jazzbo

I'm very grateful to Bob Belden for working so hard and tenaciously to get this out!

All those years in Europe. . . . What do you think Dexter would have been like in the final decade and a half or so of his career had he stayed in the States all those years? Do you think a bit of laissez faire that I think is at the heart of his work was amplified by being the celebrated jazz guy in the jazz houses and cafes of Europe. . . ? Would his approach and work have been altered had he been in the US scene all that time instead?

I think it's a douible edged sword in a way. . . the repretoire and the manners of the traditional jazz singer may be getting tired, but there's a sense among some of the market that "this is what jazz vocals are." And yet there are those who do other repretoire like Norah and Madeline and Cassandra.. . and they get lumped into jazz vocal status. ..that sometimes I think they aren't necessarily. Or maybe I've had one too many chocolate squares and I don't know what I'm trying to say. I miss Carmen McRae and Betty Carter. Talk about authority!

Mine arrived today as well. I like the boolket more than I thought I would. I love this music. I love the Jarrett performances here. The Bartz. The Henderson bass and DeJohnettes hihats and that fat-sounding bass drum. These tracks just really unlock some inner spring and unravels it. I definitely don't think this would be the same, and not better, with Hancock at the keys! Jarrett is just really breathing fire into the band.

Rupe, you're in for a fun discovery/adventure. I love the Chicago and NYC periods of Ra; the Evidence reissue series is a great one.

Well, that J J set falls right in there with what you like! I prefer it to the Stitt box myself. . . . More variety. Plus Elvin and Jaspar and Adderley (Nat). But the Stitt is a good set too.

I listened to this again this weekend. I would in no way consider the sound of the piano to be harsh. Everything is very smooth and resonant. The piano plays very softly in some parts; dynamics are well presented on this session. The bass drum and tamborine sound really nice with the room reflections. . . . I think there's something amiss with your version. . . I can't imagine my copy sounding as you describe it. I forgot what track had those "ghost bass notes," but regardless I didn't notice any. . . .

The Herb Geller Sextet has made it to cd . . . . It's great stuff!

I don't know about the clubs, but Hank Jones, Wendell Marshall and Kenny Clarke recorded a trio lp for Savoy the afternoon I was born!

Here in the US. . .

Dex took a long time to get under my skin. . . but he did. I'm not going to peel back any layers and dig him out. I've got a ton of his work. . . I only have about half his Prestige titles. . . which puts me in a perilous position regarding his box set. . . . I've resisted getting the set for a while now. Favorites of mine . . . well. . . I kindof like them all equally. .. I may have a favoritism going for "Takin' Off". . . .

I have it. . . It will come out again, patience. . . .

Possibly mine too!

I really like this. You have to love piano . . . but I'm in that batch. Some of this material won't likely appear outside this set for some time. The best of it has (to my ears and tastes, the Wilson and the Jamal).

Wow. Mediocre. Not liking Jarrett. I am so not in either place! But I can dig it (I think). Yeah. . . media mail sucks. . . but first class/Priority is as good as UPS in our area and the mailmen aren't overtly racist and controlfreaks. I choose USPS when I can.

I have a question. I have the two 2 cd sets "The Early Years" on Decca/GRP, and "The War Years" (I love it!) another 2 cd set also on Decca/GRP. . . And I notice there is a "Last Decca Years" compilation on Decca/GRP from four years back or so. . . . (And there is a Spanish 1951-1952 collection I'm for now pretending isn't really there). Did Verve release anythign that spans the 1949 that closes "The War Years" and the "The Last Years" compilation?

By the way I recently read an interview with Garcia where he talks of Freddie King as a major influence. I hadn't really heard that til I read it. . . interesting.

I'll take Ace just the way it is. Lovely album, nicely remastered new cd too. (Okay, I'd definitely substitute something for the cowboy tearjerker tune, but that's all I'd do). That album has a great cover too. . . (though it's impact is dimished on cd). Okay, now back to your regualrly scheduled non-Weir discussions.

The DeFranco is great. . . a friend burned the 78s onto cdr for me about four years ago, and it's great stuff. One of the Heps I keep coming back to is the Basie Jubilee one. . . . Awesome stuff. Great label.

Again, I don't know how this compares to other versions, but this twelve cd set of Beethoven solo piano from Sony was very cheap at www.broinc.com and I really enjoy listening to it.

For Satie's solo piano work, I have this one. Not sure how it compares to other versions, I'm not a classical connoisseur like Chuck and Clem the c cs but I like this a lot, and the music within.

What's not to like on this one? Ware and PJJ. . . well they nail it down solid. Griff was just all glowing in this period of his career. Smoldering embers that very volatilely burst forth.

Yes, lately I've seen an upsurge in racism coupled with Christian arrogant "go to hell" behavior that makes me less proud to be an Austinite. Probably happening everywhere. . .starts at the top and trickles down.

Well, yeah. But for younger folk who have never really seen/heard "lounge music" as anything other than an irony-laden presentation of faux-cool (aka "martini culture"), that might not tell the whole story. The Treniers were from a time when good old-fashioned professionalism was the order of the day. Yeah, you could goof and be slick and all that, but it was all rooted in skill, in chops, in knowing everything that you needed to know, and then some. The "show" wasn't just a wink, it was a job. And you damn well took your job seriously. These guys were all that. Anybody who could take a hoary old tune like "Margie" and nail it, just flat out nail it with that perfect tempo and perfect Lunceford-esque execution that turns it into a genuine groovefest, has got to be more than a group of "lounge lizards". These muthafukkas were pros, and pros of the highest order! Terms like "show business" & "entertainment" get a bum rap in today's too hip to be cool world, and that's wrong, I think. What could possibly be wrong with presenting an evening of music and patter that exemplifies and delivers quality, skill, and good times? Sure, there's envelopes to be pushed, boundaries to be broken, and dragons to be slain. Of course there are, and those things need to be pursued with rigor, vigor, and a refusal to compromise. But even Crusaders need to kick back and get loose, dig? "Entertainment" is a good thing, a damn good thing, if what you're being entertained with and by is something that has at its roots the same integrity as that which you are trying to further. And The Treniers had nothing if not the integrity of skill and professionalism in the pursuit of excellence. God bless'em. I totally understand what you are coming from. . . . To an extent this was what reminded me of Gaillard in a way though they're less zany, they go into that territory with the conviction and the total professionalism to pull it off in a way that he did. (And some of the very rhythmic swing and sound of the vocals makes me think of him as well). There's a sort of deep stagecraft for this type of material that is not come by easily and SHOWS. This show really shows it!