Spontooneous

OK, I'm in. If you can't spare one of these fancy-schmancy telechargements that Chas is getting, I'll take a download.

Had high hopes for this one, because the previous DDB disc was so interesting. But one listen to the promo copy has dashed my hopes. James Carter overacts on his horns. So Dee Dee overacts too. The total effect is tacky. Shatneresque. Skip it.

Somewhere in your area there's probably a society that investigates these things. Might be worth the effort to contact them. (Might not be, but that's always the risk.)

Thanks for starting this, epistrophy007. In just about all the recorded Jimmy I've heard, he's playing short solos to provide points of repose between the utterances of the bigger stars. OTOH, his solo on the Ellington Jazz Party album blows my mind. So, where can I hear more of Jimmy really stretching?

But the gold-coated LPs are better. The guys on the Steve Hoffman board told me so.

He was born in January '87. Say what you will about his music, but he is a genuine and thoughtful man, and there's no star trip whatsoever.

Magnificent Goldberg Mardi Gras Morris Garage

I was jesting about the stepladder. Or was I? Never seen that cover. I've always seen the same one you've seen. Maybe an early issue, pulled for having an unreadable title and a silly photo?

The cover design was pulled after Lorraine billed Sonny Lester for the use of the Vanguard's stepladder.

Heard him playing in the Hodges chair, beautifully and with personal touches, with Mercer Ellington late in Mercer's life. (Circa '91? Don't remember.) That night the principal trombone soloist was a son of his, named Mohammad.

There's a slightly disturbing Doris story in this interview with Ronnell Bright. I've also heard him tell the same story, and I believe him to be a truthful man.

What if they say, "At the end of the day..."?

Can't speak to the mono mix. But I'll admit to enjoying this more on CD because of some icky edits on the LP.

Front end or back end? Left end or right end? Top end or bottom end? I checked the store directory but there's no "You Are Here."

This is starting to remind me of the sign hanging in front of a neighbor's house. Someone spent a lot of time carving and painting "Fourty isn't old if your a tree."

Had mine yesterday. If only I'd known... P.S., Something must be done about the disturbing trend in this country of spelling it "tator." Every time someone posts "tator" on a school menu board, the terrorists win.

Bo Obama Barney Bush King Timahoe Nixon

Track 12 can also be had on this Eckstine collection from Verve.

And everybody should know just how much ass Chuck Wayne is kicking on that Joe Marsala session. He's aggressively working on the new thing, and doing it with beautiful touch and taste.

Great of ya to drop by, Pete!

Also, if you can find it, the Victor session where Frank Newton waxed "Blues My Baby Gave to Me."

Not Woody Shaw either - way less well known. It's not quite time for more hints yet, but it will be soon.... I've heard Joe on Luis Gasca's LP, but I don't recall it sounding like this... So I have to guess Terumasa Hino, who was WAY into this Miles in the Sky bag at one time.

OK, my Part Two. Wrote this before Clifford Thornton ID’d track 7. I stand humbled. 7 The most literal Ornette imitation I’ve ever heard. I ain’t sayin’ that’s a bad thing. I just LOVE the trombone – is that you, Roz Rudd? The trumpet may or may not be Cherry, or Bradford. The two basses are good, but the extra percussionist doesn’t help much. All in all, lovely. It’s got a good implied beat and you can dance to it in your head. I give it a 7. 8 That Miles in the Sky feel is here, but surely I’d recognize this if it were real Miles. The feel is captured perfectly. Wait a minute, that’s the real Joe Henderson, isn’t it? 9 The guitar sound says Frisell to me. Then there’s two guitars, or is he looping himself? Beautiful either way. Hey, I know this one: It’s track 3 here. Yeah, it’s the real Frisell. The album cover says “No editing, no overdubbing.” 10 I’ve always loved the sound of trombone and tenor together. This one is making me think ECM for some reason. Starts out very well, but around the five-minute mark the tenor player throws too much paint onto the picture. 11 Seems trendy these days to have some singer ooh and aah along with the instrumentalists. I’m tired of that. I confess I’m also not a fan of comping on the vibes. Otherwise I like the writing here, and the trombone. And I very much like everything that happens in the last minute of this performance. Nicely rounded out. It’s a keeper. 12 Ahh, thanks Jeff! I always meant to give this record more attention someday. Why not today? The tenor obbligato behind Billy slays me, and going from Roy to Warne justlikethat is a trip, every time. 13 That organ isn’t being played through a Leslie, is it? The timbre is pallid. So it makes me think this recording comes from Europe. (Rhoda Scott? Eddy Louiss?) The bebop tenor is touching, and sounds more than a little like Johnny Griffin. The guitar is spot-on (Rene Thomas?). I admire the drummer’s restraint (Klook?). 14 The drumming reminds me of Shelly Manne. Something from the Contemporary studio? (Edited to fix link.)

Do we know that A Riff Supreme is doing these reissues ethically?

OK, just the first half for me right now. More later. I see that Paul already nailed 3, and I'd have been disappointed if he hadn't. 1. The gutsy banjo tone is beautiful. A lovely rag, a little out of tune, but who cares when it’s cooking like this? The gentle rubatos at the ends of sections are instructive. Gotta guess Vess Ossman or Fred Van Eps, because they’re the only recorded banjo players from the period I can think of... No idea what the rag is. 2 Enter the drum corps! A fine illustration of why the percussion on early jazz records is so muted. The band isn’t swinging yet, but it might be in another decade or so. The drums seem rather military. Ever hear the high-pressure Victor acoustic recording of “Maple Leaf Rag” by the Marine Band? Got no guess, but I enjoyed it. 3. Wow, a nice transfer of a side I’ve always loved! My only copy is a heavily echoed LP. In the context of this BFT, you become aware all over again of why that trumpet player really matters. Good move, Jeff! 4 It’s track 1 here, among many other releases. I love the multi-sectional quality of the piece, something that would be downplayed in jazz from the ‘40s onward. I wonder, was it composed as an elaborate framework for blues choruses, or were the blues choruses inserted because no one could quickly think of anything to blow on the first part's changes? Never mind, it's still great. 5 You sly dog! I’d thought that if I ever put together a BFT, I’d use a track from this session. It’s track 12 here. But I was going to use “Cherokee” instead of “My Melancholy Baby.” I love the music from this moment, when all these styles were co-existing peacefully. Nobody told these guys they weren’t supposed to play together, so they did, and it really worked. Personal story: This was one of the first jazz 78s I ever owned (got it in the 1980s, mind you). I’d been listening to and collecting jazz for only a few months. If the Very Famous Bebop Trumpet Player hadn’t been credited on the label, I would have passed this by entirely, and I would have missed so much! This record played with my mind then, and I wish that more records in the intervening decades had played with my mind in the same genre-stretching way. 6 OK, you broke my streak here. I assume this is a paraphrase on the Miles Ahead opener? It didn’t come before Miles Ahead? I await the reveal of this one... 7 An Ornettish head that makes me flash back to Track 2 for a second – exactly the reaction you wanted? It ain’t Ornette, but some friends and followers of his. With a little more time I might be able to nail down the ID, but not today. I'm having lots of fun with this, Jeff.