Teasing the Korean

Thank you! So do Collaboration West and Evolution capture most of the better Mingus collaborations?

Thanks for that!

In the mid-90s, when I was buying any solo piano album I could find by anyone, I picked up a cheap CD of My Favorite Instrument by Oscar. I listened only a few times and unloaded it, but not before extracting the files. I have not listened to it in more than 2 decades. So this afternoon, I put the files in a playlist to revisit. I couldn't remember why I unloaded it to begin with. During the first three songs, he keeps reminding us every 16 or 8 or even 4 bars that he is Art Tatum - oops, I mean Oscar Peterson - and I totally understood Allen Lowe's use of the word "vulgarity." On tracks 4 and 5, he seemed to relax a little - either that, or my ears adjusted to hearing a Tatum fill every 4 bars. And then the overkill - or vulgarity - picked up again with tracks 6 through 9. I completely remembered why I never listened to it and why I unloaded it. I don't mind hearing a solo pianist referencing Art Tatum here and there. Hank Jones, whom I adore, does this, but it is done in a tasteful and integrated manner. Oscar on this record comes off like he is trying to impress us all with his technical prowess. While I can admire his dexterity on its own terms, the results do nothing for me, except make me want to listen to a different piano player. I should add that when Oscar on this record was not doing Art Tatum, he seemed to be doing George Shearing or Bill Evans.

Thank you! I just ordered an inexpensive copy of Tentet, sadly without the bonus tracks. I will keep my eyes and ears open for those! Thanks for this!

Teddy Charles came up in the Booker Little recommendations thread. We discussed how most of the Booker Littler/Booker Ervin Sounds of Inner City came from a Teddy Charles album called Metronome Presents Jazz in the Garden. So I'm listening to random Teddy Charles things on the InterTubes - I am unfamiliar with him, aforementioned album aside - and much of what I'm hearing falls into my beloved Twilight Zone Jazz sub-genre, about which I've written prolifically around these parts. So my two questions are: 1. Was Teddy Charles doing the arrangements on these albums? 2. What are some of his most Twilight Zone Jazz-sounding albums? The Tentet album sounds promising, based on digital needle-drops.

I have asked jazz fans of a certain age group if they paid attention to Mr. Rogers's piano player, Johnny Costa. After I got into Bill Evans, I realized that I had heard those kinds of chord voicings as a kid on Mr. Rogers. That guy was a gateway player for me. I don't have any of his records.

Drummer on the first jazz album that I heard all the way through, and also the album with the greatest title ever! Which album is this, you ask? Why, none other than TV ACTION JAZZ! by Mundell Lowe!

I need this record!!!

Yes, but the DJ didn't know that, and either did 15-year-old me. I was happy to hear the music. By the way, my copy of Sounds of Inner City has a track not listed above, "Witch Fire." Was this not on the Teddy Charles album?

Ha ha!

Thank you. The funny thing is that what you describe is precisely how I've always imagined him, despite my admiration for his skills.

OK, please don't derail this thread, but if there is an Andre Previn thread, I would love to hear about your experience.

When I was about 15, a community radio station started up where I lived, and they played jazz in the evenings, Monday through Thursday, between around 7 pm and 10 pm. It was a great time and place for me to begin exploring jazz at an impressionable age. I remember hearing tracks from the Booker Little/Booker Ervin Sounds of Inner City LP. I didn't know either name at the time; I guess it stuck in my head because I liked the music, and thought it was interesting that there were two jazz guys named Booker. Anyway, I was happy to find the LP many years later, on the TCB label. It is apparently an early 70s issue of recordings from the early 1960s. Includes Teddy Charles on vibes.

This should be posted in "Artists." RIP.

When I used to DJ, Ramsey's version of "Slippin' Into Darkness" was a staple.

Yup. And you occasionally got budget-label albums that were better than much of what you could find on major labels, e.g., the aforementioned Robert Drasnin album.

Well, you never knew what you were getting with a budget label album. They spanned from the sublime - Robert Drasnin's Voodoo - to the ridiculous, as is the case here. Still, it's pretty cool to hear Lou Reed sing "Little Deuce Coupe!"

From Modern Harmonic: It's with very heavy hearts that we acknowledge the passing of our dear friend, Sunraologist, musician, mixologist, writer, and most of all a really great guy, Brother Cleve (aka Robert Toomey). He's written notes for numerous projects for us including Sun Ra releases, our Edison International doo wop album, the Ridiculous Trio, an upcoming bongo compilation, a couple Something Weird albums, and was helping to curate and write notes for a future Combustible Edison project we're working on. He was a keyboard player for them along with a lot of other bands over the years. He played on our Barrence Whitfield Soul Savage Arkestra album, and even mixed an upcoming Sun Ra project. This one really hurts as it was so unexpected, and far too soon. We had several projects in the works and always loved working with him. Our mutual friend Irwin Chusid informed us of this horrible news and we thought you too would like to know. We're lucky to love what we do and it's working with people as great as Cleve that make our day's special. You will be missed my friend, thanks for the great times, and the great art. We raise our glasses to you. (photo by Michael Piazza) #ripbrothercleve #combustibleedison #sunra #barrencewhitfield https://www.facebook.com/ModernHarmonic

Musician, DJ, mixologist, former Stereo Jack's employee, jazz liner note writer, and Boston legend Brother Cleve has shuffled off this mortal coil.

This arrangement from Curtis Fuller and Hampton Hawes with French Horns has a very nice private-eye jazz vibe.

His first for Reprise. Johnny Mandel's arrangements are fantastic!

Les Baxter Music Preservation Project: "To celebrate the Les Baxter centenary, the Les Baxter Estate has partnered with the University of Arizona and Neumation Music to initiate a comprehensive preservation project that aims to protect and promote the legacy of Les Baxter for his contributions to American music. The initial phase of this project will involve digitizing several thousand pages of score, sketch, and instrumental parts. The musical works range from student compositions, Les’ many innovative recordings for Capitol Records, Reprise, and other labels, and his film scores for American International Pictures, United Artists, and MGM. Dozens of tape recordings and hundreds of photographs will also be digitized. "In addition, Bax Music - Les’ publisher, will expand operations to include score publications and a concert rental library with authoritative editions engraved from the original scores and parts. Orchestras, ensembles, and bands around the world will be able to perform Les’ original arrangements for the first time. In addition, composers and arrangers will be able to study Les’ inventive arrangements exactly as written. "We wish Les was here to witness the appreciation for his music. He was a welcoming figure to musicians who approached him for guidance and always encouraged younger composers, arrangers, and performers to delve into music studies. In the early 1990’s, Les donated a selection of his professional papers to the American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming. These materials were later transferred to the Fred Fox School of Music at the University of Arizona with a supplemental donation of additional materials provided by the Baxter family -- in total, 56 boxes. Unfortunately, the majority of the collection was unprocessed and inaccessible for many years. It is our goal that by the completion of this project, nearly all of Les’ music will be available for performance or scholarly study." https://lesbaxter.com/blogs/news/les-baxter-music-preservation-project?fbclid=IwAR38fOcAgE-ZNmQ496_WPOgoao91OOJunMFNdNaARtvzRO58srv0uRTbPNE

Thanks. In the examples I'm thinking of, the tunes are fully arranged. While the percussion guys were generally reading 4 slashes per bar in the charts, I'm sure there were notations to go to double time in specific sections, based on what else was occurring in the arrangements. I didn't know if the arranger specifically indicated for the timbales to start the double time on bar early, or if it was an idiomatic thing.

How common is it, when Latin percussion sections go into double time, for one instrument, such as the timbales, to set it up by going into double time one bar early? I have heard this device used, and I think it is very effective. Is this standard, or is it the exception?

Don't forget Hal Wilner's Weird Nightmare album.