mjzee

Martin Scorsese's The Irishman to digitally de-age Robert DeNiro

I've discovered a great solution to my stitching issue. Google has released a free app for iOS (and Android) called PhotoScan. Per WSJ: "couldn’t be any simpler to use. Clear off a well-lit space and lay down the photo. The app prompts you to move the phone over each edge so it can take four separate images. Then it combines them into one shot without glare or bright spots." I've tried it and it works as advertised. This is great for digitizing album covers to insert into iTunes.

I have a soft spot in my heart for Yes. Intricate solos, but great melodic structure and non-preachy lyrics too. I liked them in high school, then when I got to college in 1973, they were blasting from all the dorm rooms. At the time, I preferred the darker, more ominous forms of prog-rock, such as King Crimson, but at this remove I can appreciate the sweetness in Jon Anderson's vocals and their songs' bright melodic bounce. BTW, while Phish is generally considered a descendent of the Grateful Dead, I think their true antecedent was Yes. Am seriously considering buying the studio box:

I held off buying new CDs & LPs for most of the year, budgeting for my son's bar mitzvah. I replaced those with re-listening to many, many albums that I've had for years. The great stuff in jazz is so great, and seems to sound eternally fresh. I still haven't gotten to the few new releases I did buy: Sonny Rollins - Holding The Stage (Road Shows 4), Marc Ribot & The New Philadelphians - Live In Tokyo, and John Scofield - Country For Old Men. In general, I agree with Dicky: the "new" language has been around for decades, and doesn't much appeal to me. Last year, I bought some of the titles on members' Top Ten lists (Anna Webber's "Simple" and Steve Lehman's "Miss en Abime") and they just left me cold. To these (older) ears, the "new language" is now old and exhausted - a creative dead end. Better to reverse gears and resume playing standards, while finding a better way to reconnect with the audience. I sometimes think new jazz these days is the equivalent of the university press: academics playing for other academics. With a larger budget, I'd support more of the HighNote and Criss Cross new releases, but there's no way to manufacture more listening time. Still, hope is eternally renewable. Here's to a tuneful and swinging 2017!

Seeing these covers, I can't help thinking that Manfred Eicher has developed cataracts. See: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1551703/Cataracts-the-key-to-Monets-blurry-style.html

Another year gone by already? Happy birthday and happy blowin'!

Amazon indicates this is now in stock.

From Bob Dylan’s remarks, delivered by the U.S. ambassador to Sweden, at the Nobel banquet in Stockholm, Dec. 10: If someone had ever told me that I had the slightest chance of winning the Nobel Prize, I would have to think that I’d have about the same odds as standing on the moon. . . . I was out on the road when I received this surprising news, and it took me more than a few minutes to properly process it. I began to think about William Shakespeare, the great literary figure. I would reckon he thought of himself as a dramatist. The thought that he was writing literature couldn’t have entered his head. His words were written for the stage. Meant to be spoken not read. When he was writing Hamlet, I’m sure he was thinking about a lot of different things: “Who’re the right actors for these roles?” “How should this be staged?” “Do I really want to set this in Denmark?” His creative vision and ambitions were no doubt at the forefront of his mind, but there were also more mundane matters to consider and deal with. “Is the financing in place?” “Are there enough good seats for my patrons?” “Where am I going to get a human skull?” I would bet that the farthest thing from Shakespeare’s mind was the question “Is this literature?” . . . I too am often occupied with the pursuit of my creative endeavors and dealing with all aspects of life’s mundane matters. “Who are the best musicians for these songs?” “Am I recording in the right studio?” “Is this song in the right key?” Some things never change, even in 400 years. Not once have I ever had the time to ask myself, “Are my songs literature?” So, I do thank the Swedish Academy, both for taking the time to consider that very question, and, ultimately, for providing such a wonderful answer.

Here's a long and fascinating article about a short film Paul Newman directed in the early '60's. It will be shown on TCM in January, for the first time since 1962. The article touches on the Actors' Studio, David Amram, Lee Grant, and many others, evoking a now long-distant era in NYC's cultural life. http://forward.com/culture/354642/exclusive-paul-newmans-lost-masterpiece-and-how-we-rediscovered-it/

I have the album and listened all the way through, couldn't find a trace of Bob (though he is mentioned on the cover).

Why is it $2 more expensive than volume 1?

I've mentioned this one before in other threads. A very odd, yet satisfying date. It's just a trio: Dizzy, Toots on guitar only, and Pretty Purdie. Shouldn't work, but it does:

I hope I look as good at their ages.

I'd say these are out of character for Braxton...it's funny to try to hear him fit in with Hank Jones (there's two volumes, btw):

Here's an album I'm surprised I'm recommending. I don't think I like her voice or her delivery, yet I keep coming back to it, so there must be something about it...

There are bluetooth headphones specifically designed for runners. For example, Plantronics makes quite a few of them.

Bluetooth headphones don't have to be buds. There are lots of traditional headphone designs that are now bluetooth. Sennheiser, Bose, Sony, etc.

It's nice not being tethered to the phone.

This is the one that was originally on Artists House? discogs.com has quite a few used copies on sale; see https://www.discogs.com/sell/release/2634844?ev=rb

It's small, but you have to carry it separately, which is inconvenient. I'd say start shopping for bluetooth headphones, since you know other phone manufacturers will follow Apple's lead.

They supply a dongle with the phone.

Just to finish the saga, Apple wanted $149 to replace the screen on my iPhone 6+. So I had to decide whether I wanted to put $149 into a 2-year old phone, or to trade it in and upgrade. I chose the latter, getting a 32 GB iPhone 7+. I could live without the extra memory (the 6+ had 64 GB), and the price differential made this a good move. I'm very happy with the new phone - it seems peppier and more responsive than the 6+.

After doing research, I've decided on the Edifier e25HD Luna Eclipse speakers. They have an optical audio input, sound really good, and look great.

Excellent! Thanks for posting. Cool to see Ed Thigpen too.