John Litweiler

I'm assuming Anthony Ortega, from the '50s, is still in San Diego and still playing.

Trouble is, here on the southeast side of Chicago (including Bronzeville) we can't get WDCB unless we live in tall buildings or have car radios. Fortunately we do have 100-watt WHPK, with 35+ hours of jazz weekly - it can be heard as far as the west-south city limits and it plays a larger variety of jazz than does WDCB.

Finally read Gopnik's thing today. Not the first time he repulsed me with his straw-men style and misreporting of facts. His conclusions are empty nonsensical hackwork that may be intended to make intellectual dilettantes think that Gopnik has smart brains.

Milestones, you're in for a treat. Coltrane's Prestiges are a fascinating trip, or trips -- each record is a journey in itself. Later recordings, after mid-1957, are about the height of his sheets-of-sound period (Traneing In, Soultrane). Coltrane made a great sideman, too, with Miles, Ammons, Dameron, etc. The Monk quartets with Coltrane and the two Wilbur Hardens on Savoy are more great music from the same period.

For some reason this reissue doesn't include the songs from the "Billy Eckstine Sings" LP on Savoy. It has gems like "I've Got to Pass Your House" and "Deep Blue Dream" from later on for the big band. Some arrangements are wow! and it would be great to find out who the arrangers and players specifically were.

My review of "The View from Here": http://www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD45/PoD45MoreMoments3.html

My favorite guilty pleasures are arson and burglary.

Uli, is that Czar Putin?

Heartache number 1 was when you left us.

The Art Pepper-Warne Marsh jam session download was quite a high point of 2013. (This may be the music that once made Jim Sangrey think Art sounded strange.)

keep having more birthdays

Chuck, it's better to listen to the recording.

She's fun -- thanks for the videos, Cyril.

I should be writing another obituary about a jazz musician. This fall must be a record for jazz-musician obituaries.

which is which?

Very sorry to see this. I met him once in his warehouse office in NewO. Stumbled in there on a spring day when he and the owner of Swaggie were there negotiating something, so did not have a conversation. What a valuable man. Here's hoping somebody is going to continue his work.

Adam "I get paid to hit home runs" Dunn is my favorite whipping boy. He had a hot month and 1/2 last summer, and otherwise has rarely been able to hit AL pitching in his 3 years with the White Sox. In his defense it could be argued that since he was 14th in the AL in RBIs, he kept us from finishing with the worst record in the league last year. Seems to be a head case who freezes at the sight of men in scoring position and the Sox desperately needing to score a run. There's also his refusal to try to hit through the Dunn shift. Hard to imagine us getting much success as long as he's playing everyday. And with 2 other first basemen / designated hitters on the team next year, he's spectacularly expendable. How is Jesse Crain's arm? Why aren't we trying to get him back? The rest of our relievers are pretty unreliable. After tonight, no more rants.

There's a thrill upon the hill, Let's go let's go let's go

Occupy The World by Wadada Leo Smith was at the top of my list. Invariably a few days after I've had to compile 10-best-of-the-year lists, I remember some of the best CDs had slipped my mind.

OK, I won't send Teachout a copy of "Sundidos" to review.

Berlioz:L'Enfance du Christ - especially the trio for 2 flutes and harp, one of my very favorite pieces. The 2-CD album I have seems to be OOP. It's Charles Munch / Boston Symphony and includes Les nuits d'ete by Leontyne Price w. Fritz Reiner / Chicago Symphony.

Malachi Favors bought buildings, rented them, then did the janitor work himself.

Some years ago he played for us at the Chicago Jazz Festival. Art Themen was his tenor player that day - very good.

Damn, that's a loss. Hearing him was a high point of my trip to London 3 years ago. It made me think that the Monk-Tracey style is the only right way to play jazz piano - everybody else is wrong. So swinging! He was leading a quintet with 2 young saxophonists. Great comping and one of the most ferocious rhythm sections I've ever heard: Stan, a most aggressive bassist, and Clark Tracey, drums - powerful. Yes, he sure sounds good with Rollins. Now I'm going to hunt for my Tracey Octet CD.

Well worth hearing.