Kevin Bresnahan

Chico Freeman - Tradition In Transition (Elektra/Musician). I found it in the 25 cent bin this past weekend. Well spent 25 cents.

Oh no, Lola Smith has shown up on the boards! Now I suppose Jim's going to have to scrub this thread and remove all of these negative words. Obviously Jimmy was a saint. Everyone else is completely misrepresenting him here.

I have never been more disappointed in the actions of one of my favorite Jazz musicians than I was with Jimmy Smith. I am not at all surprised to hear that Verve fired him mid tour for insulting the audience and his own band on the bandstand. I saw it from the front row. This video bums me out even more.

Just finished: Art Pepper - Neon Art Volume One Now playing: She & Him - Volume 3

I just got my records in today and there's a bit of a problem. In order to create a unique LP package, they slid the vinyl into the cardboard jacket without an inner sleeve of any kind plus they slipped a download card in there too. Not cool. I went through my vinyl collection and found 3 round-bottomed Japanese clear inner sleeves and slid the records into them to protect them, something Omnivore should have done. Looking at the records, there are some pretty noticeable markings on the green record and a couple of scuffs on the pink one. I hope they're not audible. The fact that the red vinyl had the download card on the outside of the jacket and it was the only LP without noticeable scuffs leads me to believe that these cards are the culprit. Kevin

In my conversations with Ron McMaster, he has stated that if he is given an analog source, it's all analog. If he's given a digital source, it's not. The rumor that his cutting lathe converts everything to digital prior to cutting has been flatly denied. He may be wrong (if he really doesn't understand his cutting system) but he truly believes he is not.

Thanks! All three are on sale for $10 each with $5.99 for shipping. Great deal. I've been meaning to get these for a while and I couldn't pass this up.

I caught Sonny Landreth at the Regattabar tonight for what might be my last live blues gig. I am sick of getting my ears blown out so I am just going to avoid them from here on out. The sound was atrocious. Landreth sang some vocals but I have no idea what he was singing. It was all a blob of sound blasting from the sound system... and this was only a trio!

Dave "Fathead" Newman - Straight Ahead (orig. Stereo Atlantic)

I still have mine. Some original Impulse albums sound far better in their early mono form. I have quite a few of those - the 'Love Supreme' in the HMV imprint is a particular favourite. Got it! (Bought in 1965) Except that these mid-60s mono pressings are fold downs from the stereo master. You can get the same effect by using a y cord. I'm not saying anything about the pressing, just that "Mono" isn't a mix. Now playing: Coleman Hawkins - The High And Mighty Hawk (Affinity). Not the greatest sounding LP I've ever heard. It sounds like Affinity got a late generation tape to cut with.

Billy Bang Quintet - Rainbow Gladiator (Soul Note)

:o :o This is something you should rectify quickly!

Albert Dailey - Textures (Muse)

Huh? Am I listening to a different recording? Pepper is just being Pepper - playing the changes the way he always does, which is a bit unique. I guess if you don't like Pepper's ballad style,,, it's not as pretty as Chet's but it's still got something going for me. Pepper himself tells of the time he soloed in his "normal" way in Stan Kenton's band and had most of the band members thinking he didn't know what he was doing.

Some info here: http://store.acousticsounds.com/d/77001/Pink_Floyd-Wish_You_Were_Here-Hybrid_Multichannel_SACD

The surround sound SACD is a real audio treat (if you like that sort of thing). Actually, the whole package is a real treat. If you like Floyd and like "Wish You Were Here", I'd recommend not waiting until it's gone. It may be one of those expensive discs in the future.

Eric Alexander with Harold Mabern tonight at Scullers. Should be great.

Boston, in particular Scullers Jazz Club, is about to enter an incredible week of Jazz. It starts this Thursday night (6/13) when Terri Lyne Carrington comes to town. Friday (6/14), it's Cyrus Chestnut. Then there's an incredible trifecta of sax with Eric Alexander (with the great Harold Mabern on piano) on Wednesday (6/19), Ravi Coltrane on Thursday (6/20) and James Carter on Friday (6/21). Too many great shows in too short a time!! I have tickets to the Eric Alexander and Ravi Coltrane shows and I may add Cyrus Chestnut to my bill if I can this Friday. Terri Lyne Carrington is doing her version of "Money Jungle", which really has never been a favorite of mine so I'll probably pass.

So tonight's meal was this shredded chicken in a tomato-cheese sauce over Vermicelli noodles. The wine was a 2007 Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon. Excellent meal. As the tee shirts say: Life Is Good.

These days, I've been having more problems in parking lots than roads! Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes. I'll be opening a nice bottle of Cab tonight for sure. Maybe I'll crack one of those 07 Cakebread Cabs?

His current stuff is pretty good and if you get a chance to see him with Joey D on organ, it's a blast. He's playing straight ahead hard bop these days. I guess he made his money off of the smooth stuff and can now go back to the money-losing stuff. You know what they say - "How do you make a million dollars playing Jazz? Start with 2 million."

I've tried to find an affordable version of this on line to no avail. I ain't paying $40 for some CD-Rs, no matter how good the artwork is.

Louis Smith - Prancin' (SteepleChase). I found this sealed in a used bin and when I saw Smith, Junior Cook, Roland Hanna, Sam Jones & Billy Hart filling out the band, I figured this couldn't be too bad. I was right.

Busy night tonight. Herbie Hancock - Fat Albert Rotunda (WB) - with Van Gelder in the deadwax? I didn't even know he recorded it much less cut it. Duke Ellington - Duke's Big 4 (Pablo) Coleman Hawkins - Hawk Eyes! (OJC reissue)

Larry - you're in luck! As your ass has shrunk, fashion has shifted and dictated that all of your shirts must be untucked. So untuck that shirt and drape it over that plumber's crack and you'll be all set.