Favorite Mosaic liner notes/booklet?

[ghost of miles]

I've been revisiting the Herman 1945-47 Columbia Mosaic, and, in the process, enjoying Loren Schoenberg's notes all over again as well. He includes a lengthy interview that he did with Woody in 1984, and his comments on the music are detailed, very knowledgeable, and interesting. What other booklets or sets of notes have folks here enjoyed? I also give high rank to Larry Kart's notes for the Tristano/Konitz/Marsh & Will Friedwald's for the Cole Capitol Trio box. Unfortunately I've never seen Roswell Rudd's for the Herbie Nichols... I know others speak quite well of them.

[jazzbo]

Clear winner for me: Charlie Parker Mosaic.

[sidewinder]

The notes for the Parker Benedetti Mosaic for sure (work of art) and Roswell Rudd's notes for the Herbie Nichols are also great but I've also a great soft spot for the notes to the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis, Anita O'Day, Larry Young and Jackie McLean. And quite a few others .

Commodore Vol 1 and Nat Cole are outstanding too in their craftsmanship !

Very honourable mention too to Michael Cuscuna's notes for the Woody Shaw. Written with great feeling.

Edited February 11, 2007 by sidewinder

[JSngry]

Can't leave out Monk/Blue Note.

Seems that the annotation used to be more,,,,interesting than it's been lately.

[ghost of miles]

Can't leave out Monk/Blue Note.

Seems that the annotation used to be more,,,,interesting than it's been lately.

Never saw the Monk/Blue Note--who did those? And I forgot about Parker/Benedetti... yes, that was an excellent booklet. Anybody know who's doing the notes for the Chu Berry set?

[sidewinder]

Just dug the Monk Blue Note box out. The notes were done by M. Cuscuna.

[JSngry]

And fine work it was!

[brownie]

I'll split my vote between the Parker/Benedetti set and the Commodore boxes liner notes!

[jazzbo]

A lot of the Commodore notes are also to be found in "The Jazz Reader."

[jazzbo]

A lot of the Commodore notes are also to be found in "The Jazz Reader."

[paul secor]

My two favorites:

Roswell Rudd's notes for the Herbie Nichols box

Buell Neidlinger's notes for the Cecil Taylor/Neidlinger box

Larry Kart wrote a good essay for the Tristano/Konitz/Marsh box.

[J Larsen]

I have to admit that I almost never read liner notes. I don't think I've ever read any of my Mosaic books straight through. Then again, I think it's fair for me to assume that I have a less-than-average amount of free time.

[Chuck Nessa]

If it was important to you, you'd read them. I think this is an error.

[J Larsen]

I hope to one day find that you are right.

[felser]

The Paul Desmond notes, also reprinted in the Desmond RCA box.

[Larry Kart]

Rudd's Nichols notes are wonderful and unlike any writing on music I know. Schonberg's Herman notes are very insightful, especially good on Dave Tough; S. did a lot of careful listening there, almost hyper-listening at times. Dan Morgenstern's notes for H.R.S. box are full of warmth and savvy, as usual for him. Sadly, I missed my chance to get the Commodore box way back when; I do have the non-Mosaic Keynote box, with more fine writing from Dan, but the Commodore box probably is the mother lode. I think I did a good job on the Tristano-Konitz-Marsh notes, though it was a close-run thing. I came down with a bad case of the fever-and-chills, can't-even-stand respiratory flu within the shortish time frame the notes needed to be done and was close to deciding that I'd have to back out altogether or ask Mosaic to add another few weeks to their deadline. As I recall, I asked Chuck whether he thought that either of those alternatives would put Cuscuna and Charlie Lourie in a bad place, and he said probably yes -- after which adrenalin kicked in just in time. Max Harrison's Condon set notes were a pleasant surprise; I wouldn't have thought he'd be fond of that music. Bill Kirchner's Mulligan Concert Jazz Band and Jones-Lewis Band notes are excellent; in the same vein, Bert Primack did a nice job on the Ferguson Band set -- lots of interesting info there about that slice of the jazz life.

[Eric]

Woody Shaw as mentioned above and Tina Brooks

[sidewinder]

Bert Primack did a nice job on the Ferguson Band set -- lots of interesting info there about that slice of the jazz life.

Fully agree. Some great pen-pictures of the band members (eg. Willie Maiden) in that one.