Favorite authors of liner notes?

[Alexander Hawkins]

I know it's not quite answering the question, in a sense - but Cecil Taylor's are brilliant...

[AllenLowe]

Francis Davis is one of the best.

[sgcim]

Dick Katz; he did the Teddy WIlson notes on the Smithsonian set.

just as an aside, on one of my earlier CD sets of my own stuff I wrote something like 15 pages of notes; Tom Hull of The Voice referred to them as "the manual."

Nomination for WORST WORST WORST- that British guy Bennie Green (I think that was his name) who did all the Pablos, I think it was. I hated those things then and I hate them now; it read like a high schooler writing a Masters Thesis after a bad motor vehicle accident that did real and recognizeable damage.

I loved Dick Katz' liner notes for his own "Piano and Pen" LP; I still remember and am inspired by them.

Paul Desmond's LNs for his LPs were a joy to read.

I think it was Geo. Frazier that wrote the LNs for that Miles LP where he talked about everything about Miles except for music were enjoyable.

[John L]

I would like to mention Michael Brooks. I particularly enjoyed his notes for the Lester Young Story.

[fasstrack]

As an aside it always cracked me up when the writers would feud in the actual notes, as when Nat Hentoff referred to 'noted tin-ear Dan Morgenstern' for saying Clifford Brown relied on his chops too much.

Not that I disagree

[fasstrack]

That is about Clifford, not Morgenstern or his ear......

[Larry Kart]

As an aside it always cracked me up when the writers would feud in the actual notes, as when Nat Hentoff referred to 'noted tin-ear Dan Morgenstern' for saying Clifford Brown relied on his chops too much.

Not that I disagree

Wow -- where did Nat say that, and how the heck did he have the chutzpah to do so?

[gmonahan]

Always liked Morganstern, Blumenthal, and Schoenberg. Thought McDonough's notes on the recent Webb set were pretty good. And Larry and Chris, of course.

As for Green, I remember really liking him when I was younger because I thought he was sort of profound. He got distinctly less so as I got older. And even though I appreciated his devotion to the music, I never had much time for Stanley Dance's liners.

gregmo

[Dave Garrett]

Pretty sure Dzondria was a woman. I remember in particular some notes she did for a Bobby Blue Bland album.

I was always pretty sure Dzondria was a pure invention. SOMEONE was writing that stuff and putting the name at the bottom

There's been some speculation that "Dzondria" was really Don Robey.

[Larry Kart]

Pretty sure Dzondria was a woman. I remember in particular some notes she did for a Bobby Blue Bland album.

I was always pretty sure Dzondria was a pure invention. SOMEONE was writing that stuff and putting the name at the bottom

There's been some speculation that "Dzondria" was really Don Robey.

Well he did he use the pseudonym "Deadric Malone" when claiming credit on songs, and Deadric and Dzondria sound like they might be first-cousins.

[Gheorghe]

Dan Morgenstern: I loved his liner notes on the double LP "One Night at Birdland" with Bird, Fats and Bud. That was very great reading for me when I was a youngster. Very much inside information about a period that I would have loved to witness.

Ira Gitler of course.

Leonard Feather.

Nat Hentoff with one exception: His liner notes on Bud´s last LP "Ups ´n Downs", thats really some crap he writes there, it reads like liner notes for another album, like if he hadn´t listened to that album. How could an expert like Nat Hentoff guess that those recordings were from the "midfifties" ???

I like Bob Blumenthals "A New Look at...", because it´s really about facts. I know some have critiziced his writing but sometimes it is better than the original liner notes of some BN albums from the sixties. I don´t remember the names of the authors, but some liner notes from more obscure writers don´t get to the point.....

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Pretty sure Dzondria was a woman. I remember in particular some notes she did for a Bobby Blue Bland album.

I was always pretty sure Dzondria was a pure invention. SOMEONE was writing that stuff and putting the name at the bottom

There's been some speculation that "Dzondria" was really Don Robey.

Well he did he use the pseudonym "Deadric Malone" when claiming credit on songs, and Deadric and Dzondria sound like they might be first-cousins.

A pseudonym for Don Robey would surprise me, because he's a guy I think of as always getting someone else to do the work

MG

[fasstrack]

As an aside it always cracked me up when the writers would feud in the actual notes, as when Nat Hentoff referred to 'noted tin-ear Dan Morgenstern' for saying Clifford Brown relied on his chops too much.

Not that I disagree

Wow -- where did Nat say that, and how the heck did he have the chutzpah to do so?

On a Clifford Brown liner note, can't remember which one now. Nat has plenty of chutzpah.

[ElginThompson]

Great thread ... would be interested in Nessa's list ...

[Larry Kart]

Speaking of Nessa, Neil Tesser wrote some fine notes for the CD reissue of the Nessa Eddie Johnson album.

[Chuck Nessa]

I can only mention those I have engaged: Terry Martin, John Litweiler, Larry Kart, Jim Sangrey, Chris Sheridan, Bob Porter, Michael Cuscuna, Robert Palmer, Max Harrison, Neil Tesser John Corbett, some of the artists and some short supplimentary notes by myself.

Many of these folks are friends and have done fine work for my recordings.

Dan Morgenstern, another old friend, has agreed to do an essay for our Ira Sullivan issue but personal obligations might prevent this.

Otherwise I do enjoy Gitler's silly stuff and first person bop memories.

Edited December 1, 2013 by Chuck Nessa

[Joe]

I can only mention those I have engaged: Terry Martin, John Litweiler, Larry Kart, Jim Sangrey, Chris Sheridan, Bob Porter, Michael Cuscuna, Robert Palmer, Max Harrison, Neil Tesser John Corbett, some of the artists and some short supplimentary notes by myself.

All of these folks are friends and have done fine work for my recordings.

Dan Morgenstern, another old friend, has agreed to do an essay for our Ira Sullivan issue but personal obligations might prevent this.

Otherwise I do enjoy Gitler's silly stuff and first person bop memories.

Yes, Robert Palmer. Wish he was still around.

I always cut Ira Gitler some slack because the guy was really there when it was all happening.

I've long been intrigued by Diane Dorr-Dorynek and her contributions to the annotations for MINGUS AH UM and MINGUS DYNASTY. They were romantically linked at the time?

Finally, anybody here own a copy of Tom Piazza's SETTING THE TEMPO (a liner notes anthology)? http://smile.amazon.com/Setting-Tempo-Tom-Piazza/dp/0385480008

[Mark Stryker]

As an aside it always cracked me up when the writers would feud in the actual notes, as when Nat Hentoff referred to 'noted tin-ear Dan Morgenstern' for saying Clifford Brown relied on his chops too much.

Not that I disagree

Sorry, but this doesn't ring true, and, respectfully, I wonder if you've confused Hentoff for lobbing a grenade when the odds are he was on the receiving end of it (more on that in a sec). First, Morgenstern: I have two Brown LPs for which he wrote the notes, "Three Giants" (the 1963 reissue of "Sonny Rollins Plus 4") and "The Quintet, Vol 1" (a 2 LP set of the Brown-Roach recordings). Morgenstern is highly flattering of Brown in both notes, painting him as both a musical and personal angel. There is not even a brief suggestion of a caveat carved out for relying too much on his technique. In "The Quintet" notes, in fact, he writes, "His technique, like that of all great jazz players, was inseparable from his music." Morgenstern is also one of the universally liked men in the business, so it's hard for me to imagine a context in which someone would take a shot at him like that in a set of liner notes. As for Hentoff, who is no doubt not lacking in the chutzpah department, I can't recall another example where he took a fellow jazz writer to task by name over a musical opinion, although I do know that he wrote that George W. Bush had a tin ear for civil liberties.

Now, in the back of my mind, I do have a similar memory of Ira Gitler accusing Hentoff of having a “tin ear” about something in liner notes somewhere – at least I think it was Gitler doing the accusing and Hentoff being accused and liner notes being the forum. But I can’t be sure and to do the requisite research would be needle-in-a-haystack stuff.

Edited November 30, 2013 by Mark Stryker

[Michael Weiss]

Mark Stryker.

[fasstrack]

As an aside it always cracked me up when the writers would feud in the actual notes, as when Nat Hentoff referred to 'noted tin-ear Dan Morgenstern' for saying Clifford Brown relied on his chops too much.

Not that I disagree

Sorry, but this doesn't ring true, and, respectfully, I wonder if you've confused Hentoff for lobbing a grenade when the odds are he was on the receiving end of it (more on that in a sec). First, Morgenstern: I have two Brown LPs for which he wrote the notes, "Three Giants" (the 1963 reissue of "Sonny Rollins Plus 4") and "The Quintet, Vol 1" (a 2 LP set of the Brown-Roach recordings). Morgenstern is highly flattering of Brown in both notes, painting him as both a musical and personal angel. There is not even a brief suggestion of a caveat carved out for relying too much on his technique. In "The Quintet" notes, in fact, he writes, "His technique, like that of all great jazz players, was inseparable from his music." Morgenstern is also one of the universally liked men in the business, so it's hard for me to imagine a context in which someone would take a shot at him like that in a set of liner notes. As for Hentoff, who is no doubt not lacking in the chutzpah department, I can't recall another example where he took a fellow jazz writer to task by name over a musical opinion, although I do know that he wrote that George W. Bush had a tin ear for civil liberties.

Now, in the back of my mind, I do have a similar memory of Ira Gitler accusing Hentoff of having a “tin ear” about something in liner notes somewhere – at least I think it was Gitler doing the accusing and Hentoff being accused and liner notes being the forum. But I can’t be sure and to do the requisite research would be needle-in-a-haystack stuff.

Mark, I swear I read it and it was Hentoff. I seem to remember it was on a twofer, if that helps.

[MomsMobley]

fasttrack, for the reasons Mark stated and others, 99.99% chance you are misremembering this or conflating.

Also, how many Clifford Brown double-albums are there?

"Clifford Brown in Paris" (Prestige), liner notes by Brian Blevins & Harold Land

"The Quintet" Voumes 1 & 2 (Mercury), compiled by Dan Morgenstern

Any others?

FREDDIE ROACH liner notes = best liner notes

[Larry Kart]

fasttrack, for the reasons Mark stated and others, 99.99% chance you are misremembering this or conflating.

Also, how many Clifford Brown double-albums are there?

"Clifford Brown in Paris" (Prestige), liner notes by Brian Blevins & Harold Land

"The Quintet" Voumes 1 & 2 (Mercury), compiled by Dan Morgenstern

Any others?

FREDDIE ROACH liner notes = best liner notes

"Live at the Beehive" -- notes by Pete Hamill

[jeffcrom]

Max Harrison, in his notes to Bix Beiderbecke and the Chicago Cornets, did call Martin Williams tin-eared, but not by name. He berated the "tin-eared commentator" who called Beiderbecke's solo on "Royal Garden Blues" "a kind of parade horn" - a quote which I recognized from Williams' chapter on Bix from The Jazz Tradition.

[Bill Nelson]

I've always given Martin Williams creds for defending Ornette w/ liner notes on Atlantic LP jackets, however...

his lengthier pieces of writing sag from the weight of overwrought verbiage in over-intellectualizing his totems within jazz.

In 1984, I got to hear him lecture for 45 minutes on the topic of 'Duke Ellington' and he had his audience embalmed by midpoint.

By the end, I had no desire to meet him so I just split.

[John Litweiler]

Every month in the dear, departed Jazz Review, Nat Hentoff wrote a review of jazz books and periodicals. It often was a valuable guide to publications. At least as often it was Hentoff sniping at fellow critics, some of whom at least seemed to deserve it, judging from his out-of-context quotes. I don't recall that he ever had a kind or generous word about Down Beat magazine or anyone who wrote for it. That was over half a century ago.

My unreliable memory says that many years later Hentoff published something nasty about either me or The Freedom Principle, then. So he must have continued to publish nasty things about other writers too.