Joe

Not a repertoire I typically associate with Warne Marsh... intriguing...

There's not one selection here I failed to enjoy. Copied below my listening notes, very warty. I tried not to agonize too much over identifying musicians and to concentrate instead on my manners of habits of listening. Greatly looking forward to the reveal. 1 -- The conception feels familiar, but the trumpet player's voice does not.. the occasional rasp, the use of vibrato here and there as a filigree, almost Mogie-like (mid-60's Morgan, after he started relying more and more on tricky lipping and vocal effects, some of which I swear he adapted from Kenny Dorham)… there's a nice, dark center to this player's tone as well, one that almost makes me think this is a flugelhorn… the bass sound says 70s / early 80s… (Whoa, did not see that guitar coming!) This player does not want for technique. Really like the tumbling quality of some of the phrases in the fours with the drummer. Could very well be a player of an generation older than Morgan, or Hubbard, or Charles Sullivan. Could this be Idrees Sulieman or Howard McGhee? Maybe even Louis Smith? Has to be someone who could burn like Smith could. 2 -- Monk's Mood, but not Monk. Monk would never play the middle phrase of the melody quite like that… not that this pianist rushes it, but he or she definitely is moving to a different pulse. And the bridge feel "classed up" to me, that is, played with a kind of classical pianist's sense of organization and dynamics… I mean, the solo is kind of far out in that respect… Something in the articulation says Bud Powell to me, but I don't think so. And what is the second theme? Not a performance with which I'm familiar, but I'm certainly intrigued. 3 -- One thing I love about really good early jazz is how otherworldly it can feel. And when the clarinet player here solos… what an amazingly elastic, electric sound. Sound might even find it grotesque. With that in mind, is this Johnny Dodds? Love the way, too, ensembles emerge, break apart, and recombine in performances like this. 4 -- Feels like the trombonist's band, by virtue, perhaps, of the way in which the performances has been recorded. Even though the clarinet takes the first solo, which does stray into some Pee Wee Russell-esque territory there in the final bars. Would like to hear more from the pianist… the left hand more than than the right! 5 -- The guitarist's palette and and the Middle Eastern-isms of this intro make we wonder if we are not within John Zorn's orbit. And with the entry of the clarinet and rhythm, I feel we must be. But there's no kitsch leavening this intensity, at least not to my ears. I wonder now about the relationship between the 3 clarinets in tracks 3, 4 and 5. If 3 is Johnny Dodds, could 4 be Bob Wilber (or someone of his generation)? Whoever this clarinet player is, obviously, jazz provides only one frame of reference; I like his (or her) ears. My real interest, though, lies in whoever is playing accordion. 6 -- Not a groove that can be easily replicated, maybe because no one uses percussionists quite like this anymore. Tenor player has real "snap" to his notes / phrases, even when he runs off a Coltrane lick. Is he coming back? Trumpet solo seems a bit weak, not as in the pocket as it could be. I like the little organ interlude before the guitar solo… so this is a bandleader willing to vary the formula. With that in mind, I'm going to guess Charles Earland. Also, there's some Larry Young in his solo, so it almost certainly has to be Earland. Or Leon Spencer. But I don't know of any live Spencer recordings. Anyway, the rest of the band? (Tight, BTW.) Wait, this organ solo has entered some pretty strange territory. I like it: counter-intuitive, if what you want is a capital S Solo, but still funky. More about shapes than lines, if that makes any sense. And given the tools with which he or she is working, why not? 7 -- OK, I had to listen to that intro several times over… Monk-ish, right, or am I just kidding myself? Which makes the vocal that follows all the more, uh, surprising. Modern in its harmonies and outlook, intelligent, elegant yet oblique at times (the band's punctuation of the vocal melody), but not "modern jazz" in that its beholden to bebop. Is that Lee Konitz? Sounds a bit like Konitz on a cough syrup jag (not a bad thing at all)? Could be the Thornhill band, whose repertoire I don't know as well as I should. Bu the more I listen, the more I hear evidence of Gil Evans… those closing chords… 8 -- The alto player has me stumped, though I really like his / her tone, approach, the whole package. Both the pianist and trumpet player (gets a little fussy, though, yes?) are wise, I think, to let the alto be the dominate voice. The tune's structure almost couldn't be simpler, and yet the drummer especially finds all sorts of ways to generate material of new interest. As original as the alto player is -- I want to say Oliver Lake, but I know its not -- the drummer might be the MVP of this performance. 9 -- Under all the embellishment, a tune I feel like I should know. And the tenor reminds me why: "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes." So there is a kind of Monk theme to this BFT. Let's hear that intro again… very nice, and reminds me of Don Friedman in his approach to standard material. Tenor sounds very, very, very indebted to Coltrane. Dave Liebman? Steve Grossman? More emotional heft, IMO, than either of those players. Wow, this pianist really sounds like Don Friedman, but I know its not. The lines aren't quite the same; this player does more to vary line lengths, and the long lines don;t have quite the same logic as Friedman's. I like this little disappearing act he or she tries to pull around the 5 minute mark… and now, all of a sudden, whoever it is sounds very much like Keith Jarrett. Hmmmm… As much as this is the pianist's performance, I bet he or she isn't the leader here. Ditto the tenor player. 10 -- Soprano sax, guitar and organ? This has to be Sidney Bechet, yes? Or a master of Bechet's caliber. My favorite vibrato, period. Lovely performance, oddly forlorn, or like an unused romantic interlude from a M. Hulot film (I'm erring now on the side of this being Bechet with a French group.) Beyond that, I know nothing. 11 -- The theme feels very Ornette, but the performance itself is something else. A real sour quality to the saxophonist's tone. My first thought was that this is Marion Brown. Tone (just that little bit of extra air), phrasing, conception all say Marion Brown to me. But the drummer is throwing me off. Said trappist is either a moonlighting Keith Moon or Han Bennink… or someone else equally interested in provocation. If this is Brown and Bennink, then I am guessing this is from PORTO NOVO, a record I have not listened to in a long, long time, in part because I found the recording quality too harsh and an impediment to my enjoyment. I may need to correct myself. 12 -- Rock and roll! I mean, the real stuff. Who's kicking all those marching saints in the ass with his (or her) baritone sax? For once in my life, I feel like I am, indeed, among the many embraced in the term "everybody." 13 -- Pops! (So, in think for connections back to the previous track… could that be Danny Barker on vocals? I only know his late 80's SAVE THE BONES, but I know he made tons of recordings over the years). Ah, but what era of Pops. And who is in the All-Stars at this time? Very nice… a little buttoned-down (so surely this is later Pops) but he still does some marvelous stuff in delivering this lyric… I like the hint of lasciviousness on the bridge… This tune ends up getting more than it deserves, right? 14 -- Jonathan and Darlene Edwards / Paul Weston and Jo Stafford. Genius. Its hard to appreciate at first, but it is extremely difficult to play this stuff so thoroughly wrong (quotation marks around wrong optional). I mean, if not for the instantly recognizable lyrics, couldn't this be a completely new composition. And now I'm able to go back and finally read everyone else's observations and guesses.

Only available in rose (with Trucoat®), I'm afraid. Will do. "Live" tracks and DL's will be available from a single web page... full details Friday (5/24)!

Another vote for this. Would be especially nice to have his 40's discography straightened out.

You got it!

There is a greater than 0% probability of said inclusion. (Though the advisedness, much less the broaditude, of the audience in question is a matter of point-of-view...)

Perhaps... it ain't all jazz, or jass, for that matter.

Late to the party, but I would love access to a download provided one's still available.

... is on the horizon. Please check back here in a couple of days for additional information. As in the past (68; 87), tracks will be available on a "streaming" basis online, and listeners will also have access to a digital download of the "album" itself. I would prefer not to make and mail discs unless absolutely, 100% necessary. However, if you do wish to apply for a hardship exemption drop me a PM and we can discuss. Looking forward! Ciao; best, J

Love that cover photo!

Paul was (not sure about is) a great bass player, and a historically important one at that. He had bigger ears than he's often given credit for ("Carnival of Light"). But I can't quite imagine him jamming with this trio...

Not my favorite -- I can't pick one; his discography is just too diverse -- but I will say that THIS DANCE IS FOR STEVE MCCALL is some rather under-rated Roscoe... http://www.allmusic.com/album/this-dance-is-for-steve-mccall-mw0000621807

Right or wrong, we've been doing it that way in Dallas for years!

Is there any Gil Evans material that has not otherwise been collected / would especially benefit from Mosaic treatment?

Any of Gerry Hemingway's solo percussion discs are worth hearing and / or acquiring. E.g., http://www.discogs.com/Gerry-Hemingway-Acoustic-Solo-Works-1983-94/release/1190112

Gary McFarland's Verve and Impulse output might benefit from a Mosaic-enabled reevaluation. The boundaries of such a set could get squishy, given the volume of arranging work he did for others, but even if the set were to concentrate only on the dates issued under McFarland's own name... there's some "scope" for you right there...

Sonny Simmons, JEWELS.

I checked a wide variety of albums where he is either leader or sideman. They all referred to him as Sonny Red. Perhaps you are thinking of the two d's in the female alto sax player Vi Redd? FWIW, He is routinely billed as Sonny Redd on Savoy... And note his billing here... This last being a true outlier, i.e., I've never seen him billed as Red Kyner anywhere else... Huh...

How long was this particular group together anyway? They only managed to produce one LP, correct? I always thought Farmer truly expanded the possibilities of this particular configuration / template...

Spacious!

Those wishing to dig REALLY deep into Mr. Davis extensive and diverse discography might be interested to hear his work with Don Shirley...

Thanks Mark, and all.

General opinions on the Boulez / Cleveland "Great Performances" rendition?

IIRC, Monk, Nichols and Hill were the (modern) pianists Lion felt he had to document / have on Blue Note. That is, he had a special passion for their music.