gmonahan

I may try to pick this one up. I've always been fascinated by that line in "Straight No Chaser" where Monk is said to have intimated to Nellie fairly late in his active career (I think it's Nellie--might be someone else--been a while since I've seen it) "You know, I'm very ill" or words to that effect. And no, it's not about scandal mongering or some kind of weird nosyness about his mental state. I'm just fascinated by the way genius coexists with personality--and Monk had one very individual and eccentric personality, especially in his later years. Does the author delve into this late period very much? Or does he mostly stay with the more creative earlier period of the 40s and 50s? greg mo

True, but then those present (I wish I had been among them) would have missed out on what sounds like a really great night of music. The headstone will be nice, but remembering James P. with some fine piano strikes me as nicer! greg mo

"Coop" by Bob Cooper is a good one. Just about anything by Shorty Rogers will work, but my favorites tend to be the Howard Rumsey Lighthouse sessions on Contemporary. Lots of classic West Coast there. greg mo

Hi Vic, Do you keep them in the boxes? I've found I play mine a *lot* more by taking them out of the boxes and putting the jewel cases on the shelf with other cds. greg mo

I'm willing to keep my ears open, Jim. Just got the Don Cherry Blue Notes and have been listening to those. What Sextet album would you recommend? 'You Know the Number' has some wickedly swinging blues on it, well worth a listen IMHO. Thanks--I'll check it out! greg mo

Oh yeah, "Above and Beyond" is a great album--Freddie in *great* form. greg mo

OK, this one is really funny. greg mo

I'm willing to keep my ears open, Jim. Just got the Don Cherry Blue Notes and have been listening to those. What Sextet album would you recommend?

If you're looking for straight-ahead blowing, it's hard to go wrong with just about any of Freddie's Blue Note dates. The CTIs can be a mixed bag on that score--he gets a bit fusiony on some of those, and least to these ears. That doesn't mean I don't like them, it just means they're different kinds of dates. I also like the Impulses. The Atlantics, not so much. greg mo

Threadgill is a bit *too* avant-garde for me, but I'm happy for all you a-g people out there. Still contemplating the Crosby. greg mo

I thought that was Bud Powell. Have you become a polytheist? greg mo

Sometimes it was "Trinkle Tinkle," sometimes it was "Little Rootie Tootie," sometimes it was "Criss Cross," but the goal was always "Epistrophy."

Ellis Larkins never gets mentioned and really deserves to be. I like all the others mentioned already! Oh, did anybody mention Jelly Roll? greg mo

My order took over 10 days to get here, and then there were several not included. Then today, I got three of those, so maybe they'll keep dribbling in. I hope so. One of those dropped was a Ray Barretto I was really looking forward to! greg mo

I spent my life in record stores when I was in high school (dodging dinosaurs, which then walked the earth), but I worshiped at Rose Discount Records in Chicago. Only went there a few times. Came out with an armload of LPs every time. They classified their LPs by label and had lots of Schwann catalogs around! Wild! And the upstairs...an entire floor of cutouts. Sigh.... greg mo

I came to them early, then left for a long time as well. And it was Bags that brought me back. A complete box of their Atlantic albums might qualify as one of the biggest boxes of all time. I wonder how many separate LPs they made for that label? A lot! greg mo

I also find it a compelling read even though I've never been to the shops. It's envy. There are so few such shops left on this side of the water! greg mo

Denny Zeitlin Select, disc 2, nearly as good as disc 1. greg mo

Al Haig really deserves a Mosaic box--a really good and interesting pianist. greg mo

Just received and listening to Denny Zeitlin Select, disc one. So far, I really like it! greg mo

I love this thread!!

greg mo

I see your point, but would like to add I've really enjoyed the Jimmy Witherspoon and have listened to it repeatedly. Me too! That's a great album and kudos to Mosaic for reissuing it. I can't comment on the Wein album as I don't own that one. I think JAW's point was not that these aren't good albums--they are--but that they're odd choices, and I have to concur on that point. There are some odd choices among those singles even by the "more established" artists. I was surprised by the J. J. Johnson choice, for example, because there was some really good jazz stuff he recorded in his other RCA albums (especially "The Total J. J. Johnson") that had to be left out. Likewise, while "Woody's Winners" is a great album, Woody's Columbia material would have made a fine select. greg mo Eh, it wasn't JAW's point, it was my point, well sort of. If your re-issueing stuff to what is an already very limited market and charging top $ for it, surely your criteria should not be albums that happen to be obscure yet are available for release and then talked up to a point to make them seem a definitive release. The Art Farmer Single was a good idea, the Art Blakey Single, not so sure, although now that I've typed that I know someone is going to say it's his best album. You're right though, the choices are odd and it's more than likely why they haven't had the sales they were hoping for with the Singles series and have stopped releaseing them. Not withstanding 3 or 4 people on a Jazz message board of course. :rolleyes: I get the impression that Mosaic thought their customers will go for anything as long as it has the "Mosaic" name on it. They are right to a certin extent, there's a few of those customers on here. I'm not naming names though. :w My bad. I confused posters. Hope NEITHER of you is too insulted! greg mo

I see your point, but would like to add I've really enjoyed the Jimmy Witherspoon and have listened to it repeatedly. Me too! That's a great album and kudos to Mosaic for reissuing it. I can't comment on the Wein album as I don't own that one. I think JAW's point was not that these aren't good albums--they are--but that they're odd choices, and I have to concur on that point. There are some odd choices among those singles even by the "more established" artists. I was surprised by the J. J. Johnson choice, for example, because there was some really good jazz stuff he recorded in his other RCA albums (especially "The Total J. J. Johnson") that had to be left out. Likewise, while "Woody's Winners" is a great album, Woody's Columbia material would have made a fine select. greg mo

Would I be right in thinking that this is the 'only' way to hear Kind of Blue? I think they really need to reissue that one. It's so ignored. greg mo