GA Russell

Here are three very simple concepts which indicate that you are out of shape. http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/02/02/3-fitness-tests-should-be-able-to-pass/?intcmp=trending

Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in a New York City apartment Sunday from an apparent drug overdose, law enforcement sources tell FoxNews.com.

In Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs, the origin of the iPhone was explained. It occurred to Jobs that everyone carried a cell phone. The iPod was very popular, but he realized that he was asking everyone to carry with them two items. He felt that there would be many people who would want to carry only one item, and that would be a cell phone. So Jobs had his people invent a single item which was both a cell phone and an iPod. I think what's interesting about it now is that apparently the iPhone is used only 18% of the time to make phone calls. It is now primarily a portable computer.

Jim, you deleted your original response! What's up with that?

Here is a woman my age who has been selected to model lingerie. What do you think? I don't have any problem with the idea that older women get their turn, but I think that this one is unattractive, and I don't want to look at her. http://uk.lifestyle.yahoo.com/american-apparel-older-model-62-year-old-141019000.html

Ray Guy has been elected to the Canton Hall of Fame. I think it's an injustice that Pete Gogolak isn't already in.

Korey Banks has his option year left on his contract. He told Wally he didn't want to return to the Lions, so Wally Friday traded him to the Bombers. The Bombers released Jason Boltus. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442668 http://cfl.ca/article/veteran-presence-bombers-acquire-banks-in-trade-with-lions ***** The Als have released Byron Parker. http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfl/news/news.aspx?id=4661948 http://cfl.ca/article/als-release-veteran-byron-parker-sign-stafford-matha ***** Rumors say that two NFL clubs have shown interest in hiring Jim Popp, but he won't name them. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442662

Lots of news in the past two days. Zach Collaros was set to become a free agent Feb. 15. The Argos did him a favor and released him early, yesterday. Today he signed with the Ticats. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442555 http://cfl.ca/video/index/id/94313 http://cfl.ca/article/dunk-collaros-a-perfect-fit-for-austins-ticats ***** So the Ticats released Henry. The Bombers immediately made him an offer. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442611 ***** The Eskimos today released Kerry Joseph. He is expected to sign a one-day contract and retire as a Roughrider. http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfl/news/news.aspx?id=4661511 http://cfl.ca/article/hanging-them-up-joseph-to-announce-retirement http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442583 ***** Korey Sheets worked out with Oakland Tuesday. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442478 ***** Weston Dressler is passing-a-physical away from signing with Kansas City, so the Riders released him today. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442593 http://cfl.ca/article/release-granted-riders-part-ways-with-dressler ***** Dmitry Tsoumpas retired yesterday. He is only 27. He will remain with the Stamps as a conditioning coach. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442468 http://cfl.ca/article/three-time-all-star-dimitri-tsoumpas-retires

It's funny, Bev, but just yesterday I read a comment from an apparently young-adult male who mentioned that nobody has an iPod anymore. He and all of his friends use an iPhone.

That's interesting that you say that, ejp. I'm just fine with athletics at the small schools without scholarships. It's the situation at the big universities that I would like to see changed, because I think that many of their players are not students.

Some of the Amazon customer reviews indicate that the Creative GigaWorks T20s at $78.99 a pair are far superior to the T12s. http://www.amazon.com/Creative-GigaWorks-Multimedia-BasXPort-Technology/dp/B001RNOHDU/ref=pd_sim_e_7

In 1972, I had the Lani Hall record called Sun Down Lady which is mentioned on the Wikipedia page. I still think of the song as her version.

I see that all seven of Renzi's previous albums as a leader are up on Spotify, but I don't see this one. I love the tone, the sound that these guys make with their instruments, but this album isn't my cup of tea. It's too free-form for me. Judging by the lists on the "Best of 2013" thread, I suspect that quite a number of guys here would like this one, but it's not for me.

The Daily Beast remembers Pete Seeger here: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/29/the-death-of-stalin-s-songbird0.html

Marc Parenteau has announced his retirement. http://cfl.ca/article/parenteau-announces-retirement-after-nine-years ***** You will recall that Argos defensive coordinator Chris Jones has left their coaching staff to become the head coach of the Eskimos. Jones has announced that four members of the Argos' 2013 staff and two more from the 2012 staff will join him in Edmonton. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442392 http://cfl.ca/article/mcadoo-dickenson-and-jackson-headline-esks-new-staff ***** Dave Naylor is reporting that MLSE, the owner of the Maple Leafs hockey team, considered purchasing the Argos at its December board meeting. Naylor also reports that should the MLSE board decide to not to buy the club, MLSE Chairman Larry Tannenbaum may buy it on his own. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=442375

The vocalist or the pianist? A few years ago, I made contact with a Buddy Greco fanatic. He had taken a bunch of Benny Goodman broadcasts and put them onto CD. I had all of it on vinyl, so I bought them as a shortcut (since my vinyl and turntable are in deep storage). Bought them for Wardell Gray. But this cat (seller) was really into Buddy Greco. When I was doing interviews for the WG biography I was working on, I went by his supper club, hoping to catch him for an interview. BeBop, I saw him at a private Las Vegas party about 1985, and he was everything I remembered him to be from the '60s. I suppose I'm not aware of anything particularly unique about his playing, but it was quite good.

I didn't see this coming. I don't know anything about labor law. I suppose the matter may hinge on the definition of an employee. http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/10363430/outside-lines-northwestern-wildcats-football-players-trying-join-labor-union

This looks like it might be interesting. Accurate Records to Release "Live Snakes," Third CD by Boston-Based Revolutionary Snake Ensemble, March 11 Saxophonist/Composer (& RSE Founder) Ken Field Leads Extended Family of Players Including Matt Darriau, Josh Roseman, Kenny Wollesen, and Charles Neville CD Release Shows at Regattabar, Cambridge, MA, March 4; Barbes, Brooklyn, March 22; Kennedy Center, Washington, DC, March 23 January 28, 2014 Boston-based saxophonist/composer Ken Field has drawn deeply from the wellspring of the New Orleans brass band tradition since forming his Revolutionary Snake Ensemble in 1990. Using the boisterous rhythms of that tradition as a launching pad for unbridled improvisations on both original and traditional material, the band has emerged as a singular force in the music. Their third CD, Live Snakes, set for March 11 release by Accurate Records, captures their distinctive sound in all its expressive glory. Recorded in 2011 and 2013 in Boston, Brooklyn, and Manhattan, Live Snakes documents four editions of the highly mutable ensemble, with two sonically inventive remixes by Field thrown in for good measure. Adding to the deep pool of Boston talent that has sustained the RSE for more than two decades, Live Snakes features an extended family of players, including New York masters Matt Darriau (tenor sax and flute), Josh Roseman (trombone), and Kenny Wollesen (drums and percussion), and New Orleans tenor saxophone great Charles Neville. A good deal of Live Snakes' emotional punch stems from the fact that Field's wife, the renowned filmmaker and animator Karen Aqua who often collaborated with the RSE, lost her battle against cancer just one week after the album's earliest session in 2011. "The whole New Orleans concept of a jazz funeral, where it's very somber and moving at the beginning and then you break into celebratory uptempo grooves afterwards, really helped shape this album," Field says. "After playing in churches and at Karen's memorial it really brought home again that that's the script for how music should be. You're mourning and you're celebrating. The music encompasses these really conflicting emotions, joy and sadness at the same time." The heart of Live Snakes is the aching dirge "For Karen," a stunning group improvisation from the 2011 session at Brooklyn's 58 Northsix Media Labs. The lamentation segues into a lugubrious rendition of the spiritual "I'll Fly Away" recorded by a full eight-piece band two years later at Cambridge's Regattabar, a performance that ends uptempo as a high-stepping celebration. The entire album's sequencing follows this kind of emotional logic, imbuing Live Snakes with the feel of a cathartic odyssey. RSE with guest Charles Neville (center). Marked by bawdy humor, seat-of-the-pants arrangements, and a love of unabashedly beautiful melodies, the band is equally effective interpreting hymns, like "Rock of Ages," and jazz standards, such as "Caravan." Field closes the album with an atmospheric remix of "Cassandra 4," a tune originally commissioned by Bridgeman/Packer Dance, and a newly constructed piece "Breakdown Part One" that can best be described as Miles Runs the Voodoo Down to Basin Street. In a typically Fieldian move, he turns a live album into an opportunity for further investigation into form and texture. "I'm a firm believer in experimentation: I don't like doing the same thing twice or repeating what other people have done," Field says. "But at the same time I like the idea of maintaining some continuity with what listeners expect, so when we're rhythmically complex sometimes we'll be harmonically simpler. I play a melodic instrument, so we're always going to be focusing on melodically based music." The band's acclaimed debut album, 2003's Year of the Snake (Innova Recordings), brought national attention. The following year the RSE began playing at Mardi Gras and has regularly marched with the all-women Krewe of Muses, an experience that "legitimized the band to me," Field says. With its second album, 2008's Forked Tongue (Cuneiform), the RSE continued to expand its already far-flung repertoire, ranging from hymns and spirituals to traditional New Orleans parade anthems and tunes by everyone from Billy Idol to Ornette Coleman. In addition to his work with RSE, Ken Field (left) continues to perform and record with Birdsongs of Mesozoic, a new music/chamber rock ensemble that spun off from the storied band Mission of Burma. He also maintains a busy solo career as a player and composer with five solo releases, including Subterranea (O.O. Discs), Pictures of Motion (sFz), Tokyo in F (Sublingual), Under the Skin (Innova), and Sensorium: Music for Dance & Film (Innova). Field has written scores for animation, film, modern dance, and television, including music for Sesame Street. Founded in 1990 as an improvisational horn and percussion group for a pagan women's ritual celebration and evolving for more than 20 years to its present-day incarnation as costumed funk/street beat improvisational brass band, the Revolutionary Snake Ensemble has continued to captivate audiences. The RSE was nominated as Jazz Act of the Year in the New England Music Awards (winners to be announced 2/22) and will be marking the release of Live Snakes with a 3/4 performance at the Regattabar in Cambridge, MA. Also scheduled is a 3/22 appearance at Barbes in Brooklyn, as well as a return engagement at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC on 3/23. Web Sites: revolutionarysnakeensemble.org kenfield.org accuraterecords.com allegro-music.com Like: Follow:

Tom Gola has passed away at age 81. I had his bubble gum card in 1961. http://www.latimes.com/obituaries/la-me-tom-gola-20140127,0,3165125.story#axzz2rZlN6LPO

I like Buddy Greco!

This won the Grammy tonight for Best Historical Album.

The Toronto Star reports today that, like the NFL, the league is considering doing away with the single-point placekick convert. Surely I'm not the only one here who remembers the World Football League in 1974! Their touchdowns were worth seven points, and the PAT (called the "action point") was a run or pass and was worth one point. http://www.thestar.com/sports/football/2014/01/22/cfl_also_looking_at_eliminating_the_convert.html

I had the 45 of Dew Drop Inn, as I recall in 1971, on the Reprise label.

This is no bargain, but just a few months after releasing the third season of Maverick Warner Bros. is releasing the fourth season with Roger Moore. This time they are dividing the year into two four-CD boxes, but selling them together for $49.95. http://www.wbshop.com/product/maverick+the+complete+fourth+season+6061+1000466710.do?sortby=ourPicks&refType=&from=Search $48.98 http://www.oldies.com/product-view/7520ED.html

A new one from Ian Carey! I'll look forward to this. Kabocha Records to Release "Duocracy," A Duo Album by Trumpeter Ian Carey & Pianist Ben Stolorow, February 25 First Collaboration by the Bay Area Musicians CD Release Shows February 21 at the Jazzschool, Berkeley & March 7 at St. Hilary's, Tiburon January 22, 2014 In the musical realm of Duocracy, the new CD by trumpeter Ian Carey and pianist Ben Stolorow, "two" rules. Mainstays on the Bay Area jazz scene, Carey and Stolorow have released highly regarded albums as leaders but found their way to the duo format after several satisfying gigs together last year. They chose to capture their singular improvisational ensemble on record, and Carey's Kabocha label will release the inventive results as Duocracy on February 25. "It's super-naked and that was intimidating at first, especially once the tape started rolling, but it's also really freeing. On my last album I felt like I was trying to build something perfect," Carey says referring to Roads & Codes, an album selected by many critics as one of 2013's best releases. "This was about going in and enjoying playing with each other, about playing jazz and seeing what we could come up with, and letting these tunes shine." Carey credits a satellite radio station focusing on recordings from the 1940s with reigniting his love for vintage pop tunes. Struck by the effortless swing that was the era's rhythmic default, he and Stolorow decided to keep the duo loose and limber, unencumbered by involved arrangements. Opening with Walter Donaldson's lilting "Little White Lies," the pair also includes Rodgers and Hart's "You Took Advantage of Me," a piece that showcases Stolorow's gift for melodic invention, and Henry Mancini's "Two for the Road," a standout Latin-tinged ballad performance that highlights Carey's gorgeous tone. They co-wrote the album's sole original, "Comin' Along," an abstract tune built upon the chord changes of Benny Golson's standard "Along Came Betty." Closing with a pair of enduring standards, the Gershwins' jaunty "How Long Has This Been Going On," and Kern's masterpiece "All the Things You Are," the duo departs in a blaze of beauty, refreshing the ubiquitous songs with unfussy eloquence. "We're drawn to a lot of the same repertoire, lovely mid-century well-crafted pop tunes," Carey says. "What makes working with Ben so satisfying he is very into the idea of breaking out of traditional duo roles. There's a lot left to discover." Duocracy is the fourth album for Ian Carey, 39, who previously has written for and recorded his audacious, highly cohesive working quintet on Sink/Swim (2005), Contextualizin' (2010), and Roads & Codes (2013). The Binghamton, New York native earned a New School degree in Jazz and Contemporary Music and spent five post-grad years in New York City before relocating to San Francisco, where he has performed with top-notch ensembles like the Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, multi-instrumentalist Adam Theis's Realistic Orchestra, accordionist Rob Reich's Circus Bella, and vocalist Betty Fu, which is how he started playing with Stolorow. Ben Stolorow, 37, was born in New York City but had settled in Los Angeles by the age of 12. In 1994 he moved to the Bay Area to attend UC Berkeley, studying piano with Bill Bell, Susan Muscarella, and Dick Hindman and before long joining the Jazzschool faculty. His 2008 debut album I'll Be Over Here, is a highly interactive trio session focusing on his lustrous originals with bassist Ravi Abcarian and drummer Greg German. On his 2011 followup with bassist Dan Feiszli and drummer Jon Arkin, Almost There, Stolorow deals more explicitly with song forms. The partnership with Carey grew out of their accompanying Betty Fu, and was fed by their camaraderie on and off the bandstand. When Carey moved to the East Bay, just a few miles north of Stolorow, proximity allowed them to start playing together informally, which led to several gigs at an art space in Berkeley. "It was really successful," says Stolorow. "I had this idea to record to see what happens, and Ian felt, if not now, when?" The duo will celebrate the release of Duocracy with concerts at the Jazzschool in Berkeley on Friday 2/21 and at St. Hilary's in Tiburon on Friday 3/7. Photography: James Knox Web Sites: iancareyjazz.com benstolorow.com