Guy Berger

This is a great version. "Footprints" by the Miles Davis quintet is an obvious one. Guy

What a pointless article. Guy

I think neither team has much of a chance to beat Detroit in a 7 game series, barring an injury to one of the Pistons' starters. Guy

Nets will win #14 tonight. If Miami also loses as well, the gap between these two teams shrinks to 2.5 games. Both teams have really easy schedules after tonight's games. Guy

For a second I thought you wrote "...when I'm driving and don't feel like listening to the radio." I have a 400+ item list on amazon. It used to grow a lot faster but is more or less stable these days. The bad news is that I have a 50 CD backlog at home. Guy

Has the Mingus at Monterey (1964, the one with an octet version of "Meditations") ever been issued on CD? I guess with Concord in charge we're never going to see this reissued. Guy

I thought it was a nice obit. Guy

Don't really care either way. Television is the worst way to get news. Guy

I take it you guys haven't heard of this book. Guy

Experts say it was hotter 247M years ago, but it also was a great time to photosynthesize.

Tonight's episode was great until the twist at the end which made NO SENSE given everything that's transpired in the previous 15 episodes. Guy ps I have no clue how Wayne Palmer got the rifle, but I was sure he was a goner after Jack gave him the whole "you're not coming with me" speech. pps I hope it turns out that Bill Buchanan turns out to be the real mastermind behind the day's events, and exacts his vengeance on Audrey. Or becomes her next secret lover.

Until 2106. Guy

I think the evolution of "Directions" from 1968 to 1971 is really interesting. Guy

Ronald Shannon Jackson & James "Blood" Ulmer (also, I keep calling Ronald "Roland")

Terrible, but my understanding is that the shortcomings come from the original recording. Guy

Rhino did remaster it on one of their "deluxe" editions. I'm not sure how much better it sounds than the original issue. The extreme shortcomings of Atlantic jazz recordings are pretty obvious on this one. Guy

I don't think there's been much discussion of this disc. There are two lengthy tracks, "So Long Eric" and "Praying with Eric" (aka "Meditations for a Pair of Wire-Cutters", "Meditations on Integration"). The lineup is one of the greatest Jazz Workshops, maybe THE greatest: Mingus, Johnny Coles, Eric Dolphy, Clifford Jordan, Jaki Byard and Dannie Richmond. I've only heard one other performance by this group, the one released by Verve as The Great Concert of Charles Mingus. They each have their strengths -- I think the Town Hall version of "Meditations" is stronger. Coles adds a lot to the ensembles though I'm not crazy about his solo improvisations. In addition, Clifford Jordan has probably the strongest solo on this tune -- remarkable when you consider that Eric Dolphy's bass clarinet is involved. I also think that in general, Byard plays better here than on the Paris concert. Finally, Dolphy plays some of the most poignant flute I've ever heard from him. With "So Long Eric" I might have to give Paris the nod because of the Dolphy-Jordan interplay, but the version here is excellent. Anyway, if you haven't heard this I recommend picking it up. Guy

My favorite Jackie sideman appearance isn't on BN -- it's on Mingus's Blues and Roots. Guy

My memory may be playing tricks on me, but I think Jackie only plays on one of these albums, the one with the session from 1952. Guy

So far, Cool Struttin' and Right Now. Guy

I love the guy's playing. Guy

I remember reading an interview with Dave Holland where someone asked him about this and he said that no, he wasn't influenced by the McLean recordings. Guy

His commercials are annoying as hell, though. Guy

Compared to San Antonio, Dallas has played a lot better vs. Detroit. Guy I don't think Dallas has a playoff mentality though. They seem to play their hardest during the regular season, then fold. San Antonio plays well during the regular season, then steps it up a notch or two during the playoffs (IMO). They pace themselves a little differently than Dallas. That's generally true, but San Antonio stepped it down more than a notch or two against Detroit. Maybe Dallas simply matches up better. Either way this is irrelevant because there is little chance that Dallas will beat the Spurs. Guy