mjzee

The Decca Sound - The Piano Edition, disc 11. Also includes:

A friend and I exchange mix tapes (er, discs), and he's included many Ezra Collective tracks. Very enjoyable, in many diverse styles.

Decca - The Mono Years, disc 38. Also includes:

Agreed. I rarely play the original release. Arrangements are often hokey.

Disc 3.

Happy birthday, Sonny!

Now disc 4. Do you like it? I wasn't big on this era of Zappa - too preachy and full of himself.

While I was chronologically exposed to Coltrane's music from latest (Impulse 2) to earliest (Prestige), I've come to enjoy the Prestige material the most, probably because it's the most enjoyable. As Coltrane's career progressed, he got more serious and, to my mind, more intent on making "statements." The classic quartet was great, but it could've used more variety, especially with additional musicians who were not followers of Coltrane. The Prestige recordings (and those made concurrently: Blue Note, the other leader dates, the other sideman dates) have it all: a nice variety of tunes (originals, standards, blues), tuneful tunes (lotsa changes and melodies), Coltrane's sound heard among a succession of solos from other artists, and the ability to hear him within the context of other musicians of the period.

Disc 11 (last): J. C. Bach.

The Decca Sound - The Piano Edition, disc 10. Also includes the Rachmaninoff Préludes, Barcarolle and Mélodie from this:

Decca - The Mono Years, disc 37. Also includes:

Saw this yesterday; very good:

Disc 3.

Disc 10: J. C. Bach and C. P. E. Bach.

The Decca Sound - The Piano Edition, disc 9 (Piano Concerto No. 3 only). Also includes:

Decca - The Mono Years, disc 36. Also includes:

R.I.P. I may have seen him in the house band at the Big Apple Circus.

Disc 1.

Someone posted this on Facebook: Frank Zappa : "There was a place in San Diego on the ground floor of the Maryland Hotel where you could buy R&B singles unobtainable elsewhere - all those Lightnin' Slim and Slim Harpo sides on the Excello label. (The reason you couldn't order them in the 'white-person record stores' was that Excello had a policy that if a store wanted to carry their R&B line, it also had to take their gospel catalog.) The only way I could get a Lightnin' Slim record was to travel a couple hundred miles and buy it secondhand, all scratched up. (The Real Frank Zappa Book 1989): Did you have any friends at the time who shared your enthusiasm for Varèse? Frank Zappa : No, but I would play it for them anyway. I mean, usually if they'd come over to the house, everybody does this same thing, if you have records, you tend to play your favorite items for whoever comes in. And that gives them the test to find out what kind of person that individual is. What I used to do was play them parts of the Varèse album and then play them Lightnin' Slim things like "My Starter Won't Start" or "Have Your Way" or I'd play them some Howlin' Wolf. That would clear them out really fast. They didn't like that stuff either? FZ: Well, usually that would get rid of the girls and the ignorant boys and what was left over was somebody you could have a conversation with. It's interesting that you mention these two separate currents because I was introduced to your work by a classical cello player who mostly listens to avant-garde 20th century music and you. FZ: Well, he's missing a good bet by not checking out those old records by guys like Lonesome Sundown and Lightnin' Slim. That's good stuff because it's real direct, it's not a matter of pretense there. It's right to the point. - Frank Zappa, quoted in Frank Zappa: The SongTalk Interview.

Disc 2.

The Decca Sound - The Piano Edition, disc 8.

Disc 9: C.P.E. Bach oboe concertos

Disc 1.

Wow, I can't believe this thread's been around for 20 years. I like this perhaps atypical McCoy Milestone album: It's best on vinyl, because each side is with a different guest: Freddie Hubbard, John Abercrombie, Bobby Hutcherson, and Arthur Blythe. Each brings a different mood to the basic trio (Tyner, McBee, Foster). It's cool hearing Blythe, although his side consists only of standards. And I love the John Abercrombie side: he makes the trio veer close to rock, yet also makes the group sound a little airier. Worth seeking out.

Decca - The Mono Years, disc 35. Also includes: