GA Russell

1917! Back when people cared!

Here are photos of the Lions' 2011 Grey Cup ring. Lots of diamonds! http://cfl.ca/photo_...ry/gallery/6939 ***** Here are photos of the first Grey Cup champion, Varsity. http://cfl.ca/photo_gallery/gallery/6913

The Eskimos released Patrick Kabongo in January, and the Lions have signed him today. http://cfl.ca/article/lions-ink-canadian-ol-kabongo

Cliff, I haven't heard that Bley in over forty years, but it's my vague recollection that it is electric. Am I wrong?

LOL! My favorite post-Baker Mulligan album is the Limelight Something Borrowed, Something Blue with Zoot Sims. Oh yeah, that is a good one. This album was my introduction to Paul Bley, and also the song Mr. Joy. I'd love to hear it again.

Richard Dawson has died. I always liked him. http://news.yahoo.com/family-feud-tv-host-richard-dawson-died-142027262.html

I remember when someone for the Padres (maybe Clay Kirby?) had a no hitter going, and manager Preston Gomez lifted him for a pinch hitter. Maybe the baseball gods have punished the Padres ever since!

Very impressive, Dave!

Starting yesterday, single game tickets are now for sale! http://cfl.ca/article/cfl-single-game-tickets-on-sale-now

Happy Birthday 2012 etherbored!

CJ, see here I'm looking forward to the 1969 material very much.

More on Santana. http://nation.foxnews.com/johan-santana/2012/06/01/johan-santana-throws-first-no-hitter-mets-history

TD, from time to time the CFL has had an owner or two who would sign an NFL name in the attempt to sell a few tickets. Dexter Manley, Andre Rison, Mark Gastineau and Ricky Williams come to mind. None of them panned out. Your link shows that TO was cut because of his behavior. The CFL has just finished with TO's teammate in indoor football named Casey Printers. Printers wore out his welcome in both Hamilton and BC. Because the Printers situation was so recent (2010), I don't think that any current CFL owner or GM would be interested in the headaches that apparently come along with TO. ***** The Stamps have signed a 31 year old Australian Rules Football player (from Australia) named Scott Crough to try out as punter. http://www.calgaryhe...4754/story.html

Happy Birthday 2012 Durium!

Jack Twyman has died. He'll always be remembered. It's so rare that an All-Star should also be such a good person. http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/05/31/2101871/former-nba-star-jack-twyman-dies.html

The new edition of The Canadian Pro Football Encyclopedia came out April 3, and Amazon has it on sale for $21.59. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0983513635/ref=ox_ya_os_product I ordered my copy today. When it arrives, I'll let you know what I think of it.

Film (just a few seconds) of the first Grey Cup game in 1909 has been found! http://cfl.ca/video/index/id/74417/autostart/true

Clint Eastwood Western Icon Collection (High Plains Drifter / Joe Kidd / Two Mules For Sister Sara) - $7.46 http://www.amazon.co...4980011_b2_55_p ***** The Clint Eastwood Star Collection (Fistful of Dollars / For A Few Dollars More / The Good, The Bad and The Ugly / Hang 'em High) - $10.49 http://www.amazon.com/Clint-Eastwood-Collection-Fistful-Dollars/dp/B002M9WW3A/ref=wl_mb_hu_m_1_dp

Thanks, Rod. I remember his name from radio shows; probably Dragnet, Gunsmoke and Have Gun Will Travel.

Happy Birthday 2012 Pete B!

The Ticats have hired Paul Osbaldiston as assistant coach for special teams. http://tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=397114

Well, what do people mean when they say that Ornette's playing is so melodic? Other than his Contemporary recordings, I don't hear much melody to start with.

Willie Pile has retired. http://tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=397139 ***** Here's an interesting list of the many Riders with NFL experience. http://www.cflblogzone.com/2012/05/nfl-numbers/

I haven't heard anything from Bob Mintzer in maybe ten years. I'm curious about this one because quality-wise I don't know what to expect. Bob Mintzer Big Band's "For the Moment": New MCG Jazz CD Due June 19 Guests on Brazilian-Themed Session Include Chico Pinheiro, Russell Ferrante, Alex Acuna, Peter Erskine May 29, 2012 The Grammy Award-winning Bob Mintzer Big Band has explored diverse styles of music in its illustrious 25-year recording history -- from New York and Afro-Cuban to Count Basie and John Coltrane. On the band's new MCG Jazz CD, For the Moment, which is scheduled for release June 19, saxophonist/composer/arranger/bandleader Mintzer puts the spotlight on Brazilian music. While some of the tunes are directly from the Brazilian songbook -- "Corcovado" by Antonio Carlos Jobim, "Berimbau" by Baden Powell, and two newer tunes by Chico Pinheiro -- others "merely make reference to rhythmical grooves from various regions of the country," says Mintzer. "This becomes the springboard for what I most love to do: write for big band in a way that establishes a focus and then breaks free of stylization." The leader's own finely crafted originals include "Aha," a tune originally conceived for the Yellowjackets that's set to a surging Pernambucan baião, and paeans to Ouro Preto, the colonial town in Minas Gerais, and the northeastern city of Recife, where he has visited. Produced by MCG's Marty Ashby and arranged by Mintzer, For the Moment features guest artist Chico Pinheiro, the rising star guitarist/composer from São Paulo who's been collaborating with Mintzer for the last several years. "Chico is a fantastic instrumentalist," says Mintzer, "and his writing is subtle and intricate, all-encompassing and fresh-sounding, with Brazilian lyricism and the complexity of jazz." Other special guests are pianist Russell Ferrante, Mintzer's longtime colleague in the Yellowjackets; percussionist Alex Acuña; and drummer Peter Erskine ("He has had so much experience playing with large jazz ensembles, and he knows better than anyone how to shape the music"). Chico Pinheiro and Bob Mintzer. Rear: Lincoln Goines and Peter Erskine. After a long relationship with the DMP label that produced 13 albums, Mintzer connected with Manchester Craftsmen's Guild in 2004. The Big Band debuted with Live at MCG and followed up with Old School, New Lessons (2006) and Swing Out (2008), all of which featured Kurt Elling. The lifelong New Yorker, who's considered one of the tenor saxophonists to come out of the school of New York players in the 1970s (also including Michael Brecker, Bob Berg, Dave Liebman, and Steve Grossman), and whose big band dates to 1983, when the Brecker brothers asked him to put together an ensemble for their club Seventh Avenue South, has been based in Los Angeles since 2008. He lives in the former house of composer Arnold Schoenberg (his first L.A. residence, 1934-1936), and is the recipient of the Buzz McCoy-endowed chair of jazz studies at the University of Southern California. Mintzer continues to tour with the Yellowjackets (which he joined in 1990), does workshops all over the world, performs with his New York big band, and serves as a guest conductor/soloist with college and pro bands. But he has found time to assemble an L.A. big band that plays regularly at Vitello's in Studio City. "The challenge is always to get the most out of whatever situation," he notes. "You can make three players sound huge, and with the right players who are tuned to subtlety and color, all things are possible. The writers who thought that way, Ogerman, Brookmeyer, George Russell, Maria Schneider, Gil Evans, that's the music that resonates with me the most." The Bob Mintzer Big Band appears at Vitello's in Studio City 6/14-15, and at the Blue Note in Tokyo (with guests Chico Pinheiro and Kurt Elling) 6/20-23. Mintzer will also be touring with the Yellowjackets this summer, appearing at Birdland, NYC, 6/26-30; Freihofer's Jazz Festival in Saratoga Springs, NY, 7/1; several European festivals in July; and Scullers in Boston 8/3-4. Web Site: www.bobmintzer.com YouTube: Bob Mintzer Meets Chico Pinheiro Not All Big Bands Are Created Equal Writing for Brass in the Big Band on For the Moment

Thanks BW. That makes a lot of sense.