Aggie87

Phoenix and Scottsdale sort of blend together, running parallel to each other north and south. They are sort of the same city, though Scottsdale is generally more affluent than Phoenix. Phoenix has a more diverse population. Everything here is kind of spread out, so you'll travel some distance between places.. Traffic in central Phoenix and on the 101 Loop can get pretty busy during rush hours, but it's mostly pretty easy to get around. For Zia locations, they just relocated their main store to 6135 N 35th Ave (corner of Bethany Home Rd). That might be their best location, though I go to the one on Thunderbird Road more often (it's closer to me), and I think it's just as good. I like Zia because I like the mix of new and used music that they have, in all genres. It is sort of like Waterloo in Austin or Princeton Record Exchange in NJ, if you've familiar with those.

I moved to a town just north of Scottsdale earlier this year. Like less than 2 miles to the northern Scottsdale border. The boundaries for Scottsdale/Phoenix are blurry to me, so I don't know how much it matters to you whether a shop is in Phx or Scottsdale. There's a used chain here called Zia Records with 5 locations around the Valley (which includes Phoenix, Mesa, Chandler, Tempe, Scottsdale, Glendale, and other Phoenix area suburbs). They've also got branches in Tucson and Las Vegas. They're a little bit of everything - new, used, vinyl, cds, some books, dvds, etc. But I can usually find some interesting vinyl and cd purchases every time I visit one of them. https://www.ziarecords.com/ I've also visited the Vinyl Record Dude and found some interesting things there. https://vinylrecorddude.com/ And I've been to Stinkweeds, which seems to be a successful place, but I didn't find much of interest in my one visit there. https://www.stinkweeds.com/ Seems like there are other Phx area board members, maybe they'll chime in.

Bill Frisell at the Music Instrument Museum in Phoenix, 10/13/23 He finished his set with an acoustic version of "Pannonica", which was beautiful. The MIM has Baroness Pannonica's Steinway Grand piano, that Thelonious Monk selected for her. Bill was apparently fascinated getting to see the piano (and commented upon the cigarette burns still on the bench lol), and played this in response. As a side note - Monk composed 8 tunes on that piano, and Sonny Clark, Freddie Redd, and Barry Harris all composed tunes on that piano as well. Others who played it include Lionel Hampton, Bud Powell, Teddy Wilson, Max Roach, Wynton Kelly, Sir Charles Thompson, Horace Silver, Mary-Lou Williams, and Tommy Flanagan.

Rickie Lee Jones - The Other Side of Desire

I was surprised Thomson pulled Ranger Suarez as early as he did in that game. It didn't have to be a bullpen game, the way Suarez was pitching. Lucky it worked out though. Did Thomson ever explain why Suarez had such a short leash? Suarez sure didn't seem happy about being pulled when he was.

Sigur Ros - Atta

That's pretty cool, Buzz! Please report back with your impressions. Hope they make it my way, would love to see them.

Fleetwood Mac - Shrine '69

Maunsell Forts from WWII, in the mouth of the Thames River, 22 Sep 2023 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maunsell_Forts

Canterbury Cathedral, 9/22/23 This is the exact spot where King Henry II had his friend Thomas Becket murdered in 1170.

Caravan - For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night

Ely's a favorite of mine, have seen him solo, with the Flatlanders, and in various combinations. And with Terry Allen, who is also an amazing Texas alt-country musician. I've never thought of any of them as "country rock", but they are great at what they do. I guess that label can work though, but Ely is more than just that to me. And Ely, Butch & Jimmy are all from Lubbock (also Buddy Holly's home town), not Amarillo.

Maybe it's because you used a cell phone instead of a film camera...

I'm not sure about that, but the movie Starman (w/Jeff Bridges & Karen Allen) filmed it's finale scenes there.

Thanks! If you're not familiar with it, the Crater is fascinating. The meteor hit 50,000 years ago, at an impact of 29,000 miles per hour. Almost 4,000 ft in diameter, and 560 ft deep. (I learned this at the adjoining museum lol). The Apollo Astronauts trained here from 1962-1970, for the moon missions. It helped the astronauts learn how to read/maneuver the lunar landscape. https://www.space.com/meteor-crater-hole-from-space-lunar-surface

Meteor Crater Natural Landmark, Arizona, 3 Sept 2023

This isn't really true at all. Queen is issuing some of their tracks to an online streaming service geared toward 3-8 year olds, with the average age of listeners there being 5 years old. 5 years old. The streaming company elected not to include that track for the listening pleasure of the 5 year olds. I see nothing wrong with this. The song still exists on their official albums, including their in-print greatest hits albums. It's not a "woke" issue. Whatever "woke" is. I know that is being pushed strongly by right wing media in this case though.

Godley & Creme - Goodbye Blue Sky

The Wronglers/Jimmie Dale Gilmore - Heirloom Music

Caravan - If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You

Slint - Spiderland

I got to see Eric Dolphy's saxophone at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix yesterday. It's a Selmer Super Balanced Action alto, he played this one throughout his entire career.

John Prine - Common Sense

Harold Budd/Cocteau Twins - The Moon and the Melodies

Glad you enjoyed the 4th St Deli so much, Dmitry! It's been there forever, my first visit was back in 2008, and many times since then. There are still good delis like that in the suburbs - the one we went to most frequently was the Kibitz Room in Cherry Hill, due to proximity to our town. But 4th St is maybe my favorite, and I miss it. I need to find a good deli out here in Phx/Scottsdale.