Dave James

Regarding the Winter Classic. http://www.mlive.com/redwings/index.ssf/2012/09/report_nhl_will_cancel_winter.html

Agreed. Portland has always been a hockey town. Not just the Buckaroos and the Winter Hawks but way back to the Rose Buds, a team that was here as early as 1914 and that actually played for a Stanley Cup against the Montreal Canadiens in 1916. From the mid-40's to the early '50's, Portland's team was called either the Eagles or the Penguins. And, speaking of the Penguins, Portland came within an eyelash of landing the Pittsburgh franchise in the late '80's. Only an eleventh hour compromise between Mario Lemieux and the city of Pittsburgh prevented the team from moving West. Needless to say, the biggest problem with getting an NHL team here is ownership. Too bad Paul Allen has zero interest in hockey. That pretty much means that the team would have to be locally owned or moved from another city. The chances of that happening, regardless of the support an NHL team would have here, are pretty slim.

If things aren't settled within about a month of the Winter Classic, I'm afraid the season will be lost. This game has become such an integral part of the NHL's image that it has to be the driving force behind any kind of settlement. The league knows this and so do the players. That's especially true this year since the WC is to be played at the 105,000 seat BIg House in Ann Arbor.

Years ago I had something just like this on my TD-125. For whatever reason, they disappeared. I remember looking around for one a couple of years ago when I got all my old stereo stuff back up to code. I found one but the guy wanted over $100. No way. Good to see they're back. They do serve a purpose although $60 is still pretty steep for what amounts to a small piece of plastic and a lever.

Hope you had a good one Dan. It's been a long year for a Yankee fan, but for a Sox fan, it must've been an eternity.

I wasn't even aware that a film about Nina Simone was in the works, but I guess the casting of Zoe Saldana (whoever that is) in the lead role has got folks up in arms. Here's the NYT article about the movie and the controversy. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/13/movies/should-zoe-saldana-play-nina-simone-some-say-no.html

I think the last Mosaic I bought was maybe a couple of years ago. That's not to say I haven't had the urge, but not enough of one to go looking for my credit card. That may change with the release of the Chick Webb/Ella Fitzgerald box. IMO, there can't be too much Chick Webb in the world. That guy swung so hard it was borderline dangerous.

Yes.

Seems to me if this doesn't happen all the time, you'd have to look someplace other than your stylus or phono pre-amp.. It wouldn't make sense that a problem like this would be selective, i.e. it would be happening every time you played a record.

What he said.

Jimmy Jones, jazz pianist extraordinaire and Jimmy Jones, R&B singer most famous for his 1960 hit Handy Man.

I don't know what specific records you're playing, but there have been problems in the past with cymbals that were recorded "too hot". This results in the sort of splashy, distorted sound you describe, especially with the sock cymbal. I know some of the tracks on the Blue Note Tina Brooks LP set have that problem. Point being, you may be having an issue with the recording itself rather than something mechanical or electronic. Try rolling off the treble and the midrange to see if that makes the recordings any more palatable.

Probably my favorite Don Cherry recording. Nice, straight-up jazz. Unlike some of Cherry's more exploratory outings, this is an easy listen. I haven't spun it in years, but I know the tenor player was James Clay. Kind of an odd choice considering that 3/4 of the band were Ornette vets. I'll have to give it a listen sometime soon. It was part of an A&M Records series called American Jazz Masters or something like that. That series included albums from artists as diverse as Gerry Mulligan and Sun Ra.

Dewey and Elvis. A little history behind an interesting and, apparently not so successful, relationship, http://www.elvis-history-blog.com/dewey-phillips.html

I'm not generally a fan of films like "Kick Ass", but this really worked for me. The whole thing was one gigantic hoot. I usually make it a point to avoid anything that involves Nicholas Cage, but even he was perfect in this role. I think what differentiated this from other films in this genre was that it never took itself too seriously. Two Z snaps.

The only thing I ever saw him in was The Green Mile, but he left an indelible impression. He had some kind of screen presence. RIP.

How hard would it have been to find just a slightly better picture of Johnny Coles?

My all-time favorite John Wayne film and one of Gene Pitney's more memorable songs. I never thought about it not actually being in the film. Interesting. Am I the only one who hears a lot of Do You Know The Way To San Jose in that one? NIce song. Wonder how many the guy wrote in his lifetime?

Imagine thousands of bombs this size raining down in a concentrated area of one city in Germany in just one evening during WWII. Then imagine it happening all over again the next day.

New York Times article. One of the truly great writers. RIP. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2012/09/01/us/ap-us-obit-hal-david.html?_r=1&hpw

All these plays are stupid for sure, but none of them come close to what happened in the 1954 Cotton Bowl game between Rice and Alabama. Dickie Maegle, Rice's All-American halfback, ran for 265 yards and scored three times, but that's not what people remember, What do they remember? Check it out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoCf3WqVyx4

I know it isn't a Verve recording, but I'm partial to the Blue Note album Bobo did with Herbie Hancock called Inventions & Dimensions. I haven't listened to it in years, but I recall a song called Mimosa that has a bit of a Ceora feel to it. I know it was a particular favorite of mine. I believe this same album was released under Bobo's name as Succotash. I'm pretty sure I have it on vinyl someplace.

Someone smart enough to realize that people like yourself will react by spreading the word. Incredibly poor taste (the owner claims he didn't understand the ramifications) but since the store is located in India, I'm not sure how relevant it is with respect to "spreading the word".

I'm convinced that this is Ornette Coleman.