paul secor

She Who Must Be Obeyed Maude Hyacinth Bucket

Wonder how Jim Harbaugh will fare with the 49ers? He'll probably have to dumb down his offensive scheme. At Stanford, he had players who could deal with complexity. In the NFL, half of his team will be made up of thugs, prima donnas, and assorted idiots.

Joe Wilder Doc Savage Kate the Shrew

Alberta Adams Koko Taylor Etta James (actually an Argo/Cadet babe, but close enough)

Blakey is one of my favorite drummers (& perhaps my favorite drummer). Never would have guessed that #6 would be he. Please don't tell me that the trumpeter is Wynton.

Anne Sexton Sylvia Plath Virginia Woolf

And if you're a basketball fan, the Basketball Hall of Fame is in Springfield, Ma., an hour and a half drive on the Mass. Turnpike from Albany, N.Y.

King Kong Mighty Joe Young Terry Moore

Dmitry - My apologies for not reading the title of this thread more thoroughly before I responded - "dedicated vinyl shops". Sally's Place does have several bins of vinyl, but is mostly CDs. Still worth the stop if you're in the area. Again - MY BAD!

A Very Happy Birthday to You!

Thurston Harris Thurgood Marshall Matt Dillon

Nice that Ted Brown is getting some ink in The Times but, given that he's going to have his first date as a leader in New York in over 34 years, it might have been nice if the article had been more about him and less about Mark Turner and a host of other Tristanoites. Then again, The Times probably wouldn't have been interested in an article about Ted Brown without an angle involved. Incidentally, the Ted Brown record, "In Good Company" (Steeplechase), mentioned in the article, is actually entitled "Good Company" and is on Criss Cross. I'd inform The Times that their writer screwed up, but I've had bad luck with corrections and The Times. Seems as if the clowns who edit the paper like to cover for the clowns who write for it.

I remember reading a story where Bobby Robinson said that after hearing Elmore's "Dust My Broom" on Trumpet, he always wanted to record him. In 1959, Mr. Robinson was in Chicago and saw an ad saying that Elmore James was playing in a southside club that night. He was wary that it would actually be Elmore James, but he went to the club. As soon as he heard the first few notes he knew that he had his man, signed Elmore James to a contract, and recorded him the next day. A personal experience - In 1971, I was in a mom and pop record store in a black neighdorhood in Newburgh, N.Y. looking for blues and r&b 45s. I bought an Elmore James 45 on Fury - "Everyday I Have the Blues" - Bobby Robinson was still releasing and rereleasing Elmore James material. The lady who sold it to me remarked that Elmore James records always sold well whenever a new one was released. Without thinking, I said that Elmore James had died seven or eight years earlier. After seeing the look on her face, I realized that she thought that Elmore James was still living, since his records were still being released. I've felt somewhat guilty about that one ever since.

Bobby Robinson, legendary Harlem record store owner, record label owner, and a man who recorded dozens of hit recordes has died: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2011/01/08/2011-01-08_harlem_legend_dead_bobby_robinson_owner_of_happy_house_on_125th_st.html?r=news

Trust me - Sally's is a hundred times more worthwhile than Cutler's - just for the atmosphere alone.

Norm MacDonald also did a movie called Screwed, which wasn't very funny either.

Dmitry - The next time you take take I-95 on your way home from N.Y., you may want to make a stop at Westport, Ct. and check out Sally's Place at 190 Main Street. It's a great store with some interesting stock, and Sally is a wonderful person with interesting stories she's always happy to share.

I've read, as you put it, "many, many Maigret novels", and have loved them all.

I enjoy reading mystery/detective novels as a break from more "serious" reading. Wonder if anyone would care to share some of their favorite authors? I have a fair number of favorites, but to just name a few: Ross MacDonald Reginald Hill's Dalziel and Pascoe series Colin Dexter's Inspector Morse series Zachary Klein's three Matt Jacob novels - Zachary Klein wrote these three and seems to have disappeared. If anyone knows what's happened with him, I'd be interested to know. I hope he'll write more books. Looking forward to seeing some recommendations.

All the best to you on your birthday, Clifford!!!

A healthy society would preserve its past, nuture its present, and plan for its future. America does none of these things.

Three Fingered Brown Niney the Observer Jerry Garcia

He used to come in from the bullpen wearing his thick glasses and throw his first warmup pitch well over the catcher's head, all the way to the backstop on the fly. For two years with the Yankees, 1958 and 1959, he was the best relief pitcher in the American League. He also was an alcoholic who achieved sobriety and worked with alcoholics, both in and outside of baseball - probably more important in the end than his baseball career.

Haven't looked at any previous comments. As opposed to Jeff's previous BFT, I didn't recognize anything this time out. So I'll just list my comments. (I'm just hoping that I don't have any of this music in my collection.) 1. Nice guitar sound. The organist sounded like someone trying to do something and not quite making it. I felt that the track ended before it should have. The way it ended sounded like something done for a label like Cadet, where they always seemed to be looking for juke box play. 2. Muskrat Ramble - Sounded a bit out of tune when they started, but that was ok. One of the newer New Orleans bands? Good band - well rehearsed. Nice woodwind ensemble. Liked the trumpet solo. The violin added a nice touch. Enjoyed the tuba/banjo section. They played with good subtlety. This one grew on me each time I listened to it. 3. Calypso. One of Jeff's 78s? Liked the clarinetist. Couldn't pick up all of the lyrics because of the dialect - I know, in Trinidad, I'd be the one speaking in a dialect that would be hard to understand - but some of the lyrics sounded like they wouldn't have been out of place on a 1920s/30s blues record. 4. No idea who it was. The tune sounded a little like some George Russell things, but I never heard a George Russell group playing this loosely. 5. I'm very far from being a big band afficianado, so I have no idea who this is. The band plays like a well oiled machine - meant as a compliment. I liked the trumpeter, but I liked the sound of the band best. Good bassist. 6. Liked the trumpeter best. The tenor player played some good stuff. Liked the also saxist (the leader?) least. And didn't care for the drummer at all - sounded heavy handed to me. Didn't care for the piano player either - a tinkler, nothing there emotionally for me. One of my least favorite tracks on the test - tho not my least favorite. 7. The flautist had a good sound. Liked the way that the guitarist used the instrument to interact. Something from the AACM? 8. A saxophonist playing church music? I've heard Ayler, Shepp, and Vernard Johnson doing this - not any of them. Didn't grab me that much. A field recording? 9. Muzak/funk. Boring - the cut I liked least on this test. 10. This sounded so familiar, but I couldn't place it. Could have been the waltz tune or the saxophonist, but it drove me a little crazy trying to figure out where I'd heard it before. Loved the drummer - moved the band, yet broke up the time in a very creative and subtle way. 11. Big band (from the early bop era?) Very hot & well rehearsed w. very good soloists. Thought that it might have been Dizzy because of the latin percussion, but didn't sound like any Dizzy I knew. Liked this one very much. 12. When I started listening to this, the first name that came to mind was Paul Bley, but it's not he. Kind of together/untogether early ESP type sounding thing. 13. Nice segue between the previous track and this one. The altoists on #12 and on this one sounded like they were on the same on the same wave length, even though years apart. Great band. Fine trumpeter. Loved what the bassist was playing throughout. 14. Liked this one very much. Enjoyed the guitarist's accompaniment to the trumpet solo and the guitar solo. Is this a recent recording? 15. Tune sounded familiar but I couldn't place it. I'm terrible at remembering titles of tunes. Rollins influenced tenor player. Good guitarist - tho I enjoyed the guitarist on the previous track more. They sounded like they had a good time playing together. Thanks for the experience, Jeff. I look forward to finding out the identities of the musicians. I would definitely buy 11 & 13, assuming they're available. And might buy 2, 5, 7, & 14. Slight possibility I'd buy 4 & 12. Have a feeling that there are things here that will make me look like an idiot. Not a problem - I've been there before.

Sammy Davis Jr. Chatsworth Osborne Jr. Al Franken