gmonahan

Getting ready to start this one:

I have to confess that the Scientology thing put me off a little, but not nearly so much as the fusion stuff! Didn't his attachment to Scientology keep him from being able to perform in Germany?? That rings the oldest and dimmest of bells, somehow. Anyway, he was a fine pianist, and I liked him in an acoustic context. gregmo

Finally got hold of this set. Listening to disc 4 now.

Good sound on this one, and some fine Prez:

I didn't realize until recently that Little had played on Frank Strozier's recordings for Vee Jay. As always, he played very, very well! gregmo

Just finished this one. Some fine post-Lester Basie here.

Great minds? I'm spinning disc 5 after I *finally* got hold of this set! gregmo

A minimum of 25 cds if they included the live things such as the Newport albums. The '47-52 would be six cds all by itself. gregmo

The AARP article is excellent, and I recommend that everyone read it. He is still singing, and the article talks about that and the role music can play with dementia. I watch Jeopardy every night partly to see how long it takes me to come with the "question." I've noticed it's taking a bit longer than it used to. Natural memory loss? Probably. But not certainly. There but for the grace..... gregmo

Ditto. gregmo

I am and she was. RIP. gregmo

I absolutely agree about the Dave Catney piece, "A Little Prayer." One of my favorite ballads, ever. Thanks to all for finding and posting the cover. gregmo

Couldn't find a cover photo that would fit in the small dimensions allowed, but I've been listening to "Last Night When We Were Young: The Ballad Album" that was put together by pianist Fred Hersch in '94 as an AIDS benefit. Phil Woods plays clarinet on one track ("Adios Nonino"). It's very pretty. I don't think I have Woods playing clarinet anywhere else. gregmo

I want every vaccine I can get, but Oregon has put me behind teachers and people *even* older than I am. I'll get it at some point. gregmo

I'm listening to Big Tea's Capitol Strings album now ("Shades of Night"). What a sublime player he was. gregmo

Ouch. I sure don't envy you that. When I retired and moved into this house, built all the shelves for the cds and put them in, I *swore* no more moves!! gregmo

Been watching "Pretend It's a City" on Netflix. Fran Lebowitz is a hoot. gregmo

But no Bill Evans. I mean. Really. gregmo

I think it's interestingly subversive. There are elements in it that remind me a little of "Pleasantville," a movie I've always liked, but of course, this is the MCU, so it will presumably veer hard into sci fi before too long! gregmo

It does seem to me like they're doing exactly what some of you suggest if they pair a nice selling Joe Henderson or Lee Morgan BN set with the much more obscure and *very* connoisseur driven Black and White label set. Jim won't ever get his Bill Baron box unless Mosaic can sell Blue Note sets to pay the freight. gregmo

The Mosaic has far and away the best sound on the pre-war Basie Columbias with Young, but he left in 1941 to be replaced by Don Byas. The easiest way to get all those is with the Definitive sets, but, well, objections to that particular label have been amply discussed here. If you want to avoid that label, you can go with the Classics issues, but they can be spendy to acquire. I've been on something of a crusade to round up all the available pre-war airchecks lately. They're spread out all over the place. Recently got the Chatterbox things, but the sound is pretty bad on those. The Savory material is absolutely essential, IMHO. gregmo