Big Beat Steve

Am I mistaken or took it a comparatively long time for the Savory set to get sold out? Was this maybe too specialized fare for the typical Mosaic clientele geared more towards more (or much more) modern jazz? At any rate, glad I got it when it was brand-new.

Well worth reading any time. I am in the middle of it right now (taking it in in small instalments over time ...). I must admit that, given the prohibitive price for the printed version everywhere, I at long last went a different route. In January I took out a copy from my regional State library (through interlibrary loan), took it home, ran it through my photocopier (which yields very decent photo reproductions too) and made my personal paperback out of it ("for permanent reference").

The "French thing" did not strike me as that odd. Everyone has his own preferences or areas of interest that keep them occupied. Some who take a look at the "Eurojazz" corner of my collection would probably shake their heads in puzzlement at the comparatively large amount of Swedish jazz I have accumulated. The author of the page you linked, for example, might just as much have enthused about early post-war jazz from a different country once he has been exposed to it and found something that kindled his interest. You just never know ...

I thought so too - about someone just becoming interested in the area. (Which in itself is a good thing.) Maybe I'm too perfectionist or just too finicky, but is this reason enough not to check your facts sufficiently before you expose your "facts" publicly?

Nice attempt, and some interesting pointers (if sometimes more as a "heads up"), but what was he thinking when he mixed Jutta Hipp and the Hans Koller record released on Vogue into the FRENCH scene? And what about his claim that Jutta Hipp did NOT record as a leader during that period?? Basically it is nice when people put their thoughts about subjects off the beaten tracks of the usual onto the web. This can be stimulating. But if you do so, do your HOMEWORK first and check your facts.

And sometimes still are - one owner's generation later. That Buck Owens Taiwanese pressing Capitol bootleg LP that I scored at a clearout sale at "our" local record shop 1 or 2 years ago certainly did not have a German original owner.

But Zweitausendeins was a different "kettle of fish" in the record store pond altogether. Their primary objects were (I say "were" because in my hometown, for example, the shop is long gone) books that no longer were subject to price maintenance as well as selected foreign books at cut prices (sale iat the time of going OOP?). And boy, did I find and buy music, art photo and mid-century modern books there over time - and saw a handful more music books there that I wished I had not bought full price elsewhere not all that long before ). And the same applied to records (in the pre-CD or very early CD days) and then CDs. All of them new, not secondhand. E.g. over here they were very heavy on OJC items (vinyl first, CDs later) when these were all over the place on the market, except that Zweitausendeins seemed to be able to negoticate better price deals and sometimes carried some more obscure items from that series. And they also carried plenty of those public domain CD reissue labels. Niche music and artists, yes - but niche LABELS? Some, from time to time - but not very many overall.

I could have sworn it was a mention in Ted Gioia's book that made me aware of the Tom Talbert orchestra of the late 40s, but he does not figure in the index. Neither is he in the WCJ books by Robert Gordon and by Alain Tercinet. I had to think hard what made me search for the CD I linked, and I guess it must have been his entry in the "Bebop - The Essential Listening Companion"guide by Scott Yanow (et al.). At the time I became aware of him (a good 20 years ago) I also must have read about him onlline, and this made me spring for this CD with his early recordings on his Sea Breeze label. Re- drummer Jimmy Pratt, his name rang a bell. To the best of my recollections (confirmed by some indications on the www), he worked in Europe (including Germany) for several years in the late 50s and the 60s. So to some extent he is a "name" over here.

Never got around yet to finding a decently priced copy of the "Bix Duke Fats" vinyl, but FWIW the below one (from his "key progressive" period) is very recommended listening too: https://www.discogs.com/de/release/6325343-Tom-Talbert-Jazz-Orchestra-1946-1949

You sure do get around, man!

Re-surveying recent posts in this topic, I wonder: So what are your impressions of this book? Any comments, opinions, advice, etc.?

Hope you get something out of it. IIRC the quality of the VHS copy I provided to you (after lots of hassles due to format incompatibility after copying it to DVD ) years ago is ... ehhh ... a wee bit substandard.

Big congratulations! It's not always so that "side" tunes performed in such 50s R'n'R movies are released properly so this obviously is a rare one. BTW, not meaning to be derisive at all when I say "side tunes", but stylistically speaking, "The Big Beat" (released in 1958, FWIW) was certainly not focusing primarily on artists such as Cal Tjader. And then, judging by your record (your photo looks like the one from the Discogs listing, BTW ), was the tune listing from the promo blurb for this movie (see below) wrong in the case of Cal Tjader?

Just a minor point, but unless I am very much mistaken this particular record would actually qualify as an ORIGINAL indeed. I.e. this is the "U.K. original" release of that particular record (the US original of which was on Verve MGV 8244).

Not that I've ever been overwhelmed by what I've heard by Diana Krall, but this ... It must be frustrating if that large a part of the audience is THAT clueless ... Or maybe her live appearances are not targeted enough to attract an audience that is at least passably aware (and appreciative) of what jazz is?

Thanks. Amazing to see what money this set goes for on Amazon. Interestingly, it says there this box set has not been cleared for sale to minors and is therefore unavailable for sale to minors. 🤨 😁 Wonder what made them take this step ... BTW, the "The Birth of Rock and Roll" book that they also tout on that Dust to Digital site is very nice and VERY "rootsy" (more than most would be able to imagine imagine, but it does make sense in a way).

I guess I'll pull out my copy of this one this evening too - not least of all to see if I need to (re)file it under "mellow".

Understandable that you spun this more than once (once you are on a "kick" for this kind of music). Just checked that series on Discogs (it wasn't too familiar to me). I guess I'll have to be on the lookout for these at our local #1 vinyl outlet. From time to time for no good reason at all (except that the covers sometimes aren't pristine) these Folkways items crop up in their clearance sale bins. Some time ago I picked up a copy of the "Music of the Eureka Brass Band" (Folkways FA 2462) there, as well as a reissue of the Young Tuxedo Brass Band LP on Atlantic - for just 1 EUR each. It's not music I'd care to listen to each week, but once you do spin these records it's a very special listening experience!

Ha, I bought this back in 1990 when it was released - waaay before I could bring myself to buying a CD player. 😄 (I resisted the CD trend for several years into the 90s) All this because I figured this is music that I was highly unlikely to ever see the original releases of at affordable prices (and only part of the contents of this set were ever released on vinyl back in the day anyway). So I figured I'd better grab this set while it was available.

OLD HAT label?

What I'm saying now is just a spotty observation which may not be widely representative but it did strike me as surprising ... Yesterday I set up a stall at a local fleamarket and of course displayed my two crates of vinyl for sale (about 75% jazz with an emphasis on swing, plus a good bit of bop, cool and classic/trad/oldtime jazz, the rest being 50s R'n'R, R&B/blues plus some Easy Listening). Not that I sold a huge lot, but it was amazing how many youngish browsers (from their late teens to mid-20s student age) browsed the record bins (though it clearly said "Jazz" on the boxes ), and from some of their comments it was more than just curiosity. One chap (a University student) not only specifically asked for oldtime jazz (rare enough anyway ) but admitted liking this early roots music a lot, and went on to ask if by any chance I had any Bluegrass too. Sorry, no - but when he mentioned the Carter Family I tipped him to a few early Country string band artists to check out in addition to pre-Depression Classic Jazz, provided he'd be willing to deal with the lo-fi recording quality of the reissues of many of these (a good sign being that he already was aware of the problem ). Amazing moments, all in all, and maybe a sign that there is some subculture thing going on somewhere? Which BTW was confirmed by several Gen Z punters I saw pulling out records by the likes of Louis Armstrong or Bessie Smith at our local record clearout sale in April. The records were more of the "Best of " variety but seemed to reflect a willingness to "explore". Not a bad thing at any rate.

Thanks everyone! Amazing that this was held back for so long. A side note that may not be documented or known everywhere else: The writeup of the session in Jazz Magazine says that the original plans were to bring in Jimmy Woode as the bassist for this session, making it an ALL-expat lineup. But as the session seems to have been organized at rather short notice, Cannonball Adderley was unable to contact Jimmy Woode who was nowhere to be found. It turned out he was out playing gigs - somewhere in the Swedish province! So ever-dependable Pierre Michelot was called in.

While reading the recently-published Don Byas biography ("Sax Expat") I chanced upon a highly affordable copy of the CBS "A Tribute to Cannonball" Don Byas/Bud Powell LP of 1961 and took it home (and like it a lot): https://www.discogs.com/de/master/407175-Don-Byas-Bud-Powell-A-Tribute-To-Cannonball Looking for period reviews of the record in my historical jazz magazines, however, I drew a blank, and the Discogs page seems to indicate that the above 1979 release actually was the original one. During my searches, though, I discoverd a 4-page photo spread on this very recording session ("Cannonball supervising a jam session of the exilees") published in the February 1962 issue of (French) "Jazz Magazine". In addition to other background info this states that "the session yielded enough material for a 45-minute record that Columbia will release in the USA in spring (i.e. of 1962), and it is going to be billed to The Kenny Clarke Quintet." Anyone among you fellow discophiles familiar with anything of that kind? I usually do trust Discogs for such basic facts, so is it really so that this session sat in the can until 1979? (The new Don Byas bio is remarkably vague about when this record actually hit the market and may or may have not added to the discographical awareness of the jazz public of Don Byas in his lifetime.)

Interesting again. In a way, a "today's look" sum-up of this documentary, I guess? Especially for those who haven't had a look inside the book. BTW, here is what seems to be a longer version (09:02) of the video in the thread opener's link: Why did BBC shorten it, I wonder?