gmonahan

Even though I bought them, I was never a big fan of the Singles. They were either too ambitious and not ambitious enough. I'm thinking particularly of the J. J. Johnson RCA single and the Woody Herman Woody's Winners one. Both of those artists would have fared far better with Selects, which I thought were, in fact, a pretty good idea. But, so it goes. If it means more big boxes, I'm all for it! In the meantime, I'm still waiting for my Earl Hines box. Takes a while to get across the country, I guess.

I hope to be in New York for a few days in April. It would be cool to go there if it's opened by then. gregmo

Right on the money, Brownie. The only people I really feel for in all this are the cyclists--and there were some--who raced honestly and didn't get the glory that should have been theirs. gregmo

I've seen it. There is one scene with Franco Nero in the new film in which QT pays a nice little homage to the original, of which this is decidedly NOT a remake. I liked the movie, not only because of Waltz, who was wonderful, but also DiCaprio, who obviously relishes the part of a nasty villain and plays it to the hilt. gregmo

I thought "Lincoln" was wonderful. I'd add the amazing little movie "Bernie" to the list--a surprise for me, since I'm usually no Jack Black fan. And while I enjoyed the performances in "The Master," I thought the movie itself was a bit aimless. I avoided the really bad ones this year, well, except for "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter," which I may be alone in considering to have been goofy fun. But then, I'm something of a "sucker" for vampire movies. gregmo

That was a bit of hyperbole, even for Mosaic. Whether he was the "most influential" ever is certainly open to question, but he was a superior pianist with a marvelous series of bands, and I'm hopeful it will be a great set. gregmo

This causes me to ponder again what a pity it was that the whole big box reissue boom ended before Prestige did a proper Gene Ammons box. gregmo

Clever!

Me too--I'm really looking forward to this set! gregmo

"Kenton Plays Wagner" But you'll have to find it on LP because, to my knowledge, it's never been reissued on cd. gregmo

From me too--a happy, jazzy holiday to you all! gregmo

I'm with you there--loved those print catalogues, and like you, often found some interesting things there. gregmo

If I had *very little* Charlie Parker, I'd spring for the box set, "Bird: Charlie Parker, the Complete Masters, 1941-54" put out by Universal. All the early McShann solos, all the Dials, Savoys, Guilds, Musicrafts, Verves (masters, not alternates) are there with what sounds to these ears like good sound and a pretty good booklet. And when I last Iooked, Amazon sellers had it at just under $42.00. gregmo

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151291344443936&set=a.164656313935.120396.17920648935&type=1

I seldom (ever??) disagree with Lon, but this reminds me of some students I've had who wrote badly. When I corrected their papers, they objected, arguing that they should have "artistic license." I told them that a license was something you had to earn. Only once you'd mastered the essentials could you take liberties with them. I've always felt the same about music. I don't always like the later stuff that Miles and Trane did, but I can respect it because I know that they knew what they were doing. They had earned the license.

My heart goes out to Mr. Greene. I have three young grandchildren, and every time I watch reports about this dreadful tragedy, I break down into tears--and that hasn't happened to me on a news story in many, many years. It is just so, so awful. The president spoke exactly the words I would have chosen, and with exactly the same degree of emotion.

Happy birthday to one of the great ones!

Hopelessly old-fashioned as I am, I just enjoyed going in and seeing what I'd see that might surprise me. I still found some things at the Paris Jazz Corner last time I was there that were new to me, and, call me goofy, but the physical act of thumbing through cds is, well, fun! But like most here, I get about 98% of my music on-line. gregmo

I wonder if Brubeck's passing will motivate Sony to issue the live Brubeck set on Popmarket we've discussed elsewhere on the Board.

Like Chuck I was sometimes iffy about the music, but what a fine human being he was! And I did like some of the things he did very much, particularly the album the quartet did with the great Jimmy Rushing. Think I'll play that one tonight. Thanks for the example of a life uncommonly well lived, Dave. gregmo

Nothing very interesting right now, but I'm off to Cuba (legal trip) to sample the local culture. HOPE I get to hear some good music, KNOW I'll have a mojito or two! gregmo

You're very lucky. My local library has had to cut the hours they're open, due to funding cuts from the local government. (My take is that the politicians feel that the more ignorant the public is, the better is is for politicians.) Definitely no $ available for Mosaic boxes here. To my amazement and delight, we buy almost everything on Mosaic and a fair bit of Bear Family too. Great and expensive library, beloved here in the Peoples Republic of Portland. And now even more secure thanks to the new tax base for it. Great to live here in the PRP! gregmo

Absolutely. It's they only way they'll survive/prosper. And surely putting the music of Max and Clifford in more hands is a great thing. True that. gregmo

Got my notice! gregmo

The Andorrans put out a cd on Definitive titled "John Coltrane: Complete Recordings with Dizzy Gillespie" that includes Dizzy's Big Band Capitol stuff. You can find an amazon listing here gregmo