six string

There's an official one from Newport Jazz Festival 1959 available for $10 I think from Wolfgang's Vault. It's available in FLAC or MP3 format. I don't know if I'd call it essential but I think it's very good. Full Disclosure: I'm a big Monk fan.

I just found this lp in near mint condition last week. I didn't even know it existed! I could do with more tracks from Monterey if they are available. Maybe this Monterey series that is going on now will make that possible.

I avoided his music for the longest because of the commercial stuff some have mentioned here but a few years ago I got hip to Fenix which led me to open my eyes and ears a little. Then I found a nice vinyl copy of Under Fire which I really like too. A littel while later I found a water stained but nice sounding copy of Confluence on Arista/Freedom which is a duo album he did with Dollar Brand and I really dig it too.

I've seen Janiva a few times here in Sacramento and agree that she's a great performer and singer. I have a couple of her early cds and haven't seen her in a few years now so I'll try to catch the show at The Palms in Winters. It's a great venue and my favorite place to see shows.

Allen Toussaint - Bright Mississippi (Nonesuch) This label is putting out some outstanding vinyl these days. Pressed at Pallas (Germany), the records are really well made and they sound fantastic and you get the cd version included in the price.

Yes, it was! In that case I have one in excellent condition for $900.

Was the Freddie Hubbard album a "deep groove" pressing?

I love Omar's playing. When he lived in the SF Bay area I got a chance to see him several times. He's a supremely talented musician. I have many cds by him and they are all fantastic.

I saw this Charlie Rouse album today on Uptown Records. Does anybody here have it and can you recomend it? It's also got Red Rodney, Albert Daily on it. It's probably a no brainer but I thought I would ask since I don't expect the record to disappear too quickly.

I like Dirt Farmer a lot too. I wouldn't put it up against the best of The Band but it is much better than what Bev is alluding to about members of groups putting out marginal albums because they can but don't have the skills of the original band to pull it off. I've had similar experiences with buying music by people I liked in a band only to find out that they really didn't have what it takes to make a recording that I like as much as the original band. I can't think of any examples at the moment but I too have been burned. That is one of the nice things about message boards such as this and samples on websites to listen to for help in purchasing new music. As Bev mentioned, you soon find out you're not alone with your love of X music or Y musician today compared to twenty years ago. Especially if you live in a small town. I feel like with the computer nowadays you can live almost anywhere and be able to hear about music and have it delivered to your house with ease. Relative ease I might add as it still does take some effort to search out for this stuff but if you really want it, it's available.

Thanks for the recomendation. Some how I'm not surprised that it's a Lauderdale song. He really gets around as far as his songs go. His songs are a lot more famous than he is. Another Jim Lauderdale album I like a lot which I was just listening to is on Atlantic from 1995 titled Every Second Counts.

So my instinct (combined with whatever I've read in the past) about Patty Loveless was pretty dead on I guess. I knew there was something that kept me away from her. I'm not a big fan of that Nashville production. I've heard her harmonies on albums by Emmylou, Buddy and Julie Miller and I think Jim Lauderdale too and I've liked her voice well enough. I may dip my toe in and try Sleepless Nights. Re: Jim Lauderdale I have around eight or so albums by him and I find them very consistent. I think he's known in Nashville more for his writing than his solo albums but like Buddy Miller he's got a cult following including a lot of top musicians in the genre. He's always got great talent on his albums and there's no Nashville sheen on any of the albums I've heard. I saw him about a year ago play a solo gig and as great a songwriter as he is, he really knocked me out with his singing.

I've been curious about Patty Loveless for a while now but haven't made the plunge yet. As far as Geoff Muldauer goes, I've seen him a couple of times and own a few of his albums and I think he's extremely talented as a singer and a guitarist. The Secret Handshake and Beautiful Isle of Somewhere, the latter a solo recording from a concert in Germany are both excellent. I've seen Maria many times too and her Richland Woman Blues is an acoustic blues showcase with many guest musicians helping out in a very cohesive way.

Thanks for those. I have a few Neko Case from e-music and like them very much. The Jayhawks I need to dig out again. Really enjoyed them a few years back (especially 'Tomorrow the Green Grass'). Strangers Almanac and Heartbreaker I really liked but what I subsequently heard of Adams lost me. Hazeldine's 'Digging You Up' was another favourite. I think I stumbled on bands like Calexico, Golden Smog, Lambchop, Freakwater who seemed to promise more than I actually heard. A bit too rock for me. Will play those again. It can be a bit hard to hear this sort of thing in the UK. Tends to turn up on programmes mixed in with a lot of more conventional guitar rock - Dave Matthews Band and the like - I used to try listening but would normally give up after 20 minutes. Will keep Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt in mind. I know the names, if not the music. Spotify might help. I read through most of the pages here so far and this is the one that came closest to some of the music I would have recomended. So having said that I'll recomend a few others that I don't think I've seen. Dave Alvin - I'll recomend two studio albums. Public Domaine - all of the songs are as the title states so new versions of some old songs that you don't hear much anymore. Blackjack David - Possibly my favorite studio album by him. If you like live albums his Out in California is a good example of his live sets. It's a bit more rockin' than the other two here but he does bring the volume down on some of the songs. Alejandro Escovedo is my favorite non jazz musician and has been for about ten years. My favorite album of his A Man Under the Influence. It's not a song about drinking btw. Jim Lauderdale I have many of his albums and it's going to be hard to narrow down the pick. He's done a few bluegrass albums but most are more in the country/americana vein. Honey Songs is from 2008 so should be pretty easy to find. It's got most of Elvis' last band playing with him and the songs are really great. The Bluegrass Diaries is just that, songs he has written or co-written and played in a bluegrass style Buddy and Julie Miller - Buddy is plays on some of Lauderdale's albums and I think he is also one of the better writers of this type of music out there today. Poison Love, Cruel Moon or the album he did with his wife simply titles Buddy and Julie Miller are all worthy purchases imo. Julie's albums are great too but this post is getting long already.

I recently picked up the Massey Hall live album and I'm really loving it. I've been a fan since 1969 so I've heard it all and this is one of his best solo shows available.

Tom Harrell's Moon Alley (Criss Cross) One of my favorite trumpet players.

Tonight I'll be seeing Mr. Mitchell perform in a small theatre. I don't know if he's bringing any musicians with him or if he'll play solo or use the opening act, one of our own important improvisational minds, Tony Passerell. Anywho, it should be a great night of music and who knows what else. I've only seen him once with The Art Ensemble so it'll be interesting to see/hear what he's like on his own.

I have an Acoustic Research amplifier that I bought new in 1972 that I still use in my music room to drive my second system. It's been in the shop twice and only one of those was serious and that was back in the late 70s! My roommate at the time had two sets of fairly large speakers hooked up to it which at normal levels was ok but he cranked it up real loud once when I wasn't home and the music stopped and smoke poured out of the back. I didn't get too pissed about it and he paid for the repairs and he never did that again. I would have it repaired again if anything went wrong. It's built like a tank.

So far I've only bought one of these 45rpm albums. It was Out to Lunch (Dolphy) and the sound quality is really excellent. I have a Bluenote Liberty pressing already in near mint condition but this new one is leagues above it in SQ. Re:Coltrane/Harman album, I have an original pressing and a 180gm reissue from Impulse from the 90s along with a SACD of the album that has both the stereo and mono versions. I've never done a serious comparison between the three but if you wanted to save some money, try to find a copy of the SACD. It's a hybrid so you can still play it on a regular cd player but I only listen to the SACD layer so I don't know if the redbook layer is superior to the other digital versions available. I would imagine that the 45rpm SQ is to die for. For all the knocks he gets, he's good at his job.

I missed this trio's performance last year and I wish I hadn't. I did see a similar band at the old Yoshi's in the late 80s/early 90s. Actual date is a little hazy but it was a great show too.

John Lewis Presents Contemporary Music Jazz Abstractions compostions by Gunther Schuller & Jim Hall (Atlantic)WLP Mono the band includes Scott LaFaro, Bill Evans, Eric Dolphy and Ornette Coleman. I didn't even know this album existed until I picked it up the other day. It's got some very interesting sounds on it. followed by MJQ - Space (Apple) Stereo

I saw Berroa and his band last night and it was really great. I wasn't able to catch the names of the band members but the pianist was a young man from Venezuela and boy did he have some serious chops. I was thinking about how many times I've seen Berroa play with many people including Joe Henderson, Tito Puente, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Charlie Haden and I possibly others but this was the first time I'd seen him as the leader. The room was packed and the band burned for 90 minutes. Got my $20 worth. Does anyone know who's touring with him? I went to his website but there was nothing there about the band.

The Eleventh Hour - Johnny Hodges (Verve)orig. stereo Oliver Nelson did some really nice arrangements for this album. The strings really sound like part of the music as opposed to an afterthought.

Monk's Live at the It Club from Mosaic. It's a great set and I like it a lot more than the Jazz Workshop recordings that were done a few days later in San Francisco.

The new Complete Live at the It Club set of Monk from Mosaic.