Larry Kart

The "orchestral" collective work of the rhythm section on the title track virtually defines hard bop IMO; not I think something that was or could have been done before that era, though I suppose you could say that certain New Orleans/Chicago recordings of the late '20s or early '30s (e.g. the Ory-Dodds "Perdido St. Blues") are analogous in some respects. In any case, that aspect of the title track is just amazing, never fails to thrill and delight. If it had been all written out, it would probably would be recognized for the masterly collective "composition" it is, but... Listen, for one thing, to Philly Joe; his groove is subtly, precisely different on every chorus, and he is not alone in this.

A fairly stiff actor in my experience who was effective IMO only when he was playing characters whose iconic physical and emotional rigidities matched his own nature (e.g. in "Touch of Evil" and "El Cid"). Comparing him another famous graduate of New Trier High School in Winnetka, Il. (my alma mater, too), I'd say that Rock Hudson was much the superior performer. In fact there may have been a tradition of beefy stiff guys at New Trier; I believe Ralph Bellamy went there. Of course, all that is cancelled out by a one-time New Trier student who I believe eventually moved on to a private school, Bruce Dern. And don't forget Ann-Margret, who I knew a bit back then and interviewed when she and I were both adults, if either of of us could be said to have reached that state. Not sure into which category she falls.

I was watching Disco Whatever The Hell It Was, and it looked to me like what the drummer was playing did not match what I was hearing. Certainly none of his cymbal strokes were audible, which in itself may not prove anything, but it seemed to me like nothing he did matched up.

He did but IIRC referred to the Rolling Stones as a minstrel act.

MW's sense of the cultural history of the blues may have been derived from others, but it certainly went against the then prevailing celebration of the "folk" blues; MW for one being aware that figures such as, say, Snooks Eaglin, and of course Leadbelly and countless other supposed "folk" bluesmen before Eaglin's time, were in fact hip to (and had been for all their lives) all sorts of contemporary popular and vernacular music, which they recycled as it suited their own and their audiences' needs and tastes. That is, the essential "folkness" of the blues, as the concept was understood and promulgated by so many white writers and fans from the late '50s on, was largely a fiction that served the needs and tastes and fantasies of that audience. Again, MW may not have been a pioneer in detecting the nature of that game, but he certainly was aware of and wrote about it, for which he deserves credit.

Happy, indeed. You deserve it.

I know for a fact that Martin Williams dug Skip James. Why would he not have? After all, Martin was among Ornette's earliest and most stalwart advocates, and Ornette wasn't exactly a button-down collar kind of guy.

Gene Ammons - Sonny Stitt Septet Bill Massey (tp) Bennie Green (tb) Gene Ammons (ts) Sonny Stitt (bars) Duke Jordan (p) Tommy Potter (b) Art Blakey (d) NYC, April 26, 1950 85 Chabootie Prestige 741, PRLP 107, PR 7823, P 24058 86 Who Put The Sleeping Pills (In Rip Van Winkle's Coffee?) Prestige 721, PR 7823 87 Gravy (Walkin') Prestige 717, PRLP 112, PR 7823, P 24058; Fantasy OJCCD 6013-2 88 Easy Glide Prestige PRLP 112, PR 7823, P 24058

As we all know, Carpenter is the "composer" of "Walkin" -- and I am the Queen of Romania. Actually, the Jimmy Mundy connection is interesting here. IIRC the line we know as "Walkin" first cropped up on record as "Gravy" on a Gene Ammons date from the late '40s or early '50s, and it was Mundy's handiwork. That Ammons might have been in Carpenter's clutches for drug-related reasons is likely, but one tends not to think of guys from Mundy's era (b. 1907) and with his long record of steady production as being mixed up with drugs themselves. On the other hand, though he is younger than Mundy, Ernie Wilkins (b. 1922), with a similar rep for pouring out chart after chart, did develop a bad drug habit, from which he fortunately recovered.

Fine show. A truly together band. I particularly like that all the "fun" stuff in the book is also wholly and interestingly musical. Next time, let there be a tuba!

Among other things, there's no way Von could be gone without it being all over the Chicago newspapers, which I see every day. And from there... So I'd like to know how the hell this Steven Briggs guy could have said that. I mean, he didn't even do a Google search?

Irresponsible nonsense.

That was really nice, David -- and I mean nicely done as well as generous. "Jazz a la Kart," though -- eek! On the other hand, there is a 1941 Basie recording "Feather Merchant" (a very good one IIRC, comp. by Jimmy Mundy) that was meant to be a play on Leonard Feather's name (it also was a pre-existing slang term for someone who likes to sleep a lot). Please pardon my penchant for terrible puns (and that one was conscious, as opposed to the many that tumble out of my mouth without thinking), not to mention jests--any possible second volume of your superlative criticism would be worthy of a far better title. Re: "Feather Merchant" (which I've not heard), I'm a bit groggy now from combined cold/afternoon nap/insufficient caffeine, but I think there were a # of instrumentals from the 1940s/50s era that had punning titles along those lines...especially odes to DJs, a topic I once covered on a Night Lights show after Oscar Treadwell passed away. Another one was Sir Charles Thompson's handsome "Robbins' Nest," for DJ Fred Robbins. That post-Lester 1941 edition of the Basie Band (with Don Byas on tenor) was so fine -- "Harvard Blues," "Fiesta in Blue," "Down Down Down," "Feather Merchant" et al. BTW, has there ever been much examination of Jimmy Mundy's work? "Feather Merchant" and "Fiesta in Blue" are both his. Born 1907, died 1983, Mundy wrote a lot of fine stuff for a lot of bands (Goodman, Hines, Basie, James, et al.), but I don't have a good sense of what it all amounts to, probably because he mostly wrote for other people (he briefly had his own band), and I think he did so for a rather long time. Among his compositions is "Travelin' Light." I see now that Schuller refers positively to Mundy in many places in "The Swing Era," but I'd still like to see a comprehensive estimate of his work and style.

Yes, they're different, but both are worth hearing.

Gotta ask, Larry, how did this stuff strike you in "real time", late 60s/early 70s? I mean, in the midst of Trane, Miles, AACM, and all the other "forward" music being made (and all the "stationary" music still being made quite well), wasn't a Buddy Rich big band sort of..."besides the point" for somebody with your vantage point? And I mean no disrespect by that, because even though this was the time of my "awakening" to jazz, and all that/this plus more was already out there and it really did seem like "all the same music" then (and GOD what a beautifully messy crowded pool it was!), it didn't take too long to prioritize personally, and yeah, I too am being a little pleasantly surprised at how, now that the stadium is mostly deserted and the standings pretty much finalized, some of this stuff is still hanging on to play a few more innings before retiring to the clubhouse to empty out the locker and go home, even though its hard to say why. Truthfully, I heard almost none of this stuff at the time for just the reason you give -- "in the midst of Trane, Miles, AACM, and all the other "forward" music being made (and all the "stationary" music still being made quite well), wasn't a Buddy Rich big band sort of..."besides the point" for somebody with your vantage point?" I wish that it weren't so, but we all have our limitations, and/or we pay for not paying enough attention. I'm sure that if I had heard the band much at the time, I would be reacting to it as I am now. I wasn't the only one, though. I recall a vintage Litweiler review of something or other in which in passing he heaps disdain on the Woody Herman Phillips-era band, referring to it (I'm dimly paraphrasing here) as a virtual ghost band that was blatantly defacing First and Second Herd material. I'd say this was a version of the attitude (very common in some elistist circles -- see Max Harrison in particular) that found the '50s/'60s Basie band to be a vulgar betrayal of the '30s band, with the added edge that the Herman Phillips band was, or might be thought of as, playing to audiences made up mostly of older, nostalgic-minded white people. It was a hard time to remain sane, at times; there was so much "sheep versus goats" stuff in the air. BTW, I mention Litweiler's jibe not because he was prone to making such remarks (he wasn't at all) but because I remember that one and it startled me at the time. Geez, when I was young and snotty I said something snotty in print in passing (in passing is often how those things happen) about Gigi Gryce's alto playing that I expect I'll have to account for at the edge of the River Styx. The thought that Gryce himself may have read it makes me cringe.

Sangery's "My Organissimo Life" takes precedence.

That was really nice, David -- and I mean nicely done as well as generous. "Jazz a la Kart," though -- eek! On the other hand, there is a 1941 Basie recording "Feather Merchant" (a very good one IIRC, comp. by Jimmy Mundy) that was meant to be a play on Leonard Feather's name (it also was a pre-existing slang term for someone who likes to sleep a lot).

Shoot me, but I always thought that Chick's use of this device was among the silliest things imaginable, though I didn't and don't feel that way when it's a guitarist. In part it's because it sounds so cheesy on a synthesizer (if indeed that's the correct term for what Chick is playing here), but it's also that for me there's such a vast difference between bending a string and twisting a dial, especially when Chick would scrunch up his face and shoulders body while doing so.

Thanks, Allen, but you're making it difficult for me to leave the house anymore.

This one is just sick: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rm-A6bGhiE...feature=related One of the tenor soloists here is Pat LaBarbera; anoyne know who the other guy is? Loved the video with the B-3. Looks like I've got a lot of PJ Rich albums to catch up on.

Some very nice James here, "A Taste of Honey" from the Ed Sullivan Show: I love to watch James play, a quintessential trumpet guy. Swinging drummer, too -- Tony DiNicola.

I'm knocked out by the sound of Buddy's drums on these clips and obviously that could be just because he was miked nicely. But I suspect it may be more than that, so does any drum maven know whether or how much Rich switched brands over the years and what he was playing at this time (the Pacific Jazz albums era). In the back of my mind, I remember Rich print ads for Ludwig in Down Beat.

Can ya' help a slow-witted bruther out on this one, Dan? Sultry...

Thanks for bumping this thread up... I definitely have to find a copy of this book. Copies are easily found at low prices : http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/030...2462&sr=1-1 I believe the Jazz Record Mart also has a bunch at a bargain price. Mike: Glad you liked the introductory chapter. I wrote that last, in a somewhat intoxicated (by the fumes of my brain going up in smoke) state.