Edward

I also received my discs today - thanks, David!

I received a shipping notice on the "Secret Sessions" and Art Pepper Hollywood All-Star sets this morning, so I am a happy camper. I conducted a few searches on Amazon for boxed sets from the Fantasy family of labels, and I found a few other great deals from the folks at Newbury that may not have been mentioned already: Booker T. & The MG's - Time Is Tight (3-CD) - $9.99 Ella Fitzgerald - The Concert Years (Pablo 4-CD) - $9.99 Art Pepper - The Complete Village Vanguard Sessions (9-CD) - $49.99 Lu Watters - The Complete Good Time Jazz Recordings (4-CD) - $19.99 Howls, Raps & Roars (4-CD) - $15.99 The Stax Story (4-CD) - $14.99 Hopefully, one or more of these will prove of interest to some here on this board.

Thanks for the tip, guys. I already have "The Last Waltz", but I grabbed (hopefully) a copy of "The Secret Sessions" ($39.99) and the Art Pepper Hollywood All-Stars set ($19.99).

I have sent PM's regarding: Al Caiola, "Serenade in Blue" The Modern Jazz Quartet, "The Quartet" Jackie and Roy, "Jazz Classics" Thanks!

Thanks for posting this link. The results largely comport with my experience.

Congratulations to Kansas and its fans. (I am certainly not a Jayhawks fan, but I do not like Calipari.)

They looked better in the second (or did UCLA just look worse?) Congratulations to Memphis. I hope that you win your pool, Soulstation1.

FWIW, I had not been a Barnes & Noble member when I received the e-mail with the link to the coupon yesterday morning. Also, the sales associates at the store that I visited told me that several other customers had used the coupon earlier that day. A lot of people seem to be unaware of this coupon, which is a good thing for those of us who are.

I forgot to mention that this coupon is good through this Sunday (3/30).

I received this coupon via e-mail this morning, and I am a little surprised that no one here appears to have made mention of it yet. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/email/nav.as...1&PID=22146 The coupon is good for an additional 40% off every CD (including boxed sets - no quantity limits) purchase at Barnes and Noble stores. If a CD is already on sale (if it is, the discount usually will be 10%), then the 40% discount is applied after the 10% discount has been applied. The same mechanics are used if you have a Barnes and Noble card (entitling you to a 10% discount on all purchases.) I had the chance to swing by one of the two Barnes and Noble stores in my area that has a music section, and I was able to grab seven RCA Living Stereo SACD hybrids for a price of $7.01 each plus tax. There was not much in the jazz section (I had just about all of the better titles, and bought only "The Oscar Peterson Trio at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival'), but there were quite a few good boxed sets available: the two recent John Coltrane boxed sets from Prestige, a fair number of Rhino sets, and quite a few classical collections. I guess that we will soon be seeing the end of music sections at Barnes and Noble stores.

PM sent on the Lou Levy title.

Not that it changes anything, but it does appear that Sloan was fouled on that last drive. Maybe the resulting free throws would have tied the game and forced overtime, but it doesn't matter I guess. The first picture below is from the LA Times, who also acknowledge that it looked like a clear foul. edit - I've read that the NCAA took away that last slam dunk bucket from UCLA today. So the final was 51-49. Good luck to the Bruins the rest of the way. I think this may turn out to have been their toughest test. It would be hard to argue with those photos. I hate when games are potentially decided by bad calls/non-calls down the stretch. Sloan was not a terribly good free-throw shooter for the season (about 67.3%), but that should not placate A&M fans (and rightly so). Maybe Sloan would have missed one and the Bruins would have still won in regulation. Maybe Sloan would have hit both from the charity stripe, and the teams would have headed to overtime. Or maybe Sloan would have hit the first, and an Aggie rebounded the missed second, giving Texas A&M a shot to win in regulation. We will never know. Thanks for the well wishes.

Overall, I have no complaints about the refereeing. Of course, I thought that there were a few calls and non-calls (benefiting both teams) that should have been called otherwise. As for the Bruins' play, I completely agree. Westbrook will need to play much better offensively and Shipp will have to contribute SOMETHING on offense if the Bruins are to proceed any further. Luc was totally out of sync offensively, but let's hope that that was just a result of his brief layoff and that he will play much better here on out. It is, perhaps, a bit surprising that the Bruins fared much better shooting from behind the arc than the Aggies. Three-point shooting is definitely an area of concern for the Bruins with Shipp's play as of late and Michael Roll being out (for the duration?)

Wisconsin should have received a 2-seed, and I thought as much when the tournament seedings were announced.

Whew! That game was far too close if you are a Bruins fan. I knew that Texas A&M would pose a challenge, but I didn't think that they could play that well after the departure of Acie Law. I am sorry, Aggie87. I am sure that is a tough loss to have to swallow - I would not have been consolable if the Bruins had lost. Looking to next year, how many key players does A&M stand to gain and lose?

Cal beat Washington tonight so we get to see them play UCLA again. As for last weekend's games in Pauley and the Pac-10 Tournament: 1) Pac-10 officiating has been horrible for as long as I can remember. 2) It is funny that the Cardinal's go ahead basket in regulation came when Hill ploughed over a set Kevin Love several feet from the basket. If the refs don't swallow their whistles, UCLA very well could have won the game in regulation. 3) On the next possession, Hill initiated bodily contact with Collison and then hit Collison's other arm before blocking the shot. The fact that the block may have been clean does not negate the other (previous) two fouls. Hill did not complain about the call. 4) As for the Cal game, why is one of the worst ex-coaches of the Pac-10 broadcasting the game?! Lavin was a lousy coach (although a very good recruiter) who hung around far too long as head coach for the Bruins. The fact that he is a commentator for Pac-10 games says much for his talent for self-promotion. 5) Has anyone actually seen footage showing that the Cal player was fouled in that play just before the end of the game? The footage I saw revealed nothing, and so the referee, rightly, called nothing. I cannot imagine that any of us want to see fouls being called on the basis of what "must" have happened. 6) Having said that, I do think that Shipp's shot went over the backboard and should have been disallowed. That's the rule, although I think it is a stupid one - it would be a ridiculously hard shot for a player to add to his arsenal. It is my understanding that the rule was instituted out of fear of Wilt Chamberlin, who played for Kansas oh so many years ago. 7) Brooks Lopez will be a lottery pick when he comes out of Stanford. 8) The Pac-10 Tournament is brutal (3 or 4 games over consecutive days), and far too close to the big dance. The threat of injury is too high for most teams to risk going all out unless the team is on the bubble.

Congratulations! I just revisited Anita O'Day's "Ain't This a Wonderful Day", and I agree that it would be a very difficult song to which to dance. If you don't mind slowing down things quite a bit, I think that Joanie Sommer's "I'll Close My Eyes" from Look Out! It's Joanie Sommers (Studio West #106 with Shelly Manne and Bobby Troup) is absolutely beautiful. However, a better suggestion may be Ella Fitzgerald's "All the Things You Are" from The Jerome Kern Songbook. It is beautiful yet swinging. This song also appears on a number of compilations, including Verve's The Jazz Wedding Album: First Dances, which I do not find terribly compelling. (BTW, I have a copy of this compilation courtesy of an ex-girlfriend in the music industry. If you would like it, you may have it for the price of shipping.) I also think that June Christy's performance of "That's All" from The Misty Miss Christy is the definitve version of that standard, but hardly danceable. Of course, the best song to have played as a precursor to the ceremony itself is Frank Sinatra's Capitol single, "French Foreign Legion".

I'm with you, Tom. She should have relinquished control of the team when she inherited it - she did not know a damn thing about football. That she did not is testimony to her arrogance and greed. I was a diehard Rams fan until the end. Georgia did everything that she could to lower team attendance in order to justify a move to St. Louis. When the franchise left southern California, my allegiance went with it. The Rams had been in southern California for almost 50 years when she whisked it away. Only six teams voted against the Rams move - the Bills, the Jets, the Steelers, the Giants, the Redskins, and (amusingly) the Cardinals. This was a terrible mistake by the NFL that appears unlikely to be corrected in the foreseeable future. I won't say that I'm happy that she's dead, but ...

No guarantees the Cowboys will get to the NFC title game for sure. Especially with how they've played the last 3-4 games. But, if you actually watched the Packers/Cowboys game, you'll know that Favre played terribly while he was in, and the Packers only responded and turned it into a game after he left with his injury. Rodgers played exceptionally well for someone with as little playing time as he had. Case of rallying around the backup or something. Favre played terribly in large part because the Packers (for heaven knows what reason) strayed from what had been working for them all year offensively and continually tried to go deep against the Cowboys. Collinsworth noted as much. Once Brett got hurt, Aaron Rodgers came in and the Packers returned to what had been working so well all season: 4 and 5 wide receiver sets utilizing short, quick, slant routes. Before that game was played, I firmly believed that anything other than a blowout would provide little insight as to how a playoff meeting between the Packers and Cowboys might play out. The Packers were driving and down by less than a touchdown in the fourth quarter before eventually losing by 10 points. And, yes, injuries are part of the game, but the Packers were without two key defensive starters (KGB and Woodson, who, despite the accolades given to Harris, is THE lockdown corner for the Pack) as well as a promising young safety who could be starting in Aaron Rouse. Still, I have to admit that Brett's 0-9 (?) record against the Cowboys in Texas is more than a little troubling. Perhaps, though, it only means that Brett will lead the Packers over the Cowboys should the teams meet in the NFC Championship. Neither team should be looking past the next round, however.

I just sent a PM regarding the Charles Brown set. Thanks!

I am in complete agreement.

Would you believe that she's my girlfriend??? Okay, probably not. She is the Italian actress, Monica Bellucci. Monica Bellucci

Only five jazz boxed sets are included in this sale (Bill Evans Complete Village Vanguard, Complete Ella & Louis on Verve, Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook, Complete 1961 Village Vanguard Recordings, and Count Basie's Complete Decca Recordings), but there are a number of other sets (e.g., Nirvana, Nuggets II, Ray Charles Complete Country & Western, Otis Redding, and Sam Cooke with the Soul Stirrers) that should prove of interest at very low prices (with no sales tax and free shipping if your order exceeds $25). Amazon Boxed Set Sale

How did the Steelers manage to lose to the Jets? Now, no matter what any other team does, the Patriots can lose two of its remaining six games and still clinch home field advantage for the playoffs. Obviously, the Patriots are going to try to win all of those games, but it will be interesting to see how Belichick approaches the final game of the season at the N.Y. Giants (which have a talented defensive line and will be playing in what may very will be an important game for them) if the Patriots are 15-0 at that point.

Probably makes most of his money from capital gains or dividends both of which are taxed at 15% in the US. Like I said, he's showboating, letting people believe that he and his secretary are on the same playing field. He probally has huge tax credits and tax losses that he has from his various investments to offset his tax bill. No big secret there, but you have to have the cash to buy them in the first place. I'm sorry, Marcello, but what kind of investment tax credits would these be? I do not mean to imply that your argument is incorrect, but nothing comes to mind. As for carryover losses, the only way that these would affect Warren Buffett's effective tax rate is if such losses were offsetting current short-term gains, which are taxed at a rate higher than 15%. If Buffett had a $5 million capital loss carryover from 2005 and $10 million in long-term gains in 2006, then his effective tax rate insofar as capital gains are considered would still be 15%. Indeed, in this instance, utilization of the carryover loss would only serve to increase his overall effective tax rate (i.e., $10 million taxed at 15% would drive down his overall effective rate (which would take into consideration his ordinary income) much more than $5 million taxed at 15%). Only $3,000 of capital losses may be used to offset ordinary income each year, so such losses would have a negligible effect on Buffett's other income (such as salary and interest) taxed at ordinary rates. You may well be right, but considering Warren Buffett's investment strategy and his long-term success as an investor, I find it hard to believe that he would have amassed a substantial capital loss carryover in prior years.