wulfman

Thanks for the travel tips. I am in Dubai right now for a 3-hr layover between two 8-hr flights. The business lounge is nice, don't know whether to stick to coffee, scotch, water or a combination of the three. Looks like the slaving forts are a main attraction followed by the nature reserves. Not much in the way of Kenya safaris but there are some elephants in the jungle apparently. If I can get my computer and camera to cooperate I might send a pic or two...

Nice to see Makoto Kuriya in the list, my brother plays with him pretty regularly in Tokyo. He is a very talented composer, I am curious if anyone else has heard of him outside Japan.

I am going to be in Accra for 5 weeks from the beginning of April on a temporary assignment. I wonder if anyone has been through Ghana and has any reccomendations on things to see and places to go. From what I understand it is a pretty peaceful place and people are friendly enough. I am going to pick up some drums there but other than that I have no plans yet. Advice anyone?

Here is the link to Swing Journal. It is full of ads though I have no idea what they wouid charge.

How about Movin' and Groovin'? I am listening to the TOCJ now and have no idea why Horace has NO RVG's out.

Here to Stay has been out in Japan as TOCJ 4135 in 1994. Long time ago

Correction: look to the right, there is a choice to display in English. It should help you go through the ordering procedure in English. Although there is no picture, the book appears to be the same one from the same publisher. Good luck!

I found the book on amazon japan. Link: Jazz organ May be difficult to order, the English section of the site seems only functional for non-Japanese items.

Andy, the order page says that shipping is free except for overseas orders. Unfortunately it appears you must contact the company directly to place an order. Another idea is that you could try ordering from amazon.co.jp if they have the book in stock.

I saw them in Ottawa last summer at the Bluesfest. Joan Osborne was there as well. I had a good time, the band is super-tight and the songs are all classics.

I can't remeber the last time I slept in. The embassy is open from 8 - 4:30 and I am in bed from 10:30pm to midnight and up at 6:30 am most days. Today (Sunday morning here in Manila) we are golfing so I am up at 6:30. I always feel like I need a couple of strong cups of java to start my day though.

I wouldn't suggest using okusama, as it really means "wife" rather than lady (literally meaning the person inside, like "inside the house"). A couple of other ways to say "lady" are "kifujin" which is a little more hoity-toity than the regular fujin, and "goreijo" which is for joung lady.

If you are interested in a complete "made in Canada" solution, you may want to look at the Traynor amp line. A little more expensive, but big bang for the buck. Depends if your son is into more blues/clean tones or needs an amp that can get a little more distorted. Traynor 20 watt tube amp

As an Edmontonian who grew up during the glory years when there were just a little over 20 teams and we still had the Nordiques in Quebec and the Jets in Winnipeg I am sad to see things come to this. My only comfort is that over here no games are available on TV anyway. There was talk a few months ago about Bobby Hull being involved in a new hockey league (WHL revisited?) looking to start next year. A lot of NHL players might be willing to take big pay cuts to play in North America so this might be possible. Take out the red line and regulate goalie equipment sizes and you might have a few more goals in the game.

Hank Jones - Piano John Patitucci - Bass Jack DeJohnette - Drums Link

I have found some of these to be quieter and a little softer in terms of detail. Sometimes that works for the music and sometimes it doesn't depending on the instruments involved. I haven't heard the McMaster of Along Came John so I can't compare the two.

No fear picking up this CD. Great trio action. I've never heard Pattituci play in a trio setting before. Nice version of Moanin' as well.

Ok, did I miss something about using the Japanese RVG masters? When did Oblique and Symphony for Improvisors come out there as JRVGs? Maybe there is a new batch on its way...

I've been posted here since August last year and will be here for a couple of years. Still trying to find some Philippine jazz here but so far the pickings are slim.

The 'typical' jazz fan in Japan, if there is such a creature, is middle-aged and probably grew up hanging around in Jazz kissatens (Jazz coffee shops) in the 70's smoking Peace cigarettes and listening to Sonny Clark's Cool Struttin'. At least that is the kind of person that I saw most thumbing through the CDs and LPs at Disk Union in Ochanomizu. Now that generation has pretty high disposable income and takes it's jazz interest seriously (not unlike a few on the board here). Swing Journal is an excellent (and LONG) read, however it is definitely a rear-view mirror of Jazz.

I saw her from about 10 feet out at the Ottawa Jazz festival. She definitely 'got the goods' as a pianist and performer. I also thought her album sounded a little clinical compared to what I saw and heard live, but check her out if you get a chance.

Interesting TOCJs. I'll be keeping an eye out for copies of these when I get to Tokyo during the holidays.

No problem here using the POP option for my yahoo mail account. Maybe there have been changes with hotmail that need to be entered in the preference window.

Even if the battery was not in great shape it should still show that it is charging when plugged in. It seems like your problem may be related to a faulty connection or a problem with the power management system that determines whether or not the battery is full. Before you go and return the iPod to Apple, you may want to reset the iPod by reinstalling the system software. I did this with my first generation iPod when I had battery problems and it helped to improve my battery life back to 3 or 4 hours which is not bad considering I've had the thing for close to 3 years now. If you have all your songs backed up on your computer, you have nothing to lose by trying this.

The Ottawa show is outdoors at Confederation Park in the heart of Ottawa. A ticket for the single show is only $25 Canadian. If you can get a cheap flight, the ticket shouldn't be a problem. Who knows, maybe we'll see a CD released from the tour.