Uncle Skid

Did you pick up any Styx or Night Ranger, Big Al??? Just placed a CD Universe order for three of the new Conns coming out next Tuesday: Hill, Rivers, and Wilson. Also ordered Henderson's Inner Urge, as that has been on the want list for a long time now.

Happy Birthday from one of your Michigan pals!! Save a donut for me! "It just ain't the same.... without the bass!!" B-)

It's not even MP3s -- ITunes uses some DRM-enabled format that only allows for a limited number of burns. If you want MP3, you have to burn a normal audio CD, and then rip it to MP3! The only digital music download service that made sense to me was EMusic, before they changed their pricing structure. More or less "unlimited" downloads for around $20/month; jazz labels included Prestige, Riverside, Contemporary, Pablo, etc. For me, the EMusic MP3s were just a way to "preview" a whole bunch of music for a reasonable fee; certainly not a substitute for the actual CD.

Bebop -- I can't imagine travelling anywhere without my MP3 (hard drive) player, and a good pair of noise cancelling headphones! I've got well over 200 CD's (encoded at a higher rate than "normal") on a 20G hard drive. I also bring a cassette adapter with me, and hope that the rental car has a tape player. Some of the newer models have the ability to play on unused portions of the FM band as well. Have you checked out any of those hard drive players? I also do a fair amount of mixing and matching older CDs with newer purchases. I love pulling out CDs that I haven't listened to in a long time -- sometimes it's like having brand new music without the big visa bill!

It's probably not necessary at this point, but add me to the list of satisfied customers. CDs ordered from Al were received (in great condition) with no problems. As mentioned earlier, it did take a few weeks to get here -- probably held up in customs.

I'm not here for political or religious threads, either. But, I do look at them, sometimes even more than the music discussions. From my perspective, I find it interesting that there are quite a few liberal, non-Christian fans of jazz on this board. In this part of the country, there seems to be a very small minority of people fitting even one of these categories, let alone all three. It's comforting to know I'm not the only one! This isn't meant to be disrespectful to conservative or religious people on the board, as political and religious viewpoints should be irrelevant when discussing jazz. FWIW, the generally high level of civility on this board continues to amaze me. Considering some of the topics discussed here, I'd say things could be a lot worse. Speaking of meeting other posters, I really need to go visit that bag of hot air that lives only 20 minutes north of here. I need to buy that AEC box set, and maybe I'll give him a little pat on the head, too.

If I remember correctly, the last few pages had a few pictures that I certainly wouldn't be in any hurry to show to my grandmother.

AAJ Review

WHAT!?! I knew it wouldn't be long before Upright Bill weighed in on that comment!

Anyone have this yet? On sale at CD Universe for $16.89.

Here's a list of all 32: Verve Vault at ITunes

up because this is an interesting topic, and because the thought of a 10 hour road trip with nothing but Ornette sounds extremely cool to me right now..... B-)

I find that listening to him can be addictive -- kind of like crack!

How can two loving people, that just happen to be the same sex, be "sinners"? Respectfully, I think you are missing Jim's point. If gay people are sinners, we all better stop eating shrimp!! God Hates Shrimp!!

jazzypaul, if I misunderstood your points, I apologize. I think our “lack of unity” results from different definitions of atheism – I do not consider it a “religion”. I know you disagree; here’s something to consider (and it even talks about unicorns! B-) ): Is Atheism a Religion? Like ejp626, if I were given a choice among charities offering food and shelter, I would favor the ones that don’t teach the “word of God”. Obviously, I can’t contribute to all good causes, so I will naturally pick the ones that don’t put conditions on their work. For instance, I donated to our local Rescue Mission many times over the years. When I came across another organization that did similar things, but wasn't religious, the money now goes there instead. It’s not a matter “withholding” funds, it’s simply directing funds to a different organization. Do Rescue Missions do go work? Of course! I just prefer to donate elsewhere, because I strongly disagree with the “filthy sinner, and God has saved me in spite of that” viewpoint.

A couple of points back at ya: Your original question was “have we ever seen a group united under the flag of atheism”, not “insert name of real atheist organization here” or whatever. A detail, yes, but I felt Earthward was a good example that proved you wrong, as they are “Earth’s Atheist Resistance”, and they explicitly state that they are “run by volunteer atheists and agnostics”. By the way, what constitutes a “real atheist” organization anyway? Seeing as none of us can seem to agree on what a “True Christian” is, I’m fairly confident we won’t come to any consensus on that subject. The thing that surprises me most is your seemingly immediate assertion that they have ulterior motives. Their mission statement doesn’t mention PR for the atheist cause -- they seem to be genuine. Do you have any evidence that suggests otherwise? You admit they are doing good work. I’m not trying to be condescending here -- I’m just curious. I agree that the Hollows foundation does not specifically mention atheism. But, to ejp626’s point: why should they? It’s simply not particularly relevant to the advancement of their cause. I pointed them out as an example of a good cause started by a non-religious person. FWIW, I think you completely missed the point of ejp626’s post. I read it as a very good explanation as to why there aren’t more overtly atheist-based charities. I don’t think he (she?) was advocating that there is no need for more charities, rather that there are plenty of ones that aren’t primarily based on Christian proselytizing that are worthy of support. Incidentally, I acknowledge, as do many non-religious people, that the teachings of Jesus have merit. Erroneous atheist stereotypes can be as damaging as Christian ones.

Earthward The Fred Hollows Foundation And of course (as Chrome already pointed out), there's a whole bunch of secular charities that do wonderful work as well.

New RVGs: Joe Henderson - In N'Out McCoy Tyner - Tender Moments Art Blakey - Free For All and Ornette Coleman - Beauty is a Rare Thing wanted to order, but didn't (big visa bills *aren't* a rare thing) Tomasz Stanko - Suspended Night, Leosia Jackie McLean - Let Freedom Ring John Coltrane - Complete Africa/Brass Sessions

We aren't joking, man. The proof is in the pictures. And... I have two more Mosaic Selects than jacknife has. For now, 'I' am winning.

That also solves another perplexing problem -- which CDs to take with you!

Kevin, I think it might be www.salebooks.com -- try this link: Blue Note Records: The Biography -- Mark

Kenny Burrell, James Carter, and Marcus Belgrave are the first names that came to mind. I'm not sure if they represent a "Detroit sound", but I associate them with that city.

Happy Birthday Allan! (and thanks again for helping me find some great CD stores in Toronto!) Mark