Chrome

Based on my experiences here, I would bet somebody could turn up info on what Miles' band mates thought of his playing, etc. ... kind of an expert opinion on the matter.

Vincent: Thanks for that interview ... fascinating/slightly depressing ... and a very prescient comment at the end there about Michael Jackson!

Hopefully, this won't be a problem in 2004.

Speaking of Clifford, how 'bout Brown/Roach live at Basin Street ... (I know about the record, but I'd still like to have seen it!)

For me, this is the definitive take on Davis ... it's easy to argue about the different specific aspects of his playing (his tone, his chops, etc.), but he had something that was greater than the sum of of the parts. On the other hand, I think the fact that he has become a "name brand" does prevent some critical thinking about his music, at least among some people. (This is not aimed at posters here.)

I really enjoy this multi-instrumentalist's sideman work, and love his "Roamin' with Richardson" disc ... any recommendations?

Let's see, axe in one hand, some kind of bag in another ... what exactly was this guy doing?

I also understand (seriously) leeches are again being used in some medical contexts.

Just finished a John Updike story collection ... "The Music School." I had forgotten what an incredible writer he can be.

I think this is out of print, but "Joyride" is pretty cool ... it features Turrentine in an all-star big band context (Herbie Hancock, Phil Woods, other people who I can't remember right now).

While it may be hard to pick one Mingus disc as his "best," I'm blown away to see anyone consider this as his "worst."

Jazzmoose ... I have to admit, it was a close call ... but I managed to avoid temptation.

Coincidentally, I'm eating a frozen thin mint right now! Got two boxes yesterday and put 'em straight into the freeze. I wonder how much $$ they make on these things ...

------------------------------------------------------- CBS apologizes for OutKast performance Some saw Indian-themed number as racist Monday, February 16, 2004 Posted: 10:15 AM EST (1515 GMT) LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- CBS television issued a new round of apologies, this time for any offense taken at the American Indian-motif Grammy Awards performance by the hip-hop group OutKast that some Native Americans have condemned as racist. The San Francisco-based Native American Cultural Center posted a notice on its Web site last week calling for a boycott of CBS, OutKast's label Arista Records, and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which sponsors the Grammys. "It was the most disgusting set of racial stereotypes aimed at American Indians that I have ever seen on TV," NACC board member Sean Freitas said in the online statement. "It was on par with white people dancing sexually in black face, or yarmulkes ... I am shocked and outraged." NACC Chair Andrew Brother Elk said he has lodged a formal complaint with the Federal Communications Commission over the telecast, which he branded as "racist TV programming." A little more than two weeks ago, CBS came under fire from the FCC for the breast-baring Super Bowl halftime performance by Janet Jackson on the Viacom Inc.-owned network. "We are very sorry if anyone was offended," CBS spokeswoman Nancy Carr said when asked about the NACC boycott. She declined to comment further. The performance in question came near the end of the Grammy telecast last Sunday night, as OutKast singer Andre "3000" Benjamin, dressed as a Native American, led a show-stopping dance number built around the hit song "Hey Ya!" The piece opened with the sound of drums and smoke wafting from a teepee-shaped structure before a group of female dancers emerged to bump and grind in skimpy, fringed costumes, braided hair and feathered headdresses. They were accompanied on stage by members of a university marching band. Benjamin told reporters backstage afterward that the number was meant as an American Indian-inspired performance. OutKast went home with three Grammys that night, including the coveted prize of best album for its hit double-CD release "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below." ----------------------------------------------------------------

I seem to recall some Joyce fans around here ... some of this stuff reminds me of the thread about people who "get" late era Coltrane. The concern over whether some people are just pretending to like it, etc. I can say I didn't quite get "Ulysses" ... it seems more important for the technical stream-of-consciousness style than for the content itself. (FYI: The Roddy Doyle novel mentioned below, "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha," was fantastic, but I would exactly call it a comedy.) Joyce's 'Ulysses' Under Fire in Centenary Year Wed Feb 11, 9:37 AM ET By Gideon Long DUBLIN (Reuters) - James Joyce's "Ulysses," regarded by many as the greatest novel of the 20th century and by some as the finest work ever written in English, is under attack. As Ireland gears up to celebrate the centenary of Bloomsday -- the day in June 1904 on which the novel is set -- some disgruntled writers and columnists say they are sick to death of the impenetrable book and its cult following. By elevating him to the status of literary God, Joyce's fans are doing other Irish writers a disservice and creating a "Joyce industry" which has more to do with tourism and money-making than literature, they say. Roddy Doyle, author of comic best-seller "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha" and the screenplay for the hit film "The Commitments," opened the literary Pandora's Box last week with a scathing attack on Ulysses and its devoted followers. "Ulysses could have done with a good editor," Doyle told a literary gathering in New York. "People are always putting Ulysses in the top 10 books ever written, but I doubt that any of those people were really moved by it." Continuing his attack in an Irish newspaper interview at the weekend, Doyle said Joyce's legacy cast a long and pernicious shadow over Irish literary life. "If you're a writer in Dublin and you write a snatch of dialogue, everyone thinks you lifted it from Joyce," he said. "It's as if you're encroaching on his area...it gets on my nerves." Doyle's comments struck a chord with populists. Writing in the Irish Times Wednesday, columnist Kevin Myers described Ulysses as "one of the most unproductive cul-de-sacs in literary history." "It is about 400,000 words long, which is probably about 250,000 words too many," he complained. A NOVEL WITHOUT A PLOT? Journalist Sean Moncrieff, writing in the Irish Examiner, said Ulysses would never see the light of day if written now. "What happens in Ulysses?" he asked. "Well, not much. Bloom has breakfast. Goes to a funeral. Wanders around Dublin a bit. Stephen Dedalus does the same. Gets pissed (drunk) and makes a fool of himself. They both go home." "Send that plot outline to any modern publisher and see how far you get." But Joyce's fans hit back. "It's unfair to say that no one is moved by Ulysses," said Helen Monaghan, director of the James Joyce Center, a museum in Dublin dedicated to the writer and his works. "Many people enjoy Joyce's work and are moved by it." "Our aim has always been to create an awareness and understanding of Joyce's work," she told Reuters, saying everyone, not just intellectuals, could find pleasure in Joyce's daunting prose. Ulysses is widely regarded as one of the most inaccessible works in English literature. Stuffed full of meandering, unpunctuated sentences, classical references, snatches of song and even the occasional diagram, it tells the story of advertising salesman Leopold Bloom's wander around Dublin on June 16, 1904. Toward the end of the book, Bloom meets Stephen Dedalus, an aspiring young writer modeled partly on Joyce himself. The novel's plot is minimal and the beauty of the book, for its fans, lies in Joyce's ostentatious use of language. Thousands of people flock to Dublin on June 16 each year to retrace Bloom's footsteps, and this year the celebrations will be bigger than ever. Some 10,000 people are expected to savor a Bloomsday breakfast on Dublin's O'Connell Street and there will be dozens of readings, Joyce-inspired art exhibitions and other Ulysses-related events in the city over the coming months.

Jim Thompson is an awesome noir writer ... check out "The Grifters" (made into the John Cusack movie), "Pop. 1280," "After Dark My Sweet" (made into a pretty decent movie but I can't remember who stars in it ... Bruce Dern?), "A Hell of a Woman."

I came to them a little later ... I have Oranges and Lemons, as well as Nonsuch ... I love their poppier songs (Mayor of Simpleton, Peter Pumpkinhead, President Kill Again, Madame Barnum), but, IMHO, they get a little too "precious" on some of their other stuff.

Thanks, Jazzbo.

That diagram was pretty cool, especially for me as a non-drummer ... is the "wheeled console" thing a structural piece that holds the kit together? Or is it some part of what actually gets played?

Although I've got them all separately, I'm pretty sure BMG offered them together in the some kind of "Complete Prestige" set. Pretty much a four-way tie for me.

Exactly ... the real story is Ken is going to move to Massachusetts ...

Slooooow news day ... It's splitsville for Barbie and Ken Couple 'will remain friends,' says Mattel Thursday, February 12, 2004 Posted: 1:06 PM EST (1806 GMT) NEW YORK (AP) -- Just like J.Lo and Ben, the romance is over for Barbie and Ken. After 43 years as one of the world's prettiest pairs, the perfect plastic couple is breaking up. The couple's "business manager," Russell Arons, vice president of marketing at Mattel, said that Barbie and Ken "feel it's time to spend some quality time -- apart." "Like other celebrity couples, their Hollywood romance has come to an end," said Arons, who quickly added that the duo "will remain friends." Arons denied that there was any truth to rumors that the breakup was linked to the Cali (as in California) Girl Barbie, arriving in stores now. To better reflect her single status, Cali Barbie will wear board shorts and a bikini top, metal hoop earrings, and have a deeper tan. This new style already has attracted a new admirer, Blaine the Australian boogie boarder. Barbie -- the most popular fashion doll in the world, according to toy maker Mattel -- met Ken on the set of a TV commercial in 1961, and they have been inseparable ever since. Arons hinted Wednesday that the separation may be partially due to Ken's reluctance to getting married. All those bridal Barbie dolls in toy chests around the globe are really just examples of Barbie's wishful thinking, she explained. Another possible factor is Barbie's career. The doll who was "born" Barbie Millicent Roberts in 1959 has been everything from a rock star to military medic, and she's currently marketed in more than 150 countries. According to Mattel, every second, three Barbie dolls are sold somewhere in the world. So where does that leave Ken? Said Arons: "He will head for other waves."

Thanks for the lyrics 7/4 ... when I read the review and everything I thought she was pulling a Liz Phair ... anyone familiar with the following song off her newest disc? Note: parental guidance suggested! ---------------------------------------------- H.W.C. give it to me, don't give it away don't think about what the others say my skin's getting clear, my hair's so bright all you do it fuck me every day and night you're my secret beauty routine na na na na, what my body has seen i am looking good and i'm feeling nice baby you're the best magazine advice give me your hot white cum give me your hot white cum give me your hot white cum i'm gonna throw you back down between the sheets everything is fresher when the day is sweet in the morning light when you're already on the phone face it one of these days without you i'm just another dorian gray it's the fountain of youth, it's the meaning of life so hot, so sweet, so whet my appetite give me your hot white cum give me your hot white cum give me your hot white cum face it one of these days without you i'm just another dorian gray it's the fountain of youth, it's the meaning of life baby you're the best magazine advice give me your hot white cum give me your hot white cum give me your hot white cum --------------------------------------- No room for confusion there ... and, JS, no room for maturity or self control here!