ghost of miles

Just got the Naxos Duke of the Musicraft sides and you're right, Ted--much superior to the other versions I've heard as well. Thanks for the tip.

Miles Davis' E.S.P as a Christmas present for a friend, and Vijay Iyer's SOLO for myself.

I'll take a disc--thanks much, Jeff.

While DeRogatis' article seems to indicate that bureaucratic turf battles may account for some of what's happened in Chicago, there's no doubt that it's also symptomatic of the wider problem that BillF describes--a tendency to heave the arts overboard in the face of any budgetary crisis. Incredibly short-sighted, as arts programs aren't just a "feel-good" proposition...they contribute immensely to making cities attractive to both residents and businesses. The arts are good for urban economies. In this case, people who attend these festivals patronize restaurants and hotels, etc... that's just a hard, immediate result, but events like the music festivals reverberate in other ways that benefit the city.

Archive of this past Tuesday's WMBR-Boston broadcast by board member JazzTrain. I love listening to jazz radio at 2 in the morning...

Via Michael Heller at Harvard, who e-mailed me about this show a couple of weeks ago in response to a recent Night Lights program: "Zodiac Suite" in concert at Harvard I included a link in the post to an interview on Organissimo board member JazzTrain's WMBR show this past Tuesday.

My dad has that Feller '56 Topps--also this one from Bowman's 1955 "TV" design set:

My reaction too, that the sound was "a bit warmer" on the Europe set, as you say, but I also agree that this set's sound has its own merits so far. (After listening to a disc and a half, anyway.) Just grateful to hear all of this music gathered in one place... I actually haven't heard much of the material on the first four CDs, and there's a fair-ish amount on discs 5-11 that looks new to me as well. (For 1934-40 big-band studio Ducal, all I have besides the Europe set is BRAGGIN' IN BRASS plus a couple of the Chronological Classics from 1939.)

The so-called "Digital Dark Age." It's a real problem for documents as well.

Cliff Lee's presser today.

#557 showed up here about an hour ago--currently listening to disc 1.

So Dan's conjecture may prove true re: Zambrano. Dave, I've heard/read the same things about Banuelos and Betances... immediate problem is that I don't think either of them have thrown many games yet above single A ball and are (as you note) a couple of years away from potentially having any impact.

Ferguson's a writer and person who's always intrigued me--one of my favorite cultural critics from that era. Well worth picking up this apparently now-OOP Da Capo anthology if you can find it.

"...there were also numerous incomplete takes and false starts, which offer a compelling document of my performance as it evolved."

"I recorded several different takes... perhaps you would prefer another?"

Have a good one, Jsngry.

I think your hope may well be fulfilled.

Papsrus--what say you to the Rays' prospects for 2011? They've lost Crawford and I'm assuming they'll lose Soriano, but the rotation is staying intact, correct? Any other departures or arrivals that look to have an impact?

Geez, if the reports I'm reading of the Phillies' new estimated payroll are right, they may be in danger of heading into "pig" territory themselves. Heyman, btw, has a new article out that reports very different #s on what Lee was offered by the Wall Street Yankees and the GOP King Cattle Rangers--er, New York and Texas, to the rest of us: So if Heyman's right, the Phillies' offer has the highest annual value, even though it doesn't offer as many years or as much money total, and the Yankees did have the highest total bid after all. If true, that seems a little bit less of an FU to the Rangers. I think this is harder on them than it is on Yankee fans, because (1) Lee actually pitched for them and helped take them to the World Series and (2) Yankee fans have been increasingly convinced over the past week or so that Lee did not want to end up in pinstripes, and were prepared for it (in spite of the "pigs always think they can get what they want" talk here). Dave James, I sure hope Andy comes back for one last year now. With luck the rotation might still be decent... but lots of room for doubt, even with one more year of Andy, and it's a very big "if" on the Andy front right now. I think I saw a quote from Cashman tonight that indicated renewed pessimism about him coming back (even before the Lee news broke), but we can still hope he does... like I said, I'd just like to see him pitch through a farewell season, if nothing else. One of my fave Andy memories remains his "towel" moment after he came out of Game 5 in the '96 World Series.

Yes, I saw that Tim Brown tweet via Lone Star Ball (a place of great misery right now, as you can well imagine). Incredible! That the Rangers were the high bidders, and still lost out... well, I'm relieved that Lee won't be facing NY in the regular season, anyway (barring possible interleague games). But wow, I guess the whole "Lee loved his time in Texas" spiel was, in the end, pretty much a spiel. If you'd told me a week ago that Texas would have the highest offer to him, I would've said that it's over, baby, a done deal, stick a fork in all non-Ranger bidders, etc. Hats off to the Phillies for executing this deal... last-minute hot-stove shocker!

Wow--well, I was wrong about Lee going to Texas, that's for sure, but right that he was going to choose a team he loved playing for over the Yankees. Just didn't think Philly would still be in the mix. I know he was bummed when they traded him after 2009, but I really did think Texas offered the right combination of money and team attraction. Any word on what the Rangers' offer(s) to Lee was? So, looks like early-money favorites for the 2011 World Series are probably Philly & Boston, eh? The Giants were giant-slayers in 2010, but look at that 2011 rotation, assuming it stays intact--we're talking 1971 Orioles here or something akin to that. Dave James: great observation over at PA, that thank GOD the Montero trade to Seattle fell through, if Lee really wanted to go back to Philly all along. We would have given up our top hitting prospect for a half-season rental. Wonder if we'll really go after Greinke now or not (I'll bet the Rangers do). I've read reports that NY is wary of pursuing him, no matter what the outcome of the Lee chase was going to be.

Plane! ...as seen over Arkansas, even! Wow--"ze plane" has had an interesting history!

I'm still thinking he ends up with Texas.

The Ducal eagle has not landed, but I just got word that it's on its way!

Patrick--just to make things really interesting, over the past hour buzz continues to build that the Phillies really are a serious contender to land Lee. Can you imagine that rotation? Frankly, I can't believe they can pull it off, fiscally speaking, and I have to wonder if this is yet another twist being hyped by Lee's agent to try to wring a few more dollars out of either the Rangers or the Yanks...but wow, what a surprise finish it would be if the Phillies ended up signing Lee! UPDATE: just tweeted by Joel Sherman of NY Post: