Big Al

Perfect timing, as I've been on a recent Papa Jo jones! ;-)

Is it too much to hope/wish for a Rangers/Phillies WS?

Okay, I cheated a little here: I didn’t particularly enjoy this part of the BFT so I went back to read the comments to see if there was anything I was missing, and it looks as thought I probably missed the boat on a few of these. Ah well, off we go! Track 9: Has an okay groove, but the sax solo reminded me of a tune I used to hear when I worked at Six Flags back in the 80’s, which I’ve now come to learn is a Dave Grusin track. I wouldn’t dare guess Grusin on a BFT, but just sayin’.... Track 10: This would be a lot more enjoyable if the drummer didn’t go apeshit every chorus. That got real annoying real fast!!! Track 11: Nice enough big band, I s’pose. Might pursue further once I find out who it is. Track 12: Hello, drummer from track 10? Yeah, I found your session, it’s right here. I’ll let this drummer know his session is where you’re at! Track 13: Another nice big band! The vocalist was a little annoying, but that’s my own hangup. Track 14: OK, I guess. Not bad, but not leaving a lasting impression either. Track 15: Does it sound to anyone else like the sax was recorded in the bathroom? Lost me at the two-minute mark. Now to look at the answers and feel REALLY dumb!

Which tracks are these? I thought all the tracks from Willow were live, some with and some without overdubs. Sorry Al, you're right and I was mistaken - all are from the Half Note, "Willow", "Misty" and "Crazy Moon" with overdubs. That LP also icluded the live take of "Four On Six" that's missing in the new box . Another interesting tidbit: the track-list for the Half Note tracks in the current box is the exact same track-list as the Smokin' at the Half Note VME from a few years back. I agree it's a shame that this particular "Four On Six" couldn't have been substituted for any one of the alternate takes on disc 5; I mean, even the fans of Willow Weep for Me won't even be able to reconstruct the album they're used to. That said, though, I'm still of the opinion that this is gonna be the best place to get all the Wes Verve in one fell swoop, and if I didn't already have it all to begin with, I'd get this collection.

Which tracks are these? I thought all the tracks from Willow were live, some with and some without overdubs.

Hooray!!! Downloading now! Thanks Joe! Really looking forward to hearing this!

HOLY SHIT!!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT BURRELL!!!! WOW!!!!!! I don't even need to look at the rest of the answers now, this is good enough for me!!! And, in fact, since I have yet to DL part 2, I had to be careful I didn't see anything else. But a few brief comments, rebuttals, threats, etc: 1. I would like to publicly apologize to the family of Horace Henderson. Next time, I will be a little more diligent in my guesses (or at the very least, start immediately guessing Fletcher Henderson on everything I think is Glenn Miller) 2. So I kinda got the Blakey track correct, but damn if Jean Toussaint don't sound EXACTLY like Wayne Shorter. However, if he's looking for a fight, I'll be in one of several of my usual hiding spots until he's ready to ask forgiveness. I sure hope this is available somewhere, would like to get my hands on this one! 3. Another Big Al Sears track for the always expanding Best of BFT discs! Can't wait to hear part 2!

Playing catchup here, so I'll make this brief with the usual disclaimers (no peeking at the answers or previous discussions, general cluelessness, etc etc etc): 1. Guitar sounded like Kenny Burrell, can't ID the organist, not rinky-dinky enough to be McDuff, not thick enough for JOS, not like I'd know anyway! Actually, if I *hadn't* just listened to the Ray Charles/Milt Jackson summits, I woulda gone straight for that. But I know for sure it isn't that. 2. Modern dixieland! These cats know what they're doing! Swing it, y'all! 3. Ricky Ricardo swings it dixieland? I don't know. It's all good! 4. An Ornette big band trying to play Monk in a Dixie bag? I lost interest when they lost the beat, which was approximately 0.5 seconds into the.... well, calling this a "song" seems a stretch for these ears. Too much Bourbon, not enough Street, y'know? 5. And once again, what little cred I have goes out the window as I guess Glenn Miller again. I can't help it. Eventually, this will be a right answer. And it will be a right answer when it really is a Glenn Miller band, and I guess Count Basie or something like that.... 6. This was all kinds of fun and I didn't want it to end! Even at 8-1/2 minutes, it seemed too short. And speaking of short, that HAS to be Wayne Shorter and I'll fight to the death anyone who tells me it ain't (even if it ain't, which it probably is. I'll even play the Schapp card and tell the actual sax player it isn't him/her!) Sounds like Fuller on the bone, or someone who learned his nuances & subtleties. My final answer is a tie between a Blakey tribute orchestrated by Shorter & Fuller with no clue as to the drummer, OR a Blakey reunion band in Blakey's final days. Doncha love how much work and detail I put into being incorrect? I like to think of myself as the Mo Rocca of the BFT. (You listeners of NPR's "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me" will know what I mean, and if you haven't listened to "Wait Wait," it's worth your time to see what I'm talking about!) 7. {{{sigh}}} As much as I love flutes & drums, individually and collectively, this was lost on me. That's the thing about collective improv: usually a blast to play, not always a joy to listen to. 8. Searching for Loch Lomond while floatin' down the Rhein. I don't know where that came from, but it makes about as much sense as anything else in here! You can tell how much I enjoyed a BFT by how wordy I get. This were definitely one of the better ones. Great job, Jeff! Now to go get stupid and look at the answers!

I keep hoping this is one of those Peter Criss type stories, where this guy is a phony and the real Sly Stone shows up to clear up the whole thing like Criss did when it happened to him. But I'm more inclined to believe this is true. I can't even imagine what it must be like to have Sly's brain....

LOL!!! Never heard that one before! That's great!

Drat! Says "download not available."

Ah, it feels good to finally say this again: DL please!!!

Thanks, Thom! Like I said, I hope to participate more now. Was listening to BFT 81 the other day and thought that I hadn't commented on it, but I had. There were some good tunes on that one, and made me remember (again) how much fun the BFT is!

Phooey! I thought this was gonna be a thread that actually showed some of these albums & songs. Oh well...

I liked 'em on and off over the years. When they were good, they were unforgettable and became the soundtrack of various points in my life (which might've been their goal when all is said and done: to become part of the soundtrack of our lives, individually and collectively). And I agree with whoever said earlier that they hope REM doesn't do the crass reunion thing in 5-10 years.

Okay, you're stubborn! I respectfully disagree about GIANT BOX, although my disagreement isn't enough to say I'd pick one over the other at gunpoint. IMO, they both sound fantastic and at this stage of the game, with mp3/loudness/compression being the norm, to have this masterpiece of an album available in not one, but TWO, incredible sounding versions is nothing short of a miracle. But I still like the Masterworks version better.

See my post a couple of pages/years back. A damned happy fluke if I ever stumbled on one!!!

PM coming on the Pullen

If anyone has the links/dl's for the previous BFT's starting with 82 and running thru the current one, could you PM it/them to me? I'm finally at a place where I can at least TRY to participate, something that hasn't been true for the last almost-year. Thanks!

Was wondering if anyone was gonna post those two...

I gotta start checking this place earlier in the day. Congrats to whoever landed that PJ Piano set.

Drat! Beat me to it!

That article was vague, boring, and damn near put me to sleep. Anyone reading this article would be forgiven for asking "why should I give a rats ass about jazz?"

Lionel Hampton & Oscar Peterson on Verve, disc 5. Because there's no such thing as too much swing!

Not yet, but I'm going to hopefully sooner than later!