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From my recollection the sound on the Stevens is a little rough, but the playing very good.

A big strong HELL YEAH on that one! Thanks for the heads-up. I'll add this to my list. I looked at it on Amazon a moment ago and there's no real info. I don't recognize the cats. Also, where's the Cellar? The Cellar is in Vancouver and I heartily join in the praise on the Cellar Live date.

Agreed. I purchased that set when it first came out and listened to all five discs in one sitting right away. That box set enhanced my appreciation of Lyones exponentially. Before that, the only Lyons I heard was with Cecil Taylor. Since, I have purchased several of his other dates as a leader and can really hear just how significant he was. I also recommend the Henry Grimes trio recording with David Murray and Hamid Drake. Excellent listening experience.

Yes, as far as I know it is legit. Some nice titles on the label - which I believe focuses on live recordings. The owner, Jan Strom, has also compiled what is arguably the definitive Jimmy Lyons discography.

That compilation was actually released a couple of years ago. A few familiar Barron tunes and the playing throughout is very good.

That is a shock. I just heard him live a couple of weeks ago in Hartford playing with bassist Nat Reeves. My prayers go out to the family.

Thanks Nate. I have enjoyed the couple of Hess recordings I heard previously. This looks like something I may enjoy as well.

I obviously do not have the experience of others here and I have yet to write a review with the insight and clarity I am striving for. So, I will use this as an educational opportunity. I am open to all comments. This was published in Jazz Improv, Vol. 7, No.3 Summer 2007 ==================== Jerome Sabbagh POGO – BEE JAZZ Records: Licensed to Sunnyside Communications SCC 1166. www.sunnysiderecords.com. Middle Earth; Rooftops; Moon/Sun; Stand Up; Pogo; As One; Hamra; Eye of the Storme. PERSONNEL: Jerome Sabbagh, tenor and soprano saxophone; Ben Monder, guitar; Joe Martin, bass; Ted Poor, drums. By Ronald Lyles Like many of his peers, Paris born saxophonist Jerome Sabbagh has a difficult task in trying to distinguish himself amongst the glut of thirty-something, academically trained, New York City based saxophonists trying to be heard by the jazz public. On his second recording as a leader, Pogo, Sabbagh displays commendable talents as a saxophonist and composer while producing a program of consistently well performed music. The only concern is whether Sabbagh has developed a recognizable original voice or a sufficiently strong group identity to differentiate Sabbagh and Pogo from his likeminded contemporaries producing similar recordings. Accompanying Sabbagh on Pogo are guitarist Ben Monder - who seems to be one of the three or four guitarists of choice at the moment - bassist Joe Martin and drummer Ted Poor. All eight of the tunes on the recording were written by Sabbagh. Overall there is an appealing variety in the moods and grooves of the compositions that allow all four of the musicians to flaunt the range of their skills. A subliminal inspiration may be John Scofield’s very successful early nineties quartet featuring Joe Lovano, but at times Sabbagh’s quartet hints at parallels to the more recent Kurt Rosenwinkel-Mark Turner collaborations. Sabbagh plays throughout in a relaxed and controlled manner with an emphasis on well constructed statements. The many sides of Monder are prominently featured, and drummer Ted Poor’s contributions in laying down the grooves and pushing the soloists often draw the listener’s attention. “Middle Earth” is a solid opening to the recording, which foretells much of what will follow. Over a medium-up tempo groove and Poor’s propulsive polyrhythmic drumming, Monder, Sabbagh and then Martin all play thoughtful solos. This is followed by the slinky funk inspired groove of “Rooftops”, one of the stronger performances on the recording. Sabbagh and Monder both take concise solos that flow nicely with the rhythm of the tune. “Moon/Sun” and the later Egyptian flavored “Hamra” are the two features for Sabbagh’s soprano saxophone playing. His approach on the straight horn is less appealing than his playing on tenor, but is nonetheless serviceable and ultimately effective for the tunes the soprano is featured. The mood on “Moon/Sun” is somewhat quiet and reflective and Sabbagh’s soprano enhances that mood. “Stand Up” and “As One” are two additional standouts in a similar zone as “Rooftops”. Together these tracks reveal that Sabbagh is most effective on somewhat lazy mid tempo pieces where his thoughts are ordered and the lines flow comfortably from his horn. His playing contains a good balance of the expressive qualities of the horn with a recognizable logic in his improvisations. “As One” gets the edge as the strongest track on the disc. After a reserved introduction the tune settles into an easy stroll for Sabbagh’s solo. After Sabbagh, Monder creates one of his better statements on the disc. The tempo evolves slightly as the tune continues highlighted by the tension between the overall laid back groove of the tune and Poor’s hyperactively agitated drumming. There is a strong feeling that Poor will burst out and overwhelm the rest of the proceedings at any moment, but to Poor’s credit it never happens. Pogo is certain to appeal to many listeners who favor straight-ahead playing. Sabbagh shows considerable talent and gives reason to expect a lot from him in the future. As he matures and continues to develop, possibly more of his individuality will be incorporated into his music and a personal voice will emerge to allow him to stand apart from the rest of the pack.

Great idea for a thread Bill. You know I credit you with starting my Von Freeman obsession. Maybe if I get a little confidence I will post one of my reviews that has been published by Jazz Improv.

At the moment I am enjoying a CDR of the radio broadcast of Zim Ngqawana's performance at the 2002 North Sea Jazz Festival. Decided to do a check to see what may have been said here previously and came up with a couple of references in the South African jazz thread. Anybody able to recommend any of his recordings in particular>

Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes. Spent a day of quiet reflection at home today. I don't work for the man on my birthday!

It isn't actually called a genius grant, that is just what people have come to refer to it as. It is pretty awesome, though. Imagine picking up the phone one day, and the person on the other line says hello, you are being awarded $500,000, no strings attached, for being original, insightful, and having potential for greatness. Here are how they are picked: MaccArthur Grant Thank you. That description helps the understanding significantly.

Zenon is a very good saxophonist. I first heard him with David Sanchez and subsequently with the Mingus Big Band, SFJAZZ Collective and his own projects. Despite my fondness for his playing, I do wonder what it is about him that merits a "genius grant", but I guess that can be said about recipients of any award. So I will just say congratulations to Mr. Zenon.

The link to order took me to amazon.com, where both CDs are available for pre-order (Sept. 30 release). Thanks. I preordered it.

Forgot to mention that I am working on a Bunky Green discography that I hope to complete and get published on jazzdiscography.com soon. Because he has been tucked away in education for so long his output is not nearly as significant as someone with his talent deserves.

Thanks for the info.

Since last night I have already listened to this one a couple of times and I am really enjoying it. I agree that Another Place is excellent as well. A few of the tunes from that recording are also featured on the new disc and it is interesting to hear how they are developed in a live context.

I just received this one in the mail today. It is a recording of Bunky's performance at the 2007 JazzBaltica with Carsten Daerr on piano, bassist Eva Kruse and drummer Nasheet Waits. I previously had a DVDR of the German television broadcast and was immediately impressed with Daerr and Kruse - both of whom I was unfamiliar with. It has recently been released on the German Traumton Records label and it sounds great!. This band stretches a little further than some of the other groups Green had toured with in the past couple of years. Worth searching out. I ordered it direct from the label and received it within a week. The charge to my credit card including shipping was about $26.00 (19.55 euros).

Why can't I see where I can order that CD?

Renowned jazz musician Bheki Mseleku has died at the age of 53 after a long battle with diabetes, Arts and Culture Minister Pallo Jordan said on Wednesday. Famous SA jazz man mourned by musicians

I have often been frustrated by the sound quality at some live performances I have attended. Most of the venues in my area that I have attended concerts have less than ideal sound. Most of the time it has to do with the room, but very often the amplification system is poor as well.

I am probably a wannabe audiophille. For years I have had some level of interest and have on occassion even subscribed to the high end magazines such as The Absolute Sound and Stereophille. My budget, however, has never allowed me to pursue it and now with three children under the age of ten I doubt I will be able to really check it out any time soon. In any event, I have never really been disappointed in my NAD 314 ntegrated amp and NAD 522 CD Player, Kenwood KD-500 turntable with a Profile II arm and Grado cartridge and KEF bookshelf speakers. The speakers are not actually connected to the system right now because of space reasons in our living room, but the truth is that over the past few years I have rarely had the opprtunity to have the ideal listening experience on my system as I have to be considerate of all the other people that seem to always be in my home - another reason not to get into high end audio at this time. No sense in spending all that money on equipment that I will hardly get to hear. For now, when I do listen to my system it is pretty much done with my Grado SR-60 headphones.

I believe he is.

Related note: Lightcap is in metro Detroit for the next three nights with Gerald Cleaver's Violet Hour, also with two reeds, J.D. Allen and Andrew Bishop. Tonight in Ann Arbor at the Kerrytown Concert House and Friday and Saturday at Baker's Keyboard Lounge in Detroit. The band also played at last weekend's jazz festival here in Detroit, where they were smokin.' Heard them at The Hungry Brain in Chicago last Saturday night. A good deal of talent onstand (Bishop in particular IMO, though an aquaintance found him too slick), but after a few pieces Allen and Cleaver gave me a headache. Cleaver is f------- loud, while Allen's lines have a difficult-to-evade forcefulness but a good deal less rhythmic/melodic variety than I would wish. At times I felt like he was laying down strips of asphalt. How old is Allen? If he's no longer in his 20s, I'm not optimistic about future growth. I heard Cleaver's group this summer and had a more positive response. Cleaver is also known for his associations with many of the "cutting edge" musicians in NYC, but his own group is surprisingly much more low key. Pelt was not there the night I heard them either - instead Duane Eubanks (who arrived late) played with the group. I agree that Bishop did seem to be the highlighted musician in the group, but overall I thought everyone played well.

McHenry is a solid player. I heard him live a couple of weeks ago in a group he colead with trumpeter John McNeil. Impressive performance.