isn't heard, he's an outlet for your jealousy and envy. I understand it totally. It's not a very healthy outlook though! And by the way I didn't spend a dime on the ALS DVD. It was sent to me for review. I would reccomend it to most jazz fans, even those who hate Wynton, because I think it's pretty good.

Clem we all know you don't like the Marsalises and have some sort of deep, seething, loathing for them - but that tells us a lot more about you than it does about Wynton and Branford. We all have read the anti-Wynton threads - but how about talking about THIS music, made by Wynton's brother? Not the marketing, not the record deals, not the TIME articles, but about this recording of ALS? I know that can be difficult, and requires one to have actually heard the music. And about ALS. It's a piece of music. That's it. It's a great piece of music, but it's still a composition, and in that sense no different than something by Bach or Mahler or Kenny Dorham. Let whoever wants to, do whatever they want, becasue it doesn't change the original. If what they do turns out badly, they're the ones who will have to live with it. It's not going to sully Coltrane's legacy. Like Kenny G and his "jazz" album - it made him look stupid, but does anyone think it really has tarnished the reputation of Louis Armstrong? Bad taste - yes. A crime - not one I care to prosecute, though I'm sure some in the jazz police will. I think part of the problem in another jazz artist recording ALS is that the composition and original recording) are connected in a way that is more so than even something by Ellington, or Monk or Mingus. I'm not saying that ALS cannot stand up on it's own as a composition, but that recording of it is so much a part of the piece itself, THAT'S what makes it tough for anyone else to cover, more so than say Lush Life, or Giant Steps, or Crescent.

Not half as much of a "waste of time" as a brilliant post such as yours. It's just music, ok? If you don't like it, fine, that's WONDERFUL. You could critique it rather than hurl insults, but well, that would be too difficult. I'd rather hear Branford play ALS any day over reading a vulgar post such as yours. Talk about a waste of "cerebration".

This is a totally different recording from the one on "Footsteps". Much better I think. And fans of jazz DVD's will love this. Excellent camera work and editing do a better job of capturing a jazz group than almost any I've seen before. I've heard clips of the LCJO ALS album. It's interesting, though I know the Wynton haters won't like it.

Don't follow that link - it will try to install spyware/adware.

Land of Giants is one of McCoy's best albums in the last few years. It's a lot better than his new one w/ Terence, Gary Bartz and Lewis Nash, which on paper looks great but to my ears, doesn't really do what Land of Giants does, musically.

It has a kind of bootleg feel to it, that's my first impression at least. It's not my fav Mehldau record, a little live solo piano can go along way. Not bad though. LONG tunes.

Buy a used Tundra if you like buying premium gas. The Nissan Titan has been out only a year, and besides being FUGLY, it has a very high number of problems.

Smokin!!!

Yeah, this is a really good album. Ballads, but not standards. One of Branford's strongest.

I like the swing sessions best, but the ballads may be better, regardless - how can you get better than Frank in the Capitol years?

Well, it looks like bassist John Clayton has been hired to fill this job as I understand it. John is a great guy, and while I can understand people being upset about the way they treated Bud Shank, you couldn't ask for a better person to run such an project.

He plays his own stuff.

Clark is the only guy alive today who could get away with doing this and not get laughed out of the room. (though I wouldn't be shocked if Wynton tried it). The Chicago Jazz Ensemble does an excellent job with the Gil Evans charts. Clark sounds very good, if not great at points. Much better at 84 playing this material than Miles did with Quincy at Montreux at the end. It is oddly fascinating to hear another trumpet player tackle this music with these charts, I never thought I'd care to hear it, and while this record won't make you throw away the Miles/Gil version, it is interesting, as an exercise, and as a vehicle to hear Terry's wonderful sound.

I like Nocture a little more than this one, but it's very good, with unique material.

My sources tell me to expect a Cybill Shepherd "jazz" record later this year...

Natalie is on the right, though Amanda Beard looks pretty good too! B-)