marcello

Sonny can't play solo saxophine ALL of the time!

Todd Barkin is still producing recordings and booking Dizzy's Club at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

I saw a post that they were going to be down for server reasons.

Well there you go.... And from Larry Kart: Can't we at the least agree, in the name of simple or not so simple human understanding -- and leaving aside deification on the one hand and snarkiness on the other -- that Rollins came to be more than a little hung up on some aspects of being both a human being and a jazz musician, or a professional jazz musician if you prefer, and that if this so. Hasn't he said as much himself? And if this is so, isn't it worth talking and thinking about? Of course, it's not easy being both a human being etc., but name me another jazz musican whose life fits Rollins' pattern, even comes close to it? Well put. It's tough being Sonny. We will miss him when he's gone; warts ( "Isn't She Lovely", horrible persussionists, and those awful nights when he is just mortal ) and all.

There has been a lot of second guessing of Rollins in his career. He may not be comfortable in the studio in the last 30 years, he may pander to the masses in order to communicate, he may have made poor choices in sidemen for personal reasons, he may not to release live records with long tracks, he may be insecure/, etc, etc. The man's 75 years old. The standard that he is held up to is unfair, and in a way, demeaning. He has had to live with that burden since he was 25 years old! It's a wonder he ever leaves home to perform or record. Look, I don't like many of he records for the past 30 years, but most of the time they are interesting, for one reason or another. His records are held up in comparisson to those that were ground breaking and influential. You can't make Saxophone Colossus or Freedom Suite everytime. Speaking of that; what saxophonist plays with the stamina, ideas and creats such excitement as he? There are artists that are 50 years younger than him that can't keep up or produce like Sonny. Go hear him live; most of the time he gives 100%. Most of the time it's not only a good concert bit a great one by anyone's standard. Cut the great man some slack. Sometimes, it's enough to be in the same room with greatness, but he gives so much more.

I have this one coming also. What a talent!

Billy Mitchell - The Colossus Of Detroit - 1978 Xanadu 158 A great, great recording. Billy Mitchell ts (Barry Harris p, Sam Jones b, Walter Bolden d)

Thanks for the thread,Chris. Phillip is in Europe, I am told. He has, what is called in the trades, "personal-health problems". I hope he got it out of his system because he seemed to be a nice cat and a fine trumpet player. Last saw him with Cedar at Sweet Basil when they recorded.

You may very well be projecting but it got me thinking...... besides Don Cherry, is there any other trumpet player that Sonny had in his bands for any length of time? Maybe you're on to a little something there as Don Cherry is the polar opposite of Clifford Brown. So maybe if he was going to share his music with another trumpet player, there could be no reminder of Clifford?

There ya go.........GENIUS! Could be.

Quite true, Mr. Nessa. Several years ago I saw him in Montreal with a group that had a drummer and percussionist that were, let's say, not team players. The rhythmn was all over the place and no place at the same time. It was actualy hard to listen to. Through the whole very long concert, Sonny played his heart out with long solos, of course, and vigor, to say the least. It was like he didn't want to give up or in to the flaying going on all around him.

If I remember right, Mickey Roker didn't start drumming untill he was in his early 30's.

"Oh well, shit! If the Stones couldn't keep up with Stevie, he couldn't be a genius. Jezusss! Where's the smiley for "how full of crap is that comment?" Hell, all I said he put on a great show "And what does being Italian have to do with anything?" Nothing to YOU, It's just my cultural perspective on the subject. "Stevie made it hard for the Stones to keep up? Boo, hoo. This is just a guess but I bet the Stones couldn't keep up with the James Brown band either. I guess that makes JB a pretender, also. I like the Stones, by the way, they just aren't the measuring stick I would use to evaluate someone else's "genius." I see YOUR point. I'ts just not MINE. I didn't mean it the way you imply. The Stones are just a good rock and roll show to me and Wonder was better; nothing more, nothing less. "This is directed at Nessa and others with similar opinions: If you don't like popular music in the first place, and there seems to be a particular animus on this board toward R&B, how about just staying out of this?" The responses are in answer to the "Genius tag", that's all. Nothing to go to war about. You have your standard and I have mine, with all due respect. "Again, I invoke the disco analogy. People who trashed disco couldn't dance." Where is your "full of crap" smiley? From Mike Fitzgerald: I think that someone somewhere has just overinflated things so that every model is a "supermodel" and every performance gets a standing ovation and if the average is now great, then the great must be "genius". My position, exactly. Thanks Mike.

The term genius is a term that should be used very judiciously. Like Mike implies, in the music marketplace, it's used to sell records and create hyberbole. Now for me, personally, there are few true geniuses. Being a Italian, there is a "Leonardo Standard" that gets in the way of useing the term lightly. For us/Myself, it means someone who does MANY diverse things greatly, effortlessly; a trailblazer. I DO rate Ellington as one. On the other hand, I don't rate Smmmy Davis Jr. as one though. ( Who I saw from the wings of Radio City ( he played with Buddy Rich for a week ) and he was fabulous and even truly emotional. Riveting on stage. Now I've seen Wonder twice. Both times in the early 70's including a show with the Stones where he made it very hard for them to follow him. Great entertainer. Like Sammy.

I have to say that I love Carmen doing Wonder's "Superwoman" on "Live at Bubba's". Have you hared that?

Some where I have a tape of Andrew White being interviewed on the radio late one night on WHAM when he was in town playing bass for The Fifth Dimension at a supper club. Andrew also played bass for Stevie Wonder. Now if you know Andrew's music and rep;( at the time his own label was putting out a lot of records ) he is no pansy. I have a tape of hime with the Elvin Jones band that also had Ari Brown in the front line with Woody Shaw sitting in. And Chuck, Mr. White came close to your descripton of "Great Music" that night at the Vanguard. This is starting to be a long story just to tell you that as Andrew was discussing his work ,in realtion to what he did to make money, he said " the gig is fine and Stevie treats me right but he's no genius, you know, like people say." Now he said that in a very nice, but matter of fact way.

Is the vocalist not Dionne Warwick?

I believe.....: "Portrait of Cannonball" JULIAN ADDERLEY alto sax BLUE MITCHELL trumpet SAM JONES bass PHILLY JOE JONES drums BILL EVANS piano NEW YORK ; July 1, 1958 SIDE 1 1. Minority (Gigi Gryce) 7:05 2. Straight Life (Julian Adderley) 5:25 3. Blue Funk (Sam Jones) 5:26 SIDE 2 1. A Little Taste (Julian Adderley) 4:34 2. People Will Say We're in Love (Rodgers & Hammerstein) 9:38 3. Nardis

Somewhere in my tapes I have a wonderful live version of that ( with a interview) from a British TV show. With the intro. of course! How could you not dig that?

One of my two all time favorites. SOUL + BRAINS.

The Queen Suite is both powerful and beautiful. Here's a quote: The "Queen's Suite," never released during Ellington's lifetime, is a major work: Strayhorn's "Northern Lights" is a dramatic piece influenced by early 20th Century classical music. "Sunset And The Mocking Bird" is a tender Hodges feature with a lush, luscious arrangement, while the spare "The Single Petal Of A Rose" - Ellington on piano accompanied only by bowed bass - is equally gorgeous. "Lightning Bugs And Frogs," while not as lighthearted as the title suggests, is full of amusing melodic leaps and is played with remarkable control by the orchestra.

I would bet they will be since Mr. Itoh, of both 88's and East Wind ( and God knows what else), was the lead excutive at Sony in charge of the SACD development and marketing. Itoh-san and Keezer-san photo:

There is a relationship between 441 and Avatar. Avatar's address is 441 53rd Street. 88's and Avatar are related to Sony and when the 88's recordings come out in the US, they are released on 441. To complicate things futher, many of the 441 and 88's artists perform at The Kitano Hotel, but that may just be a matter of convience and not business, but I wouldn't bet against it. All of this is very secretive and insular. Here is another photo taken at Avatar for a 88's session with Joe Locke and Geoffrey Keezer this last March. You may see this session, and a previous one from last year, come out on 441 this year.

Here are some of the more interesting dates to me: I own the Cedar Walton/Pitt Inn, a great, great record; Sam Jones/Seven Minds, with Bob Berg; The Great Jazz Trio/Direct From LA and The Vanguards; and the Cedar Walton/Pentagon, another really fine date with Clifford Jordan and Ray Mantilia on conga. EW ARTIST TITLE REC. 7009 / 8009 Cedar Walton Pit Inn 74 7010 Sam Jones Seven Minds 74 7012 / 8012 Art Farmer To Duke With Love 75 8014 Oliver Nelson Stolen Moments 75 8016 Terumasa Hino Live In Concert 75 8017 Andrew Hill Hommage 75 8018 Ronnie Mathews Trip To The Orient 75 8021 Hank Jones Hanky Panky 75 8023 Al Haig Chelsea Bridge 75 8025 Art Farmer Yesterday's Thoughts 75 8029 Andrew Hill Blue Black 75 8030 Reggie Lucas Survival Themes 75 8032 Andrew Hill Nefertiti 76 8042 Art Farmer At Boomers 76 8043 Masabumi Kikuchi Wishes / Kochi 76 8046 The Great Jazz Trio Love For Sale 76 8047 Art Farmer The Summer Knows 76 8052 Al Haig Duke 'n' Bird 76 8053 The Great Jazz Trio At The Village Vanguard Vol 1 77 8055 The Great Jazz Trio At The Village Vanguard Vol 2 77 8056 The Great Jazz Trio Kindness, Joy, Love & Happiness 77 8057 Jackie McLean New Wine, Old Bottles 78 8062 The Great Jazz Trio Milestones 78 8063 Laurindo Almeida Concierto de Aranjuez 78 8064 The Great Jazz Trio The Great Tokyo Meeting 8065 Terumasa Hino Live In Nemuro: Wheelstone 10002 Cedar Walton The Pentagon 76 10005 The Great Jazz Trio Direct From L.A. 77 Sorry about the late response! The East Wind was/is great. Buy the way, the sound of the vinyls that I have, are wonderful.

As I have told Chris A., I remember the PSB show he hosted from New Jersey. The one I remember the best is Jimmy Heath with Curtis Fuller. Maybe someday a grant will be written to scour the vaults of PBS stations for taped jazz shows. Chuck, I've seen the clip from that Route 66 show, and had it on tape, but it went the way of all of the many hours of Jazz that I taped. They went pffft!