Steve Reynolds

Placed order for: Grateful Dead: Dick's Picks 8: Harpur College May, 1970 Brotzmann/Gustafsson/Nilssen-Love: The Fat is Gone Brotzmann Die Like a Dog Quartet: Close Up Fire! Orchestra: Enter Akira Sakata: Flying Basket I've been in this sort of mood lately - older Dead & newish hard core free jazz power/skronk. All been sounding as good to me as it ever has. Especially Peter Brotzmann. I'm connecting with his playing on a deeper level these last 6 months to a year more than I ever have.

I saw Old Growth Forest live and despite fine playing by Malaby, Bishop & Roebke, way less fire and excitement than I hoped for. Way too subdued cool as could be approach by the drummer.

Wow plus the *great* Toshinoru Kondo is there!! I wonder if Parker, Drake and Kondo with Peter re-form Die Like a Dog Quartet for the celebration. One of my missed dreams!

Jim - nice to see you picking up those EP recordings down the line once you've heard them a couple of times, would love to hear your thoughts on them - especially 50th Birthday Concert which is Schlippenbach Trio on disc 1 & Parker-Guy-Lytton on disc 2. After Appleby is the latter augmented with Marilyn Crispell (one live disc and the other a more sedate or measured studio session) fwiw, I'm not familiar with The Needles

OK a few shows above Tamarindo w/Malaby, Formanek & Waits a couple/three photos of Malaby's Apparitions band with Ben Gerstein on trombone, Formanek w/Billy Mintz and Randy Peterson on drums - front to back Hamid Drake & Ramon Lopez - duel drummers of Turbine Joe McPhee, Ken Vandermark & Mat Maneri Tom Rainey & Mary Halvorson (Ingrid missing off to the right!) and 2/4ths or 3/4ers of Dragonfly Breath Weasel Walter on drums with Paul Flaherty on tenor & alto and Steve Swell on the trombone (C. Spencer Yeh missing on the right!)

I got a car for that but even though I'll listen to the song on my phone or home computer, damn if I'm gonna waste my cranked up car listening time on 2015/16 Santana. I had a couple of the LPs as a teen and my interest waned by 20. My best pal loved the live/studio double LP with Europa but I was on to different stuff. fwiw, lately it's either been classic 69-74 live Dead or modern day intense improv (jazz or otherwise) played just about as loud and rich as the stereo will handle. Track 3 of Andrew Drury's Content Provider lined up - I think you would like this pretty well, Jim. For me, *sounds* better than any Santana on my car stereo

He lives in Connecticut. Born 1948, I believe. Plays the two horns as shown in the 2 pictures. Don't answer, Leeway

Correct care to guess the band with the pink drums?!?!

Thanks, Leeway I hope this gives some a bit of perspective of what it is like to be so close. The bottom picture is taken about 3 or 4 feet from the great Joe McPhee. I had to lean back to get most of him in the picture. I will wait for someone who is curious who doesn't know to ask who/what the band is with the white bearded dude. I know a couple of you know but please don't tell. I might now tell the really incredible story of that night if Clifford approves. What you think, Mr. Allen?

I'm working on it but I'm very technically challenged. I just downloaded the photobucket app. I do have a few close up photos of my favorites that I hope to share. My recents favorites are Mary, Ingrid & Tom or the duel drummers, Billy Mintz & Randy Peterson (with Malaby, Gerstein & Formanek) Yeah Baby!!

Wonderous. Thanks so much. I'm going to find out how to get pictures posted on the board so I'll send some of my pictures of recent shows along - except there will be no pictures of me!!

Of the people volunteering, most of them are good dudes and if it's real cold, they certainly let you hang out. Sometimes the band likes the room cleared for a sound check if it's a different band for the 10:00 set. Plus I don't want to hear the warm-up/sound check. Just an idiosyncrisy of mine. I don't want hear except what they present for the actual set of music.

Not many options. Don't need any really. Regulars usually hang out inside and/or on the corner. Lots of time to talk to the musicians and friends. One of the pluses. Go down to the deli and buy a water/cold drink. The 45 minutes is gone in no time and we are seated by 9:50 or so. next show 2/19 or 2/20 for me - I'll choose one of the wonderful nights between Friday or Saturday night of the stellar week that Darius Jones is leading bands. Tough choice - quartet/quintet anchored by the *great* Nasheet Waits or a quartet featuring the one on only Cooper-Moore on organ of all things. btw - take a peak @ Joe Morris' week in August. There are at least 3 nights that defy and surpass my dreams of what I was imagining I would experience this year.

I'm interested in many younger musicians and approaches but fur whatever reason I've never been at all interested in Iyer. I did see him with Trio 3 and they were tremendous (as they've been every time I've seen them over the past 20 years) but Vijay added little except restraining the grand masters, Lake, Workman and Cyrille from getting even more open, loose and free. for me there are so many more exciting musicians playing today - pianists and otherwise, for me to get all worked up about Vijay Iyer. The Trio 3 show a few years back I mentioned above was a let down. I was expecting to hear some fire and excitement and I heard none that night.

As great as Jack is, it is quite presumptuous to consider him the greatest living drummer, jazz or otherwise. I've seen at least 5 drummers over the last year or so that I would consider as great or greater to my ears as DeJohnette. Seems to me so many hear really are not listening to what drummers are playing today. I know two weeks ago I again experienced Billy Mintz & Randy Peterson together in an awe-inspiring ensemble and I'm wondering if any of the above has listened to either of them. Two incredible musical drummers who qualify as brilliant for vastly different reasons. plus I haven't yet seen Louis Moholo-Moholo and he is still living and breathing. Again nothing against anyone, but have you listened to the legendary South African, Milestones?

The gateway is to get some of us through the part where it seems like the band is warming up. My gateway was Don Van Vliet. Ge said he liked Cecil Taylor or Ornette Coleman or Charles Mingus I figured I might try these guys who I kind of heard of after a while for whatever reason I might have liked Cecil the most heard Evan Parker in 1994 on the radio playing soprano saxophone duets with Steve Lacy. Couldn't listen. Had to see him live in 1998 or so. For a while not much as important as hearing EP play tenor with Guy and Lytton or Alex and Paul. then with John Edwards & Mark Sanders play those records for other people and they don't last 3 minutes if they sit in front of EP with a kick ass group, they might be all in if they can handle the part where it seems like the band is warming up. Ears, mind and heart needs to be adjusted to the magic of improvisation but it isn't free or easy. However, it's worth it

The major or one major difference between the live concert I viewed from a musical perspective of the Kamasi Washington concert and the concerts I attend on a regular basis (besides the size of the crowd/venue) is that at the beginning of a concert that is quite 'avant-garde' or not something ears other than those into that sort of thing, there is a severe adjustment period for the ears, mind and heart that the vast majority of listeners can't or won't adjust to. This aspect of the music I love and prefer over all other musical forms (even other musics I love like rock, Dead, classic jazz, etc.) keeps it very marginalized / but this is what the music is. It is an aspect and result of truly dynamic improvised music. The Kamasi Washington music is melodic and grooved out right from the start. The "outsidish" playing comes within time based grooves and long portions of modal playing over these easy to listen to grooves. what I do wonder is what else will he do? And is his tenor solo *always* last and does it always end with a fanfare and screaming exalted end of show playing?

Watched a few of the videos. The music is alive and all the young guys love what they are playing. Good for them. Good for the music. Kamasi plays a nice pliable tenor that emotes like the dudes did back in the day which is much more refreshing than the straight laced guys who refuse to emote and keep it all between the lines. for me I'm just not that into the modal thing with the McCoyish long piano solos with that bass from back in the day. At some point I was but for whatever reason(s) I've personally much more interested in detailed improv jazz that uses or maybe doesn't depend on straight grooves or melodies. Not saying this as a value judgement but just that it is what cranks my wheel. Again this stuff - especially the 22 minute live piece with the full orchestra and singers is quite exciting and filled with an energy we've NEVER heard from the famous state sponsored organization of stultified "jazz". again - good for the band, the crowd who is loving it - and good for Mr. Washington. Since they are so obviously genuine, nothing but good comes from this. I have no doubt that some of the people who have "discovered" jazz via Kamasi Washington would like or love either/and/or the music that inspired him or current more aggressive freerer jazz. I believe that many of these people grooving to this stuff would get off on David S Ware's best performances or Hamid Drake with whoever or even musics that don't always hit the pocket and groove so quickly as this stuff does.

On my list to pick up as it is available for a fair price. Plus I love that it is early 1973 and has a version of "Here Comes Sunshine" which must be right about when they first played it as I don't believe Wake of the Flood had not even been release at that point. It's a great tune that they only performed live for a very short period of time. The two live versions I have from later in 1973 are both fantastic and the tune opens up for a great mid tempo improvisation.

$30.00 for Long Story Short is a steal. Musical combinations are found within these 5 discs not to be found anywhere else!

I work for Formosa Plastics Corporation, U.S.A. right across the street from the Alcoa plant. Not sure which plant is larger, but I think with all the expansions which continue, the Formosa plant is now one of the larger chemical operations in the country. The portion I'm associated with (PVC production) is large on a relative scale to other PVC plants but tiny relative to all the other various production plants within the enormous petrochemical complex. ps - with Vinyl records making a relative comeback, I sometimes feel guilty I own no turntable or any vinyl records

Victoria is close to Point Comfort, TX - the very small town that is the home to the largest Manufacturing plant of the company I work for. I visit ~ once a year. The idea and reality that Marilyn Crispell is playing in Victoria, TX is pretty mind boggling.

Been wanting to hear Karyobin for many years. Very glad to hear this news.

A pleasure to keep an eye on part of Billy's assorted drums while he brings the rest down stairs. No matter I just saw them, spine tingling for me to know Billy Mintz and Randy Peterson are setting up together on that little 'stage' they start early at about 8:50. When the volume decreases at about 10 minutes in a buzzing from a speaker (only Formanek has any wires) persist unbeknownst to the band. Thank whatever forces it stops at about 20 minutes as I thought that was what had the group stuck in mud or even quicksand. It was getting rough - as is the group's method or modus operandi both horns play in some sort of combination throughout a majority of the time and nothing was happening. Buzzing stops, band accelerates into the fucking maelstrom. 45 minutes in, I'm screaming. They somehow play another quarter hour with little let down. Randy sweating hard, Billy just keeps in cool and sweet except when they really go, they create the most unimaginable groove ever born to mankind. Never heard it so deep as last night. Second set is 65-70 minutes straight - better, meaner, more intense. Only a few passages finding their way. This should be the record. Finishes with Tony on soprano - his range last night as broad as it's ever been and his best playing in at least 14 months - since Adobe Trio fall of 2014. He's become sui generis - the growth and technique and sound is on another level from any of the other saxophonists I've seen over the past few years outside of Evan Parker. Really over the fucking top if one's ears are truly open. Not an easy listen, this band. No band I know has a rougher time getting to the spot than this one as it is thoroughly abstract lacking all song form, yet they are jazz all the way.