GA Russell

Thanks David! ECM Stefano Battaglia Pelagos Stefano Battaglia: piano and prepared piano U.S. Release date: October 20, 2017 ECM 2570-71 2-CD: B0027263-02 UPC: 6025 576 8963 1 To date, Stefano Battaglia’s ECM discography has taken the listener to many different places. The Italian pianist has reinterpreted art songs of Alec Wilder on In The Morning, set a dedication to Pina Bausch amid improvised duets on Pastorale, created new structures in the moment with Dominique Pifarély on Raccolto, drawn inspiration from mythical and legendary locations on The River of Anyder and Songways as well as from diverse way stations in the biography of a great Italian polymath on Re: Pasolini. Cultural and other influences flow into his music from very many directions. Pelagos, Battaglia’s new double album of solo piano – recorded at the Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile, Italy, last year – can be heard as an extended meditation on themes of exile and migration. “Reality sometimes suggests or implies improvisations and even repertoires,” he notes. Titles of individual pieces provide some directional clues and cues to the matter at hand. Apart from the Arabic traditional song “Lamma Bada Yatathanna”, a tune with historical roots in Moorish Andalusia, which is heard in two variations, all the music here is by Battaglia. “Pelagos”, “Halap”, “Exilium”, “Migration Mantra”, and “Ufratu” are compositions by the pianist. All other pieces were spontaneously improvised, though Battaglia’s feeling for form makes also the extemporaneous pieces seem robust. The album derives from two sources: a live concert and a “closed doors” session at the Faziola Hall earlier the same day. The tracks “Destino”, “Migralia”, Processional”, “Halap”, “Life”, “Hora Mundi”, “Exilium”, “Migration Mantra”, “Heron”, and the version of “Lamma Bada Yatathanna” heard on CD 1 are all drawn from the concert performance. Stefano Battaglia plays both piano and prepared piano here, sometimes simultaneously, exploring a remarkable range of sound colors in melodic and texturally-inventive pieces. Some, of almost hypnotic allure, seem to have an associative frame of reference spanning the distance between ritual music, traditional song, contemporary composition, and modal jazz, although Battaglia himself is wary of style definitions. As he once said, “For years I have tended to simplify, to aspire to a ‘de-idiomisation’ of the musical universe, and particularly to imagine music as a universal metalanguage, a place which is genuinely without boundaries, not just in words but in fact.” In the original notes for the Sacile concert, given within the context of a Piano Jazz 2016 festival, Battaglia spoke of the conceptual themes running through his program. These included “songs and dances of the suffering countries of the Mediterranean and Balkan areas”, and the practice of improvisation as a means of embracing the unknown, as “a manifesto for those who, like me, see it as a path of revelation, through all of its mysteries.” *** Born in Milan in 1965, Stefano Battaglia originally trained as a classical pianist. He first attracted attention on the European festival scene, playing mainly baroque and 20th century music, before making the transition to music that incorporated improvisation, inspired initially by Paul Bley and Keith Jarrett. By the late 1980s he was winning jazz awards. Subsequently he played with Lee Konitz, Dewey Redman, Marc Johnson, Barre Phillips, Steve Swallow, Kenny Wheeler, Pierre Favre and Tony Oxley, among many others. Battaglia has given master-classes at Siena Jazz each summer since 1988, and since 1996 he has led Siena’s Laboratorio Permanente di Ricerca Musicale, a musical research workshop, where he has been able to explore his interests in improvisation, composition and experimentation, in particular the improvisational practices of diverse musical languages. He has been an ECM artist 2003, when the double album Raccolto (Harvest) was recorded.

Sept. 28 1902 - Ed Sullivan born 1938 - Ben E. King born 1946 - Helen Shapiro born 1968 - Dewey Phillips dies 1991 - Miles Davis dies 2015 - Frankie Ford dies

ECM Anouar Brahem Blue Maqams w/ Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette and Django Bates Anouar Brahem: oud Dave Holland: double bass Jack DeJohnette: drums Django Bates: piano U.S. Release date: October 13, 2017 ECM 2580 B0027340-02 UPC: 6025 576 7265 7 Three brilliant improvisers join Tunisian oud master Anouar Brahem in this album, recorded in New York in May 2017. For Brahem and Dave Holland the album marks a reunion: they first collaborated 20 years ago on the very widely-acclaimed Thimar album, a trio recording with John Surman. Brahem meets Jack DeJohnette for the first time here, but Holland and DeJohnette have, of course, been frequent musical partners over the last half-century, beginning with ground-breaking work with Miles Davis: their collaborations are legendary. British pianist Django Bates also rises superbly to the challenge of Brahem’s compositions. And Anouar in turn is inspired to some of his most outgoing playing. For Anouar Brahem, it’s the work itself that sets a direction. He addresses the question of context and setting only as his music “emerges”: “I simply began in my usual way”, he writes in his liner note for Blue Maqams. “Letting the ideas come in of their own accord, with no tendency one way or another in terms of style, form or instrumentation.” He worked on several sketches in parallel, “and what emerged first and then really began to take shape was my desire to blend the sounds of the oud and the piano once again, soon followed by my wish to associate this delicate instrumental combination with a real jazz rhythm section.” Although he has never harbored ambitions to be a jazz player, Anouar has long felt a sense of solidarity with the music’s practitioners: “I first started listening to jazz when I was a teenager living in Tunis in the 70s. At the time, I was passionately devoted to the traditional Arab music I’d had the good fortune to study under the great master Ali Sriti. Paradoxically, I was [also] full of curiosity about other forms of musical expression. The aesthetics of jazz were very different to those of Arab music, but I was attracted by this music that took me into a completely different world, one I felt close to as well. Undoubtedly there is a kind of spontaneity in Arab music, a way of playing that allows musicians to go deep into their own feelings and take some liberties with the original score through improvisation; and perhaps this somehow echoes what happens in jazz.” Brahem began to play with jazz improvisers in the 1980s, with recorded collaborations beginning the following decade. The album Madar (1992) brought Anouar together with saxophonist Jan Garbarek and tabla player Shaukat Hussain, while Khomsa (1994) found him reworking compositions written for film and theater with improvisers including François Couturier, Palle Danielsson and Jon Christensen. Thimar (1997), with Dave Holland and John Surman, marked a major breakthrough in the space between the traditions, with the participants finding a shared musical language. Blue Maqams takes this notion further. The “maqams” of the title refers to the sophisticated modal system of Arab music, perhaps rendered kind of blue by the participating improvisers. Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette have played together on a number of ECM recordings including four albums with John Abercrombie in the Gateway trio, Kenny Wheeler’s Gnu High and Deer Wan, and George Adams’s Sound Suggestions. Brahem first encountered this mighty bass and drums team live in Zurich in the early 1990s, when they were performing with Betty Carter and Geri Allen. “This charismatic rhythm section left a very powerful impression.” Playing live with Dave Holland, on tours with the Thimar trio, was an experience Brahem cherished. “I often told Dave that his playing gave me wings as a soloist. And we spoke, too, about doing more recording. It was a matter, though, of waiting for the right material. But once I’d thought about Dave for this new album, it was very natural to think about Jack, too. It’s an immense privilege to have their participation.” Bringing the jazz drum kit and the soft-singing oud together presents specific dynamic challenges: “I was aware, when I saw that the music would need drums, that this would indeed be challenging, but I also felt that if anybody could address this creatively, it would be Jack DeJohnette, who is one of the most sensitive and subtle drummers. He can move as delicately as a cat, with such a graceful and flowing rhythm. “ Finding the right pianist for the project took longer. “For several months, I listened to a considerable number of players and had many long discussions with Manfred about the style I thought this record needed. Finally, he asked me one day to listen to a recording he’d just made with Django Bates…” [This was The Study of Touch, with Bates’s Belovèd trio with Petter Eldh and Peter Bruun, scheduled for release in November.] “I was highly impressed by Django’s mixture of virtuosic musicianship and lyricism. In the recording studio, I discovered several qualities in Django, not only his dazzling piano technique, but also his creative and inventive powers and his outstandingly strong proposals. He does some absolutely magnificent things on this recording that always bring something new and unusual to the score.” Balancing freedom and faithfulness to the score is crucial for Anouar Brahem: “I like each piece to keep its own identity in and through written music. The musician’s role is to fit into this universe and express himself inside the framework of this identity…. It’s important for me to keep the true universe of each piece. An important part of our group work has been about this aspect – working together to find the right balance between composed and improvised music. For even in composed pieces or passages where I leave no room for personal interpretation, I like the music to sound as though it surges forth in an inspired, improvised flow.” The music for Blue Maqams was written between 2011 and 2017, with the exception of two pieces, “Bom Dia Rio” and “Bahia”, both of which were composed in 1990, and revived for this project. Long-term Brahem listeners will be familiar with “Bahia”, a version of which can be heard on Madar. Blue Maqams was recorded at New York’s Avatar Studios and produced by Manfred Eicher. It is issued as CD, vinyl double album, and digital download. Simultaneously, ECM reissues Brahem’s first ECM recording Barzakh (1990) as 180 gram audiophile LP. The Blue Maqams quartet will tour Europe in April 2018 with concerts at major venues in France, Switzerland, Germany, Portugal and Belgium. Dates include: April 8 Paris Philharmonie, April 9 Blagnac Odyssud April 11 Zürich Tonhalle April 12 Basel Musical Theater April 14 Munich Philharmonie April 15 Hamburg Elbphilharmonie April 16 Lisbon Gulbenkian Música April 18 Brussels Palais des Beaux Arts

Larry, my concern is not "holding everything in place" but rather not revealing your drawers or plumber's butt. The extra material makes a big difference for me.

Larry, I'm glad you solved your problem, but I have another suggestion to go with you solution. Buy "tall" t-shirts.

ECM Stefano Battaglia - Pelagos Release date: October 20, 2017 Stefano Battaglia: piano, prepared piano Stefano Battaglia plays both piano and prepared piano (sometimes simultaneously) in a highly attractive double-album program that includes his own compositions and spontaneous improvisations as well as two versions of the Arabic traditional song "Lamma Bada Yatathanna". The melodic and texturally-inventive pieces, some of almost hypnotic allure, were recorded both in concert and in "closed doors" sessions at the Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile, Italy, in May 2016, and subsequently arranged into what Battaglia describes as "a wonderful new shape with a completely new dramaturgy" by producer Manfred Eicher.

I remember when Shelby Singleton acquired the Sun catalogue (1969?), he did the same thing. He put new photos of Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis (without all the Brylcreem) on the album covers.

Do any of you Brits remember a '60s show called The Protectors? This is not the Robert Vaughn show from the early '70s, but another series. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00I5I1PQM/ Its price has dropped 54% to 10.54 GBP. Does anyone recommend this show?

Power Rankings http://3downnation.com/2017/09/25/3down-power-rankings-eskimos-plummet-despite-bye-week/#comments http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-15-1.4306828 http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/cfl/news/week-15-cfl-power-rankings-argonauts-and-tiger-cats-on-the-rise/oji0m7sevqt51snea9ic0gk11 http://thegruelingtruth.net/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-15/ http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-15-alouettes-floundering-argos-rising/ https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/26/nissan-titan-power-rankings-ticats-rise/ ***** The Eskimos have cut Chris Getzlaf. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/26/eskimos-release-former-riders-receiver-chris-getlaf/#comments http://www.tsn.ca/esks-release-former-all-star-wr-getzlaf-1.867388 ***** The Riders have signed former Indianapolis running back Trent Richardson. https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/26/riders-sign-international-rb-trent-richardson/ https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/26/riders-hoping-richardson-jolts-struggling-ground-game/ http://3downnation.com/2016/09/08/redblacks-add-drop-trent-richardson-neg-list/#comments http://www.3downnation.com/2017/09/26/trent-richardson-finally-agrees-contract-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/26/timing-trent-richardsons-arrival-ideal-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/26/chris-jones-on-bringing-trent-richardson-to-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/26/new-riders-rb-trent-richardson-i-would-love-to-go-out-there-and-run-somebody-over/#comments ***** The Eskimos have signed Swayze Waters. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/25/eskimos-sign-kicker-swayze-waters/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/25/esks-bolster-kicking-game-waters-lauther/ ***** early Week 15 picks http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/cfl/news/week-15-cfl-picks-teams-on-bubble-running-out-of-time-to-solidify-a-post-season-berth/spzckmhzwx1i1ikgdmstrplv7

Pianist Deanna Witkowski Presents Trio Arrangements of 14 Hymns on "Makes the Heart to Sing: Jazz Hymns" Set for Nov. 3 Release On Tilapia Records Witkowski Enriches Canon Pioneered by Duke Ellington, Mary Lou Williams, & Others September 21, 2017 Grace, serenity, and rhapsody are on abundant display throughout the 14 songs pianist Deanna Witkowski performs with her trio on Makes the Heart to Sing: Jazz Hymns, set for release November 3 on Tilapia Records. One would expect this to be the case, given that the source material is not the Great American Songbook, but the centuries-old trove of hymnody used in churches around the world. Witkowski succeeds in offering a luminously lyrical piano trio session interpreting a spiritually charged body of music rarely investigated by jazz artists. Some of the tunes -- like "Kings of Orient (We Three Kings)" -- will be immediately recognizable to secular audiences while others will be as familiar to the choirs and congregations of Protestant churches worldwide as the standards of Porter or Gershwin. Her arrangement of "Hymn to Joy (Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee)," the popular Beethoven melody from his 9th Symphony, rises with the grandeur of an Ellingtonian theme. Makes the Heart to Sing is part of a larger project that includes the publication of a folio of Witkowski's arrangements. "It's an instrumental jazz trio record, but the mission is to get this music played more widely outside of church," she says, "and to bring these jazz interpretations into circulation inside churches. The album is almost a demo for church music directors, and the arrangements are meant for congregational singing." Witkowski is passionate about the primal, transporting power of group singing, and her trio brings a similar collective ethos to the music on the album. She's played with drummer Scott Latzky since she settled in New York City two decades ago, having moved there with a full-time job as a church music director after earning her degree at Wheaton College in 1993 and working for four years on the Chicago jazz scene. Bassist Daniel Foose is a more recent collaborator. "Scott's playing is so sensitive and responsive to every environment," she says. "Daniel is really soulful and interactive with a groove that's really deep." What's most striking about the project, aside from the sheer beauty of the trio's feel and dynamics, is the seamless way the hymns fit the jazz idiom even as Witkowski pays close attention to the contours and meaning of the text. Most of the tracks clock in under four minutes and focus on the group's irresistibly swinging interpretations of music rather than using the themes as launching pads for extended solos. "Kings of Orient" is set as a waltz whose intensity ebbs and flows and features a Foose bass solo, while "Foundation (How Firm a Foundation)" unfurls with the rolling cadences of a gospel music hit. The aforementioned "Hymn to Joy" adds a taste of laidback funk and soul to the set. The winner of the 2002 Great American Jazz Piano Competition, Deanna Witkowski has released six critically hailed albums over the past two decades, with each new project revealing a steadily evolving sensibility marked by melodic invention and emotional connection. As an accompanist, she's toured with soul-steeped vocalist Lizz Wright and held down the piano chair for ten years in the Jim McNeely-led BMI/New York Jazz Orchestra. Her projects as a leader feature fellow heavyweights like bassist John Patitucci and saxophonist Donny McCaslin. Witkowski's thoughtful and deeply felt work setting traditional hymns in a jazz context has few precedents. In many ways, her creative identity is built on her gift for gracefully bringing together seemingly disparate elements, though Makes the Heart to Sing flows directly from her longtime work in sacred settings. "Music in a lot of churches is one specific thing, traditional hymns done in a traditional way, or contemporary pop that's not necessarily written for group singing," she says. "But there's this 'folk music tradition' -- hymns -- that everybody knows in most Protestant churches. I always draw on my jazz background when I arrange service music, and hymns are an integral part of the repertoire." Witkowski also has a long-standing relationship with Brazil, and her next project promises to be equally compelling. As a recipient of a prestigious residency fellowship from the Sacatar Institute in Bahia, Brazil, a nonprofit foundation that sponsors creative individuals of all disciplines, she will spend April and May 2018 at Sacatar doing research related to her upcoming composition and recording, the Nossa Senhora Suite. Merging elements of Afro-Brazilian ritual chants and text with new music for her quartet plus four vocalists, each movement of the suite will explore a different Brazilian version of the Virgin Mary, including Nossa Senhora Aparecida, patron saint of Brazil, and Iemanjá, goddess of the seas. Deanna Witkowski Itinerary As bandleader: 11/2 Furman University, Greenville, SC (clinic); 11/4 Erskine College, Greenwood, SC (solo); 11/5 a.m. First Baptist Church, Greenville, SC (duo/jazz service); 11/5 p.m. First Baptist Church, Mount Holly, NC (solo); 11/7 NC ArtsMarket, Durham, NC (trio/juried showcase); 11/19First Presbyterian Church, Rahway, NJ (solo/jazz vespers); 1/21/18 St. John's Episcopal Church, Richmond, VA (trio/jazz service); 2/6/18 Juilliard Jazz, NYC (pre-concert panel speaking on Mary Lou Williams's sacred music); 2/23/18 Chopin in the City festival, Chicago (solo/venue TBD) Choral premieres: 12/3 or 1/17/18 (TBD) ChoralArt, Portland, ME (winning piece in New England Carol Contest); 3/11/18 The Colorado Chorale, Denver (newly commissioned work) Residency in Bahia: 4/9-6/4 of 2018 Sacatar Institute, Itaparica, Bahia, Brazil Photography: Erika Kapin "Makes the Heart to Sing: Jazz Hymns" EPK Web Site: deannajazz.com Visit Deanna's Bandcamp pageRead new blog post (w/ author Pam McAllister) about new album's lead track, "Cwm Rhondda"

Calgary 15....Sask 9 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2427/calgary-stampeders-vs-saskatchewan-roughriders/ http://3downnation.com/2017/09/24/riders-covering-fans-work-excuse-note/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/24/hellacious-hit-roosevelt-sparks-debate-penalty-call-player-safety/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/24/kevin-glenn-takes-shot-hand-stays-game/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/24/kevin-glenn-takes-shot-hand-stays-game/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/24/decision-pull-kevin-glenn-not-injury-based-jones/#comments ***** I have added links to my Sept. 16 post.

The Calgary-Sask game is currently on ESPN2.

Happy Birthday 2017 Ron!

Week 14 results Winnipeg 29....Ottawa 9 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2424/ottawa-redblacks-vs-winnipeg-blue-bombers/ http://3downnation.com/2017/09/18/redblacks-qb-drew-tate-week-week-likely-wont-play-friday/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/21/b-c-lions-searching-answers-ahead-key-contest-ticats/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/argos-on-trying-for-consecutive-wins-it-should-give-us-an-edge/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/alouettes-qb-darian-durant-i-need-to-settle-down/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/matt-nichols-throws-two-touchdowns-on-rainy-night-as-bombers-beat-redblacks/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/bombers-win-fifth-straight-home-12-thoughts/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/redblacks-get-dumped-10-thoughts/#comments ***** Hamilton 24....BC 23 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2425/hamilton-tiger-cats-vs-bc-lions/ http://3downnation.com/2017/09/18/wins-argos-redblacks-put-ticats-playoff-push-jeopardy/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/18/redblacks-qb-drew-tate-week-week-likely-wont-play-friday/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/21/ticats-rb-alex-green-gets-unexpected-second-chance/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/21/ticats-rb-alex-green-gets-unexpected-second-chance/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/21/b-c-lions-searching-answers-ahead-key-contest-ticats/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/june-jones-honeymoon-ending-can-ticats-still-win/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/west-coast-state-mind-ticats-lions-24-23/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/video-ticats-coach-june-jones-kicker-sergio-castillo-win-lions/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/learned-ticats-thrilling-last-second-win-lions/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/mourning-lessons-learned-lions-latest-loss/#comments ***** Toronto 33....Montreal 19 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2426/montreal-alouettes-vs-toronto-argonauts/ http://3downnation.com/2017/09/20/alouettes-opt-to-avoid-chaos-stick-with-struggling-durant-at-quarterback/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/argos-on-trying-for-consecutive-wins-it-should-give-us-an-edge/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/alouettes-qb-darian-durant-i-need-to-settle-down/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/darian-durant-continues-struggle/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/23/alouettes-receiver-nik-lewis-limps-off-field/#comments

To my surprise, the Hamilton-BC game is currently on ESPN2.

Anouar Brahem oud | Dave Holland double bass Jack DeJohnette drums, percussion | Django Bates piano Released on the occasion of Anouar Brahem’s 60th birthday, Blue Maqams offers many reasons to celebrate. Recorded in New York’s Avatar Studios in May 2017 and produced by Manfred Eicher, it brings the Tunisian oud master together with three brilliant improvisers: the “Maqams” of the title refers to the Arabic modal music system, rendered kind of blue by the jazz players. For Anouar Brahem and Dave Holland the album marks a reunion: they first collaborated 20 years ago on the very widely-acclaimed Thimar album. Brahem meets Jack DeJohnette for the first time here, but Holland and DeJohnette have been frequent musical partners over the last half-century beginning with ground-breaking work with Miles Davis – their collaborations are legendary. British pianist Django Bates also rises superbly to the challenge of Brahem’s compositions. And Anouar in turn is inspired to some of his most outgoing playing. Blue Maqams is a highlight of ECM’s autumn season. © 2017 ECM | ECM Records USA | 1755 Broadway, 3rd floor | New York NY 10011

more Week 14 picks http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/week-14-picks-can-the-riders-compete-with-wests-elite/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/22/slam-dunk-picks-heavy-favourites/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/21/cfl-ca-writers-make-week-14-picks/ http://thegruelingtruth.net/football/cfl/cfl-week-14-point-spreads-preview/ http://www.rodpedersen.com/2017/09/week-14-cfl-picks-2017.html

Here is the link, probably behind a paywall. https://www.wsj.com/articles/music-industry-recovery-continues-powered-by-a-surge-in-subscriptions-1505927551 Sales for the first half of 2017 in a nutshell... Physical product shipments declined 1%. Vinyl sales were up 3%, and CD sales were down 3%. Vinyl was 29% of physical shipments, its highest number since the mid-1980s. (That surprises me.) Digital download revenues declined to only 19% of industry total. Retail revenue increased 17% to $4 billion. Its full-year peak was 1999's $14.6 billion in the US alone. Most of today's money is coming from the paid subscribers to Spotify and Apple Music. However, the streaming service most used (by far) is YouTube's free service.

Week 14 picks https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/weekly-predictor-test-time-regina/ http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/cfl/news/week-14-cfl-picks-only-the-stampeders-and-blue-bombers-look-like-sure-bets-going-down-the-stretch/sc1wr5ulebug1hy8ufjwp3zko ***** Power Rankings http://www.tsn.ca/stampeders-stay-on-top-of-cfl-power-rankings-1.861958 ***** Jamaal Westerman is gone for the year. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/19/bombers-dealt-big-blow-jamaal-westerman-year/#comments ***** The Riders have talked Marc-Olivier Brouillette out of retirement. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/19/riders-bringing-all-star-canadian-db-marc-olivier-brouillette-out-of-retirement/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/riders-officially-sign-bouka-bring-back-brouillette/ ***** Andy Fantuz is rejoining the Ticats. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/18/ticats-receiver-andy-fantuz-expected-sign-player-contract-today/#comments ***** Alex Bazzie has rejoined the Lions. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/18/dl-alex-bazzie-signs-lions/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/20/alex-bazzie-needed-clear-mind-cfl-return-following-nfl-disappointment/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/bazzie-my-craft-has-gotten-better-and-i-cant-wait-to-put-it-to-the-test/ http://www.tsn.ca/bazzie-s-back-with-lions-looking-for-sacks-1.861084 ***** Aaron Grymes has rejoined the Eskimos. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/20/eskimos-get-db-aaron-grymes-back/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/eskimos-re-sign-db-aaron-grymes/ http://www.tsn.ca/eskimos-welcome-back-db-grymes-1.862322 ***** Kevin Glenn will start this week for the Riders. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/20/riders-head-coach-chris-jones-qb-kevin-glenn-to-start-against-calgary/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/kevin-glenn-start-week-14/ https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/glenn-returns-to-lineup-as-riders-get-set-for-calgary/ ***** Here's a list of recent roster changes. https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/roster-roundup-cfl-teams-shuffle-personnel/ ***** Week 14 checking down https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/20/checking-ratio-buster-riders/ ***** The Eskimos traded Shamawd Chambers to the Ticats for two draft picks. http://www.tsn.ca/ticats-acquire-canadian-chambers-from-eskimos-1.858989 http://3downnation.com/2017/09/17/eskimos-trade-canadian-receiver-shamawd-chambers-ticats/#comments

ECM Björn Meyer Provenance Björn Meyer: six-string electric bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar U.S. Release date: September 29, 2017 ECM 2566 B0027253-02 UPC: 6025 574 1917 7 There is a distinguished tradition of albums devoted to solo bass on ECM, but Provenance is the first to showcase the electric bass guitar. Björn Meyer, born in Sweden and long based in Switzerland, has shaped a distinctive voice on his instrument within diverse contexts. He has worked alongside Persian harpist-singer Asita Hamidi, Swedish nyckelharpa player Johan Hedin and Tunisian oud master Anouar Brahem; and for a decade, Meyer was a member of Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin, in which his throbbing bass guitar was often a lead instrument. Meyer’s solo work explores the sound of the bass in acoustic space, as he points out in his booklet essay for the new album: “Even though the instrument is technically non-acoustic, the music is deeply influenced by the properties of the space where it is played. The many different ways in which acoustics affect my compositions and improvisations have always been sources of surprise and inspiration. There is definitely a second member in this solo project – the room!” The room for Provenance was the highly responsive Auditorio Stelio Molo RSI in Lugano, the Swiss radio studio’s rich acoustics helping to bring out all the detail in Meyer’s atmospheric solo creations. Meyer has taken his bass guitar into realms in which electronic instruments rarely figure, as in his collaborations with musicians steeped in the acoustic traditions of their countries. Working with Hedin, Hamidi and Brahem gave Meyer “many reasons to re-think the function of my instrument but also to invent new ways of adding sounds and extending its tonal range,” he says. The bassist appears on two of Brahem’s recent, widely acclaimed albums on ECM: Souvenance (2015) and The Astounding Eyes of Rita (2009), with The Guardian praising “the contemporary edge” Meyer added to the Tunisian’s music. In the electro-acoustic “Zen-funk” of Ronin — where rhythmic inspirations from Steve Reich to James Brown come together, along with influences from Japanese theater and music — Meyer’s drive and subtlety were key, his sound integral to the sonic momentum of the ECM albums Stoa (2006), Holon (2008), Llyría (2010) and Live (2012). An expert testimonial to Meyer’s instrumental prowess has come from his successor in Ronin, Swiss bassist Thomy Jordi, who said: “Björn is one of the few bass players in the world to have developed a unique style on the instrument. His concepts of sound and technique are highly personal… In his music, he seems to integrate many sources of traditional music, creating a beautiful, spiritual, modern world language.” In his booklet essay for Provenance, Meyer recounts that in preparing for solo performances over the past few years he would follow a ritual starting 27 days before a concert, one that included recording whatever he was working on: improvisations, experiments, practicing, actual compositions, or various combinations of those. “At some point during each day, I would cut out exactly 60 seconds of music and release it on the internet as a kind of countdown or diary of ideas,” he writes. “When I started preparing for this album, there were already more than 150 such fragments… I made it a mission to revisit most of the fragments and see what kind of program they would evoke. Arriving in the studio, I had a clear picture of what material I wanted to use — but I hadn’t anticipated how strongly the room would affect the music. Lugano Radio Studio is a fantastic sounding room, and it opened up for a few improvisations and a fully new piece written in the night between the recording days, in spite of the blues festival echoing in the streets of Lugano…” Provenance ranges from the hushed, guitar-like title track and similarly voiced “Pendulum” to the Ronin-like rhythmic minimalism of “Dance,” from the pensive tunefulness of “Banyan Waltz” and “Three Thirteen” to his textured interpretation of Hamidi’s entrancing “Garden of Silence.” There’s also room for the virtuoso strummed funk of “Squizzle.” In the booklet, Meyer writes about his concept for capturing the sonic potential of the electric bass guitar on record, referencing his work in the studio with ECM producer Manfred Eicher and the engineer Stefano Amerio: “Very often when recording electric bass guitar, the fragile sounds of the actual instrument, such as the touching of strings, tend to get forgotten or deliberately left out — yet they inspire me in the search for new sonorities and playing techniques. With this recording, I wanted to share an alternative experience of the instrument, the way I hear it. I am very grateful that Manfred supported this approach and that Stefano managed to capture the dream behind the idea in the most beautiful way.” ECM Anouar Brahem - Blue Maqams with Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette and Django Bates CD release date: October 13, 2017 LP release date: November 17, 2017 Anouar Brahem: oud; Dave Holland: double bass; Jack DeJohnette: drums, percussion; Django Bates: piano Released on the occasion of Anouar Brahem's 60th birthday, Blue Maqams, a highlight of ECM's autumn season, offers many reasons to celebrate. Recorded in New York's Avatar Studios in May 2017 and produced by Manfred Eicher, it brings the Tunisian oud master together with three brilliant improvisers: the "Maqams" of the title refers to the Arabic modal music system, rendered kind of blue by the jazz players. For Anouar Brahem and Dave Holland the album marks a reunion: they first collaborated 20 years ago on the very widely-acclaimed Thimar album. Brahem meets Jack DeJohnette for the first time here, but Holland and DeJohnette have been frequent musical partners over the last half-century beginning with ground-breaking work with Miles Davis - their collaborations are legendary. British pianist Django Bates also rises superbly to the challenge of Brahem's compositions. And Anouar in turn is inspired to some of his most outgoing playing. “Gnosis is a remarkable example of either, or both….Mr. Virelles, who is 33 and a New Yorker since 2009, is a pianist of remarkable skill and unwavering ambition… Focused research infuses this music, yet the expression is purely visceral and the context imagined. The richness of chamber-music interplay arrives free of rhythmic rigidity. The ingredients of ritual music form cells for compositions that, in spots, give way to improvisation that again, in new ways, bears a ritual feel. – Larry Blumenfeld, Wall Street Journal September 13th David Virelles piano, marímbula, vocals | Román Díaz lead vocals and percussion (bonkó enchemiyá, ekón, nkomos, erikundi, itones, nkaniká, marímbula, claves, mayohuacán, pilón, carapacho de jicotea, coconut shells) | Allison Loggins-Hull piccolo, flute; Rane Moore clarinet, bass clarinet | Adam Cruz: steel pan, claves; Alex Lipowski orchestral bass drum, temple blocks, bongos, gong | Matthew Gold marimba, glockenspiel | Mauricio Herrera ekón, nkomos, erikundi, claves | Thomas Morgan double bass | Yunior Lopez viola | Christine Chen violoncello | Samuel DeCaprio violoncello | Melvis Santa, Mauricio Herrera vocals © 2017 ECM | ECM Records USA | 1755 Broadway, 3rd floor | New York NY 10011

Power Rankings http://3downnation.com/2017/09/18/3down-power-rankings-argos-ship-rising-lions-in-a-lull/#comments https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/19/argos-sail-nissan-titan-power-rankings/ http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/cfl/news/week-14-cfl-power-rankings-tiger-cats-hamilton-toronto-argonauts/jhqlxku7ooy41f6trfckvs1lf http://thegruelingtruth.net/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-14-2/ http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-14-1.4296459 http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-trouble-brewing-montreal-edmonton/

I'm very interested in the Klaus Doldinger. I loved his '69 recording released in the US as Blues Happening. Can anyone tell me anything about this Doldinger box?

Ottawa 29....Montreal 11 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2423/ottawa-redblacks-vs-montreal-alouettes/

Sunday's Ottawa-Montreal game will be on ESPN2 at 1:00 pm eastern. ***** Power Rankings http://3downnation.com/2017/09/11/3down-power-rankings-new-basement-dwellar-ticats-on-the-rise/#comments http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-13-1.4284679 http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-eskimos-regressing-fourth-straight-loss/ http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/cfl/news/week-13-cfl-power-rankings-quarterback-injuries-could-shake-up-power-balance/1rz4f9nxsims91p1ca9kk2ftlf http://thegruelingtruth.net/football/cfl/cfl-power-rankings-week-13-2/ https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/12/ticats-clawing-nissan-titan-power-rankings/ ***** Week 13 picks http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/week-13-picks-can-consequences-have-desired-effect/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/slam-dunk-picks-road-shows/#comments http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/cfl/news/cfl-picks-week-13-hamilton-tiger-cats-kevin-glenn/3gpt1tq9sl7a14dguqck21u26 http://thegruelingtruth.net/podcast/cfl-weekly-pickem-show-week-13-wrobert-drummond/ https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/14/cfl-ca-writers-make-week-13-picks/ https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/13/weekly-predictor-can-redblacks-win-without-harris/ ***** Week 13 game notes https://www.cfl.ca/2017/09/14/cfl-ca-game-notes-look-week-13/ ***** Week 13 results Sask 29....Hamilton 19 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2420/saskatchewan-roughriders-vs-hamilton-tiger-cats/ Bridge started for Sask, and became the first Canadian starting QB to win since Greg Vavra in '85. http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/canadian-qb-brandon-bridge-to-start-for-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/qb-kevin-glenn-scratched-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/qb-kevin-glenn-scratched-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/brandon-bridge-mocks-ticats-money-manziel-celebration/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/canadian-qb-bridge-throws-three-tds-as-ticats-fall-27-19-to-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/video-june-jones-jeremiah-masoli-jalen-saunders-loss-riders/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/15/canadian-qb-brandon-bridge-im-trying-to-just-open-up-doors/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/16/riders-show-guts-win-hamilton/#comments http://3downnation.com/2017/09/16/learned-ticats-ugly-27-19-loss-riders/#comments ***** Toronto 34....Edmonton 26 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2421/edmonton-eskimos-vs-toronto-argonauts/ The Eskimos have lost 5 straight. ***** Calgary 27....BC 13 https://www.cfl.ca/games/2422/bc-lions-vs-calgary-stampeders/ The Stampeders have won 8 straight.

Most of the vocalese lyrics I'm aware were written by Hendricks. I hope he is in good health and enjoying life. Wikipedia says that Terry Gibbs will be 93 next month.