gmonahan

The point I think I'd travel back in time to isn't a session per se, but that night in January of 1938 at the Savoy ballroom when Count Basie's band fought Chick Webb's. Listening to it, dancing to it, watching everybody else dance to it, being there as each set built on the other one, hearing two of the most legendary bands in the history of the music at their peak. That would really have been something. greg mo

I suppose downloads will continue to improve in quality, but what I'll miss besides excellent sound quality (!) will be other stuff--album covers, liner notes, photos, discographical detail! Also, computer hard drives are very impermanent, but my cds can last a *long* time. 'Course, I realize I'm preaching to the choir here. I went back and looked at the Hubbard RVGs again, and just about all of them have bonus tracks, so typically, I posted before I did the research. Sigh. Age. That's what it is. Or, that's the excuse I'll use today anyway!! (Laziness is too embarrassing!) greg mo

You're probably right Lon, and so is Ubu. Hopeless completist that I am, I was pining for unreleased stuff, alternate takes, that kind of thing. Some of the RVGs have them. Some of them don't. Do you really think cds are done for, even in "specialty" markets like jazz? I love Mosaic, but is that going to be all there is? greg mo

So has anyone been able to get a line on ordering the Grappelli The nearness of you in the US? Dustygroove will probably be the most reasonable when they actually get it in stock, but no guarantee when that will be. I came close to pulling the trigger at Amazon.fr but they wanted 10 Euros shipping, which I thought was a bit steep. (Maybe with the base price being so low it still works out to be reasonable, but if there is a US distributor I'd rather go that way.) I did *exactly* the same thing! Looked at Amazon.fr and decided the shipping was too steep, so I'm waiting for my email notification from Dustygroove that they have it in. I just have to have patience, I guess--not my most notable quality! greg mo I did notice that the shipping didn't go up appreciably when adding 2 or 3 copies of the Grappelli to my cart. I figure I'll wait until spring to see if Dusty gets it in and, if not, then perhaps see if a few folks on the board want to split the shipping. Even after redistributing within the US, there would still be some savings. It works out to about 13 Euros (each) for 2 copies and I think 11 Euros for 3. I just wrote 'em an email whining about it, asking when they might get it in. Maybe it'll motivate them to check up on it. Or maybe not! greg mo

So has anyone been able to get a line on ordering the Grappelli The nearness of you in the US? Dustygroove will probably be the most reasonable when they actually get it in stock, but no guarantee when that will be. I came close to pulling the trigger at Amazon.fr but they wanted 10 Euros shipping, which I thought was a bit steep. (Maybe with the base price being so low it still works out to be reasonable, but if there is a US distributor I'd rather go that way.) I did *exactly* the same thing! Looked at Amazon.fr and decided the shipping was too steep, so I'm waiting for my email notification from Dustygroove that they have it in. I just have to have patience, I guess--not my most notable quality! greg mo

Sure would be nice to see Blue Note reissue all of Freddie Hubbard's sides as a leader as they did some years ago with Herbie Hancock and Dexter Gordon, especially now that the great trumpeter has passed on, but I suppose we'll see the Second Coming first. greg mo

I'm ordering the Goodman and Peterson sets today. What else is money for, anyway?! greg mo

The Evans Rust Box, hands down. Of all the boxes I've ever bought--and I've truly lost count--that one had the worst packaging, the most unreadable text, the dumbest graphics. I long ago repackaged the cds into jewel cases because the *music* is absolutely stunning. Haven't laid eyes on the old box in years. It may have completely rusted away. greg mo

I really like "Above and Beyond" on Metropolitan, recorded live at the Keystone Korner in 1982. Freddie's really on fire on that one (and was quoted as saying "this is my best playing on record"--'course, he might have said that about other records!). Terrible loss. greg mo

And in the *really* old days, occasional journeys to Rose Discount Records in Chicago, with all its LPs numerically arranged by LABEL (and little Schwann catalogs all over the place) and an upstairs floor completely given over to cutouts. The days of my youth! greg mo

Mosaic often reissues labels in batches. In the past there have been batches of Pacific Jazz's, Verves, Roulettes, Capitols, and now Columbias. Blue Note has been a constant, but that surely owes to Cuscuna's long-time association with that label. I imagine this "batching" owes to many factors--personal associations of Mosaic people with individuals at the labels in question, discoveries of one set of recordings when they're searching for others, the ease of negotiating a second, third, or fourth contract once you've gone to the trouble of negotiating a first, or maybe just to a concerted effort to explore labels one at a time. I was happy to hear about the possibility of a live Akiyoshi-Tabackin set. I'm listening to the first disc of the new select as I write this! greg mo

Even without the additions posted after it, this is a very sobering list. greg mo

Nah...Basie-like in his simplicity and economy of notes! greg mo

Bobby Jaspar played some very fine jazz flute, but like others, I love Frank Wess and Sam Most. Wish more of the latter's work for Xanadu was available on cd. greg mo

Complete Jackie McLean Quartet Quintet Sextet Sessions, disc 2. greg mo

Ouch--this one is hard! Basie Live Roulette set (though I love the studio stuff too) Teagarden Capitol set Anita O'Day (though I do love the Herman Phillips Select--sorry Lon!) Greg Mo Fascinating how many lists the O'Day set made.

Hers is still one of my favorite Mosaic sets, and one I return to more often than most of the others. Greg Mo

It may have been mentioned SOMEWHERE on this thread already, but another thing I like about this series is the cover photos, which tend to be great. The one above is a perfect example. An non-musical consideration admittedly, but a nice extra in my book. Actually, I think that has been remarked on, but it bears repeating--the photos are cool, and the remastering is generally very good, even if the timings on some of the cds are pretty stingy, and available bonus tracks weren't always reissued. I'm thinking maybe this new Grappelli single (The Nearness of You) might be a "one-off" like the Django Reinhardt "Place de Brouckere" was. That one also followed the issuing of a box set collecting prior issues by Reinhardt in the series and one disc of new stuff. Interestingly, *that* one was followed by another ten or so volumes in the series, so I guess hope springs eternal! It's a very cool series. Greg Mo

Apologies if I missed it in this rather long but interesting thread, but has anyone mentioned here the sessions he made with, of all people, the Dukes of Dixieland? I was really surprised when I got hold of those fairly recently just how well he played on those, and the sound was outstanding. I think these recordings were discussed (by me, probably!) in another thread, but I think they merit mention in discussions of the great trumpeter's late work. Greg Mo

The first six discs are direct re-releases (no bonus tracks) of six volumes in the series: Oscar Peterson/Stephane Grappelli Quartet, vol. 1 Oscar Peterson/Stephane Grappelli Quartet, vol. 2 Stephane Grappelli, Improvisations Stephane Grappelli Plays Cole Porter Stephane Grappelli and Stuff Smith, Stuff and Steff Stephane Grappelli, Django The seventh one, however, is new. AMG now lists a 2008 release in the Jazz in Paris by Grappelli titled "The Nearness of You" which includes all these tracks. My understanding was that Gitanes had decided to end the series, but this one suggests not. Does anyone know of any other new releases in the series this year?! It's a great series, and I've tried to make sure I have all of them. Greg Mo

Art Tatum's "Tatum Art" on Storyville, disc 2. Some very fine Tatum on this set! Pretty good sound too. Greg Mo

I'm giving it to myself for Christmas, along with the Peterson, and maybe the Braxton sets. Still struggling with whether to get that last one. Greg Mo

A complete set of the Shorty Rogers Victors would be nice. Greg Mo

I wish they'd gone the end-of-the-disc route. According to the blurb accompanying the announcement, that's precisely what they did do, so enjoy! Greg Mo

I can't find it right now, but it seems like we had a thread on this a year or so ago comparing the Collector-Choice with the Columbia (2-disc) set, didn't we? I'd assume that Russell Connor's BG on the Record: A Bio-Discography of Benny Goodman would have the information. You can get it pretty cheap from Amazon. Greg Mo