Free For All

Jazz is a language. Musicians that are intimately familiar w/each other's playing can easily communicate in a non-verbal manner. I've also heard Desmond and Brubeck would also "play" as quotes phone numbers of people they knew (the phone numbers would be represented by scale degrees). I'm sure there was and is much of that type of communication everywhere among musicians. For example, I'll bet Herbie, Tony and Ron (and miles and Wayne) constantly did stuff simliar to that.

Rooster, seems like you ought to speak on behalf of Charles Tolliver at some point. Will that be part of the Hill show? BTW, how was Helen Sung? Who played w/her? Sorry I couldn't make it.

Well THAT was a fun Google search!

Well said, sal. Shawshank is a great flick. I'd like to get that DVD. The Shining was good, agreed (vintage Jack), but it was quite different from the original King book. Totally different ending. I thought Stand By Me was a good King adaptation.

...and how the hell do you pronounce his name? Is it MEER-o-slov vi-TOOSE?

I know, good service counts for a lot. Hot plate? Sure, I can do that, I've even got the metal plates that you can stick in the oven. I usually don't bother though 'cause my steak ain't on the plate long enough to get cold! BTW, regarding hot plates- whenever someone brings me a plate and says "careful it's hot" I ALWAYS have to check it out for myself, like a little kid. I have scars from all the best restaurants.

Here in KC there are several excellent steak joints. Ruth's Chris is part of a chain, and a very good one. Very pricey too, as most of these steak places are. There are places I prefer here in KC, though. My feeling is that I can prepare a steak at home on my grill for A LOT LESS $$ that's just about as good (I have a great butcher shop near my house). It's all about the quality of the meat, baby! The real attraction of the fancy places tends to be the good side dishes, IMHO. And yes, it is fun to occasionally drop some $$ and get a first class meal.

Did you mean to say infrequent? Man, when I O.D. on Doritos I have the OPPOSITE problem. I will from time to time crave some kind of fast-food fix. It seems like a good idea at first, but invariably after eating I always feel crappy. KFC or (heaven forbid) Popeyes alway do that to me. And Long John Silver's. Blechhh. When I lived in Chicago I got into a late-night White Castle slider thing. Never had to set my alarm for the next morning- nature's call would do the trick without fail and a fair amount of urgency. I just can't eat that crap anymore. I do like Chipotle, Schlotzke's, Planet Sub and Quizno's. I really liked that weird Quizno's commercial that had the singing gerbil-things. It was probably too weird for mainstream America, 'cause it disappeared. I miss Taco Cabana from my Austin days.

Pete Barbutti did a great version of Tenderly.......with a broom. Anyone remember him?

Regarding Thad Jones quoting PGTW on April In Paris.... I heard they had done MANY takes of the tune, and I'm sure Thad was trying to do something different each time on his solo. Out of the blue he plays the quote, and wouldn't you know it, that take ended up being the keeper. He was then obliged (I'm sure to his chagrin) to recreate it in subsequent live performances, and most anyone who plays the solo on that arrangement today plays that same quote. And it's no longer fresh or clever. One thing that's interesting is that many trumpet players don't know that it was Thad who originally did it. I think what makes this particular quote (and most quotes) seem a little tired is not the original effort, but the thousands of times it's been repeated since. As I said before, it's about being spontaneous. The effectiveness (and humor) fades with excessive repetition. BTW, isn't "stupid musician tricks" a regular segment on Letterman?

Classic Rodney, SEK. Really good stuff. He was a pioneer of self-effacing humor. Thanks, Rodney!

Dance With Death is new to me and man it's really good. IMHO this one is the cream of the crop (I'm not counting Contours since I had it on the Mosaic). A perfect combination of players for Andrew's music. Tolliver and Farrell are tight. I think Joe Farrell is taking the JoeHen ball and running with it. Billy Higgins- the ultimate Blue Note drummer. I have to say my other purchase (the Jack Wilson) underwhelmed me. I bought it because I'm a Lee Morgan junkie, and was curious about the combination of him, Jackie and Garnett Brown. The horns were fine but I got the feeling the material was a little under-rehearsed; the horns didn't seem to be overly passionate about the tunes (at times you can tell Jackie is turning off-mic as if to say "whassup?") which (IMHO) were fairly "generic" and not particularly distinctive, and Jack Wilson the pianist didn't do a lot for me, with all due respect. Did I miss something? Anyone out there in love with this session? I will say that once again Higgins kept things interesting, however. I'd recommend this to Lee/Jackie completists but don't consider it essential. The Hill, however, is essential!

There was Jazz Casual which was Gleason's show. Jazz Scene USA was hosted by Oscar Brown, Jr. I know both shows have been issued on DVD. I've noticed lately they've issued combinations of several Jazz Casual shows on one DVD. I just picked up a DVD with all three of Woody Herman 's appearances. The Jazz Scene USA releases are twofers- two half-hour sets by different artists. One of the cool things about Jazz Scene is that each guest does their own version of the show's theme song, so you get to hear the tune interpreted by Cannonball, Rosolino, Kenton, Jimmy Smith et al. Really great music on both shows. EDIT: Also recently released are several DVDS of mid-70s Montreux jams with artists such as Milt Jackson, Basie, OP, Mary Lou Williams, Roy Eldridge etc. I've heard these are very good quality.

The best price I found was HERE.

Boy, these are really pricey if you buy them at Border's ($17.99, full retail). Better to get 'em online- about 6 bucks cheaper ($12.59 at CDUniverse). Much as I regret it, I can't afford to support the local brick-and-mortars when there's that much difference.

I'm all for musical puns like that. But it has to happen in a spontaneous manner, so it's not like the soloist does it every time, the same quote. It's like when someone says "tell that funny joke" it almost always bombs because it's not spontaneous. Once it's been done to death it's just not clever anymore. For example, if I hear another Flintstones quote on rhythm changes I think I'm gonna yak. Some quotes are so easy to interject that there's nothing particularly clever about them. I think quotes that reflect on the moment and aren't planned tend to work better. If you approach it like "I'm gonna be clever and quote a bunch of tunes" it seldom will come off. Sonny Rollins said when he was soloing he would play a couple notes that would remind him of another tune and then feel obliged to finish it out. That seems more spontaneous to me.

Happy Birthday, Marcus!

Happy birthday Brad! Treat yourself to some new Conns today!

Quite possibly my favorite ECM of all time. I believe it's on Oceanus where they arrive at this beautiful major tonality at the end after a long period of modal/minor harmony. Always gives me a rush. Great album. I'm pretty sure it was one of my 1st ECMs! One of my first as well. A popular "party" record in the 70s, if you catch my drift.

Quite possibly my favorite ECM of all time. I believe it's on Oceanus where they arrive at this beautiful major tonality at the end after a long period of modal/minor harmony. Always gives me a rush.

Thanks for sharing THAT, bro. I'll dedicate "The Days Of Whine And Hoses" to you. So I guess you'll be looking forward to this---->

IMHO the player who really nails this technique on trombone is Albert Mangelsdorff. I would recommend checking out some of his recordings if you're into this.

Wow, your Gil Evans spine looks a lot better than mine does! They are a pretty sight. I just wish they could have found a spot in the series for those remaining Someday My Prince Will Come tracks. I mean, come on....no "Old Folks"?? Still, I'm a happy camper.

I think that this is obviously a different situation than in a studio or intimate club where the connection of the solos is more consistently a part of the performance. When I follow a soloist who's just gotten a big ovation I usually wait to start playing until the applause starts to subside. I do this for two reasons- first, to be respectful to the other player and let them get their due. Also, for me it creates a little "buffer" zone- a little break, perhaps, so both the audience and I can "prepare" to focus on a new event. Plus it's fun to start a solo in the middle of the form every now and then! Also (we discussed this in the other thread) I usually try to take another "tack" to create contrast- I'm certainly not going to try to "top" someone at their own game. The second time is rarely as exciting as the first. If the previous soloist was playing to a full-out rhythm section, I might have the drummer lay out for a while and start w/bass and piano or bass alone. This helps to empty the "sonic canvas" for a while and give ears a rest. I think contrast is the best way to follow a large ovation- contrast in both approach and density of texture. And it's always nice when YOU'RE the one getting the big ovation!

Peter, I'm certainly not a southerner but I've had success with this recipe.