GA Russell

Jim, go back and read thoroughly Wednesday's Early Preview and today's Eastern Preview. You should find the answers to that and many other questions there. 🙂

Eastern preview https://doorfliesopen.com/2023/05/25/cfl-beat-177/ Last year Door Flies Open was my favorite website for CFL coverage, and the anonymous author ("The Maestro") has done a great job of summarizing off-season events. I recommend everyone take a quick look at his posts from last week and this week.

Early preview https://doorfliesopen.com/2023/05/18/cfl-beat-176/

Patricia (Norway, 1981) https://artpepper.bandcamp.com/track/may-freebie-a-beauty

Camps opened Sunday, and the first pre-season game will be Monday, so let's take a look at the headlines since Feb. 24. The league has a new TV deal for the US this year. CBS Sports channel will carry 34 games. From what I can tell, this can be streamed on Hulu. Many games will be available for streaming to the US for free on the league's website called CFL+. https://www.cfl.ca/2023/05/19/watch-free-and-online-welcome-to-cfl-preseason-live-and-cfl/ ***** Speaking of streaming, here is the link to watch past Grey Cup Finals. https://www.cfl.ca/grey-cup-on-demand/ ***** Early Power Rankings https://www.cfl.ca/2023/04/04/start-your-arguing-engines-the-way-too-early-power-rankings-are-in/ https://3downnation.com/2023/05/15/3downnation-cfl-power-rankings-were-back-for-2023-baby/ ***** This thread's view count is up to 215.1 thousand, up 8,000 since Feb. 19!

Gordon Lee Finds Space for Self-Expression In Dark Places on "How Can It Be?," Arriving June 16 on PJCE Records Recording Features Nine Compositions by the Portland Pianist, Wrought in the COVID Era & Performed by a Stellar Pacific Northwest Quartet CD Release Shows at The 1905, Portland, July 2, & Christo's, Salem, OR, July 13   May 19, 2023 Deep catharsis is the order of the day on How Can It Be?, the seventh album by pianist and composer Gordon Lee, set to drop June 16 on PJCE Records. Written during the COVID-19 pandemic, the album’s nine originals—performed by the Portland, Oregon-based Lee and his quartet with tenor saxophonist Renato Caranto, bassist Dennis Caiazza, and drummer Gary Hobbs—reflect the leader’s urgent need to express powerful emotions at a time when musical performance was limited at best. In addition to inspiring this rich set of compositions, those challenging days were also the direct catalyst for the quartet’s formation. Lee had little to do but write and practice until his wife convinced him to turn that work into performances on the front porch of their home. Those homespun concerts for the neighbors became “my antidote, my personal way of fighting back against not just the virus but the fear,” he recalls. “It felt like something positive I could do.” They began as duos with Caranto, then evolved into quartets with Caiazza and the late drummer Carlton Jackson (to whom How Can It Be? is dedicated). Hobbs is newly recruited for the album. The emotions Lee channeled into his music at that time naturally included some dark and somber tones, as can be heard on the opening title track and the harrowing “Angry Mother Nature.” Yet that’s only a thin slice of the pie. The album also features quirky and amiable burlesque (“Shaky Assets”), offbeat, sardonic humor (“A Robin Weeps,” “Bozo Sulks on the Golf Course”), and small moments of triumph (“’Deed I Did It”). It’s a rich collection of material that reminds us of the full range of humanity that underscores even our bleakest experiences. At a tight 48 minutes, How Can It Be? is also a testimony to the discipline and mastery of Caranto, Caiazza, and Hobbs as well as Lee. Basing their performances here on those highly restricted days of COVID, they demonstrate their ability to hit the bandstand and speak their pieces with economy and precision, but no less emotional weight or expression. In that sense, the album is a distillation of what Lee describes as the musician’s mission “to play from the inside of your soul.” Gordon Lee was born April 26, 1953 in New York City. At 12 years old, he found himself behind the drum kit of a junior high school garage-rock band. By 14 he had transferred over to the piano, on which he obtained his first paying gig at a school dance. The bug had well and truly bitten him, and Gordon matriculated a few years later at Indiana University to study with the legendary jazz educator David Baker. It was also at IU that he crossed paths with trumpeter and Portlander Richard Burdell, who convinced Lee that the Pacific Northwest metropolis was a great place for a working musician. After earning his BM in 1976, Lee made the move to the West Coast and found that Burdell had been right. Though he would return for a few years to New York to live and work, Lee soon enough made his way back to Portland, where he’s remained for nearly 40 years since. He connected there with Jim Pepper, the respected Native American tenor saxophonist who had been a founding member of jazz-rock groundbreakers Free Spirits. Pepper became Lee’s mentor and collaborator, working together in Portland and around the world until the saxophonist’s death in 1992. “I played with Jim all over the world,” Lee recalls. “He really instilled in me that you have to play from the bottom of your soul, every time, even though most gigs are not about that.” Lee also became a steadfast musical partner of drummer Mel Brown, with whom he still plays today. (They worked together as co-leaders on 2014’s recording Tuesday Night.) Lee established himself as an educator, teaching jazz studies at Western Oregon University and Reed College, among others, while also finding time to earn a master’s degree from Portland State University in 1999. In addition, he built a career as a bandleader, beginning in 1990 with his debut album Gordon Bleu. Five more albums followed, with ensembles ranging from the big band of 2004’s Flying Dream to the trio of 2010’s This Path, before the release of How Can It Be? How Can It Be? isn’t his only takeaway from the pandemic. Hundreds of hours with his Baldwin Grand also resulted in his first solo piano album, The Remainder (PJCE Records), “which was a product of the same gestation.” With an unprecedented expanse of free time on his hands, Lee explains, “I ended up practicing a lot, and practicing always leads to composing for me.” Gordon Lee will be performing CD release shows at The 1905, Portland, on Sunday, 7/2, and at Christo’s, Salem, OR, on Thursday, 7/13. Photography: Douglas Detrick   Gordon Lee Quartet Live at the Benson Hotel, Portland, February 18, 2023  Gordon Lee Web Site  

The Father's Day sale is live today. Same as usual, but with a different selection of cigars. No Minimum. No maximum. Good while supplies last. https://www.cigarsinternational.com/shop/10-packs-free-20-ci-bucks/2052514/

A farmer stopped by the local mechanic’s shop to have his truck fixed. They thought it might have something to do with the transmission, so they couldn’t repair it while he waited. He told the mechanics that he didn’t live far and would just walk home. On the way home he stopped at the hardware store and bought a bucket and a gallon of paint. He then stopped by the feed store and picked up a couple of chickens and a goose. However, struggling outside the store he now had a problem ― how to carry his purchases home. While he was scratching his head he was approached by a little old lady who told him she was lost. She asked "Can you tell me how to get to 1603 Mockingbird Lane?” The farmer replied "Well, as a matter of fact, my farm is very close to that house. I would walk you there but I can’t carry this lot." The old lady suggested "Why don’t you do this? Put the can of paint in the bucket. Carry the bucket in one hand, put a chicken under each arm and carry the goose in your other hand." "Why, thank you very much, that works just fine!" he said, and proceeded to walk the old girl home. On the way he said "Let’s take my usual short cut and go down this alley. We’ll be there in no time." The little old lady looked him over cautiously then said, "I am a lonely widow without a husband to defend me ... How do I know that when we get in the alley you won’t have your way with me?” The farmer said with some irritation "Holy smokes, lady! I’m carrying a bucket, a gallon of paint, two chickens, and a goose. How in the world could I do that?" The old lady replied "Set the goose down, cover him with the bucket, put the paint can on top of the bucket, and I’ll hold the chickens."

Amen!

I'm very sorry to hear of your loss, Kevin.

John, I was a big fan of David Sinclair. I didn't find him on many albums after he left Caravan.

Nanny Assis Reintroduces Himself in Fuller View On "Rovanio: The Music of Nanny Assis," Set for June 23 Release on CD & Vinyl By In+Out Records Singer-Percussionist-Guitarist Presents a Panorama of Brazilian & Jazz Musical Styles, In Collaboration with 20 Acclaimed Jazz Artists, Including Bass Legend Ron Carter   May 5, 2023 Singer and multi-instrumentalist Nanny Assis proves his aptitude for many musical styles and concepts on Rovanio: The Music of Nanny Assis, to be released June 23 on the German jazz label, In+Out Records. Assis’s second album as a leader, it showcases not just his versatility but his love for collaboration, with appearances by a full twenty guest artists—including such esteemed figures as Ron Carter, Randy Brecker, Chico Pinheiro, and Janis Siegel. Simply put, Rovanio (ro-VAH-nee-oh) is Assis’s real first name. He has been known as Nanny since childhood; similarly, he’s been known as a samba guitarist, percussionist, and singer for most of his career. For Assis, however, both identities weren't enough: He had much more to offer than a nickname and a single genre. Rovanio: The Music of Nanny Assis presents the full spectrum of who he is as a musician. “Coming from Brazil, I have so many different styles and roots for my music; it’s very rich,” he says. “There’s so much information in one place, and it’s really strong in the culture, the dance, and the music. And I figure I’m the glue for all that.” Indeed, for all its rainbow of sounds, rhythms, textures, and musicians, the album retains an unshakably (and unmistakably) Brazilian core. It’s an ever-present reminder of the wide panoply that is Brazilian culture—and, in turn, that is Assis’s artistry. There are, of course, traditional samba and bossa nova sounds on “Manhã de Carnaval” and “No Agora/Mr. Bowtie,” respectively. But Rovanio also offers the powerful West African flavor of “Amor Omisso,” the aching balladry of “Proponho,” and the jazz pedigree of “Human Kind” and “The Northern Sea.” L. to r.: Chico Pinheiro, Ron Carter, Nanny Assis. Assis’s collaborators each put their distinctive touches on the music in unique and surprising ways: The melody of “Proponho,” for example, is actually Fred Hersch’s composition “Mandevilla,” and it’s the pianist himself who renders the tune with newfound grace and sensitivity as a vocal accompaniment—with Siegel providing the harmony for that vocal. Carter appears at several points, perhaps most beautifully when he interlocks with drummer Ulysses Owens Jr. on the charming closer “Intimate Acquaintances.” Assis’s own daughter, Laura, works with her father in two very different roles: as lead vocalist on the beguiling Portuguese-language “Insensatez,” and as lyricist (in English—and of stunning sophistication, considering she was six years old at the time) on the moving “Back to Bahia.” (Assis also performs a duet with his son Dani on “Human Kind.”) Ultimately, however, it is Assis’s stamp on the material that proves indelible. After Rovanio, no one will pigeonhole him as just Nanny Assis, samba musician. Rovanio “Nanny” Assis was born August 25, 1969, in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. When he was 7, he began playing drums and singing in the choir at the church where his father was pastor. After he picked up the basics of the guitar, he turned to the secular musical world, playing fusion and samba with his friends and making his first excursions into jazz. He continued pursuing music even as he earned degrees in linguistics and Portuguese literature at Catholic University of Salvador, and married and started a family. American music—and America itself—were his targets, achieved when in 1993 he joined the Austin, Texas–based Rolling Thunder as a percussionist. After six years of regular work in the U.S., he moved to New York with his family in 1999. Assis continued working in multiple genres, but increasingly found himself in the company of jazz musicians. He worked with singer Lauren Henderson, trumpeter Mark Morganelli, and keyboardist Pete Levin; featured Eumir Deodato, Romero Lubambo, John Patitucci, Michael Leonhardt, and Erik Friedlander on his first album, 2006’s Double Rainbow; and formed the Requinte Trio with Janis Siegel and John Di Martino (making an eponymous album with them in 2010). Jazz players also dominate the ranks of his collaborators on Rovanio: The Music of Nanny Assis, his second album as a leader. “Rovanio is my best musical work to date,” says Assis. “For many years I had the urgent desire to see this music materialize. It encompasses all of my life experiences—rhythmically, harmonically, and melodically—since I was young.” NOTE: The vinyl release of Rovanio is a Limited Audiophile Signature Edition. Hand-signed by Artist. Hand numbered. Limited to 999 copies worldwide. 180gr. Black Virgin Vinyl. Pressed by Optimal Media, Germany. High-Quality Glossy-Finished Gatefold Cover. Poly-lined and Printed Inner Sleeve. Photography: Andrew Baker (Pinheiro/Carter/Assis); Tom Schwarz (Assis)     Nanny Assis Web Site  

Roberta Piket Trio at Smalls Fri/Sat June 30 & July 1st - Both Live and Streaming Roberta Piket Trio Roberta Piket - piano, vocals Todd Coolman - bass Billy Mintz - drums Appearing at Mezzrow Friday, June 30th and Saturday, July 1st 163 West 10th Street - basement New York, New York 10014 USA Sets at 7:30 and 9pm Roberta's Story New release on Sunnyside Records My recently released collaborative trio CD on Sunnyside Records with drummer Billy Mintz and bassist Harvie S is available on all platforms. It's called You've Been Warned. Roberta Teaneck NJ 07666

From 1971, I think.

DJ, I think that's terrific! In '71, I had Caravan's second and third albums. They were two of my favorites, and I thought that Jimmy Hastings was the star of them both!

Taylor Eigsti is a name I haven't thought about in a long time.

Although I disliked the design somewhat, what bothered me was that they were cheap and fell apart. If they had been well made, the idea of the LP being unable to accidently leave its enclosure would be a plus, I think.

Christian Artmann Ponders Questions of Life & the World On "The Middle of Life," Set for June 2 Release by Sunnyside Records Album Features Nine Original Compositions & One Standard, Performed by Flutist Artmann with Pianist Laszlo Gardony, Bassist John Lockwood, Drummer Yoron Israel, Guest Vocalist Elena McEntire   April 24, 2023 Christian Artmann contemplates his, and our, moment in time with the June 2 release by Sunnyside Records of the aptly titled The Middle of Life. An introspective but highly emotional affair—with a sensitive quartet featuring pianist Laszlo Gardony, bassist John Lockwood, and drummer Yoron Israel adding their ruminations—the flutist/composer’s fourth album ponders the state of the world, both positive and negative, in both the personal and broad senses. Like most of the world, San Francisco (by way of Germany and NYC)–based Artmann found himself during the Covid lockdowns with empty space to take stock of life as it had been and was becoming. For him, though, that thoughtful aspect has not dimmed even as the world moved on from the pandemic. “In this time period for me, I find myself looking forward and backward,” Artmann says. “I’m very conscious of where I am, and of the value of life.” The addition of regular collaborators (and Berklee College of Music colleagues) Gardony, Lockwood, and Israel—along with vocalist Elena McEntire, who appears on three tunes—brings depth and perspective to Artmann’s wondrous compositions and improvisations. It also creates an absolutely crackling chemistry. This is perhaps paradoxical for an album as mellow and contemplative as The Middle of Life. Nevertheless, the je ne sais quoi that passes between the musicians is unmistakable. It’s also powerful, whether in the artful slow burn of “Turnaround,” the doleful “Twenty Seven,” or the steady-yet-fickle flow of the title track. The players shine as individuals, with Gardony working a fine solo turn on the troubled “Snow River,” both Lockwood and McEntire taking bravura turns on the classic samba standard “Paisagem da Janela,” and Israel doing arresting work on “The Middle of Life.” Artmann is exemplary throughout, as strong a soloist on the stark "Lament for Ukraine" as on the bittersweet “Last Words.” Equally strong, however, is his work as a composer, arranger, and bandleader, leading his collaborators on The Middle of Life in a contemplative direction without sacrificing its deeply human core. Christian Artmann was born May 12, 1975 in what was then Koblenz, West Germany. Although he was a child prodigy on the classical flute, performing at just 15 at the Aspen Music Festival in the United States, his parents tried to dissuade him from a career in music given their families’ struggles in postwar Germany. Artmann continued on anyway, even when he had to keep his obsessive studying and practicing a secret. His clandestine passion for music continued into his years in higher education, with Artmann earning degrees at Princeton University (even as he whiled away his free time in the school orchestra) and Harvard Law School (while also studying composition and jazz performance at the nearby Berklee College of Music). He returned to Europe as accomplished on the flute as he was in academia—but even cosmopolitan Vienna couldn’t hold him for long, and Artmann came back to the States in 2005, moving to New York and beginning careers in both the corporate and creative worlds. Although Artmann made two recordings with pianist Philippine Duchateau (2007’s Good News and 2010’s Living Room, both released in 2017), his own leadership debut came with 2011’s self-released Uneasy Dreams. Fields of Pannonia arrived in 2015, followed by Our Story in 2018. The Middle of Life is his fourth album. Reflecting on the album’s title, Artmann quotes a Buddhist poem: “’The world of dew is just a world of dew. And yet… and yet.’ What an amazingly succinct summary of our life! One fleeting moment in time, and yet so very valuable.” Left to right (above): Yoron Israel, recording engineer Peter Kontrimas, Christian Artmann, Laszlo Gardony, John Lockwood. Photo of Christian Artmann: Chris Drukker   Christian Artmann - "The Middle of Life" EPK  Christian Artmann Web Site  

Ramsey Lewis Autobiography "Gentlemen of Jazz: A Life in Music" Due May 9 On the Heels of His Posthumous CD "The Beatles Songbook" The Book, Co-Written with Aaron Cohen, To Be Published by Blackstone Publishing   April 25, 2023 Gentleman of Jazz: A Life in Music, written by Ramsey Lewis and Aaron Cohen, will be published by Blackstone Publishing on May 9. This new autobiography provides insight into the early life and illustrious career of one of the most popular jazz pianists of all time, beginning with Lewis’s childhood growing up in Chicago’s Cabrini Green neighborhood, his experiences in his parents’ church and his early piano lessons, to eventually establishing the Ramsey Lewis Trio and launching an extraordinary, expansive life in music. Lewis died at his Chicago home in September 2022, at age 87. An NEA Jazz Master, Top 10 hitmaker, and winner of three Grammys, Ramsey Lewis (1935-2022) also hosted popular television and radio shows that honored the history of jazz music. He was not only influential for many modern jazz artists but beats he created decades ago can be heard across R&B and hip-hop. His own musical growth never stopped, even including a foray into symphonic composition and performance. Through it all, Lewis remained grounded, never leaving behind his roots in Chicago. Aaron Cohen teaches humanities at City Colleges of Chicago and writes for numerous publications, including the Chicago Tribune, DownBeat, and Chicago Reader. He is the author of Move on Up: Chicago Soul Music and Black Cultural Power and Amazing Grace. Cohen has been a National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar and is a two-time recipient of the ASCAP Deems Taylor Award for outstanding music writing. Earlier this year, Steele Records released The Beatles Songbook: The Saturday Salon Series, Volume One, created during pandemic-era livestreamed sessions in Lewis’s living room and approved for release by the pianist shortly before his passing. His first ever solo piano recording, the CD contains new interpretations of 12 Lennon-McCartney songs, a body of work that Lewis had previously delved into because it was music that, like his own, had demonstrated universal appeal. Jeff Tamarkin in JazzTimes called the album “a touching, sensitive and intelligently executed tribute... Lewis’ homages never fail to honor the Beatles’ essence, even as he puts his own distinctive stamp on a melody…. A perfect bookend to a long and illustrious career.” Gentleman of Jazz: A Life in Music will be available in hardcover ($25.99), e-book, and audio formats. Concert presented by the City of Chicago: Tribute to Ramsey Lewis: A Gentleman of Jazz, with special surprise guests Thursday, 6/22 • 6:30pm Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion Preorder book here.        Ramsey Lewis Web Site   Blackstone Publishing Web Site  

Arizona's Nick Ahmed hits a double on a pitch that bounced in front of the plate. Hitter stuns MLB world by hitting insanely bad pitch (msn.com)

I've just finished Ben Yagoda's The B Side. Very informative for me. For small examples, I did not know that the first artist to record an album of only one composer's work was Lee Wiley. And the first album to use the term "Greatest Hits" in its title was Johnny Mathis' Johnny's Greatest Hits in 1958. https://www.hamiltonbook.com/the-b-side-the-death-of-tin-pan-alley-and-the-rebirth-of-the-great-american-song-hardbound

RIP. I saw him south of Atlanta ca. 1990, and he was great! Ahmad Jamal dies at 92 - Search (bing.com)

New York City has a new (what the press are calling) Rat Czar...The Director of Rodent Migration.