fasstrack

Thanks. I love Chris. I've known him 20 years. He's a very special person and musician. He turns 80 in September. Keep a good thought

I decided I don't want much to do with that joint. What a bunch of stiff-ass MFs. I will not deal with people with no sense of humor. It's against my religion. Some very good writers are there, though, like Tom Storer, Ron Thorne, Gary Cisco, and the hilarious Scott Dolan. He just doesn't give a fuck. I love it! I made the mistake of, as a joke, telling a guy who signed everything 'Cheers' 'fuck Cheers. I say Potrezebie' and he got all offended and shit. Plus I already picked up a personal troll, which took like, what, six minutes? I think they don't deserve my heartfelt stream-of-consciousness reflections, razor-sharp wit, and legendary humility. Organissimo does. This is da joint. People are very jazz-savvy here and generally are higher caliber, plus funny as hell. A place like that you go on for gig announcements or maybe once in a while to tout an underrated musician you believe in. Wallowing in the muck on the web ain't my idea of a good time generally. Over there it's pitiful. Organissimo RULES!!

Thank you. I've been having this argument with 20-somethings on another site. They contend that the bit-rate is adjustable. I think they've, sheeplike, been sold a bill of goods and Mp3s and especially MDs sound like shit. But then I'm an old fart who still listens to LPs. Hey! I just heard! Lucky Lindy made it!!

I'll grab him from behind and you guys start tickling him.

Is there gonna be a fight here, or are y'all just having fun? Because I don't have the stomach for fights. I'm sort of a de facto paper lion. I make strong statements then when it gets heavy I say 'oh shit, what did I do? Who needs this?' I am fascinated by human behavior and the web is as good a place as any to sort of parse it, but I really like playing more. Music and friendship have always gone together for me. They are salve and a salvation. What the hell did I start here? Not a war, I hope. tell me you're joking, guys.

BTW. the NSA was just here looking for you. Thanks, guys for letting me be a dick and realizing I'm usually only kidding. On the serious tip, this guy Tarik is in some very deep water. In jail 14 months for the 'crime' of talking too much, the Bush/Cheney/Rummy crowd are determined to keep him in stir as an 'example' for a long time to come. Maybe a thread should be started here since people are a lot cooler than on JC. Yo, Jimmy, Joe, et. al IS THIS THE BADDEST JAZZ FORUM ON THE WEB OR FRICKIN' WHAT? CAN I GET AN AMEN, SOMEBODY? Shit, i think the heat is getting to me.....

This is too funny: http://jazzcornertalk.com/ (go to the thread about Tarik Shah, an old acquaintence now in jail pursuant to the Patriot Act). (Spoken in voice of Zero Mostel in 'The Producers movie') How do they find me? It must be me. I should see them coming and head 'em off at the pass by not responding. I admit I say edgy things, but jeez do I bring out the wingnuts.....

Joel, I put that link in there so you might check out some previous comments about the side. I just wanted to let you know that many here agree that it is indeed great. No implied message or scolding, just trying to help. Sorry if it didn't come across that way. And here I am. a former librarian (I swear). Impatience runs in my family. I think we all grew up in the same Ritalin test kit. Anyway, Kenny sounded beautiful and so did all the cats. Nice versions of My Little Brown Book and excerpts from Jump For Joy. Compared to Ellington rehashes by certain, ahem, big shots today this love letter by the Maestro's favorite guitarist is the real deal.

Thanks, but who has time for all that? I just wanted to say something and not go through all this. I hear what you're saying BTW, but did you ever think that a topic in more than one place at once may give multiple opportunities for exposure to said topic? Just a thought.

Good for him. Take it to the people! George is a trooper. I respect the shit out of him for sticking to his guns. He believes in his playing even when others don't. I've known him for years, not well but we hit more than once over 20+ years. George is a rebel and original player based in real musical things and has the spirit of jazz all through him.

Gimme a break. What, I'm gonna search 2,000 threads to see if someone said it first? Can we talk about Kenny and Duke, please? Anybody?

Lazaro: The basics of jazz are important. And they are widely felt. When I went to Holland in '01 I heard so many fine players, the greatest among them the tenor player Ferdinand Povel. He's just beautiful, period. I think where the 'police' go wrong is 'overtelling'. When it starts swinging your feet will tell you. You don't need a wag. But writers and other assorted wags need a gig, I guess. As far as the European jazz tradition I've heard so much about (but didn't get to sample it in the Hague, as the folks I met there are into bebop and standards) they have every right to it. Who the hell are we to tell them how to play their jazz or do anything. There's a line where pride ends and arrogance begins. We don't even have to get into how American smugness is viewed worldwide. It is despicable. Jazz is an international language. People from all cultures swing. I've heard it with my own ears. The Europeans were swinging in the 30s. Django and Stephan and on and on. They knew this was a great thing and wanted to get in on it. And they were loved in the states. Also Europeans have embraced our music and sheltered our musicians for so long we coud be a hell of a lot less snotty toward their contributions. I don't blame them one iota for being pissed or defensive. Also they have their own culture and traditions that we have borrowed liberally from. Try playing jazz music without harmony or form and see how far you get. And don't tell me about free jazz. Those guys have their patterns and cliches too, just like straight-ahead guys do. Also, I bet European 'home-grown' jazz is as good or bad as any other music---depending on the level of artistry of those involved, or lack thereof. A no-brainer. I don't know what they sound like in Norway, never having been there. But I bet had Charlie Parker heard their music, his ears and creative spirit being as big as they were, he would've encouraged the fuck out of them. I finally heard Mangelsdorff after he passed away thanks to the efforts of programmers at WKCR FM here in NY---true jazz devotees and disseminators. What a monster! He could play some serious bebop and swing and whatever else he got into he got into. It took balls. Good for him. Finally, regarding my own ignorance, guys were talking about Jiggs Whiggam in Holland. I didn't even know who he was. Reminds me of the title of Oscar Levant's autobiog: A Smattering of Ignorance.....

Last time I put something there it was moved elsewhere. What's the dif, anyway, as long as people remember the music?

I finally listened to the whole thing. (4 sides of an LP is what I have). It is wonderful. One of Kenny's shining hours and great work also by Thad Jones, Snooky Young, Mel Lewis (percussion!), Ernie Andrews, et. al. The ensembles are beautifully underplayed also. A total labor of love.

I think I screwed that joke up. Nixon pardoned Hoffa saying 'his own kind will get him anyway', right? Or maybe he did sing after all and that's why he's holding up the pavement in such upstanding fashion today.

And to think if Jimmy Hoffa would've himself 'sung' the Meadowlands would be a hell of a different place today...

Borrowing and burning illegal copies of in-print music surely isn't helping anyone - the artists, the labels, or the mom and pop stores... I know. It's wrong as hell. I do buy once in a while, usually to support my friends. I bought Warren Vache's project with strings (Don't Look Back, Arbor) because it's great music, Warren is Warren, and two of my friends, Bill Finegan and James Chirillo wrote most of it. But I bought it on the web. Why? Amazon had it for 6 friggin' dollars and change. I'm poorer than my students, you see. But I also bought two books from a local bookseller because the woman is a mensch and has live readings by local authors and makes nothing on it. I guess I do what i can when I can. If I had the means I'd spend much of my money supporting the arts and those disseminating them.

I think this choice overkill thing is all very true and actually has been one of the maddening aspects of capitalism in the US of A for many years now. I remember reading an article as far back as the 60s in Life or another mag of the day about how people's eyes were glazed over by toothpaste choices. Not to mention they were unrelentingly preyed upon by ad campaigns of the individual makers. The middle to lower classes always went with the lower cost option while the rich maybe were happy to have choices. This is still true as when I teach my affluent students and ask them what tune they want to learn in a flash they're hitting iTunes at 99c a pop. I'm sure they download plenty for free too, though. The lower income kids don't have those options to buy and you know they're working other angles. I feel as badly for brick-and-mortar store owners as I do for myself and my colleagues re the future of live music. But if we sit on our asses we will perish. We have to educate and adapt. Maybe those of us selling CDs on CD baby can sell individual tracks like the pop guys do. I'm sure the smarter ones are doing it already. But we should support the store owner too, especially the little guy. I don't buy many CDs anymore, mostly because of burning from the library and especially, sad to say, there's hardly any new product in jazz that's that appealing to me. Older players mostly. But I will try to do something about that, take a chance once in a while. Finally, it's CDs, not CD's---isn't it? Maybe i'm wrong. I think not, though. I admit to being obsessive but inappropriate apostrophes kind of annoy the crap out of me. Like 'Falafel's $4.00' Grrr

"This is the Sheriff. Everyone is to stay inside their homes and await official instructions. A twister is heading this way. Do you hear me, a twister! This is the Sheriff. Over and out"

Good of you guys who cyberhate each other here to seemingly forego a food fight. (One guy did complain about another to me privately. I politely begged off involvement, telling him I had to go get my ass hair waxed or something). When I muse like this on another forum usually 5 posts or so in the finger pointing starts. One or two (always the same, naturally) start in on me, saying I'm the pot calling the kettle black. Then the lurkers with a hardon for a fight start rubbing the salt and the fun begins. Cruisin' for a bruisin'. It really cracked me up on the infamous Crouch thread at that 'other forum' how after Stanley split everyone who wanted a piece of him started in on each other. it's still going on, I think. One guy from here even took me to task for not remembering what I accidently deleted to repost it so he could get his jollies. Another guy was goading me to beat up on Stanley after I went too far and apologized. MF wanted to witness a brawl so bad and I let him down, poor baby. I said 'I guess you're gonna hold my coat, huh?" People wasting that much time on the web need to get a life. Hey, I'm people It's cool when we're taking care of business. If not----re-evaluation and remediation beckon.

Can I hear Jerry, Rudy and the cats? Do you archive for a week or so?

What ever became of Joel? Haven't seen him or even his name in years. Nice cat. If you see him say Joel Fass says hello. Leroy I saw 2 weeks ago. He's a Barry Harris person and we're all family.

Bill Elder, wasn't it? he and george Woodbridge ruled. They were kings of 'zine illustration.

Ronnie was her name.

That's probably what it was. Hey, we straightened that out without a food fight! Such nice boys. A kiss on the keppalah from grandma for each of you.