Kevin Bresnahan

Andres Boiarsky - Into The Light (Reservoir). I picked this up during one of Tommy's sales and it's pretty good. I had never heard of the leader but it has Paquito D'Rivera on alto, Claudio Roditi on trumpet and George Cables on piano so I didn't think it'd be bad.

Someone is selling their SACD of this so I spun my copy (Master Sound gold CD) to see if it needs updating. Nope. I'm good.

Are those bags of shrimp? What an odd picture for an LP cover. Playing a track on YouTube now... this is not my thing at all.

It seems that she found more material for these newest CD releases on Omnivore. The Pepper/Stitt set (Volume 1) includes 3 more tracks from the first session and 1 more track from the second: Disc 1 1 Scrapple From The Apple 2 Wee 3 Bernie’s Tune 4 How High The Moon 5 Walkin' 6 Groovin' High Bonus Tracks: 7 Bernie’s Tune (Take 1) 8 Bernie’s Tune (Take 2) 9 Wee (Take 1) 10 Groovin' High (Alternate Take) Disc 2 1 Atlas Blues 2 Lester Leaps In 3 Autumn In New York 4 My Funny Valentine 5 Lover Man 6 Imagination

Thanks to Chuck's nudge, now playing: Art Pepper presents "West Coast Sessions!" Volume 1: Sonny Stitt (Omnivore). Playing disc 1 now. Killer rhythm section. Lou Levy was a great pianist. He cooks.

I had the Japanese version called "Complete Atlas Years" that I sold when Laurie came out with her releases with the bonus tracks. My favorite session was the meeting with Stitt.

But Billy didn't have much of a beard in 1975 and this logo has a variant with more detail: Billy in 1975:

Definitely looks like the Slugs' logo:

According to this page: https://www.jazzpodiumdetor.nl/rein-de-graaff-het-is-mooi-geweest/, he retired in 2019, so he likely doesn't have a manager any more.

Very true - but they are also likely to show more wear than they would have if the previous owners had played them with a modern low compliance cart.

Looks a little like Wally's Cafe in Boston: Although I saw some great music at Wally's, I really don't miss that place much. We were jammed in there like sardines, it was hotter than hell (even in the winter) and the cigarette smoke was brutal. Maybe it's time to visit again? Oh wait, they pack that place so tightly that they haven't been able to re-open due to Covid.

Can you tell us the title? I have quite a few of those later Prestige LPs so I might be able to help if I have that title in my collection. Also, there have been a few LPs where the late 80's OJC LP sounded better than the 60s/70s RVG pressing, so you might want to consider that too.

Lee Konitz (really Art Pepper) - High Jingo (Atlas Record). Nice record with Art & Lee trading off. No toe-to-toe battles here but some good playing. Also released by Laurie Pepper as "West Coast Sessions! Volume 3: Lee Konitz"

Actually - it tracks from 3-6 grams with 5 supposed to be the sweet spot. That's a lot of tracking force and I would think that it is contributing to LP wear. I wouldn't use that on my records. BTW, it's been many years - decades really - since I've "worn out" a record. The fact that the original poster is having records wear out, something that seems to be a thing of the past, may mean that the high VTF of that cartridge may be the culprit. I think this is one of those instances where older is not better, it's just older.

According to Feather's Encyclopedia, Rein de Graaff "Visited US in late 67, sat in w. Lee Morgan; Hank Mobley", so since this photo has been attributed to him (he is still alive BTW), it is likely to have been taken in the US and not Europe.

What is that - a ceramic cartridge? Now we know why your records are wearing out. And if you're not kidding, forget about buying another old RVG LP. You really should update your turntable. I can't even imagine the tracking force of that turntable.

I assume you all listened to this interview of the man who ran Slug's Saloon: https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/nat-music/audio/20145088/slugs-saloon I thought it made for a very interesting listen. I wish someone would transcribe it for posterity.

I have tickets to see him this fall. It was supposed to be in January but COVID pushed it out. Now I'm wondering if it'll be worth the wait.

If the title is available in the recent reissue program from Analogue Productions, found here: https://store.acousticsounds.com/index.cfm?get=results&labelid=4473&CategoryID=5, you would be making a mistake to buy an old, possibly beat-up Van Gelder pressing for more than $40. These new records generally sound better than the old RVG pressings as Rudy had to roll off the bass to make them play back on the junky turntables of those days. You should try one before splurging on these blue-label Prestiges.

David - How is James doing these days? I was able to see him many years ago at the Up And Over Jazz Café and had a blast. It was recorded and released on a CD called "Blues Up and Over". I always wished I could see him again someday. I have never been able to find a copy of the sequel, called "Round To It Vol. 2". I expect by now, at 84, he might not be playing anymore, but I hope he's at least living comfortably in his retirement.

Johnny Hodges - The Complete Johnny Hodges Sessions 1951 - 1955 (LP 2). This is the material from 1952 with Emmett Berry on trumpet; Lawrence Brown on trombone; Hodges, Al Sears on tenor; Leroy Lovett on piano; Barney Richmond or Lloyd Trotman on bass & Joe Marshall on drums. Am I the only one whose cover photo looks yellowed? I see these box sets listed on eBay and some are yellow-looking and others are white.

You couldn't pay me to take any DMM LP over the CD of that title. I was never impressed by the sound quality of that cutting system.

The one I really wanted was "Soul Station" but asked him for several. Even with the combined shipping, he quoted me ~$85, which, at the rime was very high for a new pressing, even in Japan. He also said they were very expensive to ship due to their weight. Looking back, I should've just pulled the trigger.

I wish i could remember all of the CDs I bought from Hiroshi over the years but only one or two come to mind. I never did buy any vinyl from him as his prices were very high (as they are in Japan). I came very close when Disk Union came out with those mono replicas of a bunch of Blue Note titles but with the shipping, they came out at almost $90/each so I balked. I wish I had pulled the trigger on a few of them as they are now going for crazy money. For some reason, I thought I'd be able to pick them up used for less. Who foresaw this market?

He was a great connection to the Japanese market but it went beyond that. He was a real Jazz fan and record collector too. Sometimes, you felt like he was enjoying the hunt as much as you were.