Guy Berger

Isn't this on the trading circuit? You could probably get it for free. I'm sure the music is great. Guy

The extra material is very worthy. Guy

The Karlsruhe concert is one of the best gigs from the 1967 European tour because of the performance length, which isn't matched on any other recording. It includes new (Agitation, Footprints, Masqualero, Riot, Gingerbread Boy) and old (Round Midnight, No Blues, On Green Dolphin Street, I Fall in Love too Easily, Walkin'). I haven't seen the video. Guy

I like the Holland quintet and have seen them live a few times, but I'm not in a rush to pick this new one up. Guy

I think "Mademoiselle Mabry" is one of Miles's best compositions; it's also one of the best recorded performances of his career. The genius of the composition is the long ostinato repeated over and over by Chick Corea and Dave Holland. It has such strong melodic and rhythmic content that it guides the solos by Miles, Wayne Shorter and Chick. It also frees up Tony Williams to play a colourist's role, not playing time but rather commenting on the music in infinitely interesting ways. Miles takes a nice, long, bluesy solo. I'm not sure if there's any overarching "story" to his improvisation. Instead, it stays quite close to the ostinato while finding interesting variations in each repetition. He pauses between phrases, letting the ostinato fill in the melodic gaps. Wayne's solo is a real beauty. He takes more chances than Miles does in venturing away from the underlying theme. (Tony also plays more actively in this section.) But the general strategy is the same. There are times when it's almost like Wayne is accompanying Chick and Dave. Chick's solo is unusual because he normally doesn't sound this bluesy. At this point the ostinato is so ingrained in our ears from earlier repetitions that we don't notice Dave is the only one repeating it. One of the most heated sections of the performance happens from about 14:15 to 14:25, with Chick's playing reaching its peak and shimmering cymbals by Tony. Then starting around 15:05 Chick starts playing very closely to the melody. Miles comes back in near the end to take it back home. There's an analysis of the form's structure in the In a Silent Way Sessions box. I don't know of any other performances besides this one. Too bad!

I don't watch much TV. I do use my TV to watch DVDs quite a bit. Occasionally I'll watch the Daily Show or the Colbert Report. More rarely I'll watch cable news, though I'm pretty selective. I do watch sports, particularly during the NBA playoffs and to a lesser degree during the MLB or NFL playoffs. Guy

Woah, a good Maureen Dowd article... Guy

Stinson subbed for Ron Carter at a Berkeley concert in April 1967. This was a great gig though the sound isn't that great. I think Wayne is talking about a '68 concert. Guy

Nice long interview with Motian -- the good news is that there's a new trio album coming out in the near future! Guy

Larry, thanks for posting that article. It offers a lot of insight into one of the great jazz artists. Guy

I haven't heard the Bud & Chet album in question, but this comparison doesn't sound too promising. Guy

Why does Hollywood keep re-making old TV shows and Movies? Why do jazz musicians keep revisting the standards? This isn't quite the same as playing any old standard. This is about reworking one of the most revered albums of all time. Expectations are a bit higher. Guy

I would too. Guy

A lot of someones -- this is an agglomeration of hundreds of music fans' tastes. FWIW, the Mingus albums in question are fully worthy of their placement. A very popular album. Guy

He is probably in the 300s somewhere, along with Art Tatum, Fats Waller, Earl Hines, and company. Keep in mind that this is a list of "albums", which unfortunately omits recordings from the pre-album era. Guy

This comes from rateyourmusic.com's highest-rated jazz albums. Probably a bit of a popularity contest, but I was surprised by how reasonable the results came out. Vox populi, vox dei! 1. John Coltrane, A Love Supreme 2. Miles Davis, Kind of Blue 3. Charles Mingus, The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady 4. Charles Mingus, Mingus Ah Um 5. Miles Davis, In a Silent Way 6. Eric Dolphy, Out to Lunch 7. John Coltrane, Giant Steps 8. Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus 9. John Coltrane, My Favorite Things 10. Ornette Coleman, The Shape of Jazz to Come 11. Vince Guaraldi, A Charlie Brown Christmas 12. Charles Mingus, Blues and Roots 13. Miles Davis, Bitches Brew 14. Frank Zappa, Hot Rats 15. Frank Sinatra, Songs for Swinging Lovers 16. Art Blakey, Moanin' 17. Miles Davis, Miles Smiles 18. Frank Sinatra, In the Wee Small Hours 19. Getz/Gilberto 20. Wayne Shorter, Speak no Evil 21. Bill Evans, Sunday at the Village Vanguard 22. Thelonious Monk, Brilliant Corners 23. Bill Evans, Waltz for Debby 24. Duke Ellington, Far East Suite 25. Dave Brubeck, Time Out 26. Miles Davis, A Tribute to Jack Johnson 27. Herbie Hancock, Headhunters 28. Andrew Hill, Point of Departure 29. Louis Armstrong, Plays W.C. Handy 30. Frank Sinatra, Sings for Only the Lonely 31. Cannonball Adderley, Somethin' Else 32. Pharoah Sanders, Karma 33. Grant Green, Idle Moments 34. Antonio Carlos Jobim, Wave 35. Elis Regina and Tom Jobim, Elis and Tom 36. John Coltrane, Blue Train 37. Horace Silver, Song for My Father 38. Oliver Nelson, The Blues and the Abstract Truth 39. Andrew Hill, Black Fire 40. Duke Ellington, Money Jungle 41. Thelonious Monk, Monk's Dream 42. Billie Holiday, Lady in Satin 43. Charles Mingus, Mingus in Antibes 44. Albert Ayler, Spiritual Unity 45. Herbie Hancock, Empyrean Isles 46. Miles Davis, 'Round About Midnight 47. Mahavishnu Orchestra, The Inner Mounting Flame 48. Charles Mingus, Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus 49. Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong 50. John Coltrane, Ole 51. Herbie Hancock, Maiden Voyage 52. Art Ensemble of Chicago, Les Stances a Sophie 53. Thelonious Monk, Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane 54. The Quintet, Jazz at Massey Hall 55. Peter Brotzmann, Machine Gun 56. Lee Morgan, the Sidewinder 57. McCoy Tyner, The Real McCoy 58. Keith Jarrett, The Koln Concert 59. Miles Davis, Sketches of Spain 60. John Coltrane, Ascension 61. Miles Davis, Workin' with the Miles Davis Quintet 62. John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman 63. Sonny Sharrock, Ask the Ages 64. Wes Montgomery, The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery 65. Charles Mingus, Pithecanthropus Erectus 66. Miles Davis, Nefertiti 67. Ella Fitzgerald, Sings the Cole Porter Songbook 68. Kenny Burrell, Midnight Blue 69. John Coltrane, Live at Birdland 70. Alice Coltrane, Journey in Satchidananda 71. Cecil Taylor, Unit Structures 72. John Coltrane, Live at the Village Vanguard 73. Thelonious Monk, Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall 74. Ornette Coleman, Free Jazz 75. Sam Rivers, Contours 76. Miles Davis, Milestones 77. Miles Davis, Relaxin' with the Miles Davis Quintet 78. Miles Davis, ESP 79. Miles Davis, Steamin' with the Miles Davis Quintet 80. Thelonious Monk, Monk's Music 81. Miles Davis, On the Corner 82. Frank Sinatra and Antonio Carlos Jobim 83. Cannonball Adderley, Mercy Mercy Mercy 84. Rahsaan Roland Kirk, The Inflated Tear 85. Sun Ra, Heliocentric Worlds Vol. 1 86. Mahavishnu Orchestra, Birds of Fire 87. Hank Mobley, Soul Station 88. Miles Davis, Filles de Kilimanjaro 89. Wes Montgomery, Full House 90. John Coltrane, Meditations 91. Yusef Lateef, Eastern Sounds 92. Miles Davis, Agharta 93. Alexander von Schlippenbach, Pakistani Pomade 94. Dexter Gordon, Go! 95. Bobby Hutcherson, Dialogue 96. John Zorn, Naked City 97. Charles Mingus, Tijuana Moods 98. Jackie McLean, Destination Out 99. Duke Ellington, Ellington at Newport 100. Sun Ra, Jazz in Silhouette

your point is very well taken. thanks for keeping us straight. (one wonders what a duke, born and raised in vienna or paris or milan, would have given the world). I'm glad he was born exactly where he was. Chuck, I couldn't have said it better than you did. Guy

Tomasz Stanko, like Tolliver and Rava, is another active older trumpeter. Also, I don't think anyone has mentioned Dave Douglas. Guy

I like Go a lot, but haven't heard the other album. Guy

I'm involved in an argument about Pat Metheny's influence. In particular I would like to respond to the following statement: I don't listen to guitar players that much so I'm at a loss to answer. Who has Metheny influenced? Guy

Very sad. RIP.

I've never had this problem with any other CD. Guy

Zawinul claimed credit for "It's About That Time". Not sure how convincing that is. Guy

I just started watching them on DVD. It's irritating that (A) there are only 4 episodes per DVD when they could fit 7 or 8 and (B) that they aren't in broadcast order. Last night I watched two of the best ones I've seen yet: "Two" (with Charles Bronson in a post-apocalypse world) and "The Four of Us Are Dying". Guy

I like On the Corner, though it's not my favorite electric Miles. Guy