Guy Berger

I believe it is this gig, 10/27/69 in Rome. Corea, Holland, and DeJohnette replace Hancock, Carter, and Williams. The version you are looking at is truncated by about 10 minutes from the original. Nevertheless, it's an incredible performance by an incredible group and if it weren't otherwise available I'd tell you to pick it up immediately. HOWEVER... sometime in the near future (ie as soon as Guy gets to work) we'll be generating a tree or vine of some sort to distribute about 25 Miles Davis boots, and this complete show will be part of it. So depending on how eager you are to hear it, you might want to wait a month or two. Guy

The tune "74 Miles Away" is really incredible! Cannonball incorporated avant-garde ideas into his style very effectively during the mid 60s. Guy

It was in the beginning of my 2nd year of grad school. We had a class at 9 am in the morning and I'm not sure about the exact sequence of events, but one of the other students ran in and said that a plane had crashed into the WTC. At the time I thought it must have just been a small plane. Anyway, the truth gradually unfolded during the day. All of our classes were cancelled. I watched much of the coverage at the Hall of Graduate Studies (they had a big screen TV), then later on my neighbor's tv. I was sure I'd wake up the next day to find out there'd been more attacks. It was an awful day, though I can't imagine it being nearly as horrible as for anyone who spent it in NYC. It's odd -- I haven't spent much time thinking about 9/11 over the past two anniversaries. Thanks for letting me share. p.s. I liked Belle Waring's reflections on 9/11.

I'm starting this thread to discuss Wayne as a saxophone player (rather than as a composer). What tracks feature your favorite playing by the man? Mine: solo "Time of the Barracudas" (from Et Cetera) w/Art Blakey "Arabia" (from Mosaic) title track of Free for All w/Miles Davis "Iris" (ESP) "So What" (from Plugged Nickel, 12/23/65) "Gingerbread Boy" (Miles Smiles) "Masqualero" (Sorcerer) "Mademoiselle Mabry" (Filles de Kilimanjaro) "In a Silent Way" (studio version) "Directions" (second set, 3/7/70) w/Weather Report opening of "Vertical Invader" (from Live in Tokyo) "Elegant People" (Black Market) w/others "Message from the Nile" (Extensions -- probably my favorite Wayne-on-soprano)

On September 7, 1654, the first Jews arrived in New Amsterdam. So it's been 350 years of Jews in America. We've had a pretty good run! "350 years of beautiful tradition from New Amsterdam to Sandy Koufax, you're goddamn right we're living in the fuckin' past!" Guy

100%, if you keep drawing until you run out of cards... Guy

I think you guys are right, but I'm too chicken to name musicians... Guy

That's really the feeling I get from listening to most of 8:30. Guy

Duke Pearson's Idle Moments

Any thoughts on this guy? I saw his group at Yoshi's last night; terrific Latin jazz. (though I wish there had been more piano solos!) It seems like all the Perfecta albums from the 60s are OOP. Guy

Ok, Here's the deal. I'm not at home so I don't have access to the CDs in question, but I'll copy them as soon as I get back. You guys work out how the structure and I'll mail a copy to the seed sometime in September. Guy p.s. Besides the 6 '67 CDs, I have 13 CDs from '69 and 8 CDs from '70. Not sure how big of an MD dose people can handle, but I have no problem copying the whole shebang.

It boils down to the fact that Miles liked pianists with a light touch and plenty of space in their playing. That's why he liked guys like Ahmad Jamal, Red Garland, Tommy Flanagan, Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, and Herbie Hancock, and why he disliked OP and McCoy Tyner. Guy

I saw these guys at the Village Vanguard last night. They were quite awesome, as one would expect. Go see them. PS This is an annual gig.

The version of "Round Midnight" is stunning, some of Joe's most concentrated playing ever. Guy

On many days, my favorite tenor saxophonist. Keep it up, Wayne! Guy

Ever since I started grad school seeing these guys in concert has become an annual tradition. This year will be the 5th in a row and 2nd straight at Toad's Place. Not a great band, but a good one; and they do a bitchin' version of Duke's "Chinoiserie". Guy

John (?) Millitello (sp?), I believe. And yes, he's excellent and a bit grittier than you'd expect from a Brubeck saxophonist. Guy

I think Chambers is alright (and there aren't many good alternatives), but it's riddled with errors and it would have been nice to have primary sources. Porter's biography of John Coltrane is excellent though he doesn't discuss every session. Some parts are a little technical. Guy

Miles's playing on "Voodoo Down" is so awesome... both solos just completely dance around the funky groove, varying the dynamics (even briefly moving into ballad territory in the 2nd solo) and then those intense, fast, upper-register runs in the 2nd solo... whew. Guy

It's too bad Apple and Steve Jobs are trying to screw iPod users via their monopoly power, so hopefully Real will succeed: Apple Zealots

"Pharoah's Dance" for me. I'm always surprised when I see it described as a "long jam" -- after I realized what was going on (and that took me a while), I've always seen it as a great example of large scale composition in jazz. Guy

I'm psyched about the JH reissue! Guy

I got it cheap from Columbia House 4 years ago. Check if they still have it. Guy

I have the Hanover Band's recording of 6 7 8. Guy

The cool thing about the March '69 Duffy's Tavern gig is that it's one of the last ones with mostly older material: two long takes of "No Blues", "Green Dolphin Street" (Wayne on soprano), and "So What". The sound quality is awful; Wayne Shorter's tenor is difficult to hear. But you get an incredible sense of how good this rhythm section was. Holland takes monster solos on both takes of "No Blues". And some of the shit Chick Corea does on the second version of "No Blues" is incredible. The Rome gig has the classic collective improv sequence after "Directions". First Shorter improvising on soprano with the rhythm section, then a complete abstract mindfuck once it's only the rhythm trio. Weird bowing by Holland, rumbling DeJohnette cymbals, and Chick Corea's flute playing. It seems like each concert had at least one collective improv bit by the rhythm section, usually on "It's About That Time". Guy