So, What Are You Listening To NOW?

[soulpope]

[Peter Friedman]

[JSngry]

37 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

All Floating Jazz titles are Chiaroscuro if I recall.

Did they all have such, uh..., questionable covers?

That's not a trait that I associate with that label, at least not that I've experienced.

[Peter Friedman]

1 hour ago, Brad said:

The CD below has the same title, but with different sidemen.

Joe Cohn, Norman Simmons, Lynn Seaton, Jackie Williams

[Larry Kart]

Amazon review:
 

"For someone like me who plays the tenor and loves its classics, this is a delightful history lesson. It should be called 'The Joy of Tenor Sax.' Led by Frank Wess, who clearly grooves on live performance, whether on his flute or on tenor, this double CD features (count'em!) not one but four historic tenor giants: Wess, Jimmy Heath (on two cuts), Frank Foster (on three) and the eldest of all, Flip Phillips (on one). The rest of the cuts are all Wess, with a first-rate trio led by the great George Cables on piano (bassist is Lynne Seaton).. Its all recorded on a cruise ship in front of an appreciative audience which makes you feel like part of the jazz family. Remember, these discs are made in the mid 90's and these men were playing with Basie or Jazz at the Philharmonic in the late '40's! Talk about masters! The feeling is warm, the improvisations are stretched out and richly conceived, the rhythm section is superb." 

BTW, others here no doubt are way ahead of me, but noting the hefty price on this album and the lesser price for a download, I'll say that I've begun downloading and burning to disc (because I want to play back things through my good stereo system) a fair number of items where the CDs are pricey or the item may not even be available as other than a download. My latest such move was Milton Babbitt's String Quartets (2-6)  in fine performances for $15 and only available so far as a download. It was an especaialy tasty deal because the total amount of music, about 90 minutes, was more than a single CD can handle, though of course once downloaded it's easy to burn the music onto two blank CDs.

Here's the Babbitt Quartets link:

https://erikcarlson.bandcamp.com/album/milton-babbitt-string-quartets

 

[JSngry]

I love Frank Wess (on tenor and flute, both!), but if I pick this one up, it's not going to be with a cover of a sexual predator. That's beyond bad taste, in some ways worse than those Venus covers, because presumably those are consenting adults, not G-Rated Larry Flynt-esque winks.

[soulpope]

[Larry Kart]

6 minutes ago, JSngry said:

I love Frank Wess (on tenor and flute, both!), but if I pick this one up, it's not going to be with a cover of a sexual predator. That's beyond bad taste, in some ways worse than those Venus covers, because presumably those are consenting adults, not G-Rated Larry Flynt-esque winks.

If anyone does have or picks up this Wess CD, could you report on it? I like Wess too but recall that at least one Floating Jazz Fest album, by whom I don't recall)  was kind of ramshackle for my tastes.

[JSngry]

I like jazz that floats, but I'm not sure that Floating Jazz would be the same thing?

[John Tapscott]

[Brad]

1 hour ago, Dan Gould said:

All Floating Jazz titles are Chiaroscuro if I recall.

I've probably avoided that one because of the flute references in the reviews but should probably reconsider sometime.

Yes, it’s Chiaroscuro. I received an email from CD Japan a couple of months ago. I purchased this one and the Mary Lou.  The price was right, only $14.75 US. 

I hadn’t focused on the cover but that obviously wouldn’t fly today. 

I’m only a few cuts in but on My Funny Valentine there is a bit of flute. 

Edited October 9, 2018 by Brad

[JSngry]

3 minutes ago, Brad said:

I hadn’t focused on the cover but that obviously wouldn’t fly today. 

Well, this is today, and there it is for all to see.

[soulpope]

[Brad]

1 minute ago, JSngry said:

Well, this is today, and there it is for all to see.

If it offends, I have no issue with deleting the photo and just indicating text. 

[HutchFan]

Coleman Hawkins - The Bebop Years (Proper)

Disc 4 - Picasso

[JSngry]

10 minutes ago, Brad said:

If it offends, I have no issue with deleting the photo and just indicating text. 

I don't think it was your intent to offend. I myself am not offended, because in my experience unwoke men think that that kind of thing is funny in some form or fashion, so it's expected. I think it's disgusting, but I am not offended. Disgust is just a part of life, as is being offended. But those are two different things, really, disgust and offence. I'm disgusted when I step in dog shit, but I'm not offended by the dog or it's shit. I'm not even always disgusted with myself for stepping in it, because hell, you can't see everything all the time, right? Dogs gotta shit, I gotta walk, hey. Ain't no robots in that equation, right?

Now, if a woke man (or woman, or just a woke human, period) lets you know directly that it offends and/or disgusts, then by all means, proceed accordingly (whatever that means to you). That'll be between you and them, not me.

[Big Beat Steve]

3 hours ago, JSngry said:

Was Frank Wess a known sex offender?

If not, that's a pretty questionable choice for an album cover. I would be offended, but I guess you could make the case that he's pretending to be a bat, which would also be a surprise. Was he known to have been in a state of mental deterioration at this time?

Silliness aside, who's in that band?

Who says it was ever meant to insinuate something about a sex offender and make fun of it? Look at the words of the band members written inside his coat. Ain't you never seen caricatures of those greasy small-time would-be mafiosi giving unwary passers-by a glance at their ware of doubtful origin (such as watches of all sorts) hung in the same places inside their coats in an attempt to peddle their stuff? The garb matches too, in a cliché-like manner ...
Silly? Yes. Off-putting? Yes, for its silliness - to me as a record buyer, for example (but that's only me). Maybe not flattering either but it must have been intentional so who are we to judge from today's vantage point? There have been FAR more shocking record covers across the board through the decades.

Anyway ...AFAICS certainly no reason to obsessively project "sex" into this as a reason for offendedness. It ain't necessarily all about sex out there ...
 

 

Edited October 9, 2018 by Big Beat Steve

[JSngry]

 

14 minutes ago, Big Beat Steve said:

Who says it was ever meant to insinuate something about a sex offender and make fun of it? Look at the words of the band members written inside his coat. Ain't you never seen caricatures of those greasy small-time would-be mafiosi giving unwary passers-by a glance at their ware of doubtful origin (such as watches of all sorts) hung in the same places inside their coats in an attempt to peddle their stuff? The garb matches too, in a cliché-like manner ...
Silly? Yes. Off-putting? Yes, for its silliness - to me as a record buyer, for example (but that's only me). Maybe not flattering either but it must have been intentional so who are we to judge from today's vantage point? There have been FAR more shocking record covers across the board through the decades.

Anyway ...AFAICS certainly no reason to obsessively project "sex" into this as a reason for offendedness. It ain't necessarily all about sex out there ...
 

 

Well, the title of the record is SUPRISE! x2.

Never known an illicit watch-vendor to use that word when hawking their wares. Flashers, otoh, that's more than a cliché.

This may all be hypothetical to you, but I had a good friend who as it turned out was a flasher, got convicted, did 90 days in jail might well still be on probation for all I know. He's not a friend anymore because although he owned up to it to explain why he was going to be unavailable for a while, he never really admitted that he had a problem past getting "overheated from time to time". I had a teenage daughter at the time, and the first thing I did was to let her know was that this guy was like this, and then ask her had ever ever even hinted at anything with her. She said she hadn't, but then she told me about guys her own age who were up to shit like that, just pulling out their junk and looking for a reaction.

So yeah, the whole "flasher as joke" thing is not funny to me. And if the album title had been, Hey, Wanna Buy A Band? or something like that, your logic would make sense to me. But it's not, and it doesn't.

[HutchFan]

Randy Weston - The Spirits of Our Ancestors (Antilles)

 

 

 

1 hour ago, soulpope said:

Excellent!

Edited October 9, 2018 by HutchFan

[Big Beat Steve]

Quote:

Well, the title of the record is SUPRISE! x2.

Never known an illicit watch-vendor to use that word when hawking their wares. Flashers, otoh, that's more than a cliché.

This may all be hypothetical to you, but I had a good friend who as it turned out was a flasher, got convicted, did 90 days in jail might well still be on probation for all I know. He's not a friend anymore because although he owned up to it to explain why he was going to be unavailable for a while, he never really admitted that he had a problem past getting "overheated from time to time". I had a teenage daughter at the time, and the first thing I did was to let her know was that this guy was like this, and then ask her had ever ever even hinted at anything with her. She said she hadn't, but then she told me about guys her own age who were up to shit like that, just pulling out their junk and looking for a reaction.

So yeah, the whole "flasher as joke" thing is not funny to me. And if the album title had been, Hey, Wanna Buy A Band? or something like that, your logic would make sense to me. But it's not, and it doesn't.

 

No, flashers as a joke aren't funny but "surprise" or not, my first reaction to this cover definitely was a case of "hey, wanna have a look-a at da guys I gotta in-a my band-a?" just like those "special deals" displayed for purchase in the same manner, given the placing of the names and given the outfit - which is NOT typical for flashers, isnt it?

Whereas it certainly is typical for a certain type of these peddlers. Can happen even over here and even in recent times, unbelievable though this may be - I remember an instance some 10 years ago when I was just chatting innocently with a friend in the passageway leading to his garage's backyard in some really deserted industrial estate when some pseudo-upscale-looking sedan pulled in and some Southern-looking feller (yes, I am not sorry to state he clearly was of gypsy background, stereotypes or not - it was unmistakable and that area does have a sizable - and all in all perfectly straightforward and honest - population of that background) jumped out, dressed in some awfully styled pinstriped double-breasted suit, watch chain and all, showing off a load of watches he had for sale at an oh so special price as "leftovers from trade fair stall displays". Sounds incredible? Well, though afterwards we laughted, figuring this could only have happened in old B-movies, we DID feel bugged and annoyed at the time and told him in no uncertain terms we were NOT takers.  So you will have to take my word for this to be true just as much as I have to take your word for your story to be true. In a situation like yours I'd probably have reacted like you but basically it's still is different strokes and I don't see much reason to go about to see where there is sex out there in public that one can elect to feel offended about.

In short, silly cover of doubtful taste that I for one would not find a selling point at all but not that big a deal to work yourself up about if you look at it objectively..

Edited October 9, 2018 by Big Beat Steve

[JSngry]

1 minute ago, Big Beat Steve said:

No, flashers as a joke aren't funny but "surprise" or not, my first reaction to this cover definitely was a case of "hey, wanna have a look-a at da guys I gotta in-a my band-a?" just like those "special deals" displayed for purchase in the same manner, given the placing of the names and given the outfit - which is NOT typical for flashers, isnt it? Whereas it certainly is typical for a certain kind of these peddlers. Happens even over here and even in recent time,s unbelievable though this may be - I remember an instance some 10 years ago when I was just chatting innocently with a friend in the passageway leading to his garage's backyard in some really deserted industrial estate when some pseudo-upscale-looking sedan pulled in and some Southern-looking feller (yes, I am not sorry to state he clearly was of gypsy background, stereotypes or not - it was unmistakable and that area does have a strong - and all in all perfectly straightforward and honest population of that background) jumped out, in some awfully styled pinstriped double-breasted suit, watch chain and all, showing off a load of watches he had for sale at an oh so special price as "leftovers from trade fair stall displays". Sounds incredible? Well, though afterwards we laughted, figuring this could only have happened in old B-movies, we DID feel bugged and annoyed at the time and told him in no uncertain terms we were NOT takers.  So you will have to take my word for this to be true just as much as I have to take your word for your story to be true. In a situation like yours I'd probably have reacted like you but basically it's still is different strokes and I don't see much reason to go about to see where there is sex out there in public that one can elect to feel offended about.

In short, silly cover of doubtful taste that I for one would not find a selling point at all but not that big a deal to work yourself up about if you look at it objectively..

wow. that's just all kinds of...all kinds of.

Getting past that, though, I guess considering the album title in conjunction with the image in question is not objective?

o....k....

[Big Beat Steve]

No wow. Just telling it like it happened. Like I said, different experiences, different reactions, different associations, and like I also said several times over before, the garb and the placing of the names had and has different connotations for me, though - like I also said - I do understand your reaction based on your past experiences. As for "objectivity", do some googling for tastelessest LP covers ever from the past X decades and I do think you are bound to come up with worse examples than this (which - AGAIN - I DO find utterly silly).

[Dan Gould]

What tips this over to tasteless is the way his knees are bent, that damn saxophone is lining up directly with his junk.

[jlhoots]

Roots: Stablemates

[Big Beat Steve]

Yes you've go a point there. (Though I am a bit surprised at the number of cover-up meanings that seem to be coaxed out of the word "junk" ) But regardless of what the actual ly intended connotions were, what WERE they thinking, then? This cover did not happen THAT long ago. Certainly not in the laissez-faire late 60s/early 70s.