What are you listening to? July 2018

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Cheap Trick - Cheap Trick (1977)

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Definitely gonna be listening to some Cheap Trick this week.
Team trivia regionals were last week - may post more about that later on the Trivia thread. We did well. Last year, we won; this year, got third place.

One of the perks though, was we won a bonus question - whoever was closest on how many World Series at bats Yogi Berra had over his career won 4 Cheap Trick tickets in New Orleans. With an answer of 270 we won (I think the answer was 255) - helps being a lifelong Yankee fan

So my kids and I are going to see Cheap Trick this Saturday night. I break them out occasionally - mainly greatest hits and At Budokan, but I hear they're good live (they certainly have a loyal fanbase) so should be fun.
 
Prince - Around The World In A Day (1985)

The other day, I heard someone say this was their favorite Prince album. I remember literally cursing when I spent nearly my last dollars on the cassette when I was in college and popped it into the player in my car. Song after song of "what the hell is this crap?" Later, much later, years later, it grew on me and today I like it a lot. It's fantastic. But his BEST album? No way. So, I decided to listen to it this morning ...

And damn if I can't imagine someone coming to this at just the right time in their life, their Prince experience, and feeling like it might just be the best Prince album ever. I still wouldn't put it in my top 3 (or even top 5) but if I approach it listening for greatness, I hear a lot of greatness and genius within.
 
David Binney - Point Game (1989)

I must really be a Binney-head. At times, this sounds like 70s Fusion along the lines of Return To Forever (of whom I'm not a big fan) mixed with the theme music to 80s television shows like Miami Vice or NYPD Blue or Cagney & Lacey. But as lame as that description might make it sound, this is a rawkin' blowin' Jazz party with a slight hint of avant (minus the garde) and NYC scene going on. Some saxophonists limp through their solos. Binney attacks them and whether it's 45 seconds or 5 minutes, he rages through them like a tiger on fire ... or bounces around like an unpoppable bubble.
 
Run DMC - Run DMC (1984)

Damn!
Prince - Around The World In A Day (1985)

The other day, I heard someone say this was their favorite Prince album. I remember literally cursing when I spent nearly my last dollars on the cassette when I was in college and popped it into the player in my car. Song after song of "what the hell is this crap?" Later, much later, years later, it grew on me and today I like it a lot. It's fantastic. But his BEST album? No way. So, I decided to listen to it this morning ...

And damn if I can't imagine someone coming to this at just the right time in their life, their Prince experience, and feeling like it might just be the best Prince album ever. I still wouldn't put it in my top 3 (or even top 5) but if I approach it listening for greatness, I hear a lot of greatness and genius within.

WHOA!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
The War and Treaty - Down To The River



I like this. After a moment of not having the words to say why I like it, I found it refreshing not to be so compulsive it. I will say that Til the Morning is really pretty.
 
Mark Turner - In This World (1998)

AllAboutJazz said:
Mark Turner stands with James Carter, Joshua Redman and Chris Potter as one of the most talented — and focused — post-bop saxophonists to emerge in the 1990s. While casual jazz fans might find In This World a difficult listen, anybody who's into Coltrane, Tristano, or Marsh should really dig it.
It's no surprise this is excellent, considering his three primary bandmates are some of the top names in Jazz over the past 20 years -- Brad Mehldau, Brian Blade, and Larry Grenadier. Add in Kurt Rosenwinkel, who helps out with his thought-provoking guitar on three tracks, and this was almost a sure bet. Not to imply those guys carry Turner. As noted by the AAJ reviewer, Turner is one of the top saxophonists to emerge from the 90s. He'd probably sound good with me participating in his band.

However, it is a bit true when the AAJ reviewer says "casual jazz fans might find ITW a difficult listen." When I was getting into Jazz in the 90s and was sampling all four of the guys mentioned (Redman, Potter, Carter and Turner,) it was Turner that initially lagged as the least best of the top-flight players. I heard a lot that I liked in his playing -- but I also felt a bit lost. It was only after I gained more appreciation for Jazz overall that I could fully recognize his brilliance.
 
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