Rabshakeh

It wasn't recorded was it? I'd love to hear it. I've searched around but my understanding is that it wasn't.

I stream a lot. I tend to listen to around 10 albums a day. I have sold all my CDs (wife's orders) but maintain a small record collection of 383 LPs. I also have thousands of MP3s to which I never listen. With Streaming, I am a bit uncertain of the future. Spotify is not in great shape at the moment, I suspect that it may soon go the way of Netflix. YouTube meanwhile is cleansing the old accounts, so a lot of videos have gone. It's jazz algorithm has declined steeply in the last few months. I'd probably hold only what I have.

If he's still selling out like that it's just weird that he doesn't do it more.

Does he do this anymore?

An artist has to go somewhere, and I can understand why Marsalis would not want to be restricted to small group bop spliced with occasional classical records. I think that he has to some extent been trapped into this by the adulation and institutional prestige he received: (1) He received a lot of awards for those early extended works that he did in the 90s, which I think were probably undeserved, but which seem to have caused him to abandon something he could do well (writing for small group bop) and instead spend the rest of his career putting out (in my view) terrible extended works. (2) His role in the JATLC has placed him at the centre of what seems to me to be a pedagogical feedback loop, so that he thinks that a performance they successfully pastiches a historical style is sufficient. These are my own views, and I accept that there must be people out there who like this stuff. Otherwise he would not have won that Pulitzer. Possibly the Armstrong stuff does represent a bit of a route out. I don't get the sense that he had really absorbed this much Armstrong until now and, as I have said upthread, I think that it has been good for his playing. His trumpet sound is more interesting than ever, and if he could put that in a better context I think people would be interested to hear it again.

Gérald Merceron / The Lee Konitz Quartet, Martial Solal, The Daring Jazz Quartet – Modern Jazz Compositions From Haiti Not sure what the story was behind this one. Features the little know Tristanoite tenor player Rawen Shram on one track.

Snap. I was reminded of that post too.

You're right. They have had all their shots.

Clearly some people did like the record, and it has been pointed out that this is really an archival release by the JATLC, not Marsalis' big new release. So I apologise. I still think that Marsalis has sort of wrecked his career with this stuff. I'll check that out. I posted a whole ago asking for recommendations of the JATLC musicians outside of the JATLC context. As I say upthread, they're talented players who I think are smothered by this stuff.

I hope the kids will be okay. They're smart kids. Have their wits about them. Hopefully they'll be alright.

I never enjoyed this record.

Exactly. One wonders why someone like Marsalis would work on something like this? Is it just a touring live show for well meaning teachers to bring primary school kids to? There's a lot of talent on the record. Wycliffe Gordon is a hell of a trombone player. Marsalis sounds great. But it's a complete nothing record.

Barbara Dane – Trouble In Mind

Okay. I didn't know the label. My apologies. I also only just realized that the record was archival and had been recorded in 2006. The fact remains, the Louis Armstrong record is not a good record. I am not a Marsalis fan or a Marsalis hater, but it is clearly below his level, and below the level of most dixieland since the second world war. It's an embarrassing record that I would not want associated with my own name. I am surprised that is what Marsalis is doing because, like it or not, he is a giant of the jazz world. I have not heard of this record. Is it good? Presumably this is not going to be a bad reenactment of a very historical form of jazz. I don't know what the relevance is to the Louis Armstrong record, other than that it is Wynton and JATLC.

Well. See you there next year, if opening games are anything to go by. Hope the water's nice. Just bought a ticket to go and see Dulwich Hamlets with my kids on the coming Summer Bank Holiday. Maybe that will be a more positive taster.

The quality in the Championship this season is crazy, sadly.

It's a really good one. Both have put out some fairly forgettable records, but I liked what they did here a lot.

Ralph Towner / Gary Burton – Matchbook (ECM)

New season. My kid is desperate to go to a football game this season, but it's shaping up to be possibly the most depressing low morale season in my club's history. We live in Arsenal territory, and his uncle is an Arsenal fan. I keep hoping he'll just see sense and I can take him to Emirates.

Sadao Watanabe – How's Everything Streaming to this one now. First listen. Was it a big commercial or critical hit at the time? The YouTube comments are unusually excitable.

Wynton Marsalis – Wynton Marsalis Plays Louis Armstrong's Hot Fives And Hot Sevens (Blue Engine, 2023) Marsalis' new record, just released on a tiny label, to no excitement whatsoever. This is competent unswinging museum-re-enactment quality dixieland. It is not even close to the basic standards of post-war Dixieland Armstrong worship. I find it really absorbing just how extreme Marsalis' fall from relevance has been. It feels like there's no failure too embarrassing. How can a figure like Marsalis have failed to become a respected elder statesman putting out records that still generate a buzz just because of his name? Those of his peers who have survived like Kenny Garrett, Terence Blanchard or James Carter (and in retrospect it does seem like an ill-starred cohort) have fallen into that role nicely. Whereas Marsalis is doing... this. To complete indifference. On the other hand, the amount of time he's spent on early jazz re-enactment recently has given him a new smudgy trumpet tone that I do like. I enjoyed his playing on that Farnsworth record last year. That was leagues better than this. Edit: As has been pointed out below, this is not a new record, but is actually an archival JATLC release from 2006, on its own label.

Welcome!

Oh yeah! A great example. Great stuff. Italy as always showing the sophistication and verve that gave us Giotto, Antonioni and Verdi.

Looks really interesting.

I have never explored Sarah Vaughan's records from the mid 60s to Pablo. It looks like a lot were Vaughan singing pop tunes. I don't recognise almost any of the covers. Are any of these records worth checking out?