jazzbo

Right. It's never been a favorite on film either, but I've always dug the audio (including the unofficially released extra material) even though it really irks me that only the trio were properly recorded, and not the rest of the Gypsies. And I totally missed that "The Jimi Hendrix Story" was released last month in a two disc set that has lots of nice looking extras! I'm not that much of a dvd collector but I may have to replace my single disc version of that for the new one this year!

Ed Motta's "Dwitza" was like that for me. Was just curious, snagged it, and fell in love with it. The next two he released after that, "Poptikal" and "Aystelum" are also excellent.

To be honest, Lee Morgan is rather far down on the list of jazzers I'd like to see be given biographical treatment. I'd rather read an Ayler, Nance, Christian, Condon, or a really extensive Teagarden one for example.

Cool! Barysh, Vera Cruz is on "Casa Forte" (a.k.a. "Cool and Bossa"?)

Sid Catlett. Oh, bop hard bop? Sid and Kenny Clarke. And Tony Williams.

Yeah, I've never been able to afford that one on ebay. . . . I just relistened this week to quite a bit of her Mercury/Emarcy material. . . timeless stuff.

Thanks for the headsup!

Yes, mine shipped from Cadence Tuesday, so I'll report back when I have it in a few days!

Come on Mark, you just need to get a bigger house! That can just be "one of your rooms."

Many happy returns indeed!

I'm feeling quite free to agree to disagree with you Allen, I do that quite frequently actually. To clarify a bit: I just don't like him. It doesn't mean he wasn't great or fantastic, whether I think so or not (I very carefully refrained from making any such comment), I just don't like his personality and how it comes through in the music, at all. Or the sound of hs voice. There are many many singers to listen to and I choose not to listen to him. I'd rather listen to Peggy Lee or Billie or Carmen or Una Mae or Jack Teagarden or POPS or Al Hibbler. OR RAY NANCE, definitely. There are plenty of Frank admirers, I am aware I have a minority opinion, and others are free to listen to him round the clock if they want to.

I forgot, I do own the Jobim and Sinatra disc, and I listened to it twice. I wish it were just a Jobim disc! I truly don't like Sinatra. To each their own.

That one does look good; I've never heard anything by that guy. I'm a big Gullin fan. I really love those Dragon cds that are out; reminds me I have to find the latest one! He did write very well. And he had such a wonderful sound and feel to his music.

I'm not much of a graphics nuts, didn't notice anything really wrong with my cover. Hardly noticed the cover. I dig the original album, and this cd sounds great and has extra material added. . . . If you dig the Jazz Crusaders, this is one of the really good ones in my opinion, certainly one of the best that has made it to cd.

I guess you mean "another white woman" as the woman in the photo was a very fair and blonde dancer. . . .

I don't have that Satin Doll cd. . . . I do have the Sinatra collaboration: I have four cds with Sinatra, that one, two with Basie, and a Harry James RCA that has a small group session that he sings on. I do NOT really like Francis A. and Edward K. Nothing really happening there. Not really "Ducal" arrangements, mediocre (in my opinion) vocals, some okay playing. I ordered the Nance from Cadence. . . it shipped yesterday.

I really regret that I can't buy a whole bunch of Masters of Jazz, I should have been collecting the Basie series! I want to mention Jazz Oracle. Wow. What a great label!

Well, I would trust your word about GUITAR PLAYERS. You and Jim have shattered some of my preconceptions about guitarists!

Both Far Wes and Finger Pickin' appear on the Blue Note site as available!

For a moment I panicked because I thought I read the Albert Stinson (instead of the Bobo Stenson!) set had hit last chance!

The reissue also contains a 45rpm addition, isn't that correct?

Ray Nance. . . yes. . . this is going to be great.

It's not a good idea to start holding one's breath NOW!

Well, I didn't realize THAT. I'll update at some point when my "to read" pile of books is less than four feet high! (Literally!)

An interview from 1999. Note some of his students! http://www.jazzprofessional.com/interviews/Russ%20Garcia.htm Possibly you think of Russ Garcia solely as a superb jazz arranger. In Hollywood, he is equally acclaimed as a film composer and a symphony man. Russ, and his young wife, have spent the last few years just travelling the world in their sailboat. They are now domiciled on a New Zealand isle. Notwithstanding, Russ is still extremely musically active and in great demand world- wide. Russ was born in Oakland, California, on 12th April 1916. He attended San Francisco State College and then studied with the famed Tedesco (and others). In high school he was a trumpet/arranger leading to local bands and then to Horace Heidt and Al Donahue. Garcia jazz arrangements have been prominent for Buddy de Franco, Anita O’Day, Oscar Peterson, and Sam Most (among so many others). His dramatic film scores are features at Universal, Disney, Warner’s and NBC. Humorously and modestly, Russ laughs at his first films, which he did with Dick Hazard. Titles were ‘Radio Secret Service’ and ‘Operation Haylift’ (dropping food from the air to cattle). “You can imagine what kind of films they were,” Russ admitted. He went on: “I’ve had some weird jobs in this business. Once they flew me to Las Vegas to film with Jayne Mansfield. She did a striptease to Night Train. Purposely she bumped off the beat because she wanted to do it again and again. Zaza Cabor, Bette Davis; I have hundreds of such stories!” Russ’ first really major job was in radio. He scored a drama every seven days. The network also had a show every week with a name act—like Dinah Shore, The Mills Brothers, Frances Langford. The conductor got sick and Russ was called in. “I must have done a good job,” he said, “because they called me for next season. Then they had me write two arrangements, which they liked, and I became staff arranger at NBC.” Later the NBC music chief (“a mad Italian”) told the network heads “not to send him any more stupid directives.” The whole orchestra was fired, including Russ, of course. Russ took a job at the then famous (long defunct) Westlake School of Music, in Hollywood. There he taught a daily, three hour arranging course. His students included “most of Les Brown’s band, Stan Kenton’s brass section, Bill Holman, Bob Graettinger and Gene Puerling.” He recalled: “A very good thing came out of this. I wrote an outline (on arranging) with musical examples. This became my book ‘The Professional Arranger.’ And that silly thing has been selling about 40 years. It’s all over the world in five languages.” Following Westlake, Russ became the busiest ever with arrangements for all the top bands and singers. Then came a long stint as staff arranger at Universal Pictures (“Benny Carter and Pete Rugolo were also there”). After I5 years working “flat out” at Universal, Russ and his wife took off in their little boat. Starting in Florida they sailed across the Pacific via the Caribbean. “It was a wonderful trip, via the Florida Keys, Bahamas, Jamaica,” Russ informed. Russ talked enthusiastically of his very early beginnings in music. Every Sunday morning he would be fascinated to listen to the Oakland Philharmonic, on radio. His brother bought him a comet. He learned to play it and formed a band at his high school. He remembered: “I said I must do an arrangement. So I bought a piano copy and had to put everything in the chart. Then I looked analytically at stock arrangements. When I was 10 or so years old I wrote an arrangement for the Oakland Symphony. I still have it. There are some good ideas in it. But, like every first arrangement, I put everything in it.” How did Russ get into pictures—his start at Universal? Well, you will remember when Henry Mancini was doing ‘The Glenn Miller Story,’ at Universal. They asked Hank: “Who can take down the Miller records, note for note.” Hank replied: “Send for Russ Garcia.” So that’s how Russ commenced in movies. Russ pointed out that many good composers find that film writing is a very different art. “I took Quincy Jones through his first two films. Quincy gave me ASCAP (performance fees) for any cues that I wrote that he didn’t give me a sketch for.” Universal gave singer Bobby Darin the composing for one film. Darin gave Garcia just eight bars of melody and Russ scored the whole film. Darin told Russ: “I didn’t recognise my theme.” Russ told him: “Sometimes we turn the theme around for film.” Later, in a TV talk show, about the movie, Darin said to the interviewer: “Sometimes I turn the theme around for a film.” Russ mused: “Those were the bad old days. Now I’ve got a lovely wife, much younger than I. I’ve got my beautiful Bahia faith which keeps me on which is logical, keeps me on track. At my age I’m still working, all over the world. I do work for television in Prague. I try to wear two hats—my big band hat and my symphonic hat. “I do a few concerts in New Zealand (now my home). They don’t pay much but I love it there. I used to write music for money. Now (with Bahai faith) I want to do good in the world. We use our talents for the good of others. We teach life skills. We teach 100 kids trustworthiness, honesty, self–esteem. We teach them sneakily, with music.” This article was first published in Crescendo & Jazz music, December, 1999