mjzee

Good find, Aggie. Although I like Bill Stewart, I actually think Adam Nussbaum was a more supportive drummer, and a little more propulsive. Stewart's a little more decorative.

So there's no way to get album covers or liner notes?

Thanks for the tip, Chuck. I'll definitely look for the book the next time I'm at Borders or B&N. Amazon has the book, but I couldn't read much of it. I find business interesting, and the business of selling music has an interesting twist to it. That's why I expanded my musings to include label owners associated with other sorts of music, such as Asch and Holzman (although both Folkways and Elektra released some jazz, too). Some of the artists overlapped, too -- James P. Johnson recorded for both Blue Note and Folkways (or whatever it was called then). As an aside, there's an interesting mini-interview with Herbie Hancock in this month's issue of Playboy (p. 36 - a one-column Q & A). See if this doesn't sound like someone recognizable: PLAYBOY: What is wrong with music these days? HANCOCK: It seems so money-driven and not creation-driven. It hasn't always been like that. When I first came on the scene, there were people in the industry who were passionate about the music. They wanted to sell records, of course, but it wasn't the be-all and end-all. Music is supposed to serve a function, and that function isn't to put money in someone's pocket. That's what you get after you serve the function. The function is to serve humanity.

New York in the '40's and '50's was a hotbed of independent record labels. They were all small operations, so you have to assume the owners knew each other. Just curious: is there any indication whether Alfred Lion socialized with people like Moses Asch, Maynard Solomon, Jac Holzman, Bob Weinstock, etc., to discuss business or individual performers, or just to shoot the breeze? Seems to me these record label owners were all interesting people, and they definitely had a lot in common.

Doug Raney - Check out "You Go To My Head" (Steeplechase). Oh yeah, his father was pretty good, too.

There was a long discussion of this package on the old BNBB. Most people loved it. I found it really tedious; as I recall, there was a preponderance of novelty songs. I haven't listened to it in years.

May I nominate John Fahey?

Whew!! I'm glad you guys are just talking about some CDs. Whenever I see a topic like this resurface, I get scared that the guy's dying.

A lot of great mentions so far. How about Ron Affif? Some very nice dates on Pablo. Eddie Lang - there's a good collection on Yazoo. For a good overview of jazz guitar through 1950, see the Proper box "Hittin' On All Six." Finally, I gotta mention a guitarist I see gigging in the Grand Central Station IRT mezzanine. He's Japanese, I don't know his name, but the guy can play! He's obviously digested Grant Green, but plays bluisier and faster. He's definitely worth a buck every now and then when I pass by.

I'd be very curious about the Blakey. Every copy I've heard has sounded distorted to me, except for the MFSL. Wonder what the sound quality on this one will be like.

Try to find "The First Day" by Albert Ammons and Meade Lux Lewis, which was the material recorded at Blue Note's first session. I am mightily impressed by Albert Ammons.

I'm impressed by Pat Metheny...I think he has a great deal of musical integrity. He's managed to walk that fine line between artistry and commerce, has never really sold out, has championed music for its own sake, and still manages to sell tons of records. He's a fine exemplar. My favorites are his work with Gary Burton (see "Passengers"), PMG from '78, the disk with Jim Hall, the disk with Scofield (by the way, it's really great that Metheny doesn't mind supporting other artists, doesn't mind taking second billing; that's why I think that, for him, the music's first, and learning from other musicians)...and the one time I heard it, I even liked "No Tolerance for Silence." Good banging-your-head-against-the-wall music. As an aside, I worked in a jazz record store when the '78 PMG disk came out. When it came in, we just thought "ok, another ECM release," came in with prob. 5 other ECM titles released the same day. And it started flying out of the store! It sold out so quickly, and we had to reorder...and reorder... soon we ordered in box lots. The word was definitely out, and there was an electricity around this record. Interestingly, you know that LP's jacket was white; in the initial release, there was also a fine vertical texture to the jacket (ECM was always into those sorts of details). Once they had to mass-produce the album, the texture got lost, and it became a plain white cover.

Thanks! I think that's really it. A standard is a recognizable tune, but it's also a great tool for understanding the artist's concept. I was listening to Groove Holmes' "Groove's Groove" (32 Jazz) and heard him tear into "Where Or When." Man, was that smokin'! But knowing the song also helped me relate to how HE did it; and, because of his personality, it was very different than how others would perform the same song. Well, that's exactly it. Listening to Mike Ledonne's "Smokin' Out Loud," I got a real kick out of hearing handle The Carpenters' "Close To You." Another example: On Charlie Hunter's "Bing, Bing, Bing!" he does a version of Nirvana's "Come As You Are." My wife perked up when she heard that. Yet, in all of these examples, the performer's personality and concept shone through.

Funny that you mention "On Green Dolphin Street" and "Stella By Starlight," since those are two standards that I have never heard sung! Does anyone know good vocal versions of these?

Some thoughts: 1) Every artist should include at least two standards on every CD. Consider it a touchpost: a listener can better understand an artist's concept through a familiar song. And it fosters a sense of community. 2) Tonality is better than atonality or a personal conception of tonality. Listening to someone honk a Coltrane or play outside the chords a la Ornette, a listener says "anyone can do that." It's like the artist saying "boundaries and discipline don't apply to me." 3) Jazz needs the comeback of the producer. It's the producer that balances what he hears the artist playing with the needs of the listeners. It's like a writer needs an editor and a publisher. The producer should also be forceful and opinionated. Criss Cross, for example, has a producer (Gerry Teekens), but he lets far too much mediocre jazz get released on his label; it's almost like he's afraid to say no to his musicians.

In my opinion, you can skip: 1) The Helen Merrill sides 2) The Sarah Vaughan material - listen to it if you like Sarah, but the focus is on her, not on Brownie 3) Clifford Brown All Stars (sides 3 & 4, esp. side 3): long, pointless jams Better, but still of lesser value: 4) With Strings - this sort of material is not to everybody's tastes (look at the controversy the Bird With Strings sides still provoke) Much of the rest is wonderful (my personal favorite is side 9), but try to burn a copy containing only the master takes - when you're acclimating yourself to the material, there's no need to listen to four takes of Flossie Lou in succession. P.S. You do have the Brownie Blue Note sides, don't you?

Movin' Right Along is a lot of fun. Tommy Flanagan and Bobby Timmons on piano! I also liked one of the Black & Blues that was released in this country on Inner City (Classic Jazz), but don't remember its name. I saw Arnett once, probably in the early '80's; he opened for Big Joe Turner at Tramps. He had his crutches, of course, but boy did he play! It was an odd sort of geriatric show, since Big Joe came onstage with a cane, and sang sitting in a folding chair...and Doc Pomus was in the audience in a wheelchair. Percy France was the saxophonist for Big Joe that night.

I owned both of the original LP's (The Great Ray Charles and The Genius After Hours). The same version of Ain't Misbehavin' appeared on both LP's; on one, it was called Black Coffee, but, I mean, how can you not tell Ain't Misbehavin'? So it was a glitch on Atlantic's part. This is wonderful music, by the way; don't miss it.

Art Farmer had a beautiful, beautiful tone. His solos seem to float above the music. I've tried to analyze how his solos relate to the underlying tune, because what he plays almost seems to be an aside, but I can't; his music just makes me happy. The first album that always comes to mind is Sonny Clark's "Cool Struttin'." Listen to that tone! Even though he's playing a trumpet, it has the roundness and limpidness of a flugelhorn. His solo on "Deep Night" displays such a light swing yet deep rhythmic prowess. And the pairing of him and Jackie McLean...wonderful. How about "Bennie Green (with Art Farmer)" (Prestige). Art, in his sly way, steals the date. Listen to the back-and-forth between Art and Bennie on "Let's Stretch." I second (or third) the recommendations of "Big Blues," "To Sweden With Love," and "The Summer Knows." I saw him in concert once, about two years before he passed. It was at the Miller Theater at Columbia University, must have been 1992 or 1993. It was nice, although the concert format was a bit sterile (would have preferred to have heard him in a club...the audience was a bit too polite at the concert). And I remember his everpresent cigarette.

Produced Chicago, Blood Sweat & Tears, and Moondog. Was very successful. Anybody know what he's doing now?

This was on the front page of the Friday 10/1/04 Wall St Journal: Cecil McBee Makes A Name for Himself In Japan -- and Sues Jazz Musician Toured Tokyo, Then Discovered That He Is Now a Chain of Stores By AMY MERRICK and GINNY PARKER Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL October 1, 2004; Page A1 Cecil McBee, an American jazz musician on tour in Japan, made an unscheduled stop one night in the early 1990s. A friend in Tokyo hurried him off to a shopping mall and said there was something he just had to see. When the elevator doors opened on the third floor, Mr. McBee couldn't believe his eyes: The words "Cecil McBee" were emblazoned above the window of a chain store selling clothes to teenagers. Ever since, in Japanese and U.S. courts, Mr. McBee, who has appeared for 40 years with the likes of Benny Goodman and Miles Davis, has been on a crusade to reclaim his name. The 69-year-old bass player hasn't been able to stop his moniker from appearing on bikinis, dog sweaters, cellphone covers and credit cards. The store he saw is owned by the Japanese holding company Delica Co. It chose the name in 1984, soon after Mr. McBee's first performances in Japan. It now owns about 35 Cecil McBee stores, which had sales of about $112 million in 2002. With its miniskirts, fake-fur jackets and silky, shoulder-baring tops, the chain is the vanguard of a current Japanese fashion craze called "erogance" -- a melding of "erotic" and "elegant" styles. From his home in Yarmouth, Maine, Mr. McBee says the stores have cost him bookings and damaged his career. Colleagues say searches for his contact information on the Internet call up the chain's Web site. Music students have asked whether he had a side business selling clothes to young girls. "I heard a few jokes about my profession and my name, and that was rather painful," says Mr. McBee. Delica says it chose the name at random. Mr. McBee's lawyers hired a mathematician to calculate the odds of randomly coming up with that name. Her conclusion: less than 1 in 90,000. Mr. McBee's team argues that Delica chose the name to convey an artistic, free-spirited image. They say Delica has violated Mr. McBee's "right of publicity," the right of a person to have his name and persona publicized only with his consent and in a manner he deems appropriate. In court filings, Delica executives deny any association with the jazzman, though they can't be specific about how they came up with the name. They say it may have been suggested to the company's late founder by an outside store-design company, but that can't be confirmed. Delica also enlisted an assistant professor of foreign languages at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Ore., in its defense. In court papers, Bruce Suttmeier notes that Japanese businesses sometimes play word games to develop their names. He hypothesizes that "Cecil" evokes "see-through," which describes an aspect of the stores' merchandise, and "McBee" suggests "McV," the nickname for "McVitie's," a British cookie brand that has been advertised in Japan. One day recently, the Cecil McBee store in Shibuya, a neighborhood popular with young people in their teens and twenties, was busy with a constant stream of young women. Techno music blared and lanky saleswomen in tight pants and miniskirts paced the white-tile floor. The styles are chic and racy: velour bandeau tops, lacy camisoles, and bikinis, all in black, white and jewel tones. A T-shirt with rhinestone studs runs a little under $40. There is a multitude of miniskirts. Some have chain belts, cargo pockets or zippers up the side. Asked what "Cecil McBee" refers to, a store manager said it "has no meaning." Ai Mizuno, a 17-year-old high-school shopper from Tokyo, said, "I had no idea that it was a person's name. I just figured that it was some phrase from a foreign language." Saori Horikiri, a 17-year-old high-school student from just outside Tokyo, was purchasing a camisole, probably the 15th Cecil McBee item she'd bought this year, she said. "Cecil McBee is cool, cute and sophisticated," she said, wearing a pink sweater with "Cecil McBee" across the chest. "Every girl in Shibuya probably has at least one item." She'd never heard of the musician, either. Todd Holbrook, an attorney for Delica, argues that many Japanese companies use American names. "If the people buying [the products] don't know who he is, then he isn't cast as the spokesman," he says. Through its attorney, Delica declined to comment further. Robert Newton, one of Mr. McBee's lawyers, contends it doesn't matter whether Cecil McBee shoppers have ever heard of Cecil McBee, the musician. "If you didn't know jazz and you heard the name Herbie Hancock, there's something in that name that evokes a sense of somebody," he says. "I think the same is true of Cecil McBee." Mr. McBee first performed in Japan 22 years ago, on a tour with the Chico Freeman Quartet. After one show, he says, he signed autographs for 30 minutes. Since then, he has performed in Japan more than a dozen times, frequently with the well-known jazz pianist Yosuke Yamashita. He says Delica simply borrowed his name to ride his coattails. In 1984, Delica registered a trademark for the katakana letters that stand for "Cecil McBee." Katakana is a syllabic form of Japanese writing, often used for foreign words. In 1996, Mr. McBee had an attorney send a letter to Delica asking it to stop using his name. Later that year, Delica applied to the Japan Patent Office to register the roman letters "CECIL McBEE." In 2002, the Japan Patent Office invalidated Delica's trademark registration for "Cecil McBee," ruling in Mr. McBee's favor. But the Tokyo High Court reversed the decision, because the musician's full legal name is Cecil LeRoy McBee. He is appealing the decision. Frustrated, he took on U.S. lawyers who asked Japanese-speaking U.S. residents to order merchandise from Cecil McBee stores. Once the products were shipped to America, Mr. McBee's lawyers used the transactions and correspondence from the stores to establish jurisdiction in the U.S. Mr. McBee is currently pressing his case in federal court in Portland, Maine. In August, a magistrate judge recommended that the musician be allowed to press his case for damages, but that he could not seek an injunction on the sale of Cecil McBee merchandise outside Maine. The district court can adopt or disregard the recommendations, which both sides are challenging. The growth of the Internet has been a big factor in the case. U.S. residents who ordered Cecil McBee merchandise relied on photographs and prices of the clothing posted on the chain's Web site. Anyone who types Mr. McBee's name into a search engine such as Google turns up references to the store. And some Cecil McBee merchandise has even turned up for sale on eBay.

Hmmm...any relation to Bruce Lundvall, head of EMI America?

Milt was amazing. The MJQ (esp. John Lewis) restrained what he could do, though I respect the music they made. But Milt was in a whole other league. As for later Milt, check out the recordings made at Ronnie Scott's in 1983 for Pablo. He had a great quartet: Monty Alexander, Ray Brown, and Mickey Roker. I think there were 3 LP's: one is called "A London Bridge," one called something like "Recollections of Thelonious Sphere Monk" (you know, one of those catchy Pablo titles), and I forget the third. But driving, exciting, crisp, intelligent music! I highly recommend these. He was great up until the end. Some of his last recordings on Qwest...there was one with vocalists, for example...no excuses, just great music.

Does anyone know of a complete on-line Milt Jackson discography? It'd be fun to follow his recordings from the MJQ to the Savoys to the Atlantics to CTI, etc.

I've skimmed the posts to this thread. It seems very few of you have heard Jandek. I've heard his first album (by "The Units," although it's obviously just him), and one later one. It's very sad. Everyone (and I mean everyone) laughs when they hear it, but it's really from a combination of horror and pity. He's obviously incoherent and doesn't realize it. He obviously can't play guitar. He obviously can't write songs. The two albums I've heard sound alike, even though he gives his "songs" differing titles. I suppose he's worth hearing once, especially after the build-up Irwin Chusid and others have given to him, but I wouldn't pay for it. Really, life's too short to spend more than a few minutes devoted to Jandek. Or, to put it another way, the idea of Jandek is a lot better than actually listening to him.