Late Posted January 12, 2005 Report Share Posted January 12, 2005 I did some searching around here, but didn't find any particular discussion on this set. I'm somewhat embarassed to admit that I spun this one this morning ... for the first time in about five years. Man, what a great set, and one I need to get back into. Others' thoughts? This is probably my favorite Diz on record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 12, 2005 Report Share Posted January 12, 2005 "Cubana-be, Cubana-bop." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDK Posted January 12, 2005 Report Share Posted January 12, 2005 This is great stuff! As famous as he is, I still say that Diz is underappreciated... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted January 12, 2005 Report Share Posted January 12, 2005 Love this set! Sound, well... but I can live with that, the music is so good! You'll need at least the first Pleyel concert in addition to this one, to get an impression of what this orchestra was capable of in a live setting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Fitzgerald Posted January 12, 2005 Report Share Posted January 12, 2005 Unfortunately, the Complete set is incomplete. (Missing at least 1 take of Victory Ball by Metronome All Stars.) Thanks, Orrin. (Still a good set, though.) Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spontooneous Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Worth the price for "Manteca" and "Good Bait" alone. This music has haunted me for 23 of my 45 years. Late, I hope you have the earlier big band recordings too -- available nowadays in the Savoy set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neveronfriday Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 The sound is at best historic (= sucks). The music is great, but the really bad sound quality takes a lot of listening pleasure away, I think. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjzee Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 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. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spontooneous Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 (edited) The musical quality of the big-band items drops off sharply after Chano Pozo's death. But concentrate on the earlier stuff! A wealth of information and invention here. The sound is the average RCA studio sound of the period, unfortunately. Edited January 13, 2005 by Spontooneous Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 I know this set has taken hits for sound in other threads but I think it is a "more than reasonable" representation of the recordings. I've had a few of them on 78 and the rest on lps since the late '50s. My big complaint is Keepnews' deviation from chronology so he can lead off the set with "highlights". What a bozo. Some of the later cuts are "fluff" but that is Diz with wonders and warts. The earlier stuff is essential as is the best of the live material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 How big is the set? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Two discs containing 43 tracks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Thank you Chuck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 My big complaint is Keepnews' deviation from chronology so he can lead off the set with "highlights". What a bozo. Exactly. This set is an example of terrible programming. The music is fantastic. But you need to either program your CD player or burn the music in a different sequence to hear it as it should be heard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 My big complaint is Keepnews' deviation from chronology so he can lead off the set with "highlights". What a bozo. Exactly. This set is an example of terrible programming. The music is fantastic. But you need to either program your CD player or burn the music in a different sequence to hear it as it should be heard. I only realize that now! Much too long since I listened to this one, need to give it a spin soon. ubu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clunky Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 I know this set has taken hits for sound in other threads but I think it is a "more than reasonable" representation of the recordings. The sound on the " CD set is way better than one the late eighties single CD "Bebop Revolution". This single CD sounded really flat and additionally a number of the tracks were given the wrong titles.!!! Either way the music is classic, I also really enjoy the big band sides on the "Bird & Diz Carnegie Hall concert 1947 CD on Bluenote- great playing and competent sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 (edited) [sorry, posted in the wrong thread] Edited January 13, 2005 by king ubu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDK Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 I think the "bad" sound has more to do with these RCA discs being "no-noised" than with the original recordings. This is just like the early 3-CD set of the Ellington-Blanton-Webster recordings... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Maybe Mosaic can put together a Diz collection and remaster the muddy sound out of these takes. And, put the set in chronological order - Whe I got this set a few years ago I fired off a bitch to that Jackass Keepnews. I hope no one lets him near another reissue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted January 14, 2005 Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 Maybe Mosaic can put together a Diz collection and remaster the muddy sound out of these takes. And, put the set in chronological order - Whe I got this set a few years ago I fired off a bitch to that Jackass Keepnews. I hope no one lets him near another reissue. Not a bad idea. I wonder if Michael Cuscuna has tried to get some Dizzy sides for a mosaic ? My apologies for wandering off topic but years ago I had a Dizzy big band album that was recorded live and the one thing that stuck with me besides Dizzy's playing was a great Baritone solo by Cecil Payne. Does this ring a bell and if so does anybody know where it can be obtained? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownie Posted January 14, 2005 Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 My apologies for wandering off topic but years ago I had a Dizzy big band album that was recorded live and the one thing that stuck with me besides Dizzy's playing was a great Baritone solo by Cecil Payne. Does this ring a bell and if so does anybody know where it can be obtained? Assume you are thinking of the Dizzy Gillespie and his Big Band in Concert that came out on GNP Crescendo! That one: http://store.gnpcrescendo.com/product_info...&products_id=39 One of Dizzy's best albums! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kh1958 Posted January 14, 2005 Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 My apologies for wandering off topic but years ago I had a Dizzy big band album that was recorded live and the one thing that stuck with me besides Dizzy's playing was a great Baritone solo by Cecil Payne. Does this ring a bell and if so does anybody know where it can be obtained? Assume you are thinking of the Dizzy Gillespie and his Big Band in Concert that came out on GNP Crescendo! That one: http://store.gnpcrescendo.com/product_info...&products_id=39 One of Dizzy's best albums! Now you've done it--I didn't have that Dizzy, and I've been meaning to get their Clifford Brown/Max Roach for a long time, and there are two Ellington CDs which I didn't have... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Late Posted January 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 Late, I hope you have the earlier big band recordings too -- available nowadays in the Savoy set. I don't, but have a feeling I will some time in the not-so-distant future ... Five years ago, the RCA set left me somewhat cold. Don't know why. Now I'm gaga over it. Last night in the car (by myself, thankfully) I was calling out "Manteca!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron S Posted January 14, 2005 Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 (edited) Late, I hope you have the earlier big band recordings too -- available nowadays in the Savoy set. I don't, but have a feeling I will some time in the not-so-distant future ... Five years ago, the RCA set left me somewhat cold. Don't know why. Now I'm gaga over it. Last night in the car (by myself, thankfully) I was calling out "Manteca!" I'm listening to the Savoy set ("Dizzy Gillespie: Odyssey 1945-1952") right this second, having recently listened to the RCA set also. Both are Keepnews productions. The sound on the Savoy is quite inconsistent, but seems to have been subject to less noise reduction than the RCA set. It's actually a great compliment to the RCA set though, filling in the mid-'40's stuff with Bird and Slim Gaillard, for example, and miscellaneous early-50's Dee Gee material (in great sound, and including early Coltrane on both Alto and Tenor in a 1951 session). One thing I really prefer in the Savoy (and other Savoy boxes I own) over the RCA box are the track listings, which include all the personnel and discographic info with the track listings in one place, so you don't have to keep flipping back and forth to correlate the discography with the track number and title. Between the Savoy and RCA boxes, I think you pretty much have Diz's studio recordings covered through the early '50's. Then again, you won't see ME posting in the Discography forum any time soon, and I stand to be easily corrected. You can see the tracks and personnel in the Savoy box here. Edited January 14, 2005 by Ron S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 14, 2005 Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 Between the Savoy and RCA boxes, I think you pretty much have Diz's studio recordings covered through the early '50's. As leader, yeah. But as sideman? Nooooooooooooooooooooo..... Plenty of fun left! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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