GA Russell

Freelancer, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League have an Australian punter experienced in footy (though I don't know if he ever played in the AFL) named Josh Bartel. http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/story/2012/06/14/sp-cfl-hamilton-tiger-cats-josh-bartel.html

Matthew Scianitti Week 14 picks http://www.cflblogzone.com/2012/09/cfl-picks-week-14-ticats-face-another-must-win-game/

Chris O'Leary Week 14 picks http://www.cflblogzone.com/2012/09/cfl-picks-matt-nichols-and-the-future/

My credit card order of Sept. 3 was debited today, and the Amazon website changed my listing from "Not Yet Shipped" to "Shipping Soon". My order was shipped today, with an expected arrival date of Oct. 1. That's four weeks from the order date.

This looks interesting. Trumpeter/Composer Allen Vizzutti To Release "Ritzville" October 16 Vizzutti Is Joined by Special Guests Chick Corea & Stanley Clarke Plus Pianists Darrell Grant & Laura Vizzutti, Guitarist Mike Miller, & Others September 27, 2012 Trumpet virtuoso Allen Vizzutti has enjoyed a prolific career as performer and educator in both the jazz and classical fields since his early days with Woody Herman's big band and his notable four-year tenure with Chick Corea. The release of Vizzutti's superb new CD Ritzville, on October 16, is an especially welcome event because the in-demand trumpeter/composer has recorded all too infrequently as a leader. Ritzville brings the focus back to his primary passion of "performing music I love with my jazz group." Contributions from Vizzutti's marquee-name friends Stanley Clarke and Chick Corea are featured on the boppish "Ticklish" and the up-tempo ballad "Amara" respectively, while the rest of the band includes old friends (the guitarist Mike Miller) and new (Portland-based pianist Darrell Grant) performing an array of standout Vizzutti originals, most of them written specifically for the Ritzville session. Pianist Laura Vizzutti, the trumpeter's wife, is showcased on her namesake "Laura's Blues," one of four selections on which an 11-piece string section was added. Recorded in Seattle, where Vizzutti has been based since 1990, Ritzville contains so many stylistic crossings, from groove-tight fusion updates to string orchestrations to acoustic ballads, the leader became concerned during the recording of it that the music was more varied than he had intended. Whether by serendipity or design, however, the songs fit together seamlessly, adding up to an invigorating statement by a multifaceted artist who is in command in all stylistic situations. Author of the definitive trumpet method books that bear his name, Allen Vizzutti started on the horn with lessons from his father Lido, a self-taught trumpeter. As he was growing up in Missoula, Montana, young Allen played in school bands and, at 16, won a concerto competition that sent him to Interlochen, where he was awarded first chair in the World Youth Symphony Orchestra. He went on to study at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. After a period of gaining bandstand experience ranging from Ice Follies shows to Bach chamber orchestras, Vizzutti had to choose between two tempting offers: lead trumpeter with Woody Herman and first chair trumpet with the San Antonio Symphony. He became a member of Herman's Thundering Herd. "The big band experience, which so many young players now never get, is so valuable in so many ways, and not just musical," said Vizzutti. "We had people like Dizzy Gillespie and Tony Bennett and Marian McPartland joining us all the time. You got to see how great musicians handled themselves, handled rehearsals, bantered with the audience. You learned about timing, about stretching out musical moments to maximize their impact." Vizzutti met Chick Corea during rehearsals for a piece the pianist wrote for Herman. Corea later invited Vizzutti to join him for a three-month tour with his 13-piece ensemble, featuring strings and horns. The trumpeter also played with Corea sextets featuring Joe Farrell, Dave Liebman, and Steve Kujala and is featured on three Corea albums: Secret Agent (1978), Tap Step (1980), and Touchstone (1982). In 1978, Vizzutti moved to Los Angeles. He joined Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Band, and played on more than 150 film and TV soundtracks as well as albums by Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, and Prince. His own unique jazz-fusion band Red Metal made two recordings and performed regularly in L.A. and on tour over the next eight years. After his relocation to Seattle, he recorded several albums as a leader, including Trumpet Summit (1995) and Skyrocket (1996), both for Summit. It's to be hoped that Ritzville marks the beginning of a new period of recording activity for this charismatic and virtuosic artist. "I'm very grateful for my musically rich life," says Vizzutti. "It's exciting and a lot of fun to continue to improve as a player and performer. Ritzville is a calling card for a fresh new musical chapter about to unfold." Photo: Lido Vizzutti Web Site: www.vizzutti.com

The press is now spelling Matt Nichols' name with one l. http://www.canada.com/sports/football/cfl/Nichols+eager+baptism+fire+with+Esks/7304678/story.html http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=406223

Here's an article on the Globe & Mail's website about a Canadian who will play in the game for Sydney. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/more-sports/canadian-mike-pyke-has-become-big-star-down-under/article4571223/

Here is Williams' obit from the LA Times http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-andy-williams-20120927,0,509480.story It tells what I think is an extraordinary story. Four weeks before the Oscar television broadcast, Williams was given the gig to sing Moon River on it. He recorded that song and an entire album around it, and that album was in the stores the day after the broadcast. Four weeks!

This is too expensive to qualify as a bargain, but I thought you would like to k now about it. About 2000 two sets of Peter Gunn episodes were released, each of 16 episodes. Both have been out of print for years. Now a box of the complete series will be released Oct. 23. The current pre-order price is $89.99. http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Gunn-The-Complete-Series/dp/B008MIYKS0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=RVSBV717YT9&coliid=I1A3QUOWK896GV

Greg Xenakes Week 14 picks http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfl/news/news.aspx?id=4532302 ***** Third-stringer Matt Nicholls will start at QB for the Eskimos against the Stampeders. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=406161 ***** I thought that Drew Tate was out for the year, but he will dress for the game against the Eskimos. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=406155

RIP. Other than Canadian Sunset, I am unfamiliar with his work on Cadence, and I have long wanted to hear some. I remember that BMG offered a Cadence CD, but I never got around to ordering it. Fifteen or so years ago I picked up a Columbia CD of Christmas songs, and it is an annual staple.

As mentioned in the ECM press releases thread, Nik Bartsch's Ronin will briefly tour the US next month: October 16 Oakland, CA Yoshi’s October 18 Portland, OR The Mission October 19 Seattle, WA Earshot Jazz Festival October 22 New York, NY Le Poisson Rouge They are my favorite current ECM band, and I'm jealous of all who have the opportunity to see them.

Your wish is my command: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hTFMD5NX1Q Thanks Matthew! It's so famous, I found it on Drudge!

Is there a YouTube video of the end of the game that everyone is talking about? I would like to see it.

It also occurs to me that one needn't have one's entire album on Spotify. I have seen albums that were less than complete. So if an artist would like the public to hear a little of his latest album, he can do that without giving away the store.

Ricky Ray's knee injury is a strained MCL ligament, and he will miss the next game. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=406076

Interesting that Sirius pays 8%. Does a broadcast radio station pay less? Anything?

Suppose a billionaire said to a jazz artist/group, "I like your music so much, if you want I'll pay to have a promo copy of an album of yours sent to every household in America." The artist wouldn't get any money out of it. Would he accept the offer? I don't think that it would be irrational for him to do so. Maybe not his current album. Maybe a backlist album from five years ago. But I can see the appeal of having your music in every household in America.

Thanks freelancer! That's what I'll do.

Never mind the extravagance. I find the job description to be repugnant. I also find repugnant the view common among universities that they need to increase their endowment to keep up with other universities' endowments, without concrete plans of how the money will be spent. That's just simple greed, which I think proper universities should teach their students to reject.

Since I'm not an NFL fan, I haven't been watching the games, and I don't have an opinion of the quality of the refs. However, it seems to me that the use of replacement refs (in any league) invites widespread skepticism among fans, and thus tarnishes the image of the games and the league. I truly don't understand why the NFL is penny-pinching with the refs. The best refs in any sport are harder to replace than most of the players.

My credit card order of Sept. 3 was debited today, and the Amazon website changed my listing from "Not Yet Shipped" to "Shipping Soon".

Here's something I didn't know: In both the CFL and the NFL, it is legal to tackle a man with his hair. http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=406026

Congrats Jim! I dropped my cable I think the last week of December of 1991. I would like to watch SpeedTV for the sports car races, and ESPN3.com for its various offerings, but those two things don't justify the price of cable for me. I spend my entertainment money on CDs, books and DVDs, and I enjoy all of them at my leisure rather than according to somebody else's schedule. Of course, I also find entertainment on the internet, but I consider that to be a necessity. It's a great savings for me on a monthly basis, so totalling my savings up over 20 years would I'm sure be an impressive figure. In regard to exercise equipment and losing weight, I highly recommend the NordicTrak. They used to advertise heavily in USA Today, but I'm not even sure if they are still in business nowadays.

BfB, I didn't see any link on your app for orchestras. I was particularly looking for Maynard Ferguson's Roulette recordings that might be on Spotify. Would your Blue Note app include EMI non-Blue Note labels like Roulette? When I checked Maynard not using the Blue Note app, I saw the one Roulette that I have, Letter from Birdland, but there are many albums, and no indication (that I saw) of what label they are on. Can anyone point out other Maynard Roulette albums? Thanks!