king ubu

There's a thread somewhere ... honestly with the one record around, I find it hard to judge ... it's an exciting enough album, but how much of it is Hasaan's doing? To me it sounds very much like a group effort, with Roach and his longtime sidekick Art Davis (speak about overlooked bass players!) "embedding" and carrying whatever comes from the piano. If you hear a certain ambivalence about Hasaan between the lines, you're quite right - I sort of gave up judging him on the meagre basis we have, but I judge the album alright, and I enjoy hearing it once in a while, but wouldn't exactly call it a masterpiece. The thread:

well, no ... might be entertaining at first, but whenever I start thinking about Donaldson's (a sage, ha!) remarks, he strikes me as (gulp) some sort of bebop fascist -

I've got this one - only one I know besides the sideman recordings you mention:

No. But still, the series, in the mid/late 90s, allowed filling a few MPS gaps. They also released some compilations such as one disc dedicated to the Dave Pike Set (I later bought single releases of most of the albums, but I guess the compilation would have actually been quite enough) and a fabulous one compiling some of George Gruntz' great work for the label (alas, he didn't get a whole run of single reissues later on, would have been a worthier choice than some of the stuff the short-lived Universal MPS reissue series brought back in circulation, methinks). Joe Henderson's "Mirror, Mirror", too. And they also compiled the fabulous George Russell Beethoven Hall albums onto one CD, offered the Sun Ra one on two discs (the LP was rather long, almost an hour, I think, the double dsic offers both concerts in their entirety) ... so yeah, bad cover, but some good music to be found there!

Thanks Larry. I'll check 'em out! Yes indeed on "Metamorphosis" and on "Thingin'"! There's another very good early one pairing Friedman with Attila Zoller released under the guitarist's name, "The Horizon Beyond" (Mercury, rec. 1965, CD reissue on ACT, probably quite OOP). Other good ones include "Invitation" (Progressive, 1978) in trio, the solo "I Hear a Rhapsody" (Stash, 1984), the trio "Almost Everything" (Steeplechase, 1995) or the more recent solo album "From A to Z" (ACT, 2005), which is an hommage to Attila Zoller. If you want to hear him in a band with horns, go for "Hot Pepper and Knepper" (Progressive, 1978) in quintet with Pepper Adams and Jimmy Knepper. I guess as a general recommendation I would just say: don't stay away from later recordings, don't restrict yourself on the early ones just becasue they're on Riverside and look like "classics" - he became better later on! But the two with Zoller (there's a third, "Dreams and Explorations", I think the one recorded first of the three, not half bad either) are indeed very good! I've not heard "My Favorite Things" yet, guess I'll have to get more Don Friedman anyway, sooner or later ...

Thought of mentioning Ronnie Mathews as well! Cowell I'd have assumed to be well-known enough, but that may be just me ... as for the pantheon, yep, full agreement there - and one name to add: Don Friedman

I'll have to look for that Redd, too! Btw, just got Vol. 2 of the solo seventies Joe Albany that Steeplechase has put out (the first one was released last year, I think, the second not long ago). First was definitely good enough to go for the second, and it seems (from skimming the liners) that this will be it, no third, fourth, fifth, seventh and thirteenth one.

Re: Albert Dailey, one that I like a lot is "Poetry", a duo album with Stan Getz: (reissued "domestically" as part of that one [?] batch of Elektra albums Blue Note did - a couple of albums by Michel Petrucciani, the Bird in Washington disc ...) And of course the first name to popped up in my head was: Eddie Costa - love his playing, wish there was more of it to be heard ... not sure about "overlooked", guess it all depends on how you define that. What about Herbie Nichols? Joe Albany, Dodo Marmarosa, George Wallington ... and yeah, Al Haig, too! And Carl Perkins!

Finally received the new album yesterday - first impression is very, very good!

guess it's the same edition I have - Motor Music, Germany, second half of the 90s ... as far as I know, that entire series never used original cover art:

Congrats, Jonathan - must be nice to see this! Any news on the Daley front?

Yes please, that would indeed be great! But so far, they have done PD material only, didn't they? Zodiac will be PD when, in 2038? Unless Walt Disney and the Beatles change the law in time again ... (not implying herewith that SAM doesn't do quality reissues - I've only heard good things - but still, no royalties needed, even if they license or buy some good sources to work from).

Sad news - don't know his music nearly as well as I feel I should ... his lone ECM album is wonderful!

No, "Zodiac", here: http://www.discogs.com/Barney-Wilen-Zodiac/release/5927425 Somehow glad to hear it's a boot (I was halfway assuming so) since I did pass up a copy last fall.

Only just stumbled over this in the net ... a generous helping of early Wilen, though some of the albums are really needed complete, in my opinion:

All the best, Barak!

That's one where the bottom has not fallen out (yet?): same goes for the Maynard Ferguson ... (and btw, I only wanted to insert a link, but when I hit "enter", it automatically displayed the whole post ... brand new forum world )

sad news indeed, though I don't know much of his work really ... but yes, "Tribal Ghost" is marvelous! will have to check my files, I have a quite wonderful recording with Tchicai and a third musician (Paolino Dalla Porta, I think) that is unreleased ... check my blog in a few days if you're curious

So, "All Blues" would actually be "So What", right? Thanks for posting, very interesting read for sure!

I read a couple of other obits, and none mentioned the label's future, which can mean anything, but I guess in nowadays world, when you don't have anyone passionate about the music, no news might not exactly be good news.

They have some fine new productions as well, of course - including some very good ones by the Vienna Art Orchestra, recent George Gruntz releases, but also productions by Americans of all ages, ranging from Louis Hayes and Buster Williams to Bubba Brooks (I don't have a single one of those yet alas, was it Dan Gould who once mentioned them favorably here, some years ago?) and Jerome Richardson. But the Swiss Radio Days Jazz Series to me is the main attraction - and it grew fast in the past five or so years, adding some very nice stuff with horrible covers, but ... I'm a big fan of the series!

Wouldn't know anything I'm afraid. But on the outside the label looks too large an undertaking for a one man show. But from all you find on the website, it WAS a one man show, so I do hope it will somehow go on!

I feel similar about those particular recordings, but the trio with Wendell Marshall and Kenny Clarke always did move me some, and Larry's post surely makes me want to check out some of their recordings again (not sure I've ever heard the actual trio album in question, I have definitely have some recordings either with them backing someone or with varying line-ups).

the tracks with Smith/Brown were on this disc (part of the "Verve Elite Edition"):