mjzee

I wish there was a "like" button available on this board (I like this comment). I'd love to have an Anthony Braxton's output subject to an Alfred Lion's oversight. His deluge of recordings might be reduced to a trickle, but the ones that would make it to release would probably be superior.

They're usually cheaper on eMusic. For example, the Nelson is $29.30 for members: eMusic

I avidly followed John Scofield for a long time, but at a certain point, I felt like one more Scofield album wasn't going to add that much more to my enjoyment, and I stopped (it was the What I Say/Up All Night/Piety Street period). In general, I think it has something to do with inspiration. When an artist is on, it sounds like they've been touched by greatness. It's an invigorating, heady moment, and it's prudent to snap up as much as you can by that artist while it's happening. But most artists eventually return to earth, and their work becomes more prosaic. There are more than enough musicians/artists in the world that you can then safely turn to someone else. None of this is to denigrate Scofield (or Metheny or whoever); it's just the way it is. Along these lines, I think of a Robert Silverberg novel from the early '70's, Dying Inside. It's about a guy who has some incredible power (was it the ability to read people's minds?), but the power is growing dim, until it disappears altogether, and the novel is about how he reacts to this occurring.

There's a long article in this weekend's WSJ on streaming services and the general notion of digital audio. A sidebar to the article discusses 4 different hi-res players that double as DACs. It's an interesting read (if the article doesn't open, Google "The Best Gear for Listening to Hi-Res Audio"): WSJ

I didn't know he purchased Fantasy only in 1967. Who started the label?

Truly a giant. RIP.

A Public Policy Polling poll found that 71% of the country--including a majority of Democrats, Republicans, and independents, do not want the Washington Redskins to change their name. According to the poll, 90 percent of Republicans, 59 percent of Democrats, and 65% of independents believe the team should not change their name. The poll found that 18% feel the team should change their name. More here: Breitbart

Scott, which speakers are you thinking of getting?

I just found out that Apple has recently, without much fanfare, released updates to their iMac line. My 2007 iMac is getting slow and weary, so my thought now is to repurpose it as a music server.

Rubinstein box, disc #12

Can an iMac be connected to a DAC? Can two different digital inputs be connected to a DAC?

Happy New Year, everyone!

FYI, today (December 30) is the last day that Furthur downloads from the 2013 summer and fall tours will be available. See: Gnomes & Hobbits. I'm downloading Sept 29 (Greek Theatre), July 14 (Cooperstown - can't wait to hear them do Gloria!), and July 20 (All Good Festival - Lovelight with Grace Potter!).

Possibly so. Since my guess is that these tracks were not selected by Marshmallow from the master tapes of the entire shows, then I further guess by the tracks and timings (roughly 45 minutes) that this was at one time intended to be released as an album by Roulette, with perhaps these masters being sent to Japan before the intended release was cancelled. The tapes then languished in Japan until Marshmallow discovered them. Again, just a guess.

I just gave the disc my first listen. The sound quality is OK, but not great: instruments are clearly recorded, but the horns are mixed a little to the background. The horns also sometimes sound tentative, not really forceful; hard to tell whether this is the mix, or the players are young, perhaps in awe of Bud, or maybe this was just a slow Tuesday night. Only Lover Man and Dance Of The Infidels sound rehearsed; the rest sound like a blowing session. They can't even decide whether they're playing How High The Moon or Ornithology; they go back and forth between the two. As to whether this is great Bud: this is interesting Bud, but it doesn't really sound like a Bud-led session. Each musician gets equal soloing time within each tune, including bass and drums, so it's not like Bud is really showcased here. But it doesn't sound like a Byrd- or Woods-led session either, more like a collective. I found How High The Moon and Groovin' High somewhat pedestrian, but Bud plays some very nice things in Lover Man and DOTI; he takes his solos in some interesting directions. Phil Woods, on the other hand, is playing a lot of lines I've heard on Bird records. So I'm happy to have it; maybe further listening will reward with new insights. BTW, it's definitely a boot. Symphony Sid, at the end of HHTM, tells the crowd this is being recorded by Roulette for a future release; I don't see anywhere on the cover that Universal's given their approval. Also, it's probably not from first generation tapes, as the music comes from at least two different sets; there was probably more that was recorded that's not presented here. Finally, is that really a picture of Phil Woods on the back cover? Sure looks like Jackie McLean to me.

Damn, I have a class that night. Why a Tuesday night?!?

I recently got the vinyl version of Some Girls: Live in Texas 1978, and can recommend it. The Stones were hot that year. I just noticed this DVD 3-pack; it seems like a good deal @ $26.63 on Amazon: As for your original question, it would appear that this collection would satisfy most of your needs. While pricy, it's SHM-CD, and the reviews on Amazon love it. Depending on what it doesn't contain, you could then supplement with the Singles Collection: The London Years box mentioned above. Finally, everything after 1971 can be wrapped up with this:

Merry Christmas, y'all.

Lateef and Ahmad Jamal playing together in France 2011: Crooks And Liars

Yes, RIP. The hip priest (imam?) of eclecticism. There was no one like him in jazz.

Jim, I'd like to ask of your point of view...looking at Coltrane's recording career chronologically, is there a session you can pinpoint where you'd say there's a clear depiction of the mature Trane sound, where if you look at the session before, you'd find him still searching? In other words, which is the session where you'd say that, sometime between the prior session and this one, Coltrane had that "eureka" moment that led to his full development?

Ricky, I clicked on the link and got the response Sorry, the page you were looking for in this blog does not exist.

My personal opinion is that Coltrane, especially later Coltrane, was a little too influential on a whole host of latter-day tenorists. That sheet-of-sound/ernest/urgent sound, in the hands of other players, sounded (again, my personal opinion) too oppressive and humorless, leaving no room for the music to breathe. I don't fault Coltrane for that, whose development was hard earned; perhaps it's the fault of the schools, or what the market demanded at the time. Who knows. But I do think it was a wrong turn for the evolution of jazz. Which, for me, is one of the main joys of the Prestige Coltranes. You get his sound, that glorious, immediately identifiable sound, but in a lighter context, where he shares the space with other horn players, both of his generation and older, playing standards that allows all to play within the same context. Just a joy to listen to.

I know I held back on this material for many years because the word was 1) Coltrane here was early and unformed, "not really Coltrane"; 2) the material was too traditional and boring compared to the later, more revolutionary Coltrane; and 3) the only "true" Coltrane was found in his Impulse explorations (though everyone also loved The Gentle Side of JC). Obviously, actually hearing the Prestige material shows otherwise.