brownie

Riverside also did a great service when they put out reminiscences from Coleman Hawkins ('A Documentary') and Lil Armstrong ('Satchmo and Me'). Were there others? These albums should be reissued!

From the White House:

What does that exactly mean? Were the Gold Series digipacks produced/released by Freshsound or did they just distribute them? FreshSound distributed the Gold Series and the DeLuxe digipack sets. They reissued a lot of RCA sessions on their own. From what I understand that's over. The RCAs are still listed at the FreshSound site but I doubt that's going to last long now! This from a reliable source. Maybe our Spanish resident amigos know something about this!

Been told that FreshSound has lost the rights to release RCA Victor albums Who's going to reissue all those jazz sessions now?

I don't much care about Jimmy Stewart's political ideas. He was a superb actor! And Charlton Heston was also excellent in a number of films (including 'Touch of Evil, 'Planet of the Apes', among others). Too bad about his politics! As for John Ford, he was the greatest film director. Period! My 2 cents!

Actually there was a second and different issue of 'George Wallington at the Cafe Bohemia' released in 1985 which had different versions - also recorded at Cafe Bohemia the same evening - with alternate versions of the same tunes. It want OOP very quickly and is as hard to get as the original one!

Ray Brown 'Something for Lester' (Contemporary) with Cedar Walton and Elvin Jones

A very sad Christmas From AP:

Not sure Boris Vian attended the recording of the soundtrack for 'Ascenseur pour l'Echafaud'. He did write the liner notes to the original release on French Fontana. Vian's jazz articless have been collected in various books in french. Not sure they were translated into english which is too bad since there were many original opinions in his writings for Jazz Hot and the daily newspaper Combat including his pet dislikes of Stan Kenton, Dave Brubeck, Bill Harris and others!

I have that VDJ-25035 'The Paris Concert Bill Evans'. There's only one version of 'T.T.T.T.'. There's no 'Quiet Now'. But there's one version of 'Waltz for Debby'!

Buck Clayton 'Complete Columbia Jam Sessions', disc 4

Nate, that haunting play was 'Les Batisseurs d'Empire'. Boris Vian completed it shortly before his death in 1959. It is a classic work which keeps being revived nowadays.

The Ruby Braff/George Barnes Quartet 'To Fred Astaire With Love' (British RCA)

A good overview of Boris Vian's trumpet playing is available on this recently issued anthology Jazz et Trompinette Vian called his trumpet Trompinette!

I tune in pretty often on Radio Classique when I am in a classical music mood. Much better (and less verbuous) than the official France-Musique radio! However Radio-Classique tends to become a bit trendy nowadays with various interventions by actors/actresses, TV and radio personalities, journalists and politicians who do not add much to the music!

Many thanks, Ghost, for posting that article! Boris Vian and jazz go together! The photo taken in May 1949 at the time of the Paris jazz festival shows, from left: Boris Vian, Kenny Dorham, Juliette Gréco, Miles Davis, Michelle Léglise (Vian's then wife) and Charlie Parker!

Art Farmer and Benny Golson 'Meet the Jazztet' (Argo, stereo, black label)

That's true. Orpheum was to Riverside/Jazzland what Status was to Prestige!

I'll try to wipe that stupid smile of mine off my face while waiting for trains at the station

Most of the 2CD 'Chet Baker & Stan Getz - West Coast Live' out on PacificJazz was also recorded live at the Haig in June 1953 when Getz replaced Gerry Mulligan who was spending time in the can.

Glad to hear things wen t OK, Jim There's a new year and a new life waiting for you!

I thought O'Day sounded just awful on this set. And I love her Verves and earlier. Should have emphasized Somehow... But really thought Anita sounded better on this one than on her later discs. At least, not as embarassing!

No need to bid. Amazon.fr seems to have run out of copies but I'm pretty sure they will have more copies soon. The book looks like to being a success here. It is on display in many bookshops and got rave reviews in several important dailies and magazines. The book is available at the FNAC webstore.

Up! Because I found a few days ago a copy of 'Legacy Lives On II'. Pleasant double CD with original material - recorded in 2000/2002 - by George Shearing, Cedar Walton's Eastern Rebellion, Anita O'Day with the Paul Smith Trio, Terry Gibbs, the Pillars of West Coast Jazz (Conte Candoli, Pete Christlieb, Pete Jolly, Jim DeJulio and Larence Marable) and Les McCann (with Oscar Brashear, George Bohanon, etc...). Anita O'Day could still deliver. Somehow... On Mack Avenue too and also produced by Stix Hooper. Now will have to look for volume I!