Triage

[Hardbopjazz]

I'm most likely not the only one who's gone into a CD store and picked out a shit load of CD's to buy, and then have to figure out how to cut the numbers down to a sensible anount that the wallet could handle.

Who else has this happen to? How do you decide which CD will make it home with you and which will have to wait?

[Jazzmoose]

That is both my favorite, and the most frustrating, thing about going to the music store. I love having enough that I want to choose from to have to actually choose, but sometimes it's damn tough. And then there's the next day regrets...

[PHILLYQ]

  Hardbopjazz said:

I'm most likely not the only one who's gone into a CD store and picked out a shit load of CD's to buy, and then have to figure out how to cut the numbers down to a sensible anount that the wallet could handle.

Who else has this happen to? How do you decide which CD will make it home with you and which will have to wait?

Sometimes it comes down to how many can I get for --- dollars. Sometimes one or two stand out, then it's eeny-miney-mo time...

[rostasi]

Tom, I did this yesterday!

...and it's a constant everytime.

Often, most of them don't make it to the collection

in my arms, because they are usually way

overpriced. So, a mental note is scribbled

and I check online for - nearly always happens -

a better deal. Usually ends up being at least 3 to 5 bucks cheaper.

Yeah, I gotta wait, but I've got plenty already to listen to

and it makes getting mail more fun!

So, off to the counter I go with the "reasonably" priced discs

and the others drift in thru the mail slot over the next week.

[Hardbopjazz]

  PHILLYQ said:

Sometimes one or two stand out, then it's eeny-miney-mo time...

I have to try that one next time.

[Chuck Nessa]

Triage is one of my favorite current bands. I have both of their recordings. Dave Rempis is a fine player. If you have to pick, take the first. Then you will feel the need for the second.

[jlhoots]

The 2nd Triage CD (Okka Disk 12052) was Tom Hull's "pick hit" in his recent consumer guide in The Village Voice.

I know that's not what this thread was about but couldn't resist follow-up to the preceding post.

[Jazzmoose]

Alright you two...

[chris olivarez]

Price may or may not factor into it for me. Usually it boils down to which one am I jonesing for most at the time and which ones I can live without for awhile.

[JSngry]

  Chuck Nessa said:

Triage is one of my favorite current bands. I have both of their recordings.

So, you're into menage a Triage?

[Nate Dorward]

Don't they have 3 discs out? Which ones are you guys talking about exactly?

[Clunky]

I got this one from Chuck and it's pretty good- American Mythology on Okka

Edited April 13, 2005 by Clunky

[fent99]

My favourite is to go to a used store and rummage through their bargain racks looking for artists or labels I'm familiar with and gathering them up. After I've got a pile I sift through them and work out which to buy and which to replace. Usually buy anything vaguely interesting under £2 and pick out the most interesting at higher prices.

Guess I'm a bottom feeder but recent excellent finds have been Richie Beirach Antarctica for £1 and Paul Rucker Apologies... for 50p (I love the Rucker)

Usually leave the chains with nothing.

[MartyJazz]

  rostasi said:

Tom, I did this yesterday!

...and it's a constant everytime.

Often, most of them don't make it to the collection

in my arms, because they are usually way

overpriced. So, a mental note is scribbled

and I check online for - nearly always happens -

a better deal. Usually ends up being at least 3 to 5 bucks cheaper.

Yeah, I gotta wait, but I've got plenty already to listen to

and it makes getting mail more fun!

So, off to the counter I go with the "reasonably" priced discs

and the others drift in thru the mail slot over the next week.

You hit upon something that raises a bit of a dilemma for me. OTOH, it's great to go into a store wherein the owner(s) are shelling out rent and creating somewhat of an aesthetically appealing environment with assorted shelving & displays, etc., all of which takes time and bucks. And most important, you and me the consumers get to touch and feel the merchandise, view the album covers, glean whatever info we can re personnel, tunes, recording dates, etc. We then think, the hell with paying $16, $17, $18, or whatever...we go home and get it cheaper online. Seems a bit unfair, doesn't it. Mind you, this is not criticism of you, I do it too. But it's no wonder, you can't find decent jazz selections at so many stores, even the ones that seem to want to maintain a well rounded choice of CDs.

At this point, most of the stores I go into are the 2nd hand CD shops where promo copies of newer CDs can be had generally for $8 apiece. Obviously, this doesn't do much to support the artist. But no jazz fan I've ever met likes to throw away money (unless we're bidding on a rare "must have").

[ghost of miles]

  Chuck Nessa said:

Triage is one of my favorite current bands. I have both of their recordings. Dave Rempis is a fine player. If you have to pick, take the first. Then you will feel the need for the second.

I'm on the same page as you, Chuck.

Yeah, Triage came through here about a year ago, and they are indeed a fine band. If you liked Rempis in the V5... well, you get to hear even more of him here.

[rostasi]

  Quote

You hit upon something that raises a bit of a dilemma for me. OTOH, it's great to go into a store wherein the owner(s) are shelling out rent and creating somewhat of an aesthetically appealing environment with assorted shelving & displays, etc., all of which takes time and bucks.

Well, as an owner of a CD store at one time, I certainly understand and applaud your outlook to a certain degree. Many reasons need to be considered when running your own store, but much of your success depends on whether you have a steady customer base that will visit you and the way to keep that base is to carry product that they want at a price that's affordable.

  Quote

And most important, you and me the consumers get to touch and feel the merchandise, view the album covers, glean whatever info we can re personnel, tunes, recording dates, etc. We then think, the hell with paying $16, $17, $18, or whatever...we go home and get it cheaper online. Seems a bit unfair, doesn't it.

No, not at all - well, actually, let me change my answer - yes, it IS unfair - to the customer - not the only one, but ultimately, yes, the end of the purchasing line.

Picking up CDs and actually reading them (but even that's getting to be a difficult prospect with cover art becoming more artsy and less informative these days) is quite nice if you're able, but paying inflated prices is not a joy and quite insulting really. Why should I pay $19 for a release on Mode when I can go right to their website and buy it for $15? Why should I feel like I'm getting a deal when Tower tells me that certain ECM titles are "on sale" for $15? Probably, because I am, based on the fact that they normally go for $17 or $18? Also, the people online are just that - people. One isn't sending money into a void - it's a business too: packaging and storage materials exist "there" too. There is a "there" there.

  Quote

But it's no wonder, you can't find decent jazz selections at so many stores, even the ones that seem to want to maintain a well rounded choice of CDs.

Well, the reasons are legion, but mostly revolve around lack of interest and ignorance.

Most people don't have a well-rounded outlook on music (or much else actually) and

are quite content at buying what their friends or the media tells them is hot that week.

A lot easier to follow others than to actually engage brain cells to inform yourself of the diverse

aspects of our life.

Here in good ol' Dallas, TX, what "independent" stores that are left have employees that would look crosseyed if you asked them for "Free America" recordings (for example) - they'd probably be filled with visions of flag symbolisms and marching band music. ...and, often, if the owners do know what you're talking about, there's the guy who inflates the price 'cause he thinks he's the only guy to have the item (sometimes, locally, he just may be!) IF you're lucky and find that store that has a knowledgeable staff, good stock, and low prices, then you may be in either a large metropolitan district where the store empties out onto a major tourist area or have found a store that may not be around much longer...(or, possibly, the owner has received a huge windfall and is just doing this for fun).

"Used" product can be found at these "Half Price Books and Records"

places around here, but, like you said, they don't do much to support the artist.

...but the cruel reality is that way overpriced product from Tower, for instance,

doesn't do proportionally more to help the artist either. Also, online stores have overhead costs too,

so I only see a difference of slight degrees. This is exactly the reason I didn't continue

having a retail store, because having a "brick 'n' mortar" store was becoming less of a smart option

as we moved into the mid to late 90's. We are even more global in our outlook these days

(despite the current administration's delusions).

Lata Mangeshkar and Tlahoun Gèssèssè are in our bedrooms now.

I can somewhat see your dilemma Marty, but there are so many other issues at stake here -

usually greed-based from the higher ups

(but always buttressed by arguments about what's being done for the "artist" that's taken as gospel)

that's passed down thru the line to us, the consumer.

The bright side is the DIY aesthetic and the people actually dealing with their music distribution

in more personal terms, so that you can buy directly from a small organization or even a single person.

The future should be in individual's hands as close to the body/mind as possible.

Edited April 13, 2005 by rostasi

[jlhoots]

  Nate Dorward said:

Don't they have 3 discs out? Which ones are you guys talking about exactly?

I'm talking about the 2 on Okka.

Didn't know there was a 3rd.

[Nate Dorward]

The 1st one is Premium Plastics--review here.

[rostasi]

yet another reason why some online shops beat the pants off of the Towers, etc...

Keith Jarrett: Always Let Me Go -

the only Jarrett that I've wanted to own in many a moon -

for $4.99 instead of the nearly $30 that the local Tower wants.