Steve Reynolds

First set was Ellery Eskelin's NY Trio with Gary Versace on organ and GH in the rotating drum chair. I will get back to that set if I have the heart.... the main reason I was determined to be at The Stone last night was to see and hear three of my long time favorite musicians in the long standing collaborative group known as Bass Drum Bone. Having seen the band once before a few years back @ Cornelia Street Cafe and having listened to the group on record often and having listened to the three musicians in various combinations with others in ways that depending on the year or the decade as somewhere between often to obsessively (especially the drummer), I knew pretty much what the band and these veteran musicians do. helluva sentence, aye??? that being said, I wouldn't exchange 10:10 PM through 11:20 for very much on this earth. In combination with last Wednesday , Gerry Hemingway is now my wife's favorite drummer. This band is a grooving, cranking, slamming bar band playing in a totally quiet perfect acoustic environment and we got to experience it from a few feet away. They start with scratchy improv into a classic Ray Anderson piece (from March of Dimes) and 15 minutes later we are screaming and the great man of the Bone part of the trio is grinning ear to ear!!! on Hemingway's Dance for Edward (for Edward Blackwell) - a tune which Ed really liked according to Gerry. This thing went from downtown to Africa and back and forth. Lordy fucking Lordy!! 25 minutes later, I'm speachless. I might have then lost my mind but I know they finished with a Mark Helias piece called Land's End. I know you all wouldn't believe it and I wouldn't have either as I had never heard of it, or heard it, but it was more outrageously phenomenal than the Dance for Edward piece. Who Knew?!? again like Wednesday it was done and we went home with silence from the car stereo no need to wallow too much on why EE wants to impersonate A combination of Ben Webster and Stan Getz and the second set almost eliminated the thought or question why he wants to do that odd imitation based playing in tempos that barely touch medium speed and when they do, he quickly brings his two wonderful band mates back to numbingly slow and nod inducing non tempos. Thumbs Up and Hands Down, baby

@ The Stone 8:00: Ellery Eskelin - Gary Versace - Gerry Hemingway 10:00: Ray Anderson - Mark Helias - Gerry Hemingway yeah baby!!!!

Ab Baars isn't overlooked neither is Tobias Delius and Ronnie Scott IMHO if either Ab Baars or Toby Delius were leading a band in NYC, about 20 people would show up. Certainly overlooked and undervalued. Many supposed well rounded listeners here have barely ever heard either of them play

Ab Baars Next step for me is picking up some of his recordings outside of ICP. His spots within ICP can be stunning.

2x3=5 Schlippenbach Trio crossed with Parker-Guy-Lytton 76 or 77 minute continuous performance. Awe inspiring. I would have died and been reincarnated if I was ever able to witness that show in person

Ok - been a while since I wrote one of these accounts. Hottest day of the year - 96 degrees in NYC - hottest in 2 years and still blazing hot @ 7:30. Inside the new AC is working wonders. All set middle front row with my wife 5 feet from the drum kit with Marty Ehrlich right in front of us with the baby grand piano off to the left with Anthony Coleman facing Hemingway. first piece 30 minutes pure improvisation with Ehrlich going from clarinet to flute to alto saxophone to a short time on harmonica and then to bass clarinet. How they got to wherever they got and how and why it was stunning speaks to these 3 musicians. Coleman is older yet new to me and was a fine foil but Hemingway and Ehrlich were why I was there. To be blunt, Hemingway and Ehrlich are a large part of why I am at any of the music shows I attend. No need to try to explain the piece any further. I'm not capable. Next piece based on a Hemingway composition - "Pumblum" which I was sure was "If You Like" (GH corrected me when I told him what tune it was:)). the music was recorded and videotaped. If it's made available in any way, let's hope a few here watch and listen to at least this 15-18 minute excursion into the impossible. Mostly on clarinet (along with his voice and maybe some scorching alto saxophone), he again played that b-flat clarinet with the highest intensity of anyone who has ever played that horn. By the end with Hemingway being Hemingway when he blows it all the way out and at complete full volume, I thought my brain was going to melt down - and with a monster crash it was over. a short softer encore and we awaited the second set Rudresh Mahanthappa played strong lines throughout playing themes and music from a suite Gerry and Rudresh. Russ Lossing combined the inside and outside of the piano like few others as the music undulated via velocity, volume, and detail. Mahanthappa has a fine sound and it took a whole for me to forget that I couldn't hear the great Marty Ehrlich again in this set. Rudresh is simply not the same genius level improvisor and musician that Ehrlich is so much of the energy and intrigue of this set came from the dynamic between Lossing and Hemingway. But really all anyone needs is Gerry Hemingway. His power, creativity and his simple presence is overwhelming and the fact that I was again able to experience it in the best venue possible to hear and feel his music was incredibly gratifying. THEN when the continuous set was losing steam, something happened and the intensity was back, then a pause, they go into Monk's "Oska T", they blow the roof off, the audience is astounded, I'm stunned, we go home - not a thought to put on any music for the hour ride home

Tonight @ The Stone: 8:00: Gerry Hemingway with Anthony Coleman & Marty Ehrlich 10:00: Hemingway with Russ Lossing & Rudresh Mahanthappa

Ordered a few discs today: Andrew Drury: Content Provider Tyshawn Sorey: That/Not Schlippenbach Trio: First Recordings Satoko Fujii Ma Do: Time Stands Still Rodrigo Amado Motion Trio + Jeb Bishop: Live at the Jazz AO Central

Probably the ugliest grouping of words within the inanity is "spastic pounding of the drums" thirded here the "trailers" make it sound like these great musicians were simply angry black men fighting the power. plus maybe some white guys who joined the youthful revolt egads

Agusti Fernandez

Right now: the opening long track "Blood and Body" from the awe inspiring Maneri Ensemble recording, "Going to Church" every time I listen, I believe this is just about the best recording of the 21st century

John Law

Rob Brown is an interesting case. At times he can be much better than good, but he can also spend a decent amount of time seemingly searching for something that never comes. I remember within the two sets that I saw live that he hit it real strong about three times during the two sets. Almost worth the wait. Blue Winter with Fred Anderson on eremite is *the* disc to hear WP/HD with above interesting/great saxophonist

Any more comments on Friday, Saturday or Sunday night(s)?

thanks, Frank I missed your comments above on the seating and temperature

As expected as Clifford noted, what a fucking shame that these great musicians are not placed in a venue that allows their great music to heard in a way that it deserves. Hopefully we will find out why the festival was unfortunately moved from Roulette to this obviously inferior venue. I tried to listen to Mary Halvorsen's band at that Vision Fest and gave up well - are there seats and is it air conditioned?

as I expected about the sound - no chance I would *hear* the trio with Leandre, Maneri & Cleaver let alone Malaby's Tubacello - I can only imagine the muted sound of the cello & tuba let alone the drums

my guess is the drums are lost to the height of the room. any air conditioning? seats?

I decided not to go this year because of the venue. Very curious as to the overall sound, seating and temperature control of the room. If I hear decent reports, I would consider goin this Saturday night.

Kris Davis in for Diane Moser first set ends with most incredible version of Dolphy's 245 that has existed in this world

Thanks for posting this, Xybert

Unable to go to see/hear Paradixical Frog tonight (Tyshawn Sorey, Ingrid Laubrock & Kris Davis) BUT tomorrow night I am going to see/hear Diane Moser's Quintet (leader on piano) with Marty Ehrlich (alto saxophone/clarinets), Ben Williams (trombone) Ken Filiano (bass) and the *great* Gerry Hemingway (drums) been over 6 weeks since my last show - I'm pumped up to be a few feet from what on paper is an awesome ensemble.

4th track on Rodrigo Amado's "The Flame Alphabet" - I believe it is called "In to the Valley". The recording is 5 tracks totalling ~ 45/46 minutes. All totally improvised by the quartet recorded on what was a very special day in the studio in Lisbon in 2011. Amado and Bishop play together with and around a bass sounding cello and drums creating an awesome groove and energy for the whole 13-14 minutes of the track. Fwiw, the whole album is tremendous and the energy and focus never wavers - from softer solo/duo/trio passages up through improvising by the full quartet, but this track hits the highest peaks of anything on the record. This Rodrigo Amado dude is a real improvisor who is becoming one of my favorite tenor (and some baritone) players playing today. It has taken a while for me to fully hear the power behind his seemingly subtle improvising. The brand of free improv he is dealing with (at least with the few recordings I've heard him lead) seem to be a cross with the more detailed British improv and the open ended groove based more classic American free jazz. The results are all their own. This recording simply reminds me most of the other great quartet recording on the same label (see below). this recording (along with "Searching for Adam") demands to be heard both on not two records both recorded in sound that would make 90% of current recordings hide in shame

"The Flame Alphabet" on not two simply based on a first listen is an exceptionally strong performance - to my ears the best Rodrigo Amado saxophone on record. Maybe surprisingly to some here, my first exposure to the Miguel Mira (cello) & Gabriel Ferrandini (drums). as mentioned in the WALT thread, besides the awesome music, the sound quality is beyond incredible.

Came across as a kind man. I understood that a physical issue often made it difficult to type - maybe why his posts were often brief. I used to be fascinated by who he had seen live - I believe he was on jazz central station way back when this was the blue note board. RIP, Sir!