sidewinder

Indeed, they are playing at the RFH this Friday. Arkestra Gig And one of the special guests is Charles Moore, of Kenny Cox Blue Note fame..

I think I read somewhere that Marshall is playing a concert in London this weekend with an 'Arkestra' lineup. I'll have to search for details.

I'm rubbing my hands in anticipation ! B-)

Wow ! I always liked that Coleman Hawkins/Clark Terry session..

Here's the cover art for the Dutch Fontana LP.

Gary Bartz 'Another Earth' (Milestone) 'Ray Warleigh's First Album' (UK Philips). Produced by Scott Walker B-)

Elvin? B-)

Seller location 'Thetford'. Say no more !

The Fontana is called 'The Sharp Edge'. Part of the 'Jazz Life' series - I think this might be a Dutch Fontana as there are footnotes in English and German. Sleeve notes are by Alun Morgan (his notes are always most informative). Reference in there also to 'A JAZZART recording 8059, produced by Chris Albertson'. No mention of Mr (Master?) Bates whatsoever on this one ! Cover photo of McGhee by Val Wilmer.

That must have been 'Trailways Express'. I read somewhere that Hank Mobley was originally scheduled to participate in this session but in the end the sax lineup was all Brit (Peter King and Harold McNair I think). Mobley with Kenny Wheeler would have made for a fascinating combination !

Wow ! Looks like England is two countries at the moment. Here in the South it is cold (damned Scandinavian winds blowing in from the East ) but no snow as yet. There may be a scattering here overnight though. Yesterday I headed down through Dorset to Bournmouth and en-route there were great displays of snowdrops in the woods of Cranborne Chase. The daffodills are also poking their way through the soil in my front garden !

I have a UK Fontana LP of the Howard McGhee with George Coleman. A nice session !

OBLIQUE. Either the CD or the King LP, both get lots of airplay with me. After that its 'Happenings', another great one. The 'Dialogue' and 'Components.'

Very nice designs, guys - respect ! Very inspiring - I shall have to set myself up with one of these setups and transfer a load of obscure vinyl onto CD with 'custom' covers. Could be fun !

Alon with the master tapes for 'The Wicker Man' no doubt ! M4 Heathrow?

The 1970s Black Lion vinyl was notoriously bad. I recall lots of warped LPs - the Clarke/Boland 'On Her Majesty's Pleasure' has great music but the vinyl sucks. Same problem with my Carmen McRae 'November Girl'. I even got rid of a Charles Tolliver 'Live At The Loosdrecht Jazz Festival' 2LP for a couple of quid because of this concern (although since then I've regretted it somewhat ). I recall that that 'Loosdrecht' 2LP had the Polydor/Black Lion double imprint and the very same 'toilet seat' cover !

Have a memorable birthday !

Nice label operating out of Italy, with some great Clarke/Boland material ! Thinking about it though, your design is probably more like those MPS reissues - the Nathan Davis and Clarke Boland ('Three Originals'). Here's a couple of the Schemas:

Reminds me a heck of a lot of Schema/Rearward !

Just a heads-up to all non-US members that they don't do international shipment on this one (most sadly) Must be something to do with export restrictions on the lump of pig metal.

Here's a bit of info from a post on the Saturn Net which throws a bit of light on the matter. Date: Fri, 11 Aug 1995 16:17:38 -0400 Reply-To: Sun Ra and his Arkestra <SATURN@NIC.SURFNET.NL> Sender: Sun Ra and his Arkestra <SATURN@NIC.SURFNET.NL> From: Robert Campbell <Robert_Campbell@QUICKMAIL.CLEMSON.EDU> Subject: A Joyful Noise Reply to: A Joyful Noise Michael, The guy with the rainbow-hued wig looks like a dancer, not a musician with the band. I have no idea who he was, though. The guys in the House of Ra will probably know. I also noticed the acoustic guitarist (!?!) in the rooftop scene when I was going back through A Joyful Noise a while back. I don't think any disrespect for the instrument was intended. Sunny used a guitarist named BeBop Sam Thomas occasionally in the 50s (Thomas appeared on just one recording, the 45 rpm side called "Great Balls of Fire"), Calvin Newborn (Phineas Newborn's brother) in 1962, a gonzo guitarist known only as Sly around 1974. In the late 70s, Ra started including guitarists in the Arkestra on a regular basis: Dale Williams and "Disco Kid" in 1978, Skeeter McFarland and Taylor Richardson in 1979 and 1980, Carl LeBlanc from 1981 onward, James Glass in 1983, and pretty regularly since 1984, Bruce Edwards, who plays a major role in the post-Ra Arkesra. The rooftop scene in the film was not a regular concert, as it had no audience--it was organized strictly for filming purposes (and Sunny was interviewed on the same rooftop before or after the concert). There are some other odd things about it. Neither Eloe Omoe nor James Jacson is present, despite their prominence in the film. At the beginning of the rooftop scene there are three trumpet players (Michael Ray, Al Evans, and Walter Miller); then all of a sudden a fourth guy (I don't know who he is) pops up. The bass clarinet player is a young guy I don't recognize and his location in the lineup jumps around mysteriously. Sunny probably enjoyed the lapses in continuity! I used to think the musical scenes in the film were all shot in 1980 (and that's still a good guess for the rooftop scene, though I suppose it could have been done in 1979). Then a Ra fan from Delaware showed me the booklet that was handed out at the premiere of A Joyful Noise, which states that the filming took two years to complete. And, sure enough, the battered light-blue instrument that Sunny is shown playing in the House of Ra is his Rocksichord, which was stolen in the second half of 1978. As Sunny also has the Rocksichord on the stage at the Left Bank Jazz Society in Baltimore, and none other than Danny Davis is playing alto sax, that scene is probably from early 1978 also. That movie has its mysteries... rlc PS. I wasn't encouraging the copying of tapes without paying the Arkestra. Last year, we discussed sending James Jacson 50 cents in "royalties" for each tape we copy, and I have done so for all of the tapes in my collection.

My order was placed around the 11th I think and I got notification the following Thursday that it was finally being shipped. Had me sweating !

Up for a discussion of the Sun Ra DVD 'A Joyful Noise' (produced by Robert Mugge, 1979). Have just been watching this and enjoyed it thoroughly. Live footage from the top of a Philly hotel and from a 'Left Bank Jazz Society' gig in Baltimore. Also Ra philosophising amongst the heiroglyphs in a Philly museum. What the DVD doesn't give is the full lineup of musicians. Anyone know the full details? The following are confirmed on the film: Danny Ray Thompson Eloe Omoe James Jacson John Gilmore Marshall Allen June Tyson I suspect that also in the lineup are Michael Ray (trumpet), possibly Luqman Ali (drums). Question marks over the two guitarists though (Disco Kid? - whoever he is), the baritone horn player, the flugel player (Jothan Callins perhaps?), the second trumpet and the vibes player. First time I have heard the vibes in a Sun Ra lineup.

Just the Tal - at a price of around the $48 - $51 mark (mine was £37). Check out the 'European Mosaic' thread for details.

Mike Westbrook 'Citadel/Room 315' (UK RCA original). Featuring John Surman and one of British Jazz's finest hours. An interesting contrast after the live solo Westbrook I saw last weekend. To be followed by more Westbrook - 'Metropolis' (RCA Neon).