Teasing the Korean

We saw them at Birdland this past June. They played The Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite.

https://www.stereogum.com/2293122/100-year-old-sun-ra-arkestra-leader-marshall-allen-announces-debut-solo-album/music/

Freedom Now-We Insist, accompanied by live TV coverage on mute.

I think the entire first season and the second season through the solving of the Laura Palmer murder are fantastic, the best thing he ever did, along with Blue Velvet. The post-Laura Palmer episodes of season two had little David Lynch involvement.

The angriest - or Sangreyest - dog in the world!

😿 https://variety.com/2025/film/news/david-lynch-dead-director-blue-velvet-twin-peaks-1236276106/

If '70s U.S. TV scoring meets your criteria for "good," then yes.

This morning, I bought this and received the download link via e-mail instantly. Based on what I'm hearing thus far, I would describe this as a combination lush orchestral exotica with TV cop show funk beds, seasoned with synths, electric piano, and Latin percussion. Lots of moody dramatic passages along the way. It is stereo, but there is distortion on some tracks. It may have been mastered from Gil's personal copy. A few tracks with that dated, high-pitched synth "ping" sound that was in vogue on funk records circa 1980.

Late to the party. I only recently learned that California Soul by Tamba 4 was finally released. If you missed on the LP, you can waddle over to Qobuz and buy a lossless download. Also: I have the Tamba 4 version of "California Soul" on a bossa comp, and the first time I heard it, with the vocals, I thought it was from the Gabor Szabo/Gary McFarland album!

https://buysoundtrax.myshopify.com/collections/dragons-domain-records-1/products/gold-of-the-amazon-women-original-soundtrack-by-gil-melle Just listened to the audio samples. This is right up my alley.

Not jazz per se, but possibly jazz-adjacent, depending on your politics: Dionne Warwick complete 1960s Scepter singles, a 3-CD set. Every A- & B-side. Nearly all Bacharach/David (until you get to the final tracks) and nearly all mono (until you get to the final tracks). Lots of titles I don't recognize, generally the B-sides.

This album has eluded me, though I know the cover art. I will check it out. I generally like Russ Garcia's arrangements. In what way would you say the results are variable?

Love this album, but I never thought of it as a "with strings" album stylistically. Granted, it has strings.

June Christy - This Time of Year (Capitol, mono)

Stan Kenton/Ralph Carmichael - A Merry Christmas (Capitol, stereo)

Shearing (two versions), Billy May, Four Freshmen (recentish lineup).

Thanks! It seems that "Snowfall" was kind of forgotten for a long time. I'm glad it has had a resurgence of sorts in recent decades. Even Mike Nesmith recorded a version!

From the creators of Danger Five, Italian Spiderman is a dead-on parody of 60s/70s low-budget, foreign market knockoffs of US franchises.

Twinings English Breakfast tea with honey. Three teabags in a huge mug.

Santa brought me this box set this year! Currently listening while watching the train go around the tree.

And then tell us all that bagpipe music is thriving, despite compelling evidence to the contrary.

"Often very good" refers to the nature of the assignments that composers were given, and not necessarily the quality of the work itself. The albums were organized thematically. If Chappell needed a bagipe album for scenes depicting Scotland, that's what the composer delivered. So, If the Chappell bagpipe album is not in high demand, that's only because bagpipe music isn't in high demand. (No offense to our Scottish contingent, if we have one.)

Except that libraries hired and paid real composers, arrangers, and musicians, and the results were often very good. Hence the collectibility of certain records. I really don't care what Spotify does. I don't use it. If people don't like Spotify, cancel your subscriptions.

For me, Coltrane pairs well with trippy visuals.

The saddest Christmas album ever made: Jackie Gleason - Merry Christmas (Capitol, mono)