jazzbo

Look into HHB burners. I bought one early this year and LOVE it. Very nice transfers, lots of nice options as far as more useful level controls for both incoming digital and analog, balance, fading up or down, etc. . . . Quality machine, quality ADC and DAC converters, easy to use.

I voted for other! Cuz he KILLS!

Yes, this looks like a good one. . . something to consider for my next EMI order!

When you get around the Arkansas border, the mail switches to covered wagon. . . .

Man I like so many of these guys. . . I voted other though because I wanted to vote for MELVIN SPARKS.

Makes you wonder if the "Tyronian trainwreck" really was one . . . of if they managed to stop the locomotive right before it ran over the damsel tied to the rails!

Andrew, the only scans I could find of the two you can't see were very small, and they show up on MY screen. . . . Try right-clicking, viewing properties, copying hte url and pasting the url into the browser?

Yeah Al, I have all her work with Benny in the two cd Columbia set. . .it's a wonderful batch of tracks for sure! She had magic. . .

I understand, but those first sessions. . . there's really nothing like them beforehand, they're stunningly powerful! I still think the BN sessions are da shitte. . . though I have every bit of Monk I possibly CAN have and really don't have favorites, I can put on any of them and be in Wonderland.

No danger there! Even if I had one on order, it takes about four days to get to Texas.

None have arrived at my door! Of course, I haven't ordered a set either. . . . Finances have kept me from purchasing the last four or five Mosaics. . .

I've changed my mind somewhat on OP. I don't really like a lot of the trio with bass and guitar material, I think a drummer gives me more to be interested in and helps OP somewhat to be a bit sparer. As I said above the London House box, which I got rather cheaply on ebay along with some other members, helped prod me further into his camp, though listening to his work as an accompanist/musical director (?) for Granz helped me on my way (he occasionally put down some brilliant solos on those records, and his general organization and the cohesion he helped foster in his section mates helped a lot of sessions to gel). I think if you get deeper into his music some of these excesses appear eventually to be less about flash and drama and more about fleet thinking and trying to get more in there than others may . . . . Anyway, I can't listen the man all day, but I can enjoy his music, in solo and trio (with bass and drums) formats the most. . . . I don't really think it matters TO ME why Monk or Miles or any number of other "greats" disliked him. . . . In many cases there are going to be extramusical reasons (I find that often to be the case with Miles!)

Man, are you organized or what? I think the first thing that was played in my house came out of the first box of cds that was opened! Not planned in advance, and a gut choice from what was in that box. . . I think it was a T-Bone Walker cd.

That Tod. . . always getting special favors from Mosaic! B-)

Hmmm. . . that "aura of presentation" seems to be on an awful lot of Blue Note from 1939 til . . . . It's Alfred Lion's way of producing a session?

I didn't vote. I believe that this is a family decision, and I would hope that you and your wife would work out the best path for the family. . . . I have a feeling you'll decide for Seattle when you both make that decision!

London House was the Peterson that finally made me a big appreciator. I can't listen to Peterson for days, but I do like his playing and its swing and energy. It's a whole nuther animal than Monkian piano, and that's all to the good. There probably was a nonmusical reason that added to Monk's dramatic reaction. . . .

I have to stand up for the BN output: simply amazing in its invention and it paved the way. . . . The RVGs of those dates just floor me every time, they really brought out the sound!

I've meant to revisit this one to post some comments, but haven't been able to yet. I love this one. It's got the whole Mingus thing going as far as vision and execution and SPIRIT. If there was something better in jazz came out that year, I can't think of it. . . . Would LOVE to have an SACD or a DSD remastered cd of this!

I won't speak for RDK but I did that exactly: bought a universal Sony changer that was modified by my favorite tube amplifer and speaker builder, Steve Deckert, to have a tubed output running directly off the Digital Analog Converter. Plays cds, SACD and dvd, and MP3 cds. IT BLOWS AWAY, sound quality wise, my last cd player, which was no slouch, a Dynaco CD2 which I very much enjoy. I wanted to have one player for cd and SACD; there are a number of SACDs that I want to get and SACD is an improved digital format I find (though not the ne plus audio ultra that some fanatics of the format seem to claim). This Decware DEC 685 took a long time to break in, but I am getting wonderful sound! Had to force myself to shut off the "Sketches of Spain" SACD to come to work about 40 minutes ago. . . I could have stayed listening all day if I had my druthers!

"Nara" is definitely not a bossa nova recording per se, but you may find it enjoyable none-the-less.