jazzypaul

The name of the band is the Three Blind Mice. Our day jobs have done a pretty good job of keeping us tied to the area, but we're slowly working our way out. Not to mention, being tied to Chicago is not a terrible thing. As for being a funk band, I guess we could be called that, but, on the other hand, with Ken Vandermark doing P-Funk tunes and Jason Moran doing Afrika Baambata tunes, I'd figure all bets are off.

I walk a fine, fine line when I deal with this issue. I have two bands. One avant-garde group that is lucky if it gets 20 gigs a year, and an organ trio that does the Medeski, Martin & Wood/Zony Mash thing. The organ trio sells out gigs wherever we play, bar owners beg us to come back (although they never need to, if we get paid and can drink for free, we'll be back...) and everyone has a good time. I don't see the audience disconnect that you speak of. When we play things like Flashlight, Mothership Connection, Sexual Healing or No Quarter (the pop tunes...) people tune in, and they seem to stay with us through the originals. Granted, we're consciously going after a different audience (we seek out clubs that are friendly to "jam bands") but, things are going well. This does tie into my thoughts that jazz musicians have forgotten that they need to be first class marketeers as well. I dunno. Best of luck to you all, and here's to hoping that my incredibly good luck doesn't dry out anytime soon.

My parents are big health nuts (three heart attacks between the two of them will do that to people...) and they buy low-fat, low carb EVERYTHING. They even drink the Michelob low-carb beer. Well, my mom makes my dad drink it, anyway. Whenever I bring over a six-pack of Modelo Negro, my dad dives in faster than you can say burp. Anyway, in the mix of all of these terrible tasting, good for you foods are these baked veggie chips. They feel and taste like styrofoam. I think you can only find them at places like Whole Foods. If you see them, pass them by. (I'm getting the heebie-jeebies just thinking about them...)

I bought The Far East Suite three different times, Search for the New Land twice, and borrowed a copy of Jacknife, even though I had just bought it three months prior. I still don't know whether to attribute this to absent-mindedness or the fact that I've never come up with a list of what I own. Either way, I got some weird looks at Tower when I came back in with the excuse of, "whoops, I already own this one..."

I heard this one, and the jury is still out for me. He's got plenty of chops, plenty of imagination, and he's got great ideas. Somehow, this disc just isn't doing it for me.

Christina Aguilera sings Etta Jones tunes in concert...that's gotta count for something...

Let me, a fervant White Sox fanatic, step in on this one...WE'RE NOT BEHIND THIS JERK!!! Everyone in town laughed at these two for being the stereotypical south-side rednecks that they are. And this judge...uggh!! Personally, I think guys like this make games less fun for all of us. Added security, the fact that we're already the laughing stock of baseball fans all over, this just makes it worse. I wish they would've put the guy away.

Well, I'll say this...when it comes to the first two VU albums, they are, far and wide, close to perfect albums. Plain and simple. The self titled album had some great moments, and I agree, had they not split after Loaded, they would have, well, sucked a monkey's pole. But Loaded does have sweet jane, who loves the sun, rock and roll, Oh Sweet Nuthin' and Cool it Down, all really great songs. Those first two albums, in my mind, are defining moments for Rock's avant garde, which sadly, has always been far too small of a segment. If that's the critics pose, then lucky them...they finally agreed with me and got it right.

Chuck, there was one that I've seen that has a different cover than either of the two I've seen on this thread. There's a long, and very interesting version of Ramblin' on there, as well as a couple of Bley compositions. Very interesting stuff. I'll have to see if I can locate it again, scan it and show it to you, see if you know anything about it.

Dr. J, you forget, there was 66.7% more to Cream than just Clapton. Jack Bruce could play (and write) like a monster, and, well, Ginger Baker is the reason I play drums in the first place. His drumming is fiery, inventive, and endlessly grooving. So, I have a soft spot in my heart for Cream. Call it a quirk, I guess.

Dr J, This is my reasons for my thoughts...Stones up to Exile and Sabbath up to Volume 4 are both batting close to 1000. I was never a big Who fan, but about 95% of the songs I like from them come from everything pre-Who's next. Is Sabbath Bloody Sabbath a good album, and maybe even a great one? Sure, but they're starting to show signs of falling apart. And they put Rick Wakeman on the album (shiver). Might my tastes in those three bands coincide with what the rock critics say? I guess they do. But, trust me, as a fan of Phish, The Grateful Dead and Zeppelin's Presence, I'm not really one to trust a rock critic's judgement much. If other people want to claim that Townsend's guitar playing is this, that or the other, let them. I never really enjoyed it. For the pure visceral rush of good rock and roll, give me the Velvets, the MC5, The Stooges or The Sex Pistols (I know, I know, big Who fans, blah, blah, blah...). I consider them to be overrated because people put them in the same rarified air as Cream, Hendrix, The Beatles, The Stones or Zeppelin. I can't see how anyone can do that without getting their heads examined. The Beatles wrote better pop tunes, The Stones did better R&B covers, Cream rocked harder and Hendrix put on a better show. I think they laid the groundwork for a lot of great bands to come. I don't think they were one of them however. Sorry.

If Quadrophenia is the finest Who album of them all, then my earlier post about the Who themselves being overrated has all the ammunition I would ever need. You wanna talk great rock albums, let's talk White Light/White Heat...

Quadrophenia is SOOOOO overated!!! 2 albums, only 3 or 4 good songs. Nelly runs a better percentage than that..."it's getting hot in herre..." Greg -- both Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage had clunkers on them. This cannot be said for Volume 4 and the previous albums. I guess I could amend that one though. Gotta be able to hear N.I.B. after all...

Mark, I'll actually jump to your aid on this one. The Who were sloppy, whiny little brats who made some good music up through 1972. After that, all we were left with was a posturing lead singer, a banal guitarist, an incredibly sloppy drummer and a better than average bass player. Sounds like 95% of the bar bands I've ever seen. But these guys write songs about wanting to die before they get old, jerking off and magic busses, and they become superstars. Please. The Stones should have stopped after Exile on Main Street, Black Sabbath should have stopped after Volume 4, and The Who should have stopped after Who's Next. Instead, we have a band that can't play their own songs without help, and who's most vital element (previously mentioned sloppy drummer and decent bass player) is pushing up daisies whilst pining for the fjords.

Dr. J, I think you might be missing a valid point in all of your way too P.C. objections to this whole thing: maybe it's a largely black/white community. If I'm this guy, and I don't see too many (if any) asians, arabs or hispanics in my community, why am I going to extend an offer to them? People are dissecting this way too much. This is my take on it... Head of church sees large community, healthy church community and wants to bring more whites into his church to worship. This is healthy on numerous levels. 1) No matter what, it brings people together. Let's face it, whites are going to show up because they're being welcomed. Very few people will go out of their way for $5, especially if they're not comfortable in the situation. So, if they're showing up, they were more than likely thinking about attending a church, or the publicity behind the stunt got them thinking about it. 2) Even if someone does take the money, it gets them in the door. This guy is doing this because he wants people to hear his message. If they're in the church, they'll hear it. They might not listen to it, but they'll hear it. 3) Curious whites who might be uneasy going into a black neighborhood for once get a chance to see the black community for what it is. A community of black people. Not a community of thugs, rapists and drug dealers. If this gamble pays off, we could see a huge boost in race relations in a place, almost 50 years after the start of the civil rights movement, that still needs help in this regard. Quit trying to break this down with all sorts of doomsday what ifs, and have some faith in humankind for once. All of this liberal think the worst of everything so the government can create another program crap has got to go. I wish this guy the best.

If I had Kobe's wife for my bride, I wouldn't be looking anywhere else...she's gorgeous, and if she's standing by him through all of this, knowing that a California divorce automatically entitles her to 1/2 of his fortune, then she's a damn good woman. From everything I've seen/read on the case, something doesn't smell right about the whole thing. But, on the other hand, Colorado is a long way from Chicago, I could very well be smelling a lot of things...

waxing the dolphin polishing the rocket these are two of my favorites...

Ford all the way. They may very well indeed make the world's worst cars, but damn if they don't make the best trucks the world has ever seen. I've never been able to explain it. I can only live by it. That's why I have the VW for hauling ass and the Explorer for hauling drums.

ewwwwww, Jimmy Webb, flashbacks, flashbacks....I was on a lounge gig for about 6 months where the piano trio would get a couple of songs without the vocalist. Being that the pianist was a total prima donna, he would sing one of the three tunes singerless tunes per set. One of them would ALWAYS be Witchita Lineman or By the Time I Get To Phoenix. ewwwwwww....skin still crawling.....ewwwwwwwww.....eeeeeewwwwww

It's spiritual if it makes my entire body get into it, at least in my mind. That said... Grant Green: Alive. Ronnie Foster's solos on that album are like a revival all on their own. I question the sanity and soul of people that don't like this album. Metheny's guitar synth: wherever this is, there is no sadness. Elvin's drums: ditto. Idris Muhammed's backbeat: double ditto.

Yea, but at best he is was in the wrong place for someone that is married. and how many professional athletes has that stopped?

Yea, but at best he is was in the wrong place for someone that is married. and how many professional athletes has that stopped?

Yeah, because all of that damn music is so terrible...as a boxing junkie, I'll watch anything to do with Ali, Frazier, Louis, either of the sugar rays...