Mosaics

[Jazz Kat]

Can someone give me a real good point, for buying/owning a Mosaic. Or lemme say it this way. Why do you love Mosaics so much. It costs about the same to buy the individual disks, am I right? Or is it the fact that they are easy to obtain in Mosaics? I'm not too up on Mosaics. Don't have any, or really plan on getting any soon, I guess I don't have the stuff I need to invest in one or two. Is it the bonus features that come with it, that make them special?

[BbM7]

Where to begin...

I suppose if one can avoid the NEED to have (selected) Mosaics, one should. For the rest of us...

[tranemonk]

Oh lord...

It could take me 5 days to answer this question....

I feel like someone has asked me - Why is the sky blue???

Someone help this man...

[Jazz Kat]

I guess I haven't been hooked yet.

[Quincy]

Different reasons for different folks. Some like the fabby packaging. Sometimes the mastering is extra special (ask Wesbed!) Sometimes it's because the material isn't available elsewhere, or at least in print. And sometimes it's the completeness. Here's Hank Mobley's '50s Blue Notes - have at it!

Often as not all or most of the above come into play.

I wondered the same thing too once upon a time. Then I got the Johnny Hodges set that's still in print. Sounds superb. I mean really really nice, and I'm not an audiophile with wiring that costs more than your car!

It can be a great way to seriously dive into a "new" (to you) artist as well. For that I'm grateful for the Gerald Wilson set.

Hang around here long enough and I dare you to resist the temptation of Mosaic.

[TheMusicalMarine]

Sometimes I look at the 1.5 feet or so of shelf space that my 16 Mosaics take up and think to myself, "1800 bucks, just like that".

[kenny weir]

Hell, in celebration of this thread I think I'll order me one today!

[sal]

  kenny weir said:

Hell, in celebration of this thread I think I'll order me one today!

[Ron S]

  TheMusicalMarine said:

Sometimes I look at the 1.5 feet or so of shelf space that my 16 Mosaics take up and think to myself, "1800 bucks, just like that".

Yeah, but when you listen to them, you think to yourself, "PRICELESS!"

[TheMusicalMarine]

Damn skippy.

[Jazz Kat]

  kenny weir said:

Hell, in celebration of this thread I think I'll order me one today!

Let us know which one..........ones you turn up with!

[Guy Berger]

  Jazz Kat said:

Can someone give me a real good point, for buying/owning a Mosaic. Or lemme say it this way. Why do you love Mosaics so much. It costs about the same to buy the individual disks, am I right? Or is it the fact that they are easy to obtain in Mosaics? I'm not too up on Mosaics. Don't have any, or really plan on getting any soon, I guess I don't have the stuff I need to invest in one or two. Is it the bonus features that come with it, that make them special?

I have two -- Sam Rivers and Chico Hamilton, both of which I picked up because the music was unavailable elsewhere. (Most of the Rivers stuff has been reissued since then.) I'm completely indifferent to the aesthetics and they tend to be pricey. I wish they included the original liner notes and artwork! Because of the "completeness" factor, sets sometimes contain music that's not that great. (At least, that was my experience with the Chico set.) I'm also a little leery of box sets in general, unless the music is uniformly of high quality.

That said, the recent trend toward Selects is to my liking and there are also a few of the big boxes that I want to get.

Guy

[AfricaBrass]

I like the sets because they often represent a significant piece of the artist's work and are usually complete. Also, this is the only way to get some of this material. The various labels may reissue parts of the sets, but oftentimes, there's a significant part of the set the remains and probably will remain unissued. Of course, sets like the Complete Blue Note Recordings of __________ will probably have the individual albums available at some point, but I'd be surprised to see something like the Complete Peggy Lee/June Christy sessions released in full, except through some European bootleg type release. Look at the Woody Shaw; that music was recorded in the 70's, but the only album from the set that has been reissued is Rosewood...

If you buy Mosaics used, then you're paying more than the single albums, but most Mosaic cds have two albums worth of music per cd, so you're really getting an album for around $8. I think they're a tremendous bargain if you buy them before they go out of print.

If you don't have the money to buy them, then I'd say don't worry about Mosaics. They're nice and enjoyable, but I wouldn't lose sleep if I couldn't purchase a set. In a few years, you could be making enough money to buy anything you want...

[AfricaBrass]

  Guy Berger said:

That said, the recent trend toward Selects is to my liking and there are also a few of the big boxes that I want to get.

I really like the Selects too!

I think it was a great move on Mosaic's part.

[Jazz Kat]

  AfricaBrass said:

If you don't have the money to buy them, then I'd say don't worry about Mosaics. They're nice and enjoyable, but I wouldn't lose sleep if I couldn't purchase a set. In a few years, you could be making enough money to buy anything you want...

Let's hope!

[Fran]

Numerous good reasons stated above. In addition one that often sways me, despite already owning many ot the cuts, is the addition of previously unreleased material hidden for years in some dusty vault.

[wesbed]

  Quincy said:

Different reasons for different folks. Some like the fabby packaging. Sometimes the mastering is extra special (ask Wesbed!) Sometimes it's because the material isn't available elsewhere, or at least in print. And sometimes it's the completeness.

Ohhhh yeah. The Mosaic sound quality with Malcom Addey at the helm is the best. Ron McMaster does excellent work, with the sound, as well. You may read about my Mosaic/Addey orgasm via my three posts starting here.

Mosaic and Malcom Addey.

[Soulstation1]

jazz kat

i guess you missed out on the lee morgan set, morgan / shorter set and the blakey set......

pick em up, if you see em

[Jazzmoose]

I was pulled in by the Anita O'Day set. There was my favorite period of her work, all in one package, and it was more than I could do to resist. So I guess it was the completeness and ease of acquisition for me. Then I fell in with this crowd of deviants and got hooked...

[John Tapscott]

  Jazz Kat said:

Can someone give me a real good point, for buying/owning a Mosaic. Or lemme say it this way. Why do you love Mosaics so much.

Simply, because I love jazz music and in any one Mosaic set you get hours of great jazz! I enjoy losing myself for hours in the music and the notes of a Mosaic box set. I don't have time to do it as often as I would like, but when I do, it's wonderful. You love jazz, you gotta love Mosaic. I know it's simplistic, but that's it.

I am currently listening to my recently purchased Elvin Jones Mosaic and I cannot speak highly enough about this set! I knew it would be fine, but it's GREAT! Exceeds my expectations, even though I had heard at least half of the music before. Excellent sound.

[Quincy]

  John Tapscott said:

I am currently listening to my recently purchased ____ _____ Mosaic and I cannot speak highly enough about this set! I knew it would be fine, but it's GREAT! Exceeds my expectations, even though I had heard at least half of the music before. Excellent sound.

Stop reading this thread now Jazz Kat!

This is how it starts. You innocently ask a question about a Mosaic, and then you start reading testimonials like the one by John. Then more & more posters continue proclaiming the glorious wonders of this set and that set and the other.

Run Jazz Kat run! Before it's too late!

[slide_advantage_redoux]

Any opinions on the Dexter Gordon 3 CD mosaic set? I am watching the mailbox daily, impatiently anticipating its arrival!

This will be only my 2nd Mosaic set, and both of them the lower priced 3 CD editions. (the first one I bought was the Grachan Moncur III release)

I bought the Dex set on Ebay (sealed) without doing any prior research, and I was lucky I didn't spend more on it than I could have directly from Mosaic. I think I spent $2 less.

[wesbed]

  slide_advantage_redoux said:

Any opinions on the Dexter Gordon 3 CD mosaic set? I am watching the mailbox daily, impatiently anticipating its arrival!

The Dex is a terrific set of music from Mosaic (as usual). The Dexter Mosaic Select is my favorite Dexter material. It's got a great live vibe and groove. For me, Dexter was never better.

My least favorite Select is the Duke Pearson. A couple of my favorites that don't seem to receive a lot of discussion are the Curtis Amy and the Bennie Green.

If you read one of the old Mosaic catalogs, the information on the front-inside cover discusses how Ron McMaster did quite a good job in recovering the material for the Shank/Cooper Select.

[J.A.W.]

  wesbed said:

  Quincy said:

Different reasons for different folks. Some like the fabby packaging. Sometimes the mastering is extra special (ask Wesbed!) Sometimes it's because the material isn't available elsewhere, or at least in print. And sometimes it's the completeness.

Ohhhh yeah. The Mosaic sound quality with Malcom Addey at the helm is the best. Ron McMaster does excellent work, with the sound, as well. You may read about my Mosaic/Addey orgasm via my three posts starting here.

Mosaic and Malcom Addey.

While I wholeheartedly second your Malcolm Addey recommendation, I respectfully disagree with your statement re Ron McMaster remasterings. A case in point (at least to my ears) is the Lou Donaldson set, which sounds terribly loud/compressed on my system, though the kind people at Mosaic assured me it isn't. It makes my ears bleed so to speak... Sorry to spoil the fun

[wesbed]

  J.A.W. said:

While I wholeheartedly second your Malcolm Addey recommendation, I respectfully disagree with your statement re Ron McMaster remasterings. A case in point (at least to my ears) is the Lou Donaldson set, which sounds terribly loud/compressed on my system, though the kind people at Mosaic assured me it isn't. It makes my ears bleed so to speak, and I'm thinking about selling it... Sorry to spoil the fun

There has been much negative talk on this Board regarding Ron McMaster. I don't mean the McMasters from the 1980s, rather, the more recent McMasters. As much as I listen for a problem with McMaster's work, I don't hear it.

I haven't heard the Lou Donaldson set. However, I will own a copy of the Lou Donaldson box someday.

I do own the Stanley Turrentine Mosaic. I've read, numerous times, how McMaster somehow, mysteriously, lessened the quality of Turrentine's sound. Again, I don't hear it. The Turrentine Mosaic sounds very good to my ears.

It's a given that Malcolm Addey is my favorite. Ron McMaster has a good remastering manner too.