ghost of miles

Sounds as if MLB could see a work stoppage in a couple of years—and I wouldn’t blame the players one bit: Is MLB headed for a labor strike? ”Revenue has grown while player wages have stayed stagnant and ticket prices have gone up. The league is making billions in TV and streaming revenue, but an average working-class family can’t afford season tickets anymore, and that money isn’t going to the players who fans love; it’s going right back into the wallets of anonymous billionaires.” I get no longer wanting to hand out 10-year contracts to age 30+ players. But just in the past two years the pendelum’s swung way too far in the owners’ favor, IMO, and the players’ union better be a lot smarter and more hard-nosed come the next CBA. One significant issue to be addressed is the manipulation of service time. This might sound crazy, but if I were the union I might suggest simply saying that everybody hits free agency at 26 or 27, no matter how much MLB time they’ve logged; that way players are assured of getting into the market while they still have 4-5 years of their prime left. (And teams would no longer have any reason to keep Vlad Guerrero Jr or other high-caliber players down on the farm “to improve their defense,” to cite an oft-used rationale.)

Yankee announcer Michael Kay made the very same point several times across the course of the 2018 season (the Yankees and other AL East teams faced the "opener" strategy even more often, since they inhabit the same division as the Rays). Not exactly related, but younger analytics folk already seem to be discounting wins as a measure of a pitcher's success. Being of the same generation as you, Dan, and close to Jsngry's as well, I still prefer the several dominant starters and a good conventional bullpen approach as well. (Heck, I first started following the sport when I was 8 in 1974, just several years after the Orioles' surely-to-never-be-replicated season rotation that featured four 20-game winners.) But some teams are already leaning towards carrying 13 pitchers total on the roster, which would have seemed crazy in the past.

This is somewhat—or even more than somewhat—akin to the “opener” strategy that the Rays frequently employed last year.

I had that card!

This past week’s Night Lights show explores Joni Mitchell’s 1970s jazz-influenced recordings (plus several post-1980 jazz encounters as well), with Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancocl among the supporting cast: Joni + Jazz: Joni Mitchell

My interest in the SCW is actually longstanding! I have both the Thomas and Beevor books, though I’ve read only the Beevor. I have a number of other books as well, including several focused on the International Brigades and the Lincoln volunteers. We need to meet up for a long lunch in real life!

The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, neither of which I had seen in its entirety until this past week. And Friday night my girlfriend and I went to see The Exterminating Angel at the IU Cinema—a place that will absolutely spoil you if you’re a film-lover. (Coming in February: Space Is The Place!)

I’ve become quite a fan of Oxford’s Very Short Introduction series over the past few years. A conversation with my girlfriend the other night prompted me to dive into this one—I already have several histories and more specialized volumes on the topic, but as always, VSI is providing a smart overview that can be read in several sittings:

Disc 2 today:

They will be a part of this forthcoming set.

I pulled out the above-mentioned Collectables set today for the first time in many years. Too bad that the CD reissue of the RCA double-albums appears to have begun and ended with this release.

There was a postcard for this in the Jazz Congress guest bag--release date is now March 29, evidently. I'm inclined to pass, given that I have all of this material in at least two different collections, but an eventual bargain price might persuade me to pick it up: Coltrane '58: The Prestige Recordings

It's an interesting record--I had to go after the first three tracks and am just now getting back to tracks 4-6. Kool A.D.'s raps are hit-and-miss for me on it (there's one particular sexual refrain that seems gratuitous and that I could really do without) and I wish that there was more of Akinmusire's trumpet (I, too, am a fan), but I like the blend of string quartet and trumpet and (when they work) the vocal parts. More a showcase for Akinmusire as a composer than anything else.

Ambrose Akinmusire's recent Blue Note release Origami Harvest.

Very sorry to hear this, especially for Chuck and others who were friends or knew him in either a musical or personal capacity. The recent ECM box has sent me back to a lot of Art Ensemble of Chicago material in general and renewed my appreciation for Jarman's contributions in general. I'll break out the Delmark leader dates today and play some of them on the afternoon show next week.

Whoa! I wish I’d known that you were there... would’ve loved to have said hello in person. And Chewy, yes to everything you said!

I talked to Ricky today at Jazz Congress, and he says the set is ready to go—they’re just waiting for Sony to sign off on the licensing, which is evidently taking longer than they’d expected.

Attended the Roy Hargrove tribute at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The concert ran four and a half hours and ended with a raise-the-roof set by the RH Factor. An early “elders” set featured Gary Bartz on saxophone, George Cables on piano, Ray Drummond on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums. Roy Haynes was sitting a few rows in front of me, wearing a cowboy hat. Definitely a night to remember.

Recent NY Times opinion piece by Nate Chinen: It’s a Great Age for Jazz, But Don’t Call It Golden

Here ya go: NPR 2018 Jazz Critics Poll

Thanks for the heads-up on this--I might see if they have any copies out for sale yet when I go to the Strand tomorrow night.