Joe

And, on another note, any opinions on this date?

RVG was the engineer on the Hotchkiss date, but I thought the Nippon cd edition sounded good enough (don't know who mastered the cd's). But I also don't have the original Savoy record to compare it with either. I really don't know what you are trying to get at with these "watered down" remarks. How do you EXPECT him to sound? Couldn't it be that what you hear really was Wallington's style at that particular moment, including his melodic side that may be too "easy" to listen to for some? Do you expect 50s jazz piano to be a hard, hard, hard bop attack all the way, or even Bud Powell-like (in his more disturbed moments )? Listen to his Prestige recordings and you will find that overall there is a straight line in his recordings, with some obvious variations (like with everybody else). I also find he was best served in trio settings, and horns tended to overshadow him a bit (including on the Bohemia date) but still he was his own man IMO. At any rate, among bop pianists, I'd rank George Wallington in a class of his own (along with Al Haig and Dodo Marmarosa) quite apart from the Bud Powell school. And there is AMPLE room for pianists off the Bud Powell tracks IMO. (BTW: If George Wallington isn't percussive enough for you, try some Eddie Costa for a change ). I meant only that, as recorded / served by engineers, he sounds a bit watered-down to me. Or, as you note, a bit overwhelmed by the horns. I did not mean to say I think of Wallington as a watered-down player... as I thought was clear from my earlier comments. (BTW, I am quite familiar with GW's Prestige trios, and the early BN's; less so the Savoy sides.) One of the aspects of Wallington's work that fascinates me -- and deserves greater attention, I believe -- is that he made important early contributions to the hard bop style, beyond working with young musicians who went on to be major voices in that idiom, without himself ever compromising or losing the distinctive touch and tone he could get from his instrument. Maybe it would help if I posed a general question. Could it be that certain pianists from this era simply did not "show up" on tape as well as others because the recording technology and proclivities of the time did them less favors than other pianists? And could it be that Wallington, a superb and historically significant player, was one of these pianists? (That's all.)

Why would you wonder that about him, in particular? On the other hand (perhaps), Wallington's approach, especially in terms of touch and attack, changed a good deal from his early trio days (brilliant and attractively brittle) to the more rounded, mellow, almost Hank Jones-like approach of '56 and the next few years (perhaps a bit "dumpy" rhythmically, even a tad cocktail-ish at times, if you don't dig that kind of thing), and then, after a long gap (I believe) away from recording, on those late solo albums his approach is very rich and full and two-handed strong -- absolutely gorgeous from a pianistic point of view IIRC. Just have felt -- and it is that intuitive -- that recordings served him poorly in his bop-era prime. Even a later 50's dates like JAZZ AT HOTCHKISS (an RVG recording?) finds him sounding strangely watered-down, from what I recall. The 80s date with which I'm familiar is THE SYMPHONY OF A JAZZ PIANO (Denon) and I agree... there's a puissance there -- but also a calm -- that I don't recall from earlier performances.

I really wonder what he sounded like in person.

Wallington is a fascinating pianist IMO. Fleet, with that Powell-esque intensity (and not so much of Al Haig's precision) but -- then again -- leavened by what sounds to me like a rather light touch. Sometimes in listening to his recordings I've felt like they've lacked a certain "body"... but closer listening has tended to reveal a pianist with a unique sense of the lyrical. He gets lost a bit in mix on this recording (1955 and location recording = many vagaries). McLean and Byrd play well here, doing their "pecking" thing to probably its bet results on record. Yet I like this date primarily for the extended view it provides of Wallington's work.

Yes, yes, it is a BN cover, but its a Miles design I'd not seen before, and -- typographical play aside -- so uncharacteristic of the work for which he's best known...

Webster Young, FOR LADY I believe this is the same location used for the cover photo of Joe Henderson's PAGE ONE -- anyone know where this is (more likely, "was")?

When did the Rollins WORKTIME design go from being magenta to light green?

Digging the conga. Annd the next day, as it turned out... it really was morning in America after all.

That's the Western canonical / concert music-as-ideal tradition: listening requires a certain kind of attention, is essentially intellectual in nature: listening as a gateway to being awed. But one of the things about jazz that made it vital was its offering an alternative to and commentary on -- and not even consciously -- to the dualism implied by Western art music (and, really, only a gradual and late-arriving development in the history of same). You can and do listen with your entire body; sensation and perception are not wholly brain activities; not every profound experience needs to be sublime and eternal and rational. The jazz I still enjoy, and listen to, is still in the spirit of these alternatives. As long as there is "true" improvising going on, I'm down. The great thing about the contemporary music scene, IMO, is that improvisation is so highly valued in it, and across a whole range of genres and practices. Jazz, then -- only not as Teachout understands it = victim of its own influence.

Apple seems to be working on adding this content to their digital music offerings... http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/28129982-7a18-11...144feabdc0.html

How nasty was he?

And LOVE CRY WANT too, of course.

A couple of possibly oddball recommendations which I think will nevertheless have so appeal for those inclined (vocals are involved)... Burnt Sugar [Greg Tate's ensemble], MAKING LOVE TO THE DARK AGES Jandek, MANHATTAN TUESDAY The Corwood representative on Korg synths, set / tuned to evoke Miles' GET UP WITH IT organ (I think), plus Loren Connors on guitar, Matt Heyner on bass, and Chris Corsano on drums. A bit of a stretch, but, IMO, descended at least in mood and tone from Miles' darkest 70s work.

Jerry Gonzalez and his Fort Apache Band have recorded several fine sessions in this vein. Perhaps the best (IMO) is OBATALA on Enja. Great arrangement of Monk's "Evidence" on display. Also, Hilton Ruiz's Novus dates, especially SOMETHING GRAND, with Sam Rivers guesting and A MOMENT'S NOTICE, with Kenny Garret and George Coleman.

Nena? 1, not 99. One more: John Carter's SUITE OF EARLY AMERICAN FOLK PIECES (solo calrinet) on Moers

Solo bass? I'll toss in a recommendation for John Lindberg's tribute to David Izenon, LUMINOSITY.

Two solo reed sessions that are easily -- if unjustly -- overlooked: + Sonny Simmons, JEWELS (Boxholder) + Joe McPhee, TENOR (Hat)

What are you enjoying about VINELAND in particular? If its the "subject matter", I would recommend either CRYING OF LOT 49 or the new one, all situated in and in some sense about the same time and place. But if you just want to read more late-period Pynchonian excellence, I would recommend MASON AND DIXON.

Some supplementary reading: Robert Goolrick, “Pieces of Pynchon” In 1978 Robert Goolrick, author of the 2007 memoir The End of the World as We Know It and the new novel A Reliable Wife, attempted to locate Thomas Pynchon. He detailed his efforts in the article below, “Pieces of Pynchon,” which originally appeared in the October 16, 1978 issue of New Times magazine. http://americanfiction.wordpress.com/2009/...ces-of-pynchon/

Check out the track "Cecilitis" on MISTER MYSTERIOUS. Wonderful tribute to / gentle ribbing of Cecil Taylor.

Promising, isn't it?

http://www.ninetyninecentdreams.com/ Won't be to everyone's tastes, but I heard this duo's WINNING ON ALL FRONTS recently and found their mix of contemporary rhythms and Shepp-like "rhetoric" (the best word I can come up with to describe what I like best about Archie's mid- to late-60's work: fulminating, yes, but also very canny in his use of specific musical discourses) worth an audition. A little bit of Mwandishi here too in the more purely electronic tracks... Besides, you can stream their entire recorded output (so far) for free online. My pick: "Messenger Of Death".

My mother swears Malt-O-Meal works -- the ants eat it, it swells in the belly, ruptured digestive track, done. The efficacy of this remedy has not been confirmed, however. Also, if you'd rather avoid chemical pesticides... http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=123