Joe

The thread that keeps on giving... been looking forward to the reappearance of this material for quite some time.

Thanks Chuck. This is wonderful news indeed... nice to see James Newton's name on a new release as well.

By John McWhorter / CITY JOURNAL [snippet] Will Marion Cook is a name to reckon with in the history of black American music. “His great genius will always be a guiding star to those of us who remain,” black violinist Clarence Cameron White wrote on hearing of Cook’s death. Trumpeter Arthur Briggs called Cook “the greatest real musician ever.” Duke Ellington and Eubie Blake praised him as a mentor. [/snippet] Link to complete article

Yes, a label very worthy of your support. By all means, snag the Jimmy Lyons box set while its still available.

And... if you can cram almost the entire album credits in your 'do... that's impressive styling...

Alright, its past time I compiled one of these... would the keeper of the schedule please pencil me in for the next available slot? Thanks, JM

A) Stein was definitely "a mother". B) She's about as nurturing as a wire monkey momma. C) She may have mothered us all.

Seems to me so much of what we consider art (insert your own definition here) "happens" somewhere between regularity and surprise. As to what counts as either... well, my own experience has taught me that both shift over time. Just as perceptions do, and as those perceiving live, grow, change, and, one trusts, gain wisdom. In other words, if one does not find enough regularity / order in a particular instance of cultural production, one is likely to consider it formless, or amateurish, or "bad". But the presence of too much regularity / order often leads one to conclude that the thing encountered is boring, more of the same, lacking in excitement, etc. Or, as Gertrude Stein once said (then wrote): (from Composition As Explanation, 1926)

Just this afternoon I listened to Charles Dodge's EARTH'S MAGNETIC FIELD -- an old Nonesuch commission -- for the first time in over a decade. Still intriguing, and oddly moving.

The Omnitone store also has a selection of these still available for purchase. http://www.omnitone.com/store/label-blacksaint.htm http://www.omnitone.com/store/label-soulnote.htm

Seconded. Big fan of all versions of this group... I may even prefer to edition with Charles Burnham in the violin chair, which, alas, did not record for BS / SN. (Their two Stash discs = superb.) But the Regina Carter edition did, and BLUES... is a fine effort. Somewhat related: John Lindberg's DIMENSION 5; subtract Emery (g) but add Hugh Ragin, Marty Ehrlich and Thurman Barker.

Some relatively obscure BS / SN dates worth investigating... Glenn Horiuchi, OXNARD BEET Wayne Horvitz / Butch Morris / William Parker, SOME ORDER LONG UNDERSTOOD TOM VARNER QUARTET Ellery Eskelin, THE SUN DIED Tony Oxley, THE ENCHANTED MESSENGER John Carter, DAUWHE Amina Claudine Myers, THE CIRCLE OF TIME

Some favorites not yet mentioned... Lacy / Rudd, REGENERATION Billy Bang, VALVE NO. 10 Frank Lowe, EXOTIC HEARTBREAK Leroy Jenkins Sting!, URBAN BLUES Guido Manusardi, THE VILLAGE FAIR Roscoe Mitchell, 3 X 4 EYE Andrew Cyrille, X-MAN Baikida Carroll, SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS John Lindberg, QUARTET AFTERSTORM Barry Altschul, IRINA

Yes, absolutely. Especially fond of his trumpet work. Was first -- and still am -- impressed by his playing on those Richard Bock-produced Elmo Hope tracks from 1957 that Blue Note tacked on to the CD reissue of TRIO AND QUINTET. Have since tracked down some of his leader dates on Bethlehem; the music there is slightly more "polite", but there are sparks (Charlie Mariano is a frequent partner on these recordings). Speaking of Mariano... Williamson was of course an integral part of the Shelly Manne quintets that recorded for Contemporary in the mid-50s. I presume you own or have heard SWINGING SOUNDS, MORE SWINGING SOUNDS, and THE GAMBIT?

Arthur Blythe also appears on Jeff Palmer's EASE ON and ISLAND UNIVERSE. Palmer has also recorded with George Garzone on a pretty obscure but pretty fabulous disc entitled OPPOSITE VOLTAGE. On his 2000 Steeplechase release PRIDE, Lee Konitz is backed on a couple of tracks by organ (George Colligan).

Particularly fond of this recording: Incredibly inventive compositions and arrangements, and lyrically very much in the Antropófago tradition. (And isn't jazz, as a "form", pretty cannibalistic too?)

I'm a fan of the 2 Trees LPs, GARDEN OF JANE DELAWNEY and ON THE SHORE. Very indebted to the Fairport aesthetic, but there's slightly more "rock" -- thus a little more shading and grit -- here than folk. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trees_(folk_band)

There is something of a companion volume to this release as well, recorded for Capitol... SOUNDS http://www.bagatellen.com/?p=560

I've tried and tried, and I love the work of every player involved. But... this one still does not connect with me. At the end of the day, I have to fault the compositions themselves, which I find a little too schematic / straitjacketing.

Lyricon, ukelele and castanets

FWIW, I prefer the QUINTETS AND STRINGS date to the Octet recordings (ZOUNDS is the best of the lot, IMO)... the instrumentation really compliments Niehaus' often meticulous arrangements. Vol. 4 is buttoned up rather than buttoned down, if you know what I mean. Then again, I'm a big fan of Hal McKusick's IN A TWENTIETH CENTURY DRAWING ROOM and Konitz's AN IMAGE, so, clearly, I'm not entirely objective when it comes to "standard jazz combo featuring frosty / cerebral lead alto plus string quartet / section" dates.

To the best of my knowledge, this is this session's first appearance on CD. Long been intrigued by this one, largely due to that frontline. BTW, the Futura website has the recording date listed as 1970 (1974 being date of original release, I suspect). http://futuramarge.free.fr/ (scroll down)

Sad news. The novels and stories (esp. "My Appearance", a dissection of both the dread and fascination televised spectacle inspires in us) are mostly wonderful, but I'll really miss Wallace the essayist. Wide-ranging and pretty fearless on that front. The "profile" he wrote on David Lynch for the old PREMIERE was one of the best peices of magazine writing I've ever read.

If you can track down a copy, carpe diem (as JSngry might say) on VALVE NO. 10, a Soul Note recording under Bang's name featuring Lowe alongside Sirone and Denis Charles. Wonderful rendition of "Lonnie's Lament". I also very much like Lowe's duets with Eugene Chadbourne, DON'T PUNK OUT, though they probably won't be to everyone's tastes. If I may... http://www.onefinalnote.com/features/2001/lowe02/

Julian Jaynes' THE ORIGIN OF CONSCIOUSNESS IN THE BREAKDOWN OF THE BICAMERAL MIND Philip Ball's UNIVERSE OF STONE: A BIOGRAPHY OF CHARTRES CATHEDRAL