Dub Modal

Re Tord, I've always wanted to get one of his LPs so that I could speed the songs up. His pacing seems deliberately slow and dragged out. Wondering if I can get him up to hard bop time and if that would sound better...?

Dark Victory: Ronald Reagan, MCA & the Mob by Dan Moldea Audiobook on Spotify. Helluva first chapter synopsis on the beginning of the Storyville jazz scene in New Orleans and its subsequent transition to Chicago.

Which ones are hitting the most for you? I tend to dig Vesala and Garbarek from those early years the most.

I do think the tracks with Croker are the highlights by far. I get this. It made a nice soundtrack on the way the other day though. Taking a page from Liberace's playbook maybe, only enhancing the sex appeal. I guess piano music doesn't really sell, but sex does and likely always will so put them together if you have to. I'm sure she's no slouch on the keys either.

FWIW, 2 of the 7 songs on Alexander's newest album aren't written by him. One is I Can't Make You Love Me and the other is the public domain Great Is Thy Faithfulness. Obviously per the OP he throws in other standards during live performances, so he's not solely playing his own compositions.

Old Law & Order episodes from the early 90s on Hulu. No computers or cell phones so they're solving crimes like Sherlock Holmes. Dialogue had to be ahead of it's time for a TV show.

Thanks to the OP and subsequent convo I checked out his most recent studio work "Continuous" with Kris Funn (b), John Davis (d) and Theo Croker (tp). Very enjoyable. I don't hear much influence from the bebop era but I do hear 70s Tyner and Chick Corea. He plays a lot of notes but I hear purpose behind them. Overall the album reminds me of Mathias Eick's records. Similar vibes. I'll definitely revisit it and would go see him live as well. Just a quick word on the drumming style here. Definitely modern and something that's ubiquitous these days. Sometimes I can't help but think it's like sanitized Elvin Jones to a degree, but with elements of marching band percussion that maybe goes all the way back to Sousa. So there's at least some musical heritage involved. But it also comes across as cleaned up for groove-oriented ears which makes sense I guess since they do want record sales. I'm not familiar with John Davis that I know of but it's not his fault and he plays well here. It doesn't distract here though and serves the music well enough.

I haven't heard them but your post made me curious. I'll have to check them out.

Not sure 100% but this link could be insightful at least a little bit: https://culture.pl/en/work/not-two-milosc-and-lester-bowie Totally a guess on my part after reading that anecdote is that it's possible that Lester felt some need to help/teach/reach these musicians within whom he may have sensed an earnest desire and love for the music. I'm sure there's more to the story than that and my assessment may be way off but it's definitely a great question.

Serie is German for series, so it's Series 6. I don't know what that means in regard to ECM though. Great article on Summers too. Thanks for sharing that link. Can't believe he's 82.

I find it a little funny that the OP's thread on Lovano sparked discussion while the Joey A one did not.

😄 I've been grumpy since the age of 5..I can't imagine it getting worse

Men get grumpier as they age It's gonna happen to all of us at some point

Success story no doubt and I'm intrigued by the Marley LPs forthcoming. Thanks for the article links.

I don't like the ECM cover art style either but there are some really good albums in that catalog from every decade they've been around. I think a decent approach to counteract this bias is to try and listen blindly if at all possible to get around that visual issue. Not easy of course.

Great songs and a lot of new names for me. Thanks again!

Greetings welcome Matthew! Thanks for putting one of these together. 1. Love the intro. Is the flautist the lead? Obviously a new production, and a glossy one at that. Love all the elements here. Bassist is a highlight, while the pianist seems content to blend in, not a bad thing. I'm not sure if the soprano sax player is the same as the flautist at the moment. They're together at the end but it could be dubbed? That sax was on point though regardless. 2. Sounds like another recent production based on the drumming and how it's recorded. Piano sound is excellent. Great playing. No guesses. 3. Like a lot of what's going on in the beginning here. Dave Stryker maybe? One thing about this production is that I'm listening to the guitarist's comping as much as the horn solo bc the volume levels are just about even. Makes following the horn a little difficult, which is a shame bc they're playing well. Same thing during the bass solo although the guitarist has toned down a bit. 4. So far all of these sound like recent recordings. Nice. Oh no - strings! And dramatic ones at that. Oof. Sorry, those take some of the fun out of it for me. I thought the piano intro was building into something pretty interesting but the strings and tympanis bring in an orchestral seriousness that falls a little flat for me. YMMV. Soundtrack composition? 5. Monk - Straight No Chaser. But with flute and live. Interesting. Spaulding? Good little session here. 6. Sounds like Santana. More flute! Woot! Live again as well. With a vibes player. I dig the tune. Familiar but I can't name it. Synth/organ player adds some welcomed texture and dimension. I'm wishing there was more percussion to lively up this backing beat which is a little metronome-ish. 7. Rapping vocals reminiscent of Digable Planets. I'm sensing some West Coast vibes from their cadence as well. I wouldn't mind hearing something like this live. Soprano sax again FTW. 8. Reminds me of latter day Chico Hamilton songs but a little smoother around the edges. Maybe it's one of those? I love those albums btw. More hit than miss IMO. The guitarist is playing well and the organ is accenting effectively. This is some Sunday afternoon chill out music for sure. 9. Tried and true blues rhythm. A little derivative but what isn't these days. Playing is professional. Guitar takes this to rock territory, while the sax has that retro R&B vibe going. 10. Vocals related to Emmit Till maybe? Effective! Music is good too. No guesses though. Hard to guess a lot of these but appreciate the what I think is majority newer selections. Kudos man and thanks again 🍻

Ranelin?

RIP. Played a helluva Ghost of Christmas Past in Scrooged.

1 - Interesting build up. What's that quote at 2:30ish? Is a different arrangement of that tune developing? A little steam loss coming into the 4th minute but it picks back up going into the finish. Weird overall vibe but I'd guess the pianist as leader? No guesses beyond that. 2 - Foreboding mood but then a sudden shift. That horn sounds like the leader. Is this JBL? Was not expecting this song to last so long when it started. 3 - The horn made that intro. Glad they joined in there..but then kind of overstays the welcome. The bass ends up carrying this song. 4 - These intros so far are some of the saddest music I've heard in a long time.., and I just got done watching that new Nosferatu movie. This bass could have elevated that soundtrack actually. Damn this is out there. 5 - I like the sound contrast between the sax and the guitar. Their harmonizing is excellent. Great song. No idea who this is but will dart throw - Muriel Grossman? 6 - Trumpet is aces. Band ends up showing out in a definitive groove. Would love someone to guess this one before the reveal. 7 - Sounds like an older recording but has a timeless style. Another winner of a track. 8 - Another older production as well it sounds like. No guesses 9- this one wore me out 10 - Burner of a song. Sax player is on fire. Live recording too. Awesome selection. 11 - Has that mystic type of element that keeps things interesting. Lovely and surreal at the same time. Strong track. 12 - Another interesting harmony between the horns here. Really good. Relentless and intense for sure. They are going at it. Hit publish before wrapping up with 13. Love this horn player. Band is excellent, strong song. Gets funky with that guitar. I dig. Thanks for the tunes

Good stuff. I have that Benny Carter album and almost never play it. No idea why. Lots of interesting leads on new artists for me here too. I was drawn to that rhythm section on track 11 and want to hear that album now, as I've never heard Mover at all. Nice collection and write up. Thanks!

We really enjoyed Japan on a trip about 3 years ago. When it comes to Tokyo, it really comes down to where you're staying. Train was the best transport for us but we were staying way down in Odaiba so my plans to get to Shinjuku were foiled. I still have places like the Pit Inn and Golden Gai marked on my map to visit should I ever get back. Same for Eigakan Jazz near Bunkyo. I didn't get to Jazz Big Boy either which is in Chiyoda. I did make it to Shibuya and shopped the Disc Union there and rec it highly. If there's any grails you're after I rec having screenshots of them on your phone to ask about them. It helps a lot. There's also a jazz blues soul bar in Shibuya but I didn't get there either. So if you're there on an odd numbered month then I would recommend getting tickets to the national sumo tournament. Totally worth it.

Correct. That should be expected with most bandcamp purchases though.

Another vote for the Bandcamp download. Outstanding

It's not Herbie Nichols is it?