Dan Gould

I must say that the Exorcist was the better one.

Sorry Jim, but the idea was one at a time ...

Its excellent, very much in a hard bop vein. Which makes it unique in the Jack Wilson discography, as most of his sessions didn't really go that way. Certainly not his other two BNs.

Why I'm doing this for Johnny after our last to-do when he declared me to be a "coward" I'll never know. Chalk it up to not being involved in the Political Forum anymore, and a belief that by doing this I am in for some major positive karma. Any-whoo, John's band, Reptet, is reviewed in this month's (May) Cadence. Its in a group with two other west coast "creative music" groups, but I'll just transcribe the Reptet part of the review. Its written by Phillip McNally. "Cooperative is more than just a group name in this type of music, it is a ruling concept. So it is when you come to the Monktail Creative Music Concern, or the MCMC, your eye has led you to expect Co-op to fill that last "C." In describing themselves, they roll out a few of the other likely C's: Coalition, Collective. But by choosing "Concern" this Seattle based collective seems to indicate an openness to influence and direction, a seriousness to their endeavor, but also an indication they are not about a subordination of individuals to the group as much as they are a group of individuals with a shared vision. They open the CD with 4 group improvisations, recorded without overdubs or edits, and then perform two lenghty pieces based on graphic scores. These two compositions have the feel of a conduction, as they are clearly more organized in terms of rising and falling in pitch and volume for the whole ensemble. But, perhaps surprisingly, the group improvisations are their stronger work. MCMC likes to begin with long, droning monotones and slowly out of that one of the musicians erupts with an idea. That's when the group cohesiveness really shows, for they are adept at responding to the musical implications of that evolving idea. I particularly like "Whisper Skin", where the group reminds me of the Sun Ra Arkestra, opening with a few slightly astringent chords in ballad time, and then strong trumpet and bari sax solos follow until we reach a Ra-like blast or two from the whole band, and then the music devolves again into the opening chords tailing off into silence. In all three of these recordings, different though they might be, there is a common interest in extending the sounds of instruments played, in particular by exploring the "little sounds" an instrument can make, the squeaks and whistles that are usually trained out of a musician in learning the instrument. There is also a form that seems common among them, since the music seems largely to be about atmosphere and shape, and not about melodic statement. If a melody occurs, it has evolved out of a bedrock of long tones in various colors. So the common approach is to put down some sounds, usually elongated and monochrome and then to allow other musical voices to comment or counter that foundation, which leads to different voices commenting until somehow we seem to return to the beginning bedrock." I skipped the opening reviews of the other two pieces, and the sum-up, which basically says that this is the way "creative music" is being played round these parts at this moment in time. Congratulations, John, on a positive review from a magazine that probably covers your style of music better than any other publication.

No! Is there a web version I could check out? No, they don't publish on the Web. I can post the words later today if you wish.

Hey John, Are you aware that your band is reviewed in the current (May) issue of Cadence?

The theme is Big Band tonite. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

All of Me (Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis)

Not much of compelling interest to me other than Easterly Winds which apparently doesn't include unissued material. :rsmile:

The last word of the last album is the first word of the next album. So: Stop, Look & Listen (Philly Joe Jones LP) Listen Here (Gene Harris) Here and Now (Don Cherry) ...

I believe on Board Krypton we had some fun linking album titles. How about doing the same thing, Alphabet Game style? Stop, Look & Listen Listen Here Anyone for "Hear ..."?

Oh, I get it-you want them to ship to Miami and then your Dad will pick them up there? Oh well-I'm now in Palm Beach county, about 40 miles north.

In Chuck's defense (and whoever thought I'd write that?), the initial post sure felt like spam to me, with the contact number, prices, and price break on the CD. Nevertheless, welcome, Marla, and don't worry about whether or not you're thoughts are worthy of sharing! There're guys here with 3000 posts, and about four of them are worthwhile.

And speaking of fifteen minutes being up, who was cast in the She Bangs video? The rather voluptous drunken girl from the Real World Las Vegas season. Hopefully she'll follow William back to the obscurity they richly deserve. (though I have a feeling that the board game Trivial Pursuit will use Mr. Hung for one of their fiendishly difficult questions, say in about 5 years

Thanks Dave, one to look for when I head to Borders for the buy three get one free sale!

Are you aware that the move to the Jazz & Vinyl Annex has meant that all of their jazz vinyl is now available to browse? Might be a reason to go back ...

Sounds like a great show, and its terrific to hear that Horace is feeling well enough to be touring and putting on a good long show. How did Eric Alexander sound with the Horace songbook?

Up, cause I know that me and Mark can't be the only ones with embarrasing purchases in our past. Heck, hardbopjazz copped to listening to Billy Don't Be a Hero all the time back then ...

Too bad Frasier is clearing out before you get there.

I'm so sorry to hear of this, Randy. Take care of yourself and your family.

Really? I could have sworn the lady said "Tower", and I remember what tipped me off was a magazine ad for Tower that listed different cities, and one was definitely Miami. Maybe it did close after all ... How is the Virgin store, BW? That might be worth the trip.

Marcus, There's a Tower records in south Miami; depending on where your father is, he should go to the very end of I-95, and then just keep driving. I think its on the left as you head south. Can't say anything about its stock, I only heard about it and have never gone that far south to see it in person, and at the time I heard about it, I was told it was more Latin than anything else. Heck, for all I know its closed since then, so forget I mentioned it. The one place I'd recommend is Blue Note Records in North Miami Beach. The Jazz is located in the vinyl annex and isn't as great as it used to be but is still pretty good. The jazz vinyl is good too. Be aware though that the vinyl annex doesn't have the same hours as the main store; I think its now open Noon to 7 pm. They have a website, so you can check for a phone number. PM me if you want driving directions. Otherwise, I think there're some other members more attuned to Miami stores-I stick mostly to Fort Lauderdale, with the occasional drive to Blue Note.

Here's a report from CNN.com: Frail Ray Charles vows to get stronger Friday, April 30, 2004 Posted: 10:37 PM EDT (0237 GMT) LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- American music icon Ray Charles, whose voice gave birth to soul music, has been reduced to a whisper, and cannot stand without support. The 73-year-old singer/songwriter turned up late in a motorized wheelchair to his own party Friday, when the City of Los Angeles conferred historic building status on his longtime recording complex in a rundown part of the city. Propped up at the podium by handlers, the frail entertainer, who recently had hip replacement surgery, could barely be heard as he spoke into the microphone. "I'm a little weak now, but I'm gonna get stronger," he said, before posing briefly for photos with luminaries including Clint Eastwood, and then being whisked away. His demeanor was a far cry from the wildly enthusiastic Charles known to millions of fans for more than half a century. A prolific performer, Charles has been off the road for almost a year so that he could undergo a hip replacement. Unspecified complications forced him to scrap plans to resume touring with a performance in New York last month. A recent tabloid report claimed Charles was dying of liver cancer and that funeral arrangements were being made. But Joe Adams, Charles's business associate for 46 years, told Reuters, "I can't give any credence to the story. ... They seem to know more than I do." But Adams did not seem optimistic that Charles would return to the road. "I hope so. It's his life, but he'll be 74 in September and it's kind of adding up," he said. "He wants to get out there now, because that's his communication. It's his therapy also. I don't know whether he'll go back out again or not." Even with his health problems, Charles has been busy working on a CD of duets with such performers as Elton John, Norah Jones, B.B. King, Diana Krall, Johnny Mathis and Willie Nelson. It is slated for release at the end of summer. Charles' biographer, David Ritz, who has known him since the mid-1970s, said, "I think his physicality has changed, but not his character," he said. Charles, who went blind from glaucoma as a youngster, is often credited with inventing soul music. He scored his first national hit in 1955 with "I've Got A Woman." Subsequent hits included "What'd I Say," "Georgia on My Mind" and "Hit the Road, Jack." ******************** I can't imagine wanting to hear this duets CD if he's trying to perform in his present state. I bet that will be tough to listen to, if its the last he leaves us. Hang tough, Brother Ray!

A likely story... Business seemed way off at the Borders I went to today; how's your business doing these days, 7/4? Still sucking wind? That's too bad; who will you blame if Bush gets canned in November?

Similarly, I bought a running suit a few months back, and when the weather turned cooler and I got out the jacket part, I discovered that the clerk had left the theft device inside that piece. By this time, I've tossed the receipt, so what am I to do? Well, I brought it back to Sears, and went straight to the nearest checkout counter from the entrance (a bit aways from the men's department, but I figure I don't want to be seen to be walking around with this loose jacket before I go up to the counter). I'm sure it was natural for them to wonder whether I was conning them, but fortunately they didn't give me too much of a hard time. I was absolutely prepared to go into full "it was the clerk's fault, now you get this freaking thing off" pitch a fit til I get what I want mode, but that wasn't necessary. And I did have an ace in the hole-as I walked in, I saw the security monitor that showed the exit, so I figured I could always get them to rewind the tape and see that I walked in with the jacket. But there's a definite moral to this story-check yourself to make sure all tags are off any clothing purchase!