Tom Hull: Tom Hull - on the Web

I'm still in taking-it-easy mode, hoping that a few more days (or weeks or months) will aid in recovering from recent traumas -- I'm more optimistic about the eye surgery and the end of winter (although the last couple days have been pretty miserable) than about the world at large -- and give me time to plot a sensible path forward. I go to see the optometrist mid-week, which should give me a second opinion, some numbers, and possibly some answers on my eyes.

My impression is mostly favorable. I watch TV and go on walks without glasses. I can drive either with or without -- probably a bit better without, but with is good enough I've kept using them. I can still read, not great but no worse than before. (I've never used glasses for reading, so one question is whether they'd make a difference now.) Computer work is still iffy, so I might need some correction just for that. Many things are brighter, and that can cause some strain. It's also a good excuse not to kick myself for not getting much writing or programming done.

I did manage to publish a Loose Tabs on Thursday, and have added a couple items over the weekend, including a couple obituaries/remembrances of the late Francis Davis. I have a longstanding project to update and upgrade his Jazz Critics Poll website. That's on hold for the moment as we try to figure out what to do without him. Meanwhile, I've already collected a couple bits for the next Loose Tabs post. No regular schedule, but the outlet is there if I need it.

I'm expecting this week to be super lightweight. Aside from the doctor, I have some house work scheduled, and some shopping planned. I found some interesting things in the demo queue this week, although the A- albums (except for Dean Wareham) barely made the lower reaches the A-list. Several misses were also quite close, probably hampered by limited plays, with one becoming the first HM I posted a link to on Bluesky. I'm up to 96 followers there.

Benefits: Constant Noise (2025, Invada): North English duo, ominous spoken word vocals with electropop beats. B+(**) [sp]

Peter Brötzmann/Jason Adasiewicz/Steve Noble/John Edwards: The Quartet: Cafe Oto, London, February, 10 & 11, 2023 (2023 [2025], Otoroku): German saxophonist, one of the founders of the European avant-garde, recorded an enormous amount from 1967 up to his death, at 82, in June, 2023, a few months after this two-night, four set performance (140:28, available on 2-CD, with a 4-LP box and a 2-LP edit in the works), backed with vibes, drums, and bass. Hard to make fine distinctions among his work, but this seems like the sort of monumental capstone one can only imagine a career ending with. A- [bc]

Anla Courtis Ja Lehtisalo: 1972 (2022-24 [2025], Full Connect): Duo, two long-established experimental guitarists (plus long list of other instruments), both born in 1972 ("an era when sound was an experiment"), the former in Argentina, the latter in Finland (first name Jussi; "ja" here seems to be Finnish for "and"). Some remarkable rough-hewn ambient for a world on edge. A- [bc]

Christopher Dammann: Sextet (2024 [2025], Out of Your Head): Free jazz bassist from Chicago, first album, but has side-credits going back to 2014 (3.5.7 Ensemble, which I vaguely recall). Group here with trumpet (James Davis), two saxophonists (Jon Irabagon and Edward Wilkerson Jr), piano (Mabel Kwan), and drums (Scott Clark). Starts solid, stays solid, until the end when they almost break out. B+(***) [cd]

John Dikeman/Sun-Mi Hong/Aaron Lumley/Marta Warelis: Old Adam on Turtle Island (2022 [2025], Relative Pitch): Dutch, or at least Amsterdam-based, improv group, respectively: sax, drums, bass, piano. B [bc]

Trygve Fiske Sextet: The Flowers. The Dance. The Rumble and the Stumble. (2025, Slaraffensongs): Norwegian bassist, side credits from 2004, not clear how many (if any) he should be considered leader of (he's used Waldemar as middle name, and two albums are credited to Waldemar 4). This with Per Texas Johansson, Erik Kimestad Pedersen, Morten Qvenild, Oscar Gronberg, and Hans Hulbækmo. B+(**) [sp]

Food House: Two House (2025, self-released): I've seen this co-credited to Gupi and Fraxiom, but as far as I can tell, they are Food House, not extra hangers on. Hyperpop, or bubblegum bass, or cartoon music sent schizophrenically awry. Not my thing, but probably more amusing than Skrillex. B [sp]

GFOTY: Influenzer (2025, Girlfriend): British glitch-pop singer-songwriter Polly-Louisa Salmon, goes by acronym for GirlFriend of the Year, I heard (but didn't much like) a 2016 EP, which was followed by a 2019 mini-album and now two LPs. I don't get the attraction of glitchy hyperpop but I'm not totally lost here, or totally disinterested, but this could wear thin. B+(*) [sp]

The Hemphill Stringtet: Plays the Music of Julius Hemphill (2023 [2025], Out of Your Head): Hemphill (1938-95) was an alto saxophonist, but also notable as a composer, arranger, and organizer -- a co-founder of the Black Artist Group (BAG) in St. Louis, and later of the World Saxophone Quartet, where he was de facto leader even if others, like David Murray, were better known. Some of his early recordings were duos with Abdul Wadud on cello, so the notion of forming a string quartet to play his music must have seemed natural. Two violins (Curtis Stewart and Sam Bardfeld), viola (Stephanie Griffin), and cello (Tomeka Reid). Although the notes say "all music by Julius Hemphill," a big chunk of it was originally composed by Mingus, and more was improvised. B+(***) [cd]

Jacob Felix Heule/Teté Leguía/Sanishta Rivero/Martín Escalante: An Inscrutable Bodily Discomforting Thing (2021 [2025], Kettle Hole): Percussionist, from Oakland, ten or so albums since 2004, mostly collaborations, Bill Orcutt is about as famous as they get, and another 30 or so side credits. The others play: bass, voice/electronics, sax. One 40:11 piece which gets uncomfortably noisy but then backs off a bit and haves fun with the mess. B+(***) [cd]

Homeboy Sandman & Illingsworth: Dancing Tree (2025, self-released, EP): Four tracks, 13:58. "Money don't make you rich." "You can only learn from experience/ so be curious." "Who wants to sit here and think that we can do something? It's fun to just blame somebody else." B+(***) [bc]

Homeboy Sandman & Yeyts.: Corn Hole Legend (2025, self-released, EP): Five tracks, 10:14. Nice song about Thanksgiving. B+(*) [bc]

Eunhye Jeong/Michael Bisio Duo: Morning Bells Whistle Bright (2023 [2025], ESP-Disk): Piano and bass duo, with one solo track each, but also joined for four tracks (three in the middle, plus the closer) by Joe McPhee (tenor sax) and Jay Rosen (drums). In some ways this seems slight, but every detail signifies. A- [cd]

Ingrid Laubrock: Purposing the Air (2022-24 [2025], Pyroclastic, 2CD): German saxophonist, based in New York, many albums since 1998, none like this one, where she composed music for the poetry of Erica Hunt, each set performed by a vocal-instrument duo: Fay Victor and Mariel Roberts (cello), Sara Serpa and Matt Mitchell (piano), Theo Bleckmann and Ben Monder (guitar), and Rachel Calloway and Ari Streisfeld (violin). No saxophone that I noticed, although I have little patience for this style of art song. B- [cd]

Will Mason Quartet: Hemlocks, Peacocks (2024 [2025], New Focus): Drummer, lives in Rhode Island, side credits since 2009, at least one previous album as leader, this a quartet with Anna Webber (tenor sax), Daniel Fisher-Lochhead (alto sax), and deVon Russell Gray (keyboards), on a multi-movement composition inspired by LaMonte Young. B+(**) [bc]

Joe McPhee & Paal Nilssen-Love: I Love Noise (2022 [2024], PNL): Spoken word intro: "I love noise, because it can be organized into music"; "I think my love of noise is always in the process of becoming." Such generalizations evolve into a sermon on jazz history, touching on Coltrane and Ayler, with drum accents, until McPhee ultimately (19 minutes in) lets his tenor sax take over. B+(***) [bc]

Paal Nilssen-Love Circus With the Ex Guitars: Turn Thy Loose (2024 [2025], PNL): Norwegian drummer from the Thing and many other groups, premiered this septet in a 2021 recording, replacing his guitarist with not just Andy Moor and Terrie Hessells -- who recorded as "the Ex Guitars" in Lean Left with Ken Vandermark-- but also Arnold de Boer, all of the Dutch postpunk group the Ex. The vocals (Juliana Venter, also de Boer) don't bother me here, and may even be a plus, but the pauses and quiet spots seem like a waste, especially compared to what they can do at full blast. B+(***) [bc]

Adam O'Farrill: For These Steets (2022 [2025], Out of Your Head): Trumpet player, father and grandfather were famous Cuban musicians, which he also knows a thing or two about, but he's more likely to hang out with free jazz types, collecting here a pretty stellar octet: Mary Halvorson (guitar), Patricia Brennan (vibes), David Leon (alto sax/flute), Kevin Sun (tenor sax/clarinet), Kalun Laung (trombone/euphonium), Tyrone Allen II (bass), and Tomas Fujiwara (drums). I'm struggling, as my instinct says this is too fancy, but the only thing that might keep this from becoming one of the year's top-rated albums is that it's on a tiny label few have heard of. (Note that Brennan and Halvorson have won two of the last three FDJC Polls.) A- [cd]

Samo Salamon & Ra Kalam Bob Moses Orchestra: Dream Suites Vol. 1 (2023 [2025], Samo): Guitarist and percussionist wrote three long pieces (24:46, 13:38, 17:12) for large ensembles of 19, 16. and 18, total 27 musicians, nearly all familiar names, which add marks of individuality to the collective reverie. A- [cd]

Jaysun Silver: No Excuses (2025, self-released): Punkish, lo-fi, first album after an EP, 10 short songs in 19:07, has a sense of humor (Bandcamp page says "Brooklyn's best musician" and uses tags "amazing, classic, masterpiece"). B+(*) [bc]

Skrillex: Fuck U Skrillex U Think Ur Andy Warhol but Ur Not!! <3 (2025, Atlantic/Owsla): Electronica producer Sonny Moore, from Los Angeles, gained a measure of fame for a series of 2011-14 albums, then nothing until a pair in 2023 and now this, which I am assured is "continuously engaging and hilariously silly" -- traits I didn't come remotely close to being able to confirm. B- [sp]

The Third Mind: Live Mind (2024 [2025], Yep Roc): Roots rock band, best known members are Dave Alvin (from Blasters, with a long solo career) and Victor KRummenacher (from Camper van Beethoven), with vocals by Jesse Sykes, who fronted the Sweet Thereafter for several 2003-11 albums. B+(**) [sp]

The Tubs: Cotton Crown (2025, Trouble in Mind): Welsh indie band, Owen Williams is singer-guitarist, second album. Some jangle. B+(*) [sp]

Mathilde Grooss Viddal/Friensemblet: Tri Vendur Blés Ho I Den Høgaste Sky (2025, Losen): Norwegian saxophonist, has a half-dozen albums since 2006, leads a ten-piece group through a set of pieces based on folk themes, where the folksingers (for better or worse) seem to have the upper hand. B+(*) [sp]

Dean Wareham: That's the Price of Loving Me (2025, Carpark): Singer-songwriter, originally from New Zealand, moved to New York as a teenager, founded the bands Galaxie 500 (1988-90) and Luna (1992-2006 & 2017, overlapping several albums as Dean & Britta)), with solo albums since 2013, this his fourth, produced by the mononymous Kramer in a sonic nod to Galaxie 500. Actually reminded me more of the Go-Betweens, but calmer and in its own way weirder. The song in German is another plus for me, even before I identified it as a Nico cover. A- [sp]

Christian Winther: Sculptures From Under the City Ice (2025, Earthly Habit): Norwegian singer-songwriter, plays guitar, has a couple of previous albums. Group includes a jazz drummer I recognize, and the album eventually skews that direction, although I also wound up thinking of Arto Lindsay's skronk. B+(**) [sp]

Wolf Eyes: Wolf Eyes X Anthony Braxton (2025, ESP-Disk): The former is an electronic music duo from Detroit, Nate Young (electronics, vocals, harmonica) and John Olson (pipes, electronics) that has an insane number of albums since 1998 (Discogs says 130). The saxophonist you most likely know has even more albums, going back to 1968. I'm on record as hating his 1971 solo album, For Alto, but acknowledge that among the few people who can stand such harsh horror are huge fans -- it garnered a rare Penguin Guide Crown. This is every bit as ugly, and possibly as remarkable. B+(*) [cd]

Y: Y (2025, Hideous Mink, EP): English group, first release, 4 songs, 13:30, vocals recall Lydia Lunch, maybe because rhythm touches on New York no wave, goosed with sax riffs. B+(*) [sp]

James Zito: Zito's Jump (2024 [2025], self-released): Guitarist, based in New York, seems to be his first album -- Discogs led me to a trumpet player of that name, 1923-2014, who played in many big bands, from Tommy Dorsey to Gerald Wilson -- a mainstream quintet with Chris Lewis (tenor sax/flute), Luther Allison (piano), Rodney Whitaker (bass), and Joe Farnsworth (drums). Mostly originals, but they liked "After You've Gone" enough to include it twice. B+(*) [cd]

Peter Brötzmann Trio: Hurricane (2015 [2025], Old Heaven Books): As with Charlie Parker and John Coltrane, I expect that the late German saxophonist's posthumous oeuvre will eventually match, in quantity if not in quality, what he released during his lifetime -- in his case a relatively long one. This was recorded at a festival in Shenzhen, with Sabu Toyozumi on drums and Jason Adasiewicz on vibraphone, for a bit of tinkle that first struck me as an oriental touch, but adds its own dimension. As for the title, this barely reaches Category 1 intensity, which is the way I prefer him. B+(***) [bc]

Charles Mingus: Mingus in Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts (1977 [2025], Resonance, 2CD): A tremendous bassist from the start, his genius period as a composer ran from roughly 1956-64, although he got a second wind in the early 1970s with a new quartet that went independent under the joint leadership of George Adams and Don Pullen. His health soon deteriorated, and he died in 1979 (age 56), so anything from his last few years doesn't come with great expectations. I found this one unsettling at first, but flashes of brilliance kept surfacing, most from compositions that undoubtedly have been done better elsewhere, but he had an uncanny knack for breathing fresh life into everything he touched. And for making small groups -- this one especially notable for Jack Walrath (trumpet) and Ricky Ford (tenor sax). Also, he closes both sets with his own solo piano. A- [cd]

Charles Mingus: Reincarnations (1960 [2024], Candid): The bassist, coming off a peak year that included Blues and Roots on Atlantic and Mingus Ah Um on Columbia recorded three albums for Nat Hentoff's label in 1960 -- two nearly as good as his masterpieces, plus a third set of scraps. After the revived label reissued the catalog, they found more scraps, which they fashioned into Incarnations, and more scraps here: five tracks, 48:30, with various musicians, notably Eric Dolphy (3 tracks, on flute, bass clarinet, and alto sax), and Roy Eldridge (2 tracks, on trumpet). B+(**) [sp]

Spectacular Diagnostics: Raw Game [Ten Year Edition] (2015 [2025], Vinyl Digital): Chicago hip-hop producer Robert Krums, reissue of first album, twelve tracks with nearly as many guest rappers (including Jeremiah Jae, Quelle Chris, Vic Spencer, Westwide Gunn & Conway the Machine). B+(***)

Charles Mingus/Max Roach/Eric Dolphy/Roy Eldridge/Jo Jones [Jazz Artists Guild]: Newport Rebels (1961 [2024], Candid): Hard to parse this album cover, as the title could be the group name or vice versa, or either could be "Jazz Artists Guild," but the names are too big to ignore -- although Jones is the only one to play on all five tracks, and other notables show up on the roster here and there, including Booker Little, Kenny Dorham, Benny Bailey, Jimmy Knepper, Tommy Flanagan, Abbey Lincoln, and a couple lesser-knowns (like Peck Morrison on bass, twice), but I don't see where Roach plays. B+(***) [sp]

Charles Mingus: Charles Mingus and the Newport Rebels (1960 [2010], Candid): Another compilation from the same sessions, but of six songs, only one appeared on Newport Rebels, and while the cast of characters is similar (Dolphy, Eldridge, Flanagan, Knepper, Jones, and Richmond appear here), some new names also slip in (from the cover: Ted Cuson, Booker Ervin, Paul Bley). B+(**) [sp]

Charles Mingus: The Complete Town Hall Concert (1962 [1994], Blue Note): This was reportedly a "live workshop" of music meant to be recorded later, including two parts of a two-hour composition ("Epitaph") that was ultimately recorded by Gunther Schuller in 1989. But when United Artists released 36 minutes of this in 1962, it was widely deemed a disaster, with this later 68-minute CD merely aimed "to clean up the mess." A very big band: 7 trumpets, 6 trombones, 10 reeds (including an oboe), 2 pianists (Jaki Byard and Toshiko Akiyoshi), 2 bassists (Mingus plus Milt Hinton), Dannie Richmond on drums (but with extra percussionists), just one guitar (Les Spann). B+(*) [sp]

Phew: Phew (1981, Pass): Japanese singer Hiromi Moritani, started in post-punk group Aunt Sally, recorded this first album with members of Can (Conny Plank, Holger Czukay, Jaki Liebezeit), kept the name as an alias for more albums after 1987, including work with Anton Fier, Bill Laswell, Jim O'Rourke, and members of Raincoats, Boredoms, and Einstürzende Neubauten. This is very much part of the moment when bands like Cabaret Voltaire were being formed. Probably someone to study further. B+(***) [sp]

I had my second cataract surgery on Tuesday. When I took the tape off that evening, it was bright and blurry, but less dramatically so than after the first eye. I had some bruising below the eye, but it seemed minor. I was more struck by how creepy the loose, aged skin of the eyelids seemed. What I had feared was the the if the right eye recovery was as slow as the left seemed, I could have diminished vision for a few weeks. (It had been about a month now, and the left eye was still blurry, although the amount of light passing through the lens was more, and bluer.) But the blurriness in the right eye cleared up right away that morning. When I went to see the doctor, he not only cleared me to drive, but told me I could drive without glasses. I drove home with glasses, deeming them close enough to what I was used to, but I've since stopped using them for walks and TV. I haven't done much driving since, but haven't had any problems.

I have an appointment to see my regular optometrist a couple weeks out, so I expect we'll get some better measurements then. The biggest question is what, if anything, the expensive toric lens in the left eye has done. It was supposed to correct for significant astigmatism -- which the right eye had very little of, so we went with the standard lens there. The expectation is that I will need glasses for reading, although in the past I've never used them. (I didn't need them at first; while my bifocals help a little, it usually suffices to hold the book a bit closer.) I've been reading OK, both with and without glasses, all through this period.

What seems more likely is that I'll want glasses for the computer screen -- a focal distance of about 30 inches (I would have guessed less, but just measured it). I seem to be having more trouble with computer work this week (or month) -- although there could be other factors at work, including psychological ones. I'm going through a period where I have very little inspiration to do much of anything, or even to assign any blame for my sloth.

Speaking of which, this week's haul is down a fair amount from the last couple weeks, although 30 albums has long been my definition of a solid week's work. Most of the A-list came late in the week, thanks to Robert Christgau's Consumer Guide. Two of those records got lower grades at first, raised more on reflection than on further listening. [PS: Also upgraded: The Delines.]

I should also mention Dan Weiss' RiotRiot Report, which I haven't really worked my way through yet -- but I'm pleased to see the Ex and YHWH Nailgun (and Mekons, rated much higher here), and probably need the extra encouragement to get to Skrillex.

I perhaps should note an unusual degree of ambivalence about this week's grades. I could just as easily have upgraded the Art Pepper and/or the Kenny Dorham live set. Instead of giving the latter a third play, I went into his back catalog, and didn't so much get diminishing returns as flagging interest. Same thing for Birchall: pick any one of his albums and it's likely to sound fabulous, but play five in a row and they all start to sound the same. I know Pepper well enough to hedge my bets. I hardly know Diblo Dibala at all.

While I have very little real work to show for last week, I did manage to go back and fill out my long-neglected Streamnotes: Year 2024 Index, from which I had skipped the last four months. I still haven't done any for 2025 yet (other than to create the empty file). I've almost always done these on the same day I opened a new monthly file, but as they take 2-3 hours each, I started putting them off. While the indexes may not be of much use to readers, they help me find old reviews (avoiding inadvertent re-reviews, or at least helping with re-grading; I've already found several records I reviewed for a second time). I'd promise to catch up this week, but this is one of those computer tasks that I'm having eye trouble with.

No plans for the upcoming week. Good chance I will publish a "Loose Tabs" later in the week. I've collected a few items for it, and they don't have a lot of shelf life. Unlikely I'll do a books post this week, although I would like to get back to it. More useful would be to get to my planning documents, especially the one for household tasks.

MC Paul Barman: Tectonic Texts (2025, Househusband): Rapper, still remembered for his wit and wordplay in 2000-02 albums (first, It's Very Stimulating, a 18:01 EP). Words still dance, even if a bit herky-jerk, or maybe that's the beats? B+(***) [sp]

Basic: Dream City (2025, No Quarter, EP): Trio led by guitarist Chris Forsyth, whose records date back to 1998, and percussionist Mikel Patrick Avery, released a group album in 2024 (This Is Basic), follow that up here with a 3-cut, 26:48 EP with new bassist Douglas McCombs. B+(*) [sp]

Nat Birchall Unity Ensemble: New World (2023 [2024], Ancient Archive of Sound): British tenor saxophonist, has a 1999 debut but picked up the pace around 2010, "a Coltrane devotee of the highest order," never more so than in this explicit tribute, his core group a quartet plus extra percussion, on this occasion joined by Alan Skidmore (tenor sax) and Mark Wastell (percussion). B+(***) [bc]

Nat Birchall: Dimensions of the Drums: Roots Reggae Instrumentals (2024, Ancient Archive of Sound): Another facet of the British saxophonist's work, assembling these mild-to-sublime rhythm tracks single-handedly. B+(***) [sp]

Corook: Committed to a Bit (2025, Atlantic): Singer-songwriter, started lo-fi c. 2021 that hardly matters here. Trans, which figures into subject matter too much not to mention, especially as the point seems to be to uncover common humanity without (or even with?) the distractions of gender. A- [sp]

Silke Eberhard Trio: Being-a-Ning (2024 [2025], Intakt): Alto saxophonist, trio with Jan Roder (bass) and Kay Lübke (drums). Original pieces, with a hint of freebop Monk. B+(***) [sp]

Craig Finn: Always Been (2025, Tamarac/Thirty Tigers): Singer-songwriter from Minneapolis, started in 1990s with Lifter Puller, moved to New York in 2001 and started the Hold Steady, still a going concern but since 2012 he's also been releasing solo albums, this his sixth. Not a lot of difference between the two, as the band albums feature the same detailed storytelling, and if the music is a bit mellower here, it's still cut from the same cloth. Both are nearly peerless. A- [sp]

Ayumi Ishito: Roboquarians Vol. 2 (2021 [2025], 577): Tenor saxophonist from Japan, studied at Berklee and moved to New York in 2010. Several albums since 2015, including a previous volume by this "avant-punk style" trio, with George Draguns (guitar) and Kevin Shea (drums). More guitar than sax here. B+(*) [bc]

Clemens Kuratle Ydivide: The Default (2024 [2025], Intakt): Swiss drummer, also electronics, debut 2016, second group album, quintet with alto sax (Dee Bryne), piano (Elliot Gavin), guitar (Chris Guilfoyle), and bass (Lukas Traxel). B+(**) [sp]

Andy Fairweather Low: The Invisible Bluesman (2025, Last Music): British singer-songwriter, started in Amen Corner, had a notable series of solo albums 1973-76, after which he mostly did session work and tours, ranging from Chris Barber to Roger Waters, Bill Wyman, Joe Cocker, and Eric Clapton. He's put out occasional records on his own since 2004, with 2023's Flang Dang a high point. That was an album of originals, but this one is just a set of blues covers -- probably close to what he's been playing for Clapton, and probably better than Clapton can do without him. [PS: I haven't sought out Clapton since I hated 461 Ocean Boulevard in 1974, although I did enjoy two later albums: 1994's From the Cradle, and 2011's Play the Blues, filed under Wynton Marsalis. I've only heard one other post-1974 album, 2004's Me and Mr. Johnson.] B+(***) [sp]

Myra Melford: Splash (2024 [2025], Intakt): Pianist, got on my radar c. 1990, when Francis Davis wrote a Village Voice Jazz Consumer Guide, and and gave her and Allen Lowe the pick hit slots. Trio with Michael Formanek (bass) and Ches Smith (drums/vibes). B+(***) [sp]

Gurf Morlix: A Taste of Ashes (2024 [2025], Rootball): Roots-rock singer-songwriter, used to play drums and husband to Lucinda Williams, has been on his own, producing a new album nearly every year since 2000. B+(**) [sp]

Elias Stemeseder/Christian Lillinger + Craig Taborn: Umbra III: Live Setting (2021 [2025], Intakt): Swiss pianist, German drummer, both also electronics, only surnames on the album cover so I've tended to credit them as Stemeseder Lillinger, but I usually add the missing names to the credit rather than having to rewrite them in the review. The "Live Setting" is in very small print, but seemed worth noting. Taborn plays piano here, moving Stemeseder over to spinet, synth, and effects. B+(**) [sp]

Macie Stewart: When the Distance Is Blue (2023-24 [2025], International Anthem): Pianist, sometimes prepared, also violin and voice, third album since 2020, backed by strings (viola, cello, bass). B+(*) [sp]

Champeta w/Edna Martinez: Diblo Dibala Special ([2024], NAS): Website shows 25 programs currated and introduced by DJ Martinez, exploring the Colombian "champeta": "rhythms and influences are said to have arrived with the sailors from West Africa in the 1960s and 70s." This one focuses on the Congolese soukous star (b. 1954; best known in US for Loketo's Super Soukous (1989), but probably includes other artists, in a continuous mix aside from the branding. It's really terrific, probably improved by the editing, but is it real? Not as far as I can tell, which makes it hard to recommend. A- [os]

Kenny Dorham: Blue Bossa in the Bronx: Live From the Blue Morocco (1957 [2025], Resonance): Bebop trumpet player (1924-72), a 1951 Modern Jazz Trumpets compilation added him to Fats Navarro, Dizzy Gillespie, and Miles Davis, and he remained one of the top players into the 1960s. Hard bop quintet here with Sonny Red (alto sax), Cedar Walton (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), and Dennis Charles (drums). Strong showing, but perhaps more so for the sax. B+(***) [cd]

Paul Dunmall/Paul Rogers/Tony Levin: The Good Feelings (2009 [2024], 577): British saxophonist (here plays tenor and soprano, bass and Bb clarinet), backed with bass and drums (before the drummer died in 2011, so this is in some sense a belated tribute). B+(**) [bc]

Joe Henderson: Multiple (1973 [2025], Craft): Major tenor saxophonist (1937-2001), made his reputation in a series of now-classic Blue Note albums 1963-66, moved on to an extended run at Milestone 1968-77, had an unaccountably spotty decade-plus after that -- a couple albums on European labels, one more for Blue Note (The State of the Tenor, which pretty much was) -- before Verve picked him up in 1991, giving him the living legend treatment (but saddling him with concepts that I found less satisfying: tributes to Strayhorn, Davis, and Jobim; a big band; Porgy & Bess). I'm far less familiar with the Milestones, although he easily aced his entry in 2006's Milestone Profiles series, so I didn't even recognize this title (a Penguin Guide ***). It may have been easy to dismiss due to the then-fashionable electric keyboards/bass/guitar, congas, bits of soprano sax, flute and vocals. But a rhythm section with Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette shouldn't be dismissed -- they also contributed one song each, to go with three by Henderson. But now you can't help but focus on his tenor sax -- the Penguin Guide line is that he always sounds like he's in the middle of a great solo -- an this is certainly a good example. But I also have to admit I'm also digging Larry Willis' funky electric piano. A- [sp]

Freddie Hubbard: On Fire: Live From the Blue Morocco (1967 [2025], Resonance, 2CD): Trumpet player (1938-2008), opened with a bang on Blue Note in 1960 and was everywhere doing everything with everyone for a few years, although nothing in my database I especially like between Blue Spirits (1965) and Red Clay (1970). Quintet here with Bennie Maupin (tenor sax), Kenny Barron (piano), Herbie Lewis (bass), and Freddie Waits (drums). While this is nice enough, and I'm always up for long takes of "Summertime" and "Bye Bye Blackbird," nothing here really turned my head. B+(**) [cd]

Rob Mazurek: Alternate Moon Cycles [IA11 Edition] (2012 [2025], International Anthem): Cornet player, started c. 1995, early on mostly for his Chicago Underground groups, later for larger groups like Exploding Star Orchestra. This came out as the label's first LP in 2014 (2 tracks, 30:45), the digital reissue adding a 20:13 bonus track. Trio with Matt Lux (electric bass) and Mikel Patrick Avery (organ). Ambient. B+(**) [sp]

Mac Miller: Balloonerism (2014 [2025], REMember Music/Warner): Rapper Malcolm McCormick (1992-2018), seventh album, second posthumous release, As with 2018's Circles, seems better dead than alive. B+(***) [sp]

Art Pepper: Geneva 1980 (1980 [2025], Omnivore): Alto saxophonist, spent much of his prime years in jail, but made classic albums when he was out in 1956 and 1960, and finally got back on track around 1975 -- an album called Living Legend -- and went on to record a huge amount of extraordinary jazz up to his death (at 56) in 1982: The Complete Galaxy Recordings is a 16-CD box which chock full of delights, a bounty more than matched by the steady stream of live shots from those years. This adds 10 tracks, 126 minutes, of previously unreleased material from his first tour of Europe, with his regular touring quartet: Milcho Leviev (piano), Tony Dumas (bass), and Carl Burnett (drums). He is terrific, as usual, mostly playing his originals, with only minor reservations for sound, the less inspired band, and the fact that there is so much similar material already available -- or maybe just that I only played it once. B+(***) [sp]

Nat Birchall Unity Ensemble: Spiritual Progressions (2021 [2022], Ancient Archive of Sound): Tenor saxophonist, from Manchester, plays "spiritual jazz," where the spirit was embodied by John Coltrane, but extends all the way back to Africa. First group album, a quintet with Adam Fairhall (piano), Michael Bardon (bass), Paul Hession (drums), and Lascelle Gordon (percussion), where Birchall is also credited with wood flutes, singing bowls, mbira, balaphon, gunibri, and percussion. B+(**) [bc]

Nat Birchall: The Infinite (2022 [202]3, Ancient Archive of Sound): One of several solo albums, where he lays down rhythm tracks with keyboards, bass, drums, and percussion, then dubs in his tenor sax (or soprano, or bass clarinet). B+(**) [bc]

Nat Birchall: Songs of the Ancestors: Afro Trane Chapter 2 (2023, Ancient Archive of Sound): Solo again, with some organ for piano, a full range of saxophones, and two Coltrane pieces in addition to three by Birchall and one trad. B+(**) [bc]

Kenny Dorham: Blues in Bebop (1946-56 [1998], Savoy Jazz): Early sessions from 1946, with one track from Billy Eckstine's big band, more with Sonny Stitt, a few scraps from 1949 (a session with Kenny Clarke and Milt Jackson, plus a couple Royal Roost shots with Charlie Parker) and 1956 (a side-credit with Cecil Payne). Some good work here, but only the Parker cuts turned my head. B+(**) [sp]

Kenny Dorham: Jazz Contrasts (1957 [1992], Riverside/OJC): Six tracks, four with Sonny Rollins (tenor sax), who gets a small print "with" down in the corner, and probably a picture in front of a harp (actually played by Betty Glamman on three tracks, including the two with no Rollins). B+(**) [sp]

Kenny Dorham: Quiet Kenny (1959 [1986], New Jazz/OJC): Not really a ballad album, but let's say mid-tempo, the trumpet clear and articulate in a quartet with Tommy Flanagan (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), and Art Taylor (drums). CD adds a nice "Mack the Knife." B+(***) [sp]

Kenny Dorham: Jazz Contemporary (1960, Time): Original LP -- trumpet with baritone sax (Charles Davis), piano (Steve Kuhn), bass (Jimmy Garrison or Butch Warren), and drums (Buddy Enlow) -- had six tracks (39:28), but at some point four alternate takes got tacked on (at least by 2000 in Japan). Nice contrast in the horns here. B+(***) [sp]

Kenny Dorham: Whistle Stop (1961 [2014], Blue Note): This is closer to the hard bop album I was expecting, with Hank Mobley (tenor sax), Kenny Drew (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), and Philly Joe Jones (drums). B+(***) [sp]

The Delines: Mr. Luck & Ms. Doom (2025, Decor): Americana band from Portlant, sixth album since 2014, Amy Boone is the singer but Willy Vlautin, who has a reputation as a novelist (seven since 2006), is the songwriter. Scant reason for excitement here, but the songs have a quiet majesty, especially when the horn arrangements kick in. [was: B+(**)] A- [sp]

My second eye cataract surgery is scheduled for tomorrow morning. While I'm optimistic longer term, after a month, my left eye doesn't seem to be much improved over its previous state. This hasn't had much adverse effect on me, probably because the right eye was always a bit better, and could compensate for the left. So I'm worried of having more debilitating vision loss after tomorrow, even if the longer term prospect is better. Accordingly, I've tried to tie up as much as I could the last few days.

That involved posting a Book Roundup on Saturday, and a Loose Tabs on Sunday, as well as today's Music Week. (Some minor updates today, generally flagged with change bars -- I've added some book covers to the Book Roundup post without marking them.) Also good that I finished reading Christopher Lasch's The Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy. Much of interest there, but not as well focused on the title as I had hoped -- although posthumous books are bound to be lacking something or other. Don Malcolm wrote in to suggest I follow that with Lasch's "magnum opus," The True and Only Heaven (1991). Later for that, although maybe I can scratch something out of reviews and synopses, which would easily be more cost-effective. I have mixed views both on progress and on the conservative mores Lasch espouses, which are unlikely to be moved much by reading another 592 pages.

Meanwhile, I've started Mark Fisher's Capitalism Realism: Is There No Alternative?, which is pretty short (120 pp, although at my rate I'm still unlikely to finish it before surgery). I also have a bunch more books waiting in the wings, to read whenever I'm able. (Three, including Richard J Evans' long biography of Hobsbawm, arrived just today.) But worst comes to worst, I have a long list of TV series to watch. (Currently we're deep into Astrid et Raphaëlle.)

Worth noting that the rated counter rolled over another thousand mark (44). Odds are pretty good that I'll hit 45,000 by the end of the year, but I'm far less certain about 50,000. The full A grade for Mekons may have started as a typo, as I had A- several places in my far-from-normalized system, but when I saw it once, I chose to stick with it. The Hood and Isbell albums are upgrades, although the latter doesn't count as such, since I first encountered it this week. It led me back to Hood, and when Hood got better, so did it -- albeit differently.

I notice that I'm writing more reviews like Backxwash, where I don't explain why I like it but I do, and Black Country, New Road, where I dismiss a well-regarded album just because I can't bother to care. Neither of those reviews do anything for me as a critic, but they're data points in case you're interested. At this stage, that's often the best I can do with my attention span.

While this week has been fairly productive in terms of writing -- three posts, roughly 23k words (per wc, probably 20k using my inline word count program) -- I've gotten very little else done. I expect even less in coming weeks. One thing I've fallen behind on is my "pick hit" posts to Bluesky (actually, I've done even worse at recommending articles, which was my origijnal plan). Most of this week's batch didn't come out until today, and I still haven't done late adds Hood and Isbell, so those at least you're reading about here first.

2hollis: Star (2025, Interscope): Rapper Hollis Frazier-Herndon, father is drummer in Tortoise, second (or fourth) album, following EPs and mixtapes since 2020. B+(**) [sp]

Carl Allen: Tippin' (2024 [2025], Cellar): Drummer, from Milwaukee, led some albums in the 1990s but mostly side-credits -- Discogs counts 185 from 1985. Aside from one bit of guest piano, this is a trio with Chris Potter (tenor/soprano sax, bass clarinet) and Christian McBride (bass). Standard mainstream fare, but Potter is in especially fine form. B+(***) [sp]

Florian Arbenz/Michael Arbenz/Ron Carter: The Alpine Session: Arbenz Vs Arbenz Meets Ron Carter (2024 [2025], Hammer): Swiss drummer, had a couple 2000-01 records but his discography really kicked off in 2020 with Conversation series, which started as pandemic-imposed virtual encounters, usually one-on-one but sometimes more. This falls out of the series, as the bassist showed up in person, joined by the family pianist. B+(**) [sp]

Backxwash: Only Dust Remains (2025, Ugly Hag): Rapper from Zambia, Ashanti Mutinta, based in Montreal, sixth album since 2019. B+(***) [sp]

Barker: Stochastic Drift (2025, Smalltown Supersound): Sam Barker, British electronica producer, based in Berlin, second album plus several singles/EPs and a DJ mix. Less immediately fetching than his first album, Utility (2019), all the better to sneak up on you. B+(***) [sp]

Believers [Brad Shepik/Sam Minaie/John Hadfield]: Hard Believer (2023 [2025], Shifting Paradigm): Guitar-bass-drums trio, group name from the trio's 2020 album. B+(***) [sp]

Black Country, New Road: Forever Howlong (2025, Ninja Tune): British band, started with Isaac Wood as lead vocalist, but he left after two albums. The rest carried on, with a live album in 2023, and now this third studio album, the vocals now divvied up between three women. I'm not really sure what's going on here, but I do know that I don't particularly care. B [sp]

Blacks' Myths Meet Pat Thomas: The Mythstory School (2023 [2025], self-released): Duo of Luke Stewart (bass) and Trae Crudup (drums), released a couple albums 2018-19, supplemented with two "Meets" albums since, this one with the British avant-pianist (recently acclaimed for Ahmed), impressive as usual. B+(**) [bc]

Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Purple Bird (2025, No Quarter): Singer-songwriter Will Oldham, from Kentucky, started around 1993 as Palace Brothers, then Palace Music, playing what was then called "freak folk." After releasing an album under his own name in 1997, he adopted this alias, which has been good for a couple dozen albums now. While I had heard some of his early music, I didn't initially make the connection here -- I missed the Billy the Kid reference (which I now understand is not the only one), and thought the name sounded Anglo-monarchist-folkie or at least pretentious. So this is the first of his BPB albums I've checked out. It's actually a very nice album -- "Our Home" is a choice cut, and "Guns Are for Cowards" a notable title -- not enough to send me diving, but it certainly breaks the ice. B+(***) [sp]

Xhosa Cole: On a Modern Genius, Vol. 1 (2023 [2025], Stoney Lane): British alto saxophonist, from Birmingham, third album since 2021, six Thelonious Monk covers plus an Ellington song ("Come Sunday," with a strong Heidi Vogel vocal), backed with guitar, bass, and drums, plus a guest credit for tap dance (4 tracks). B+(***) [sp]

Geoffrey Dean Quartet: Conceptions (2024 [2025], Cellar Music): Pianist, DC area, second quartet album, with bass (Harish Raghavan), drums (Eric Binder), and trumpet (Justin Copeland). B+(*) [cd]

The Ex: If Your Mirror Breaks (2025, Ex): Dutch postpunk group, started 1980, many cultural and political parallels to the Mekons, but side interests run less to folk/country and more to jazz/afrobeat. Three guitars and drums, the rock component seems more amped than usual, perhaps because they dedicated this to Steve Albini. A- [bc]

Bryan Ferry/Amelia Barratt: Loose Talk (2025, Dene Jesmond): British singer-songwriter, leader of Roxy Music in the 1970s, with a solo career started as a side covers project in 1973, taking over after the first disbanding in 1982, with a band reunion 2001-11, and other side projects. In this particular one, he wrote the music for Barratt's spoken-word narration. Normally I would parse the cover as listing Barratt first, but most of the early reviews only mention Ferry, and it's easier to file the album there. I'm finding both words and music here very attractive -- not quite at the level of Laurie Anderson, but an approximation. A- [sp]

Nnenna Freelon: Beneath the Skin (2024 [2025], Origin): Jazz singer, started in church, got married, had kids, started singing professionally in her late 30s, with 15+ albums since 1992. Has done standards, including a Billie Holiday tribute, but wrote or added claim to everything here (even "Oh! Susanna"). She never impressed me much before, but she's on fire here, and the Alan Pasqua-led band provides impeccable support. [cd]

Dave Hanson: Blues Sky (2024 [2025], Origin): Denver-based pianist, co-leader of H2 Big Band, seems to be his first album as leader, although Discogs lists more than a dozen side-credits, going back to UNC Jazz Lab Band in 1987. He wrote all 10 pieces, played by a quartet with Wil Swindler (alto/tenor sax), Mark Simon (bass), and Paul Romaine (drums). B+(**) [cd]

Nick Hempton/Cory Weeds: Horns Locked (2023-24 [2025], Cellar Music): Two saxophonist, both playing tenor this time, in what can be considered a throwback to the days of Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt, backed here with organ (Nick Peck) and drums (Jesse Cahill). B+(**) [sp]

Lilly Hiatt: Forever (2025, New West): Nashville-based singer-songwriter, daughter of John Hiatt, sixth album since 2012. B+(*) [sp]

Jason Isbell: Foxes in the Snow (2025, Southeastern): Former Drive-By Trucker, tenth studio album, divorced his wife and dropped the band credit. Pretty basic, real songs over acoustic guitar. Noted lyric: "[God] made man so he could watch and laugh." Probably more like that. The greater intimacy helps the new love songs. A- [sp]

Japanese Breakfast: For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women) (2025, Dead Oceans): Indie pop band from Philadelphia, Michelle Zauner the singer-songwriter, fourth album since 2016. Probably 2nd best reviewed album this year (AOTY 83/26, behind FKA Twigs at 86/33; Lady Gaga is +1 reviews, but -5 points; Perfume Genius is +3 points, but -5 reviews). No doubt this is nice, but I've already forgotten it, and will never play it again. B+(*) [sp]

Kaisa's Machine: Moving Parts (2024 [2025], Greenleaf Music): Finnish bassist Kaisa Mäensivu, third group album, quintet with vibes (Sasha Berliner), guitar (Max Light), piano (Eden Ladin), and drums (Joe Perl). B+(**) [sp]

Kelela: In the Blue Light (2024 [2025], Warp): Singer-songwriter born in DC, parents Ethiopian, last name Mizanekristos, started singing jazz standards and progressive metal, debut mixtape 2012, has since lived in Los Angeles and London, two studio albums, this a live one from the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York, which may be why she leans into a jazzy vibe. B+(**) [sp]

Knats: Knats (2025, Gearbox): British jazz group, from Newcastle, led by Stan Woodward (bass) and King David-Ike Elechi (drums), first album -- trio picture probably adds trumpet player Ferg Kilsbly, but credits also list tenor sax (Cam Rossi) and keyboards (Sandro Shar) plus nine guest spots on individual tracks. That risks getting a bit busy for my taste. B+(*) [sp]

Kedr Livanskiy: Myrtus Myth (2025, 2MR): Russian electronica producer/singer, fourth album. B [sp]

Manic Street Preachers: Critical Thinking (2025, Columbia): One of the big Britpop bands of the 1990s -- along with Oasis, Radiohead, and Blur -- who dominated the All-Time Albums lists of the early 2000s (from UK sources; Radiohead was the only one that got much notice in the US). Fifteenth album since 1992. I'm surprised to find only 2 graded in my database, and none even listed after 2009. Title track gets my endorsement both for words and music. My interest did flag a bit by the end. B+(*) [sp]

Nicole McCabe: A Song to Sing (2025, Colorfield): Alto saxophonist from Los Angeles, several albums since her impressive Introducing Nicole McCabe (2020), adds credits here for "woodwinds, synthesizer, piano, percussion, and voice," with others (piano, bass, drums) only listed for a couple songs each. Not much voice, and I have mixed feelings about the synth percussion. B+(**) [sp]

Mekons: Horror (2025, Fire): Early postpunk band from Leeds, debut album 1979 but didn't really come together until 1985, when they soaked up some honky-tonk country and spit out Fear and Whiskey. Jon Langford ran various side projects -- notably the Three Johns, then after his move to Chicago, the Waco Brothers -- but returned periodically for group albums, some of which have been extraordinary. This sounds like another. A [sp]

Billy Mohler: The Eternal (2025, Contagious Music): Bassist, several albums since 2019, this a quartet with Devin Daniels (alto sax), Jeff Parker (guitar), and Damion Reid (drums). B+(***) [sp]

Silvano Monasterios Venezuelan Nonet: The River (2025, self-released): Pianist from Venezuela, moved to US in 1990, has several albums since 1997, recorded this in Brooklyn where he has some ringers like Alex Norris (trumpet) and Jeff Lederer (bass clarinet/clarinet). B+(**) [cd]

Patricio Morales: La Tierra Canta (2022 [2025], Northsound): Classical guitarist from Chile. B+(*) [cd]

Matthew Muñesses/Riza Printup: Pag-Ibig Ko Vol. 1 (2023 [2025], Irabbagast): Saxophone and harp duo, both musicians trace their roots back to the Philippines. Lovely in its limited way. B+(***) [cd]

Marius Neset: Cabaret (2024 [2025], ACT Music): Norwegian saxophonist (tenor, soprano, EWI), 15+ albums since 2008, backed by Elliot Galvin (keyboards), Magnus H jorth (piano), Conor Chaplin (electric bass), and Anton Eger (drums), starts with the title song, then moves around a lot. B+(*) [sp]

The Nightingales: The Awful Truth (2025, Fire): British post-punk group, principally Robert Lloyd, released three albums 1982-86, regrouped with a new album in 2006. B+(*) [sp]

Oklou: Choke Enough (2025, True Panther/Because Music): French singer-songwriter Marylou Mayniel, first album after EPs since 2014 (initially as Loumar) and a 2020 mixtape, all titles in English, a Canadian named Casey Manierka-Quaile contributed to the music. B+(**) [sp]

Organic Pulse Ensemble: Ad Hoc (2024, Ultraääni): Alias for Gustav Horneij, Finnish multi-instrumentalist (mostly sax and percussion), several albums, records solo, reportedly in one take (but that's hard to credit)identifies as spiritual jazz. B+(**) [bc]

Ben Patterson Jazz Orchestra: Mad Scientist Music (2023 [2025], Origin): Trombonist, from Oklahoma, played in and was musical director of the USAF's Airmen of Note, has run his big band since 2016. B+(*) [cd]

Perfume Genius: Glory (2025, Matador): Alias for singer-songwriter Michael Hadreas, from Iowa, seventh album since 2010, well regarded, but demands more attention than I can muster, although for the first couple tracks I thought it might be as pleasantly innocuous as Japanese Breakfast. B [sp]

Porridge Radio: The Machine Starts to Sing (2025, Secretly Canadian, EP): English indie rock band, Dana Margolin singer-songwriter, half-dozen albums since 2015, this a 4-song, 15:57 EP that's about par for their sound. B+(*) [sp]

Bobby Rush/Kenny Wayne Shepherd: Young Fashioned Ways (2025, Deep Rush/Thirty Tigers): Two blues guitarist-singers, Shepherd is the young one, but only relatively (47, albums since 1995), as Rush (91) plays more harmonica. B+(**) [sp]

Mark Turner: We Raise Them to Lift Their Heads (2019 [2025], Loveland Music): Tenor saxophonist, a rising star in the 1990s, mostly side credits of late. Even with a solo album, this seems largely attributable to Jakob Bro, who wrote the songs produced, and runs the label. B+(**) [sp]

The Weather Station: Humanhood (2025, Fat Possum): Canadian folk-rock band, mainly singer-songwriter Tamara Lindeman, seventh album since 2009. B+(*) [sp]

Yseult: Mental (2024, Y.Y.Y): Surmane Onguenet, French singer-songwriter, parents Cameroonian, second album, her first in 2015 at 21, after she was runner-up in a singing contest. I noticed her on a Shygirl feature but didn't expect this would be so scattered, touching on neo-soul, postpunk, electro, and trap. B+(**) [sp]

Johnny Bragg: Let Me Dream On ([2025], ORG Music): R&B singer from Tennessee (1925-2004), spent most of the 1950s in prison, where he sang in the Prisonaires, and also appeared on the Marigolds' hit "Rollin' Stone" (1955). His recorded legacy is largely captured on a 2001 Relentless compilation (The Johnny Bragg Story: Just Walkin' in the Rain). This seems to be something else, "demos, band rehearsals, and live recordings that, fortunately, Bragg preserved on tape in the 1960s and 1970s." B+(*) [sp]

Erik Friedlander/ and Michael Nicolas: John Zorn's Bagatelles: Vol. 2 (2019 [2025], Tzadik): A second album separated from its original box set release, this one with two cellos playing 10 of Zorn's pieces. B+(**) [sp]

Mary Halvorson Quartet: John Zorn's Bagatelles: Volume 1 (2019 [2025], Tzadik): Originally released as the first disc in Zorn's Bagatelles 4-CD box set (2021) -- actually, the first of four 4-CD boxes, which still didn't exhaust the 300 compositions Zorn wrote for the series -- now broken out separately, and unlike most of the albums Tzadik releases of Zorn's compositions, credited to the musician(s) -- perhaps some recognition that the guitarist has arrived. Actually, she's joined here by a second guitarist, Miles Okazaki, along with Drew Gress (bass) and Tomas Fujiwara (drums). Despite his massive cache of compositions, I still have little sense of Zorn as a composer, but anyone who doubts Halvorson's chops or arranging sense should shut up. A- [sp]

Krautrock Eruption: An Introduction to German Electronic Music 1970-1980 (1970-80 [2025], Bureau B): The title of Wolfgang Seidel's recent book, reviewing the development of what we've come to call Krautrock (a term from UK music critics that caught on, probably because it was never meant as derogatory): the mostly instrumental, mostly electronic music developed from the late 1960s into the following decade by German groups like Neu, Can, Faust, Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, Popol Vuh, Amon Düül II, etc. The book details 50 albums, but this is just a 12-track sampler, and the Bandcamp page (which is most of what I have to go on) doesn't bother with group credits, making me wonder about its utility. B [sp]

Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 3: A Collection of SF Bay Area Salsa and Latin Jazz: Renegade Queens (1991-2025 [2025], Patois, 2CD): Trombonist Wayne Wallace is the main artist behind this label, their domain noted in the title, as is their focus this time around on women artists, few I'm familiar with, but plenty good enough for a couple hours of nice background music. B+(*) [cd]

Serengeti: Mixtape 2 ([2025], self-released): Chicago rapper, lots of releases, this a housecleaning exercise, 18 "old demos and other stuff," the titles nothing but the track numbers, no dates or other info. B+(*) [bc]

Trigger: John Zorn's Bagatelles: Vol. 3 (2019 [2025], Tzadik): Trio, which released an album on Shhpuma in 2019, with two electric guitars (Will Greene and Simon Hanes) plus drums (Aaron Edgecomb). They are fantastically noisy, which seems to be as legit a take on the music as any other. B+(*) [sp]

Xhosa Cole: Ibeji (2021-22 [2022], Stoney Lane): British saxophonist, second album, title from "Yoruba orisha (West African spirits) for 'twins', exploring the themes of duality" through a series of duets with seven percussionists, who introduce their pieces with stories and critical insights, and occasionally sing. The sax pulls it all together. A- [sp]

Miles Davis: The Lost Septet (1971 [2000], Sleepy Night): Live recording, from Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna, Austria, from a period when the trumpet master was developing his "electric" band approach, with electric bass (Michael Henderson) and keyboards (Keith Jarrett), with soprano/alto saxophonist Gary Bartz, drummer Ndugu Leon Chandler, and percussionists Charles Don Alias and James Mtume Foreman. Davis is overshadowed by the intensity of the percussion, and perhaps even more so by the relentless Bartz. A- [sp]

TEST: TEST (1998 [1999], AUM Fidelity): New York avant-jazz quartet -- Tom Bruno (drums), Sabir Mateen (alto/tenor sax, flute, clarinet), Daniel Carter (alto/tenor sax, trumpet, flute), and Matthew Heyner (bass) -- recorded this one studio album, although some live tapes have since appeared. The jousts may seem unexceptional, but some of the subtler bits (especially the clarinet) are interesting. B+(***) [sp]

Patterson Hood: Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams (2025, ATO): Drive-By Truckers singer-songwriter, released three solo albums 2004-12 along with group albums, this his fourth (not counting the pandemic-filler Heathen Songs). Too quiet to keep my attention, but interesting enough when I do notice. But my surprise at liking Jason Isbell's new album better brought me back for a revisit, and it gained a slight upper hand. [was: B+(***)] A- [sp]

As I've noted often of late, my life is in some kind of limbo until I figure some stuff out, including what (if anything) I should work on writing. It's easy to blame (or credit) procrastination for a big part of that, but one part that is on some kind of schedule is eye surgery. I saw the doctor today, and he was pleased enough to schedule the second (right) eye. I go in next week, April 8. After that, my vision at least should start to clear up. I have an appointment with my old eye doctor a week or two after that, which I will have to reschedule: my annual check up, a full year after he recommended that I see the surgeon in the first place (well, actually more like the 3rd or 4th time) -- it's taken that long.

In the meantime, I spent several days working on the backyard shed. A couple of boards had come loose, and the whole structure had slipped off its mounts. It also had a lot of rot on the outside boards. Short of replacing them, my brother advised applying linseed oil and paint thinner, so I did that. I put it all back together, and screwed it firmly to the shed.

The shed itself is raised 6-inches, sitting on treated timbers. It's enough space for small critters, like rabbits, to hide, which makes it tempting for the dog to dig around. Laura wanted me to close it off, so I bought a roll of 1/2-inch hardware cloth, cut it into 8-inch swathes, and wrapped the shed with it. That involved a lot of crawling around and digging, so the wire wound up below ground level. Not fun at my age, but over four days I got through it.

I still have more to do there. I have some plastic edging I want to dig in next to the wire, which will extend the depth another 3 or 4 inches. I also need to caulk some cracks in the paneling, and repair at least one split trim board. There's a bit of overhang on the ends, and a soffit problem -- if that's the right word (I need to get on a ladder to look at that). I need to wash the siding down, and see about touching up the paint. All that can wait for a nicer day. Same for much clean up around the yard. I also need to pull the grill out, and figure out why I'm not getting all the burners to light.

It quickly became too much of a rabbit hole, so I wound up moving my scraps to the notebook. What got me thinking was Robert Christgau's self-reference to Patriotic Democrats. Bill Clinton's New Democrats were a reaction to losing to Reagan. Clinton accepted (and effectively validated) the core of the Reagan attack on welfare and big government, but thought he could win by doing it better. And sure, he did it better, at least for the tech and finance industries, but few of his gains trickled down to the middle class (let alone to the poor), and in the end he didn't win much.

Reagan also made patriotism a big part of his pitch, mostly because it seemed to be a more respectable way of flattering and rallying white identity. Trump even more so, especially as he rarely campaigns on his corrupt economic agenda (when he does, they're reduced to gibberish: tax cuts, drill drill drill, tariffs). All along, some Democrats have tried to out-hawk and out-jingo Reagan and the Bushes, to little a vail. But with Trump they have good reason to suspect he's a phony, and to assert themselves as much truer patriots. (Again, so far, to little avail.)

This came to a head with Russiagate and the Ukraine impeachment, which was led by the so-called Security Democrats (and was, I think, a complete disaster, but that's a long story -- one important point, little recognized, is that they helped provoke Putin's invasion of Ukraine, where they remain the most dedicated party to perpetual war. So what I'm wondering here is whether Patriotic Democrats aren't making the same mistake viz. Trump as New Democrats made viz. Reagan? I.e., validating them on points they'll seem more credible for, while aligning themselves with thanklessly bad policies, and looking less than honest in the process.

But sorting all that out, and showing that the left has better answers, is a taller order than I'm up to right now. But what it turns out I was up for was assembling a 2025 Metacritic File. I made it all the way through Album of the Year's publication list, even the metal ones I regard as completely useless. I've also gone through the reviews/lists at All About Jazz, Hip-Hop Golden Age, and Saving Country Music, and I've included Phil Overeem's list, plus all of the grades so far from Robert Christgau and myself. It is, to date at least, as comprehensive as I've ever done, resulting in 792 new music albums listed, although only a paltry 14 old music albums.

The immediate payoff started with last week's large review list, and continues below (more jazz this week, because AAJ took a long time, Overeem was a good source, and I was quicker than usual to move on some albums I got email on, like the Marsalis. I didn't really touch my demo queue again this week, because most of what I have there is still unreleased. I did continue to post on Bluesky about Pick Hit albums as they I recognized them. My preference there is to find Bandcamp links, but sometimes I have to search out substitutes. By the way, Tim Niland is doing something similar on Bluesky. If you like my tips (or even if you don't), you should follow him there. I'll be adding his listings to my Metacritic File. (He doesn't do grades, but only writes about things he likes.)

It seems highly unlikely that I'll keep this file anywhere near up-to-date, but it's something I can always fall back on when I find myself out of sorts, or just get frustrated trying to figure out what to play next.

The last two weeks have thrown the March Streamnotes archive into overdrive. I haven't done the indexing yet, but it's on my head, even before getting around to drawing up my todo list. One thing I did do was to create the 2024 frozen file. Late adds to the regular 2024 file henceforth will be marked. I've done this for many years now, but never this late before.

What I'm more likely to work on next week is a new Book Roundup. The latest one I've done was back on April 25, 2024, so nearly a year ago. I'm way overdue, and have a lot of catching up to do. Then there is the problem of all the book notes I have left over from a year ago. Most have lost their timeliness, but still should be worked in somehow.

Artemis: Arboresque (2025, Blue Note): Third group album from this "female supergroup," which I've been filing under pianist Renee Rosnes (although maybe I shouldn't, as the group writing is, and always has been, pretty widely divided). Now down from seven to six to five, with founders Ingrid Jensen (trumpet), Norika Ueda (bass), and Allison Miller (drums) joined by Nicole Glover (tenor sax, who replaced Melissa Aldana on the 2nd album). (The clarinet/alto sax slot, with Anat Cohen on the 1st album, Alexa Tarantino on the 2nd, has been dropped, and vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant only had two songs on the 1st.) Postbop of a high order, something I respect more than enjoy. B+(**) [sp]

Banks: Off With Her Head (2025, Her Name Is Banks): Singer-songwriter from Los Angeles, goes by her last name, first is Jillian, sixth album since 2014. B+(**) [sp]

Bdrmm: Microtonic (2025, Rock Action): From Hull, UK, dreampop/shoegaze band, third album since 2020, following EPs back to 2016. Appealing sound, seems to have come together nicely. B+(***) [sp]

Black Milk & Fat Ray: Food From the Gods (2025, Computer Ugly/Fat Beats): Detroit rapper Curtis Cross, 18 or so albums since 2002, including a previous with producer Ray Boggues from 2008. B+(**) [sp]

Booker T & the Bleeds: Ode to BC/LY . . . And Eye Know BO . . . Da Prez (2022 [2025], Mahakala Music): Saxophonist (alto/tenor), b. 1949 in Seattle, last name Williams, not the more famous MGs organ player, but I remember him from a 1988 album, Go Tell It on the Mountain, one of those rarities that makes you wonder whatever happened to him? Hehas a few more side credits (Saheb Sardib, Dennis Charles, Roy Campbell, William Hooker, Jean-Paul Bourelly), but not much lately. Featuring credit for Gary Hammon, another tenor saxophonist from Seattle, plus Mark Franklin on trumpet, and some of the label's regulars, including Christopher Parker on piano and a Kelley Hurt vocal. Mixed results: sound a bit harsh, music too. B [bc]

Anouar Brahem: After the Last Sky (2024 [2025], ECM): Oud player from Tunisia, has a dozen albums on ECM since 1991, jazz rooted in his native folk and classical music. Quartet, names on the cover: Anja Lechner (cello), Django Bates (piano), Dave Holland (bass). Very nice. B+(***) [sp]

Brother Ali: Satisfied Soul (2025, Mello Music Group): Minnesota rapper, originally Jason Newman, albino, converted to Islam, 10th album since 2000, produced by Ant (of Atmosphere). Gets personal: "I got a platinum soul, a solid-gold heart, a steel-trap mind and that's a damn good start," but beware the ego. And philosophical: "human beings are mysterious things" and "the truth isn't always what it seems." A- [sp]

Rob Brown: Walkabout (Mahakala Music (2023 [2025], Mahakala Music): Alto saxophonist, first album was a duo with Matthew Shipp in 1988, many side credits with William Parker, but has a couple dozen albums as leader. This is a trio with Brandon Lopez (bass) and Juan P. Carletti (drums). B+(**) [bc]

Burnt Sugar/The Arkestra Chamber: If You Can't Dazzle Them With Your Brilliance, Then Baffle Them With Your Blisluth Pt. Two (2022-24 [2025], Avant Groid Musica): A compilation of live performances from the year after founder Greg Tate died, recycling a title from a 2004 collection. Credits, as best I can decipher: Jared Michael Nickerson (leader, electric bubble bass), Bruce Mack (vocals), Leon Gruenbaum (keyboards), Andre Lassalle (electric guitar), Shelley Nicole (vocals), Marque Gilmore (drums), Ben Tyree (electric guitar), Lewis Barnes (trumpet), "et al," which seems to include (at least on some cuts): JS Williams (trumpet), Anthony Arington (sax), V. Jeffrey Smith (sax), Dave Smith (trombone), Paula Marcus (drums), Chris Eddleton (drums), Vernon Reid (directed four tracks). Focus seems shifted to funk, and more covers (including some rework on "Summertime"). Sample lyric: "The world's gone crazy, the least you can do is dance." B+(**) [bc]

Nels Cline: Consentrik Quartet (2024 [2025], Blue Note): Jazz guitarist, albums start around 1990, but has played in the rock band Wilco since 2004, and this is his first jazz album since 2020. Quartet, with Ingrid Laubrock (sax), Chris Lightcap (bass), and Tom Rainey (drums). Cline wrote all the pieces, his guitar laying down a foundation for the sax, in particular, to build on. A- [sp]

Doodlebug and 80 Empire: A Galactic Love Supreme (2025, Gladiator): Craig Irving, part of the jazzy rap trio Digable Planets, best known for their two 1993-94 albums (several reunions only produced a 2017 live album), not much on his own, but here teams up with Toronto-based producers, brother Adrian and Lucas Rezza. Some of this works well, and some falls flat. B [sp]

Mathias Eick: Lullaby (2024 [2025], ECM): Norwegian trumpet player, sixth album on ECM since 2009, also credited with voice and keyboard, backed with piano (Kristjan Randalu), bass (Ole Morten Vågan), and drums (Hans Hulbækmo). B+(**) [sp]

Sam Fender: People Watching (2025, Polydor): English singer-songwriter, from near Newcastle, third album since 2019, all big UK hits, not so much elsewhere, gets tagged as "heartland rock," which is to say compared to Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger, and Tom Petty -- not without reason, but I'm not sure of the point. B+(*) [sp]

R.A.P. Ferreira: Outstanding Understanding (2025, Ruby Yacht): Rapper, initials for Rory Allen Phillip, released his first albums as Milo, started using this moniker around 2019, with 2-3 albums/mixtapes per year since. B+(**) [bc]

Sullivan Fortner: Southern Nights (2023 [2025], Artwork): Pianist, from New Orleans, debut 2015, got quite a bit of attention for his Solo Game in 2023, returns here with a trio, backed by Peter Washington (bass) and Marcus Gilmore (drums). B+(**) [sp]

Rose Gray: Louder, Please (2025, PIAS): British pop singer-songwriter, first album after singles (since 2019), EPs, and a mixtape (2021). Fine dance beats, party themes. B+(***) [sp]

Billy Hart Quartet: Just (2021 [2025], ECM): Venerable jazz drummer, Discogs credits him with playing on 763 albums since 1963 (Jimmy Smith, although he appears on a couple later-released Wes Montgomery albums from 1961), including 88 albums as leader or co-leader (since 1977). I figure he was 81 here, writing 3 (of 10) songs, and leading a quartet with Mark Turner (tenor sax, wrote 3 songs), Ethan Iverson (piano, wrote 4 songs), and Ben Street (bass). B+(**) [sp]

William Hooker: Jubilation (2023 [2025], ORG Music): Avant-drummer, many records since 1977. Credits are sketchy, but this one opens solo, but also includes: Matt Lavelle (trumpet), Stevie Manning (alto sax), On Davis (guitar), and/or Adam Lane (bass), from a live date. B+(**) [sp]

Horsegirl: Phonetics On and On (2025, Matador): Indie rock band from Chicago, made up of Nora Cheng, Penelope Lowenstein, and Gigi Reece, singles from 2019, second album, produced by Cate Le Bon, spine title adds an extra "And On" for good measure. B+(**) [sp]

Vijay Iyer/Wadada Leo Smith: Defiant Life (2024 [2025], ECM): Piano and trumpet duo, Iyer also playing electric and electronics, follows a similar album from 2016. Much to notice here if you take the time, but it goes slow, and it's hard to get excited. B+(**) [sp]

Jennie: Ruby (2025, Columbia): K-pop singer-rapper Jennie Kim, from Blackpink, first solo album. I'm impressed by the rhythmic sense on the raps, less so on the production overkill on the sung numbers. B [sp]

Anthony Joseph: Rowing Up River to Get Our Names Back (2025, Heavenly Sweetness): British poet and novelist, originally from Trinidad, started recording spoken word jazz albums with the Spasm Band in 2007. His 2021 album is a favorite, not only for its title (The Rich Are Only Defeated When Running for Their Lives). This was less immediately appealing, but the bounty of words has few peers, and in the end that's also true for the music. A- [sp]

Lola Kirke: Trailblazer (2025, One Riot): Born in London, father was drummer for Free and Bad Company, moved to New York when she was five, has several albums, and a substantial career as an actor. Her 2024 EP Country Curious got her some attention from country music fans. She doesn't have the twang so common in Nashville, but her songwriting can pass -- especially "Mississippi, My Sister, Elvis & Me." B+(***) [sp]

Benjamin Lackner: Spindrift (2024 [2025], ECM): German pianist, divided time between Berlin and New York, several albums since 2008, recorded this in France, a quintet with Mathias Eick (trumpet), Mark Turner (tenor sax), Linda May Han Oh (bass), and Matthieu Chazarenc (drums). B+(***) [sp]

James Brandon Lewis Trio: Apple Cores (2025, Anti-): Tenor saxophonist, two-time poll winner, backed by Josh Werner (bass/guitar) and Chad Taylor (drums/mbira), on a rock label I get no publicity from, both LP and CD already marked "Sold Out." Terrific, as always. A- [sp]

Lolo [Mamah Diabate/Jabel Kanuteh/Stefano Pilia/Marco Zanotti]: Lolo (2025, Black Sweat): Two African griot names on the cover (Diabate, from Mali, plays djeli ngoni; Kanuteh, from Gambia, plays kora), with two Italian names (guitar/bass and percussion). B+(***) [bc]

Loot: Loot (2023 [2025], ICP): Quartet led by Dutch pianist Oscar Jan Hoogland, who composed all the pieces, with Ab Baars (tenor sax/clarinet), Uldis Vitols (bass), and Onno Govaert (drums). The label reminds us of the lamentably passed Mengelberg, and so does the opening piano, a playful trickiness that lifts everyone's spirits. A- [bc]

Jako Maron: Mahavélouz (2025, Nyege Nyege Tapes): Electronica producer from Réunion, a French island in the Indian Ocean, has a rep for building on local folklore, both on his own and in the group Force Indigène. Rhythm tracks, simple repeated figures with a bit of dissonace. B+(***) [sp]

Branford Marsalis Quartet: Belonging (2024 [2025], Blue Note): Saxophonist, mostly tenor, major figure since he (and his brother) left Art Blakey in the early 1980s. Quartet with Joey Calderazzo (piano), Eric Revis (bass), and Justin Faulkner (drums), together since 2012 (when Faulkner joined, otherwise since 1998). Music is by Keith Jarrett, all six tracks from his 1974 album -- possibly his best ever (with Jan Garbarek, and sure, I've always been partial to saxophone) -- expanding on their 2019 cover of "The Windup." As with their previous cover of A Love Supreme, they add something of their own without challenging the original. On the other hand, he reaches further here, and comes up with more. If one took this at face value, it would be one of his best. So why not just enjoy it as such? A- [sp]

Caili O'Doherty: Bluer Than Blue: Celebrating Lil Hardin Armstrong (2025, Outside In Music): Lil Hardin played piano, joining King Oliver when he came to Chicago, met and married Louis Armstrong, reportedly convinced him to step out as a leader, and played with him on the first round of Hot Fives, contributing a few classic songs. She then left the band, then left him, and eventually (1938) they got divorced, but she kept the name, and capitalized on it. Tribute here includes vocals by Michael Mayo and Tahira Clayton (I much prefer her), and Nicole Glover on tenor sax (big solos). B+(**) [sp]

Jeremy Pelt: Woven (2024 [2025], HighNote): Mainstream trumpet player, couple dozen albums since 2002. Backed with vibes, guitar, bass, and drums, with guest synth on four tracks, vocal on one. B+(*) [sp]

Ivo Perelman/Ken Vandermark/Joe McPhee: Oxygen (2025, Mahakala Music): Saxophone trio, the former on tenor, the others credited with "winds." B+(***) [bc]

PremRock: Did You Enjoy Your Time Here . . . ? (2025, Backwoodz Studioz): Rapper Mark Debuque ("perhaps best known as one half of ShrapKnel"), but has previous albums more/less under this name back to 2010. B+(***) [sp]

Dave Sewelson/Gabby Fluke-Mogul/George Cartwright/Anthony Cox/Steve Hirsh: Murmuration (2023 [2025], Mahakala Music): Bandcamp page attributes this to the label, but since the cover lists five names, and they're all pretty well known -- baritone sax, violin, alto sax/guitar, bass/cello, drums -- we should credit them. B+(**) [bc]

Six Sex: X-Sex (2025, Dale Play, EP): Francisca Cuello, from Argentina, no albums but fifth EP since 2019, "combines elements of reggaeton, dance hall and electronic music, by mixing sensual urban rhythms with ecstatic beats." Six songs, 17:24. I was tempted to hold out for more, but came around with multiple plays. A- [sp]

Dayna Stephens: Hopium (2022 [2025], Contagious Music): Saxophonist, tenor mostly, has a dozen-plus albums since 2007 plus a lot of side work. Postbop quartet with Aaron Parks (piano), Ben Street (bass), and Greg Hutchinson (drums). B+(*) [sp]

Thomas Strønen: Relations (2018-22 [2024], ECM): Norwegian drummer, best known for his group with Iain Ballamy, Food (8 albums, 1999-2015), including in the 76 credits Discogs lists. This was recorded in several places over several years, and it's not clear who plays where, but the credits are: Craig Taborn (piano), Chris Potter (soprano/tenor sax), Sinikka Langeland (kantele/voice), Jorge Rossy (piano). Mixed bag, but Potter (for one) doesn't disappoint. B+(**) [sp]

Trio Glossia: Trio Glossia (2024 [2025], Sonic Transmissions): North Texas trio of Matthew Frerck (bass), Joshua Cañate (tenor sax/drums), and Stefan Gonzalez (vibes/drums), first album (although Gonzalez has a bunch of side-credits, starting with his father, and Cañate appears with him in a very good Dennis Gonzalez Legacy Band album last year). B+(***) [sp]

Jesse Welles: Middle (2025, self-released): Folkie singer-songwriter, from Ozark, AR, debut 2012 as Jeh Sea Wells, went by just Welles 2018-23, reverted to actual name for 2024's Hells Welles. Title song is antiwar. B+(**) [sp]

YHWH Nailgun: 45 Pounds (2025, AD 93): NYC-based experimental rock quartet (post-punk, but even more post-no wave), first album, very short at 21:04 but 10 songs. Electronics expand the sonic palette, and the rhythm splinters into countless shards. I tend to devalue short albums, but this is remarkable, and I'm not sure how much longer it could go on and still retain its impact. A- [sp]

Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek: Yarin Yoksa = If There Is No Tomorrow (2025, Big Crown): Anatolian rock group, which is to say Turkish but based in Berlin, where orientalism passes as neo-psychedelia, fifth album since 2019. B+(**) [sp]

The Young Mothers: Better If You Let It (2022 [2025], Sonic Transmissions): Founded by Norwegian Thing bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten after he moved to Austin, originally a free jazz group but with "hard-hitting punk energy, and hip-hop rhythms," even some rap-song on this third album, with Jawaad Taylor (trumpet), Jason Jackson (tenor/baritone sax), Jonathan F. Home (guitar), Stefan Gonzalez (vibes/drums/voice), and Frank Rosaly (drums). The jazz component is sharper than the hip-hop. B+(**) [sp]

William Hooker: A Time Within: Live at the New York Jazz Museum, January 14, 1977 (1977 [2025], Valley of Search): Live set, previuosly unreleased, where the drummer relentlessly hacks his way through the frenzied cacophony thrown up by a pair of saxophonists, Alan Braufman on alto and David S. Ware on tenor. This was early for all of them, with Hooker senior at 30, and Ware still a decade away from his great run as a leader from 1988 to his death in 2012. Only Braufman, the youngest at 26, had a significant album already released, 1975's Valley of Search (on India Navigation), but he quit shortly, only reissuing the album in 2018 (hence his label name, and this record) when he relaunched his career at 77. B+(***) [sp]

Ginger Johnson and His African Messengers: African Party [Deluxe Edition] (1967 [2025], Innovative Collective/BBE Music): Percussionist from Nigeria (1916-75), moved to London after WWII, played with jazz musicians like Ronnie Scott, recorded some singles and this 1967 album (slightly expanded here). Intense drums, wailing sax, chants, lives up to its title. A- [sp]

Music Is a Message From Space ([2025], Corbett vs. Dempsey): Various artists, but the subject is Sun Ra, who leads off with a 1:56 snip of solo vocal, "recorded by Ra at home in Chicago during the 1950s," the first side filled out with solo covers of Sun Ra tunes from Raymond Boni (guitar) and Jason Adasiewicz (vibes). Second half starts with Wolfgang Voigt's remixes of Sun Ra loops, then a solo piece by Joe McPhee (from 1970, the only solid date given here). Grade here excludes the vinyl-only bonus track from Spaceways Inc. + Zu, presumably from the album that was my first Jazz CG Pick Hit (2003's Radiale). B+(*) [bc]

Neil Young: Oceanside Countryside (1977 [2025], Reprise): Another archival release, presented as a lost album in his "Analog Originals" series, the title (with different takes?) appeared in his Archives Vol. III: 1976-1987, reflecting an LP division into ocean (solo) and country (band) sides. But the songs are familiar: three from Comes a Time (1978), two from Rust Never Sleeps (1979), three more from Hawks & Doves (1980), and remakes of two older songs (one from Harvest, the other a non-album cover. No surprise that much of this sounds great -- those are some of my favorite albums -- but this seems like an unnecessary remix, the variations fine but far from revelatory. [PS: Surprised to find this on Spotify, after Young's publicized removal of his music there back when they cut their big Joe Rogan podcast deal.] B+(***) [sp]

Six Sex: Fantasy (2019, Dale Play, EP): Dance-pop singer-songwriter from Argentina, Francisca Cuello, "combines elements of reggaeton, dance hall and electronic music," plus sex appeal, of course, but still working on that. First EP, 5 songs, 11:38. B+(*) [sp]

Six Sex: Area 69 (2022, Dale Play, EP): Still a work in progress, but has a video. Six songs, 12:30. B+(**) [sp]

Six Sex: 6X (2023, Dale Play, EP): Some new beats and filler, stretching six songs to 15:10, to mixed effect. B+(**) [sp]

Six Sex: Satisfire (2024, Dale Play, EP): Six songs, 15:24. Stronger dance beats with fewer glitches. B+(***) [sp]

I'm stuck in some sort of limbo, and expect to be for some time. For now, I'm waiting for an appointment with the eye surgeon, later this month, where he will evaluate the operated-on left eye, and probably schedule surgery on the right. After the surgery, I was hopeful that this would clear up quickly. I'm less optimistic now. The left eye is somewhat better for distance, but still far from clear. There's a fairly significant color shift between the eyes, which suggests I'm getting more light through the left eye. I can see well enough to drive, watch TV, etc. Reading is a bit more difficult, but not impossible.

Surgery will make the right eye worse before it gets better. Right now I have doubts that the left eye will be able to compensate for the right as well as the right has for the left. In the long run, of course, it should be better, but in the really long run we're all dead. It's not like I'm looking forward to decades of improved vision. On the other hand, I've lasted much longer than I imagined at 20, when my life was a total wreck, or even at 30, or 50 (when I started looking forward to retirement). Looks like I just have to get through another 6-8 weeks. After which it will be summer, and I can complain about the heat, instead of the cold.

If I weren't in limbo, what I should be doing is working on my planning documents, to figure out what I want to do for the next year or two, so I can get on with it. I have plenty of vague ideas -- too many, really, so a big part of the process of articulating them is to help weed out those that are impracticable or just not worth the trouble.

Lacking that, I sometimes pick out some little chore and take a shot at it. For instance, my wife was worried about the dog digging under the shed -- it's a dachshund mix, and seems especially inclined to dig -- while I've been bothered by rot and displacement of the ramp I built up to the doors. We had a couple of relatively warm days early last week, so I worked on that. I treated the ramp with linseed oil to stop the rot, and replaced the rusted nails with deck screws, finally attaching the ramp to the shed so it can't get shifted any more. For defense against digging, I got one side wrapped with 1/2-inch square hardware cloth. I still have three more sides to do, plus I need to do some caulking and other repairs, but that can wait until it warms up again.

Another chore weighing on my mind was the need to update the database for Robert Chrisgau's Consumer Guide. Since he started buckraking on Substack, he's delayed his Consumer Guides from his website for nine months, so there's little pressure for me to keep them updated. I do add the monthly columns each month a day or two after they appear, but some code checks timestamps and hides them until the release date. Same thing with the database: if you try to access a CG entry less than nine months old, you'll get a link to the Substack page where, if you're a subscriber, you can read the review. With that setup, I should be updating the database regularly, but I've tended to let it slide -- in this case, well over a year.

Another thing I did last week with no planning or foresight was Loose Tabs. Although I gave up spending much of my life reading news the 2024 election, when I terminated my Speaking of Which columns, I found myself with a couple dozen browser tabs open to various articles that had caught and kept my attention. I've been noting some of those under my notebook's Daily Log headings, but I wanted to clean up, and there were so many of them that I found it easier just to dump them into a blog post. Then, of course, I wound up writing (just added the counter, so 95 links, 7389 words). Note that counter includes a greatly expanded note on Robert Christgau's March Xgau Sez Q&A, some extra Dean Baker links, and a second thought on turning minds to slop. I have no plans to do this again, but it might not be a bad idea to keep an open file to collect scraps like this (like I have, but don't use often enough, for Books). In this, I was encouraged by the reader who wrote in:

In looking up the X follower numbers in the Loose Tabs piece, I found myself unable to imagine what having many thousands let alone millions of followers might be like, but at my level they feel like personal friends. My Bluesky account is up to 76 followers, with 50 posts. Most of this week's posts have been Pick Hit record links. I thought that was one thing Bluesky might be good for, as (unlike X) their links to files work, and there's no real reason to hoard references to build up suspense for this post. And this week I have a huge number of good records to recommend -- possibly because it's the first week in 2025 where most of my reviews are of 2025 releases.

The Pick Hit posts have at most throwaway notes, but they include links, mostly to Bandcamp pages where you can listen to the music. The only A- record below I didn't tweet about was Saba, which I couldn't find a good link for. I've used a few other link sources in recent weeks, but I'm looking for somewhere you can actually sample the music, without having to go to a streaming service. My format have changed several times as I think about how to package this service, and it will no doubt continue to evolve. If/when I do start dipping under the A- line, I can go to "HM" for Honorable Mention. I can't imagine adding "Duds" to the mix, as I'm a pretty tolerant guy, and nothing much really offends me -- the worst I hear these days is more like a waste of time.

I expect to do more non-music posts, but the one such tweet I want to reiterate here is my response to a widely circulated (at least 1.4M Views+; I picked it up second or third hand) by Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), who wrote:

First response I saw was from Doug Henwood, who wrote something like: "As an actual Marxist, I can assure you that isn't true." My own response reached back into memory. I started kindergarten in 1955 (there was no pre-school then, at least in working class neighborhoods in Wichita), back when the Pledge of Allegiance (with its newly-inserted "under God") was obligatory, before the Supreme Court ruled against prayers in school, and didn't exit high school until after I read the required Animal Farm, with its teacher guide dictates of which pig meant what. During that entire time, I was never given -- in school, in church, in the Boy Scouts, or on the only three TV channels that existed back then -- even the slightest hint that communists might be anything but sheer evil. Later on, I came to recognize much of what I had been told as propaganda, but none of it was Marxist. The effect was first of all to make me a true believer in "the American way of life," then as I recognized what America's leaders were actually doing, most obviously in Vietnam but all around the world, I started having doubts, and in fairly short order flipped. I started reading actual Marxists, and found deep insight into the modern world, compassion for its victims, and hope for the future. That didn't necessarily make me a Marxist. It certainly didn't make me a fanboy of Stalin or Mao, whom Marxists could critique as savagely as they did Hitler or Churchill. But, as I put it in my response:

I probably should have said "critical thinking" instead of "theory," but the key word there is "tools." And to be fair, it wasn't just Marxists who opened my eyes. After I quit school, I tried to figure out what had gone so terribly wrong, so I read a lot of books about education. The best one was by Neil Postman & Charles Weingartner, Teaching as a Subversive Activity, where they argued that the most important thing anyone can obtain from education is a sensitive "bullshit detector." I got mine the hard way.

While Lee's argument is utter nonsense, it is not unprecedented. Back in the 1950s, unbeknownst to me, the John Birch Society was saying that same thing, trying to double down on the McCarthyism that had fallen into disgrace. But the idea is the same: they want the power to dictate what is taught, by by whom, and "Marxist" or more lately "left-wing" is just their name for whatever it is they want to ban. The right has never had any qualms about resorting to force, but often they hope that intimidation will do the trick, and that's the real intent of Lee's messaging.

As for the real effect, we'll see. People like Lee and Trump and Musk give "Marxist" and "left-wing" a lot of good publicity, because they admit that there is an alternative to their own crude, cruel, dysfunctional worldview. The left can't buy or finagle this kind of publicity. Nothing, least of all any kind of conspiracy, is pushing Americans leftward more effectively than the "irritable mental gestures" and malfeasance of the Republican Right.

But, where was I? Impulsive projects, I think. One worth mentioning is that instead of continuing to get marginal returns from adding to my 2024 Metacritic/EOY Aggregate, I created a new one for 2025. I started by plugging all of my own paltry 2025 list (and its tracking file), then I went to AOTY and picked up their 125 highest rated albums of 2025. I've also started looking at select publications, so that at this point the list is up to 256 albums -- way short of 3616 from 2024, but it's enough of a start that I've come up with a huge and varied crop of A-list albums this week, most of which I wasn't aware of a week ago. On the other hand, I did throttle back on my jazz promo queue, as I was getting into future release territory. And I haven't looked at many non-promo jazz records yet, because AOTY doesn't do a good job of tracking them. (I'll add some stuff from jazz sites later; also from sites like HHGA and SCM, which have already contributed a couple albums below.)

I'm skeptical that I'll do a very good job of keeping this up to date, but it is useful in providing answers to the question of what to play next? (As this week goes to show.)

I did finally finish with Eric Hobsbawm's Interesting Times this morning. Coming after his tour de force four-volume history of the world 1789-1991, this has been a really extraordinary experience, doing much to help me frame my own understanding of the world. I've written up two posts based on quotes from the book (Hobsbawm Today and Hobsbawm Again), and will probably do another one soon based on a very insightful section on America. I have a lot of things I should read, but the one I'm inclined to check out first is Christiopher Lasch: The Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy (1995, but seems like a pretty good title for 2024).

PS: Overheard from the news room (i.e., my wife's den): Q: "Are you making the same mistake that Biden made?" A: "No, of course not." No fucking idea what they're talking about, yet people can talk like this on TV and think we should take them seriously. Reminds me of a "Get Fuzzy" comic strip, where Rob asks "do you smell something?" and Satchel (the dog, and not normally the sharpest tool in the shed) gives a real answer: "About 857 things. Can you be more specific?"

Nils Agnas: Köper Sig Ur En Kris (2023 [2025], Moserobie): Swedish drummer, leads a quartet with Max Agnas (on two pianos) and Mauritz Agnas (bass) -- relationship unspecified but likely [cousins; they, but not Nils, are in a group called Agnas Bros.] -- and saxophonist Jonas Kullhammar, in his usual very fine form, playing four jazz tunes (Ornette Coleman, Joe Henderson, two from Carla Bley) and "Over the Rainbow." Quaint line on the hype sheet: "The only foreign musician he has performed so far with is the great Zoh Amba" (who's all of 24 now). A- [cd]

Yazz Ahmed: A Paradise in the Hold (2025, Night Time Stories): British trumpet player, born in London, father from Bahrain, fourth album since 2011, billed as "spiritual jazz," draws on Arabic elements, has many vocals, is hugely ambitious. I like parts of it (especially the trumpet), but have little interest in others (vocals, of course, but also ponderous instrumental sweeps). B [sp]

Annie & the Caldwells: Can't Lose My (Soul) (2023 [2025], Luaka Bop): Singer Annie Brown Caldwell and her family band, from West Point, Mississippi, no previous records I can find, but they've playing and shouting this gospel/blues revival for a long time -- "twenty years" is suggested, which makes sense because the shot of disco is fully incorporated into their legacy. A- [sp]

Ichiko Aoba: Luminiscent Creatures (2025, Hermine): Japanese folk singer-songwriter, Discogs lists 15 albums since 2010. She plays guitar, electric piano, chimes and shells, with various backing including piano/guitar (Taro Umebayashi), strings, bits of harp and flute. B+(*) [sp]

Willow Avalon: Southern Belle Raisin' Hell (2025, Assemble Sound/Atlantic): Country singer, presumably writes her own songs, second album. B+(**) [sp]

Jarod Bufe: Brighter Days (2024 [2025[, Calligram): Tenor saxophonist, has a previous (2018) album on OA2, label seems to have taken over the Chicago department of Seattle-based Origin (Calligram founders Geof Bradfield and Chad McCullough both had records on Origin/OA2). Mainstream/postbop quartet, with Tim Stine (electric guitar), Matt Ulery (bass), and Jon Deitemyer (drums). All originals, rich tone, sinuous groove, nicely done. B+(***) [cd]

Ethel Cain: Perverts (2025, Daughters of Cain): Alias -- or maybe fictional personage is better? -- for Hayden Anhedönia, who released three EPs 2019-21 and a 2022 album, Preacher's Daughter, and announced this as an EP, but at 89:20 (9 tracks) that's one bit of confusion we can avoid. Although this wouldn't lose much but tedium if it were edited much shorter. Little happens. There are few words. The drone is mild enough for background, but doesn't offer much. B [sp]

Clipping.: Dead Channel Sky (2025, Sub Pop): Hip-hop group from Los Angeles, fifth album since 2014, Daveed Diggs is the rapper (he has a couple solo albums, as well as an acting career, but is probably best known as Thomas Jefferson in Hamilton). Guitar and drums, as well as electronics, amp up the noise level, which sounds terrific as the words fly by. A- [sp]

Cymande: Renascence (2025, BMG): British funk band, mostly musicians with Afro-Caribbean roots, released several albums 1972-74, was revived in 2006 and again in 2012, this their sixth album overall (first since 2015, second since 1981). Protest songs over sinuous grooves, something that never seems to go out of style. B+(**) [sp]

Marie Davidson: City of Clowns (2025, Deewee): Canadian electronica producer, from Montreal, half dozen albums since 2014. Mostly spoken vocals over sharp beats with synth frills, gaining momentum as you go. A- [sp]

The Devil Makes Three: Spirits (2025, New West): Bluegrass trio with roots in Vermont, formed in Santa Cruz with their debut album in 2002, singer-songwriter Pete Bernhard moved back to Vermont while banjo player Cooper McBean moved to Ausin, but they kept working together, picking up bassist Morganve Swain for this album. B+(*) [sp]

Ex-Vöid: In Love Again (2025, Tapete): British power pop band, second album, principally Lan McArdle and Owen Williams, previously in the band Joanna Gruesome (2013-15). B+(*) [sp]

Lorraine Feather: The Green World (2022-24 [2025], Relation): Jazz singer, father was famous jazz journalist (and more) Leonard Feather (1914-94), recorded her first albums in 1978 but didn't really get her career going until after 2000. She wrote lyrics here, mostly to music by co-producer Eddie Arkin (guitar) or Russell Ferrante (piano), with strings prominent (Charlie Bisharat on violin), and a bit of Marcus Strickland saxophone. It took me a little while to let this develop. B+(***) [cd] [03-28]

FKA Twigs: Eusexua (2025, Young/Atlantic): British electropop singer-songwriter Tahliah Barnett, third album since 2014, all sizable hits, also has a mixtape and three EPs. B+(*) [sp]

John Glacier: Like a Ribbon (2025, Young): British rapper, second album, has an underground vibe that slips past you a bit too easily. B+(*) [sp]

Tim Hecker: Shards (2020-22 [2025], Kranky): Electronica (mostly ambient?) producer from Canada, 20+ albums since 2001, presents this one as a stopgap compilation, "all material written 2020-22 for the Projects Infinity Pool, The North Water, Luzifer and La Tour" -- i.e., soundtrack work. Seven pieces, 31:09, some sparkly, some subdued, nice enough. B+(**) [sp]

Lady Blackbird: Slang Spirituals (2024, Foundation Music Productions/BMG): Jazz singer-songwriter Marley Munroe, based in Los Angeles, second album, has muscled up the production to the point where it's no longer recognizable as jazz, but so far she's making the power work. B+(***) [sp]

Jeffrey Lewis: The Even More Freewheelin' Jeffrey Lewis (2023 [2024], Don Giovanni/Blang): Folkie singer-songwriter from New York, or "anti-folk," probably not a distinction that needs existence, started 20+ years ago drawing comics and singing "crass songs," has much more of a bond with Peter Stampfel than with Dylan, so the title and album cover here seem like misdirection, or maybe just a temporary lapse of ideas. Good thing the songs come with a surplus. Also that the band rocks harder than Dylan ever did, but the two soft/slow ones at the end ("100 Good Things" and "The Endless Unknown" are if anything better. A- [sp]

Damon Locks: List of Demands (2024 [2025], International Anthem): Sound and visual artist, vocalist for post-hardcore Trenchmouth, joined Exploding Star Orchestra and founded Black Monument Ensemble, spoken word and electronics here on his fourth album (first as solo leader). I can't say that I've followed the words close enough for them to really speak to me, but I get the gist, and the music may bring me back for more. A- [sp]

Brandon Lopez: Nada Sagrada (2023 [2025], Relative Pitch): Bassist, has been very busy since 2017 or so, rounded up an unruly septet of various strings (including electric harp and gayageum), electronics, and two drummers (Gerald Cleaver and Tom Rainey) for one 39:12 piece. B+(***) [sp]

Tate McRae: So Close to What (2025, RCA): Pop singer-songwriter from Canada, third album, started as a dancer, winning awards and a ballet scholarship. Mostly upbeat dance fare. Sounds fine to me, as far as that goes. B+(***) [sp]

Mogwai: The Bad Fire (2025, Rock Action): Scottish post-rock band, 11th album since 1995, last 4 cracked top-10 in UK but little chart action in US. Mostly instrumental, a bit of shoegaze lustre but not too heavy, some vocals, pleasant enough, but for what? B+(*) [sp]

Panda Bear: Sinister Grift (2025, Domino): Noah Lennox, a co-founder of Animal Collective, eighth solo album since 1999. I've often had trouble with their records, but this one is too easy-going not to just enjoy. I've seen it tagged as "tropical rock," and other references to beaches. This time I get the vibe. B+(*) [sp]

Saba & No I.D.: From the Private Collection of Saba and No I.D. (2025, From the Private Collection): Chicago rapper Tahj Malik Chandler, four albums 2014-22, working with Chicago producer Ernest Wilson, who started in 1992 with Common Sense, moving on to Nas, Jay-Z, Kanye West, and stray cuts with Ghostface Killah, Rihanna, and Beyoncé. Title is very offhand, suggesting there's so much more behind it they can't bother with real titles. Beats are super, flow is terrific, lots of ideas. A- [sp]

Moonchild Sanelly: Full Moon (2025, Transgressive): South African (Xhosa) dance-pop singer, touches kwaito and amapiano but in her long list of genres -- her own preference seems to be "future ghetto funk" -- reminds me most of dancehall. I ascribe no import to her "trademark teal hair" or garish makeup, but as dance pop this is pretty otherworldly. A- [sp]

Shygirl: Club Shy Room 2 (2025, Because Music, EP): British electropop singer-rapper Blane Muise, has a 2022 album and a bunch of EPs, including 2024's Club Shy, a remix thereof, and now this 6-song sequel (14:46), all but the first with its own "Feat." -- Bambii, Jorga Smith, and PinkPantheress are the ones I recognize (although Yseult is one I should check out). B+(***) [sp]

Skaiwater: #gigi (2024, GoodTalk/Capitol): British rapper, Jamaican descent, non-binary, based in Los Angeles, first album, 34:23, stutter-step beats that stumble here and there. B+(**) [sp]

Skaiwater: #mia (2025, GoodTalk/Capitol, EP): Eight track, 22:42 sequel to debut album #gigi. B+(*) [sp]

Songhoy Blues: Héritage (2025, Transgressive): Saharan blues band from Timbuktu in Mali, moved to Bamako when a jihadi group took power there, and wound up recording Music in Exile in 2015. Fourth album. Steady going. B+(***) [sp]

Squid: Cowards (2025, Warp): British band, Ollie Judge the lead singer/drummer, third album, says "post-punk" or "experimental rock" but is pretty eccentric, in ways that alternately attract or repel me. B+(*) [sp]

Sharon Van Etten: Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory (2025, Jagjaguwar): Singer-songwriter, guitarist, from New Jersey, based in Los Angeles after a stretch in New York, seventh studio album since 2009, first to name a band. B+(*) [sp]

Chris Varga: Breathe (2024 [2025], Calligram): Vibraphonist, from Chicago but moved to Seoul in the 1990s, recording this, his second album, on a return visit, a postbop quintet with Geof Bradfield (tenor sax), Dave Miller (guitar), Clark Sommers (bass), and Neil Hemphill (drums), playing eight of his own pieces. B+(*) [cd]

Sunny War: Armageddon in a Summer Dress (2025, New West): Singer-songwriter Sydney Ward, born in Nashville, grew up in Los Angeles but returned to hawk her unique Afro-Americana. Fifth album since 2014, second on the label. B+(*) [sp]

Reggie Watkins: Rivers (2024 [2025], BYNK): Trombonist, from Pittsburgh, debut album 2004, only a few more since, including tributes to Maynard Ferguson and Jimmy Knepper. Thirteen original pieces, backed by piano-bass-drums, for a very nice presentation of his horn. B+(***) [cd] [03-28]

Michael Wollny Trio: Living Ghosts (2024 [2025], ACT): German pianist, 30+ albums since 2002, ninth trio album, live from Saarländischer Rundfunk, four 12-20 minute sets, with Tim Lefebvre (bass) and Eric Schaefer (drums). Varied, but very present. B+(***) [sp]

Plastikman: Musik (1994 [2024], Nova Mute): British techno producer Richie Hawtin, third album under this moniker (his most common alias, preceded by F.U.S.E. and his own name). Space vibes, with a couple of false finishes. B+(**) [sp]

Studio: West Coast (2006 [2025], Ghostly International): Swedish electronica duo, Dan Lissvik and Rasmus Hägg, reissue of their only album, although they had singles 2001-07 and a couple of compilations. Album proper has six very strong songs (57:45), on CD or vinyl, with the digital tacking on six bonus tracks -- mostly redundant versions. Just judging the former. A- [sp]

Yo La Tengo: Old Joy (2006 [2025], Mississippi, EP): Short soundtrack (6 songs, 25:56) for a 2006 film by Kelly Reichardt, although there is some suggestion that this is a new recording, with Smokey Hormel playing guitar, pretty much solo. Nice, as far as it goes. [PS: Moved to reissues, as it appears this music was released in 2008 as part of They Shoot, We Score.] B+(*) [sp]

Bantou Mentale: Bantou Mentale (2019, Glitterbeat): Liam Farrell, born in Dublin, based in Paris, started out as a rock drummer, moved toward hip-hop in the 1990s, and later to African music, mostly plays bass and guitar synth here, a group with three expats from Kinshasa, including a vocalist identified as Apocalypse. First of two group albums. Electroclash seems the right word here. B+(**) [sp]

Bantou Mentale: Congo Animal (2020, Glitterbeat): Less clash here, that disorienting sense of glass and metal crashing against walls to form sheets of sound. That allows the rhythm tracks to come to the fore, where they belong, a steadiness that holds all the other sounds in balance. A- [sp]

Paul Dunmall Sun Ship Quartet/Alan Skidmore/Julie Kjær/Ståle Liavik Solberg/Mark Wastell: John Coltrane 50th Memorial Concert at Cafe OTO (2017 [2019], Confront): English tenor saxophonist, not generally known as a Coltrane afficionado, but he did release two tribute albums in 2012-13, so had some prep going into this live set, recorded on the 50th anniversary of his death. Opens with the trio of Kjær (flute), Solberg (bass), and Wastell (drums) on a long 21:22 title, followed by Dunmall's Quartet (with Howard Cottle on tenor sax, Olie Brice on bass), and Tony Blanco on drums) playing the album Sun Ship (37:07; recorded 1965, released 1971). Finally, the two groups merge, with Skidmore (a third tenor sax) piling on for three more tracks (44:16), ending with a bit of "Ascension." I should admit that late Coltrane gave me a lot of discomfort when I first heard his records -- Sun Ship is still a C+ in my database, and while Ascension is an A-, that was certainly a much later regrade. These days this music is still not quite easy listening, but for me at least it does go down much smoother. My caveats have more to do with sound, but I can't fault the sentiment. B+(***) [bc]

John Coltrane: Sun Ship (1965 [1971], Impulse!): The great, and hugely influential, saxophonist -- tenor, but his soprano on "My Favorite Things" led most later tenor saxophonists to double up -- led what was quite possibly the most acclaimed quartet of all time from 1961-66, making stars out of McCoy Tyner (piano), Jimmy Garrison (bass), and Elvin Jones (drums). They reached a pinnacle with 1964's A Love Supreme, after which Coltrane's searches wandered deep into the avant-garde and beyond: a year later to the mass ecstasy of Ascension, and just before his death in 1967 (he was 40) to his duo with Rashied Ali. When I first encountered this music, I intensely disliked like what often registered as cacophony, but over time I've grown to tolerate and occasionally to enjoy the legacy he created. This was one of many albums that only appeared after his death. For better or worse, this is one of his last quartet sessions: better because Tyner's solos are often brilliant, and the bass and drums follow him perfectly; worse because they don't seem all that much in sync with the leader, who seems to want to go places the group isn't ready for. Still, they're good enough, and he's great enough, that this almost works. [was: C+] B+(***) [sp]

John Coltrane: Sun Ship: The Complete Session (1965 [2013], Impulse!, 2CD): Probably not a good idea checking this out after two spins of the original album -- the outtakes aren't necessarily inferior, but the false starts are bound to be annoying, and there isn't that much really great stuff in the first place (written as I'm listening to some, which I'm pretty sure was in the first release). B+(**) [sp]

I wrote a fairly long political post over the weekend, only very indirectly occasioned by recent events, although it's impossible to totally block out Trumpism and its discontents. The actual stimulus was reading Eric Hobsbawm's 2003 autobiography, Interesting Times: A Twentieth-Century Life, specifically the part where he offers a leftist's observations on the Thatcher demolition of civil society, and the hollow Blair response. With Reagan and Clinton, that all seems pretty familiar. And while in many ways Trump is the linear descendent of Nixon, Reagan, and the Bushes -- even his utter contempt for legalities isn't unprecedented -- he now seems to be breaking things just to show that he can.

Probably thanks to reading Hobsbawm, I've been revisiting the Trump/Fascist arguments, so I wound up spending way too much time today on a John Ganz post, There Was Never Any "Fascism Debate". As I recall, there was, but the academic end was mired in arbitrary definitions, and the popular end was if anything counterproductive. After the election, I was convinced that it was a waste of time. I still think it has no potential to influence anyone's politics, and mostly serves people like me as a chance to flaunt one's historical knowledge, it is very hard for people to understand the present except via historical analogy, and there are very few antecedents who come close to Trump's extraordinary impact. While there are still quite many variations, and we're still nearer the beginning than the end of Trump's reign of terror, it's the shoe that comes closest to fitting.

The question then is what can one learn from the analogy? Very little, I suspect, about the Führer himself, but if you look at his deputies, his active and passive supporters, his mass of fans you will find unnerving similarities. Even more worrisome is how ineffectual anti-Nazi resistance was, both from the liberals and social democrats who underestimated him and even more so from the leftists who understood the threat perfectly yet were powerless to stop him. There is, as yet, little reason to be that pessimistic, or to surrender even if one were, but it is clear that Trump is doing not just the bad things we expected, but more that we didn't (or couldn't without exposing ourselves as fantasists). And that Trump's acts will not only get worse, but will leave a lasting print that may never be excised.

My post goes into some of that, but obviously much more is still kicking around in my head. I still have no plans to write about this, or much of anything else. My only addition so far to my planning documents has been to open a still-empty file on house projects. I've spent three days so far on one, which initially seemed too simple to bother writing up (although, somewhat less formally, I did mention it in the notebook): fixing up the ramp into the shed -- something I've wanted to do for years, which now merged with my wife's request to do something to keep the dog from digging under the shed. It's going very slow, and I'm exhausted today, but at least I've started to feel like I have it under control.

Recovery from eye surgery is also going slowly, and hard to gauge, with more erratic or just uncertain moments. Makes it hard to get on with life, so I've tended to let everything slip. I still haven't done the frozen file thing, and I have very little idea what new albums are coming up. The only reason I have much new jazz to report is that it's easier to pick an album out of my promo queue than it is to figure out some good prospect from the media. But I did get a boost this week from Robert Christgau's March Consumer Guide, which netted four A- records, four high B+(***), and one more B+(**), none of which were particularly on my radar. I have the three records I had previously heard -- Mdou Moctar: Funeral for Justice, GloRilla: Glorious, and Marshall Allen: New Dawn -- graded somewhat lower, after brief encounters. Incidentally, I have GloRilla's 2024 mixtape, Ehhthang Ehhthang, a notch high, and two recent Allen features -- Sun Ra Arkestra: Lights on a Satellite and John Blum: Deep Space -- at A-.

Four of the Christgau picks, plus one of my jazz albums, led me to dig into unheard back catalog, so there's quite a bit of Old Music this week. I was at one point tempted to start up a 2025 Metacritic file, as an aid in prospecting, but I wound up making little if any further changes to the 2024 file, despite my expectation of doing so. (One reason I didn't was that it was straining my eyes.) Still, like much else, up in the air for now. I have few (if any) expectations for next week. (Although I do want to get more done on the shed Tuesday, before the next cold front blows through on Wednesday. By the way, in local news last week: A highway pileup in western Kansas shows how dust storms can turn deadly; also numerous reports of fires around Kansas last week. The weather is keeping pace with all the other Trumpian weirdness, and there's no reason not to blame him for that too. Campaigning to promote disasters isn't exactly causality but is close enough to count.

By the way, I added the Chills album after the initial cutover, so it's not counted in the weekly census. It is tempting to add the reissue of Studio's 2006 album West Coast, but I'm just nearing the end of a first play. I've been posting preview notes on the week's A- records on Bluesky. Initially I was able to link to Bandcamp pages, but I've run into a few snags lately, where I try to offer the best links I can find. I'm up to 35 posts and 68 followers there now. I commented on Lemieux's tweet:

I thought of Matt Taibbi when writing this, but couldn't work him in under the limit. He's not really a leftist: he presents as some kind of iconoclast, balancing his left and right targets, although until 2016 his "left" targets were pretty silly (like 9/11 Truthers). After 2016, he got obsessed with the Clinton camp's anti-Russia rationalizations, which he considered a worse outrage than Trump's election. I haven't followed him since he left Rolling Stone, so I don't know where he's gone with his snark. He wasn't wrong when debunking "Russiagate," but had problems keeping the bigger picture in focus.

I did google "anti-anti-Trump": without quotes I got nothing of significance (mostly pieces about Never Trumpers), but with quotes some pieces do show up. Some titles, dates, and possibly quotes (but links only if I followed them, which mostly I did not; sorted by year from early to now):

One obvious point here is that most of these references are old (mostly from 2017), and most come from or relate to Never Trumpers (e.g., Sykes, who wrote a book, How the Right Lost Its Mind), many of whom have a major stake on maintaining their conservative bona fides. (Sure, a few have moved closer to Democrats, especially to ones they find congenial on issues of empire and economy.) Few even mention anti-anti-Trump sentiments on the the actual left, let alone name names. I suspect that if one did, they'd turn out to be sham leftists and/or simple fools.

Bad Bunny: Debí Tirar Más Fotos (2025, Rimas Entertainment): Puerto Rican rapper/singer, big star in his niche ("Spotify's most streamed artist of the year, 2020-2022"), sixth studio album. I've listened to, and enjoyed, most of them, without ever quite graduating to fan, which may be chalked up to my incomprehension of the language, or could suggest that the rhythm falls just short of making such concerns academic. B+(***) [sp]

Bag of Bones: No One Gets Saved (2023 [2024], 577): British avant-jazz quartet: Riley Stone-Lonergan (tenor sax, from QOW Trio), Rick Simpson (piano), Oli Hayhurst (bass), Will Glaser (drums), first group album. B+(**) [sp]

Towa Bird: American Hero (2024, Interscope): British pop/rock singer-songwriter, born in Hong Kong, "half-Filipino, half-English" started on Tik Tok playing "guitar riffs over other artists' songs," first album. B+(***) [sp]

Robert Sarazin Blake: Let the Longing Run Wild & Free (2025, Same Room): Singer-songwriter, dozen-plus albums since 1996. B+(**) [sp]

Charly Bliss: Forever (2024, Lucky Number): Power pop group from New York, Eva Hendricks the singer, third album, the others from 2017 and 2019 -- long enough ago that I had forgotten how much I liked Young Enough (about as much as I like this one). A- [sp]

The Chills: Spring Board: The Early Unrecorded Songs (2025, Fire): The late Martin Phillipps wrote the songs in the early 1980s, probably before the New Zealand group's 1988-92 breakthrough albums. No recording dates given, but Phillipps, who died at 61 in 2024, is credited with electric guitar and vocals on all songs, along with four others who joined the 2021 edition of the band, so these versions are not old demos. At 20 songs, they arguably went overboard, but half are remarkable, and we're unlikely to get more. A- [sp]

Helene Cronin: Maybe New Mexico (2025, self-released): Previously unknown country singer-songwriter from Texas, fourth album since 2013 (per Discogs; website has the first of those as an EP, along with a couple more). "We're story tellers and ocean walkers," striking ones about wastes of people and land, from a war-addled rifleman to a stripped mine. A- [sp]

Jonah David: Waltz for Eli (2024 [2025], Swish Tap): Drummer, first album as leader, side credits back to 2004 but mostly with Matisyahu. Varied lineups, most with sax, piano (or organ), and bass, guitar on three tracks, vocals (Anna Perkins) on two, trumpet (Jeremy Pelt) on one. B+(*) [cd]

FACS: Wish Defense (2025, Trouble in Mind): Chicago post-punk band, name a tribute to Factory Records, so think Joy Division/New Order with edges less honed, or if you remember them (as I do) the 2007-15 band Disappears, where all members of this trio -- Brian Case (guitar/vocals/keybs), Jonathan van Herik (bass), and Noah Leger (drums) -- got their start. My main caveat is that their sound is so consistent it's hard to pick the better albums out from the also-rans, not that I'm sure there really are any. A- [sp]

Satoko Fujii Tokyo Trio: Dream a Dream (2024 [2025], Libra): Super-prolific Japanese pianist, this one a trio with bass (Takashi Sugawa) and drums (Ittetsu Takemura), drags a bit in spots, but is brilliant often enough. A- [cd]

Funkrust Brass Band: Make a Little Spark (2024, self-released): New York band, 20-piece group (at least at one point), "mixes post punk, disco, EDM, metal, funk, Balkan brass and New Orleans second line, with snazzy uniforms, choreography, megaphone vocals, and all-original music." Two earlier (2017-19) albums fall short of LP-length, and their collection of demos and remixes isn't much longer, but this one counts, and I'm a sucker for a good tuba section. A- [sp]

Future: Mixtape Pluto (2024, Freebandz/Epic): Atlanta rapper Nayvidius Wilburn, 17 mixtapes since 2010, first studio album was Pluto in 2012. I've never quite understood the difference, nor can I tell you what distinguishes trap from hip-hop, but if you set up a 2x2 plot on those two axes even I could assign this to the trap/mixtape quadrant. B+(**) [sp]

Freddie Gibbs: You Only Die 1nce (2024, ESGN): Rapper, actual last name Tipton, debut 2013, sixth solo studio album. Title refers back to his 2017 album, You Only Live 2wice. B+(**) [sp]

Muriel Grossmann: MGQ Live in King Georg, Köln (2022 [2025], Powerhouse): Austrian saxophonist (tenor, soprano, alto here), a "spiritual jazz legend" -- which mostly means she's moved by the holy spirit of John Coltrane -- with her quartet: Radomir Milojkovic (guitar), Abel Boquera (organ), and Uros Stamenkovic (drums). B+(***) [sp]

Ben Markley: Tell the Truth (2024 [2025], OA2): Discogs credits him with three 1976-81 albums, but another source has him born in 1981, and when you click on "Credits" those three albums vanish (replaced by two others from 1975-77), with his plausible credits starting in 2007, and own albums in 2009. He has six of the latter, including a couple big band efforts, plus one by Live Edge Trio. He's a pianist, and composed all originals, for this postbop quintet with Wil Swindler (alto sax) and Steve Kovalcheck (guitar), plus bass and drums. B+(*) [cd]

Mdou Moctar: Tears of Injustice (2025, Matador): Tuareg singer-guitarist from Niger, steady stream of albums since 2013, started getting some notice after Matador signed him/them in 2021, especially for the 2024 album Funeral for Justice. This is an acoustic remake, recorded after a coup made return problematical for touring musicians. I've made no effort to decipher the words or politics -- the coup itself was notable here for sending US troops in Niger packing, which I took to be good news all around, but I have no idea what the actual impacts there are. In any case, the words mean nothing to me, but slowing them down and quieting the guitars seems as valid as ever. B+(***) [sp]

Isabelle Olivier: Impressions (2024 [2025], Rewound Echoes): French harpist, a dozen albums since 1997, takes title and inspiration from Coltrane, but her "genre melding" touches on folk themes filtered through euroclassical. B+(**) [cd] [03-21]

Juan Perea: Lightkeeper (2022-24 [2025], Zoho): Pianist, based in Chicago, seems to be his debut at 68, kicks off with "Oye Como Va," followed by seven originals and a reprise. Eric Marienthal plays notable alto sax on three cuts. B+(*) [cd]

Jim Snidero: Bird Feathers (2024 [2025], Savant): Alto saxophonist, 28th album over 40 years, decided to mark the occasion with a collection of Charlie Parker tunes, although he slipped four standards into the mix: "These Foolish Things," "Embraceable You," "The Nearness of You," "Lover Man" -- not songs I associate with Parker, but the liner notes explain the connections. Trio with Peter Washington and Joe Farnsworth, an exemplary mainstream rhythm section, as rooted in swing as in bop. Very nicely done, without a hint of danger or irony. B+(***) [cd]

Mitch Towne: Refuge (2024 [2025], Cross Towne): Organ player, Discogs lists 8 side credits back to 1999, but this seems to be his first album as leader, a trio recorded in Omaha with Tetsuya Nishiyama (guitar) and Jeffery Johnson (drums), playing six originals and a piece by Kenny Kirkland. B+(*) [cd] [04-04]

University of Nevada Las Vegas Jazz Ensemble 1: Let the Good Times Roll (2024 [2025], Vegas): Chances are pretty much any music school in the country could assemble a band like this (I've run across similar efforts from UNT and Toronto). No real reason to search them out, or to get snippy about talented students playing repertory (or their first stabs at originals). But this one is pretty enjoyable, thanks largely to song selection (starting with the title). I wouldn't even mind hearing more vocals, at least from ringer guest Laura Taylor, whose "Alright, Okay You Win" is a highlight. B+(**) [cd]

Wavy Bagels With Driveby: A Carfull (2024, Break All): Queens rapper Jackie Mitchell and producer Oscar Torres Jr., each with one other recent album. B+(**) [sp]

WDR Big Band: Bluegrass (2025, MCG Jazz): Westdeutscher Rundfunk, founded 1956 when the Köln radio station split off from Hamburg's NDR (Norddeutscher Rundfunk) and pivoted to jazz, where they've proven a ready source for big band backing. Discogs credits them -- usually as WDR Big Band Köln (or Cologne) -- with 104 albums since 1981, many under the names of guest directors (most prominently: Lalo Schifrin, Vince Mendoza, and Bob Mintzer -- at the helm here) or guest stars. Mintzer arranged ten more or less recognizable bluegrass tunes here, and solos on tenor sax and EWI, with Darol Anger (violin) and Mike Marshall (mandolin) guest stars. A nice exercise unlikely to have any lasting impact in either world. B+(*) [cd]

Rodney Whitaker: Mosaic: The Music of Gregg Hill (2024 [2025], Origin): Mainstram bassist, from Detroit, many side credits since 1985 (Roy Hargrove, Orrin Evans, Wynton Marsalis), over a dozen own albums, in 2019 he kicked off a now extensive series of albums of the compositions of Gregg Hill, back here with what may be the best one yet, largely thanks to stellar performances by Terell Stafford (trumpet/flugelhorn) and Tim Warfield (tenor/soprano sax), with Rick Roe (piano) and Dana Hall (drums). Also four vocals by Rockelle Whitaker, which I'm less enthusiastic about but they do add another dimension to Hill's work. B+(***) [cd]

Helene Cronin: Restless Heart (2014, self-released, EP): First album, six songs, 22:28. Sounds nice enough, but no songs really stand out. B+(*) [sp]

Helene Cronin: Belong to the River (2015, self-released, EP): Second album, just a bit longer (7 songs, 24:43), but her sound is striking from the start, as are several of the songs -- including a couple I might object to on politico-philosophical grounds but are too observed to get upset over ("Dangerous," on hazards as childhood learning experiences, and "Lucky Me," on how soldiers make you free). B+(**) [sp]

Helene Cronin: Old Ghosts & Lost Causes (2019, self-released): First full album, 11 songs, 42:23. Good songwriter, but tends to stay understated. B+(*) [sp]

Helene Cronin: Landmarks (2023, self-released): Second full album, 12 songs, put extra effort into the songs, and developed a real band sound. B+(***) [sp]

FACS: Negative Houses (2018, Trouble in Mind): After a pretty impressive 2010-16 run, Disappears bassist Damon Carruesco departed, breaking up the band. But the other three musicians regrouped, with second guitarist Jonathan van Herik moving over to bass, adopting this new name connected to Factory Records -- UK home of Joy Division, which rather more dramatically turned into New Order. This first album preserves their sound, but it's mired in trauma. B+(*) [sp]

FACS: Lifelike (2019, Trouble in Mind): Second album, unless 6 songs, 29:22 demotes it to EP status (as Spotify thinks). A bit slow off the mark, but the last song holds up for 8:21. B+(*) [sp]

FACS: Void Moments (2020, Trouble in Mind): Third album, 7 tracks, 30:34. Solid sound, doesn't develop much. B+(*) [sp]

FACS: Present Tense (2021, Trouble in Mind): Fourth album, 7 tracks, 35:14. Having commented above on how consistent the appeal of Disappears was, and noting the continuity of their latest album, I now have to admit that they fell into a sustained rut -- although their previously heard fifth proper album, Still Life in Decay (2023) did start to step back up. B+(*) [sp]

FACS: Maggot Brain 020324 (2024, self-released): Back cover reads: "Smashed Plastic Anniversary 20192024." Live set as dated, celebrating their 5th anniversary, released as a "Bandcamp exclusive," which included a limited vinyl run. I found this first when looking up "Wish Defense" -- the title song of their 2025 album, which first appeared here. Good dry run for the new album. B+(***) [bc]

Funkrust Brass Band: Dark City (2017, self-released): First album, or EP if you're bothered by the 26:57 run time for seven songs. Not sure how many musicians are in this edition, but the concept is fully evolved, backed with ample brass. B+(***) [sp]

Funkrust Brass Band: Bones and Burning (2019, self-released, EP): Second outing for the "20-piece post-apocalyptic disco-punk brass band playing all original music with megaphone vocals, heavy tuba bass lines, thundering percussion and searing brass melodies." But with just four songs, 18:10, we'll count it as an EP. B+(***) [sp]

Patterson Hood: Killers and Stars (2004, New West): Drive-By Truckers singer-songwriter since 1998, they were just taking off when he released this modest solo effort. B+(*) [sp]

Laura Taylor: Cry Me a River: A Tribute to Julie London (2000 [2001], Quicksilver): Standards singer, based in Las Vegas, details scarce, but after hearing her as an emeritus guest on the UNLV big band album I wanted to hear more. Discogs lists backing vocal credits back to 1978 (mostly with Diana Ross), but no jazz until 1989-90 with Steve Kuhn. AMG co-credits this to guitarist Joe Lano, but his name doesn't appear on the cover. Back cover has him under "featuring," along with Tom Warrington (bass). The songs are taken at a crawl, which suits them all. B+(**) [sp]

Laura Taylor: My Funny Valentine: Memories of Chet Baker (2002, Staying Power): Not as memorable a songbook, but enough to work with, especially with Steve Kuhn (piano), Eddie Gomez (bass), and Lewis Nash (drums). She makes no effort to match Baker's voice or phrasing, other than by taking even the slightest songs slow, which she can do because her own voice is so exquisite. B+(***) [sp]

Laura Taylor: Mountain Greenery (2006, Staying Power): I'm not finding any credits for this (even the duet partner in "Straighten Up and Fly Right") but the arrangements are varied, including drenching strings for the "Porgy and Bess Medley" -- one suggestion is that she picked out instrumentals for her Vegas act, making this some kind of ritzy karaoke. I didn't recognize the title song, but Rodgers & Hart wrote it, with Mel Tormé and Ella Fitzgerald covers. Nothing else, least of all "One Note Samba," got past me. B+(**) [sp]

Laura Taylor: Have Mercer on Me: Laura Taylor Sings Johnny Mercer (2010, Staying Power): A great and varied song book, which she handles with considerable aplomb. No idea who plays on this, but there is some nice sax, as well as piano trio. B+(***) [sp]

Laura Taylor: Dancing in My Feet (1979, Good Sounds): Evidently she did start off as a disco singer, with the title single the theme song for a TV show, Disco Magic. This was produced by T.K. Productions in Florida, presumably related to Terry Kane's TK Records label -- best known for KC & the Sunshine Band and George McRae's "Rock Your Baby" -- although this came out on another Miami-based label. This is a better-than-expected disco obscurity, with the title song recommended for anthologistsm, but I'm also impressed with the ballad "Sad Is the Song." B+(**) [sp]

Supposedly on the mend, although the left eye feels a bit worse than it did a week ago, or maybe I just expected better, so I'm more troubled by the twitches and flashes. I have discontinued the 7-day eye drops, leaving me with just the prednislone. Still a couple weeks before I see the doctor again. Until then, no schedule for the right eye.

It's hard to say that anything personal is back to normal in what is evidently an extremely abnormal period in American history. I'm not back to following the political world in any detail, but I have signed up for a Bluesky account, where I am following 25 and have 33 followers. I salted my following list by looking at Robert Christgau's, which gave me a couple of political sources and more friends and music critic colleagues. My wife's list yielded some more of both, but she's only following 31, with 23 followers (but pretty inactive with just 2 posts).

For whatever it's worth, my current list of political oracles is: Ryan Cooper, David A. Graham, Doug Henwood, Kevin M. Kruse, Scott Lemieux, Adam Serwer, Astra Taylor, and NonZero. There's a good chance that I would add any of the people I currently follow on X if I ran across their handles (especially if you let me know who you are; I've searched for a couple, but thus far to little avail).

For my own part, I've made 22 posts to Bluesky, which includes 18 original posts, 2 self-replies, and 2 more replies, so I'd like to think there is some value in following me there. Since setting up my account there on Feb. 13, I've made 8 posts on X, and 2 replies. My current thinking is that I'll continue to post blog announcements and make occasional replies on X, but will make a bit more effort on Bluesky. In particular, I've started posting notices when I come up with A/A- grades, as opposed to making you wait for Music Week. I may at some point extend this to a few lower-graded albums, but this week the pick hits have been coming so fast I haven't been tempted.

Of course, I don't mean to discourage you from following me on X: I have 625 followers there, but my last five posts have view counts in the 76-88 range (with 1-3 likes per post, and 1 total reply), so that number doesn't seem to mean much. I do find that even when I use their algorithmic "For You" feed, most of what I find there is still useful. It's only when I wander into the replies lane that I see any indication that it's become a cess pool of rage and inchoate thought. For instance, at the moment, I'm seeing in my "For You" feed: Nathan J Robinson, Eric Levitz, Rick Perlstein, Keith Gessen, Yanis Varoufakis, Samuel Moyn, Ian Millhiser, Kate Willett, Jeremy Scahill, and a half-dozen names I don't recognize but welcome. (I cut the list short at Max Blumenthal and Jeet Heer, who are less reliable but sometimes interesting.)

The big advantage I see Bluesky having over X is readers can follow links instead of having to separately google titles. My first idea there was to use it to recommend thoughtful articles, as I have done for years in Speaking of Which. I did a couple of those, and expect I will do more, but I haven't read much worth reporting after the first two. (Probably my oversight, as bad times tend to write themselves.) So much of what I know I pick up from X and Bluesky. And while I'm nowhere near reviving weekly political reviews, I've written Daily Log bits in my notebook every day from March 5 through yesterday. Nothing terribly important there, but I am thinking about a few things.

The one "normal" thing I did last week was listen to a lot of music. I'm not really done with 2024 yet, but I found it easier to pick 2025 CDs out of the promo queue than look for 2024 stragglers, so just went with it until I accidentally played a couple that aren't out yet. After I caught up, I finally opened my mail, and fell way back behind again. So the 2025 list is finally real, even though I haven't frozen the 2024 list yet. (Maybe next week. I figure I'm best off kicking this post out first.)

Also advancing, but not absolutely finished, is the 2024 EOY Aggregate list. Main thing I did last week was to add a bunch of Uproxx Music Critics Poll voters, which pushed the Metafile Legend list up to 610 sources. My first pass was to just pick out all of the names I had counted in previous years, but then I decided to explore a bit, so I picked out a few albums that struck me as underrated, then checked the voter list for each, and added some (or all) of them. Main thing I wanted to do was to nudge the totals toward more hip-hop. The biggest list I focused on was Doechii's 10th place Alligator Bites Never Heal -- only a B+(***) album for me, so not a big favorite of mine, but I thought it might reveal a little more underground interest than Kendrick Lamar and Tyler, the Creator (both same grade for me) -- which for now at least pushed the album from 7th to 4th place (behind Charli XCX, Lamar, and Beyoncé, passing MJ Lenderman, The Cure, and Waxahatchee). I also did a bit with Sabrina Carpenter (still in 13th, but -4 now vs. -27 last week).

I just checked, and see I'm no longer blocked from Facebook (but had to jump through some hoops to login). I'm still upset, and not likely to be posting anything there in the near future, but it was nice to see some updates from true friends. I logged in from a different machine than the one I'm writing on, which should also cut down on my activity.

I've made next to no progress on my planning documents. It's hard to develop any enthusiasm for attempting much of anything. Which may be a good thing if all you're interested in is music reviews, because that seems to be the path of least effort.

PS [03-12]: I was pleased to see that my number of Bluesky followers increased from 33 to 56 the day after I posted this. I haven't posted anything new there since the notice, but I figure if I add a postscript, I can post the notice again. I can also post a notice to my answer to a question about my embarrassingly paltry reading of fiction. Good question, and I'm likely to jump on anything that gives me a chance to write a bit of memoir -- which is arguably what I should be doing, instead of fretting about social media followers.

No new A- records yet this week, although I have a couple high B+ albums (Rodney Whitaker, Jim Snidero). While those albums don't quite do it for me, they are almost certain to strike a chord with some of my readers. Some of my favorite records from the 1970s were Christgau B+ grades: two in particular he sent me promos of, perhaps suspecting I would fall for them (Overcoats, by John Hiatt; Hirth From Earth, by Hirth Martinez; I wasn't quick enough to write about them in the Voice, but I did write about them in Terminal Zone, and I reviewed Martinez's second album in The Voice). My high B+ albums from 2024 include a bunch that topped other critics' lists, like: Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, Doechii, MJ Lenderman, Adrian Lenker, and Tyler the Creator -- before rechecks and upgrades also: Charli XCX, Waxahatchee, Sabrina Carpenter, and Vampire Weekend. Among the top 20 in my EOY Aggregate, my only initial A- reviews were for Billie Eilish, Kim Gordon, and Patricia Brennan, followed down to 50 by Hurray for the Riff Raff, Beth Gibbons, Charles Lloyd, Jamie XX, Amyl and the Sniffers, and Kali Uchis.

One reason I haven't generated much news this week is that we went a couple friends' house for dinner after posting Monday, then I served a small dinner for another couple on Tuesday. Both led to long, fraught political discussions, as both couples are more activist-inclined than we are (especially me). I remain convinced that much of what Trump is doing is simple gaslighting, meant to drive his opponents crazy fighting against impractical, untenable proposal flares. However, with Trump it's hard to tell what is real and what is not, since both agendas are heavy on stupid and/or insane. It's going to be a long four years. And maybe not yet now, but November 2026 will be a key date to try to limit the damage by flipping Congress (and gaining more traction in state and local races). Until then it's important to expose what they are doing, and to highlight the bad faith, shoddy thinking, and blatant corruption they're operating with.

No pics on the Tuesday dinner, which was a pretty minimal effort, with no extra shopping. The main dish was leftover brisket, delicata squash, and sweet potatoes, which I had initially cooked Sunday. I had very little available to complement it, but made mustard slaw from a small head of cabbage, and sliced some carrots for tzimmes (braised in lemon juice -- recipe called for orange -- with extra spices and golden raisins. For dessert I made black & white cookies, and served them with ice cream. Aside from the slaw, those were all first-attempt dishes, and came out very nice. (Well, the brisket was a little weird: I bought one of those packages already prepared for making corned beef, without realizing how much salt was already in the marinade, so first pass came out like corned beef with a surreal amount of salt and spice -- not something my wife was inclined to complain about, but I'm usually pretty good at pushing the seasonings up to a level just shy of too much, and this time I overshot. I soaked and drained the leftovers, which brought the salt back within normal range.)

I might as well note here that Christgau's March Consumer Guide appeared today, and it's mostly stuff I wasn't aware of. The exceptions were three albums I played once (or maybe twice) and filed as various shades of B+: Marshall Allen's New Dawn, GloRilla's Glorious and Mdou Moctar's Funeral for Justice. I should circle back around, but will note that I've rated four previous Moctar albums at A-, whereas Christgau has only previously reviewed one Moctar album (at ***). Also I had GloRilla's other 2024 album (er, mixtape, Ehhthang Ehhthang) at B+(***), a notch above Glorious, but I couldn't swear either way.

As for Allen, my footnote is that he recorded two other albums shortly before his 100th birthday, and both of those made my 2024 A-list: Deep Space, by John Blum Quartet Featuring Marshall Allen, and Lights on a Satellite, by Sun Ra Arkestra [Under the Direction of Marshall Allen]. So I count myself as a fan, but I wasn't all that impressed by New Dawn. Still, I'm pleased he was.

I'll get to more of those records next week. I was aware that the Charly Bliss record existed, and thought about playing it on a couple occasions, but forgot how much I liked their second album. Towa Bird was on three EOY lists, but too low to catch my attention. Aside from Allen, the 2025 releases were all news to me. FACS seems to be related to a 2009-16 group I liked, Disappears -- check out Pre Language (2012).

Ambrose Akinmusire: Honey From a Winter Stone (2023 [2025], Nonesuch): Trumpet player, from Oakland, debut 2008, landed on Blue Note in 2011 and quickly emerged as a top-rated player, his fame further extended by a guest spots with Kendrick Lamar. Second album since his move to Nonesuch, ambitious in his use of strings and vocals (notably Kokayi's freestyles). B+(**) [sp]

Steve Allee Big Band: Naptown Sound (2024 [2025], Jazzville): Pianist, released his first album in 1979, not a lot since then (aside from his The Bob and Tom Show work). I know him mostly through trios, but he co-led a big band in the late 1990s, and is back with another one here. Or maybe the same one? Sounds very run of the mill. B [cd] [03-15]

Marshall Allen: Red Dawn (2024 [2025], Mexican Summer): Alto saxophonist, joined Sun Ra's Arkestra in 1958, has led the ghost band since 1995, started work on this shortly after his 100th birthday, also playing kora and EWI, leading a large band with a string section and guest vocalist Neneh Cherry. I'm seeing hype for this as his "debut" album, although I have eight previous albums under his name in my database, not all co-credited to Sun Ra Arkestra. B+(*) [sp]

Russ Anixter's Hippie Big Band: What Is? (2024 [2025], self-released): Arranger and conductor, started playing bass in a Grateful Dead tribute band, leads a scraggly commune of 11 musicians -- 3 reeds, 4 brass (including French horn), vibes/xylo/congas, guitar, bass, drums -- through what will pass for hippie standards, including "Dixie Chicken," "Free Man in Paris" (segueing into "Freedom Jazz Dance"), "She Said She Said," "Saint Stephen" (paired with what I recognize as the theme music to Treme), "Uncle John's Band" (which slides into some James Bond movie music), "Into the Mystic," "Whipping Post," "What Is Hip?" This music is less recent than the Berlin, Porter, and Arlen show tunes were in the 1950s when they became jazz staples, so why not have fun with them now? Note guest spots for Stephen Bernstein and Oz Noy. A- [cd]

Barry Can't Swim: When Will We Land? (2023, Ninja Tune): Scottish electronica producer Joshua Mainnie, first album after several EPs (starting 2021). Half is really terrific. Made the Mercury Prize short list. B+(***) [sp]

Tim Berne/Tom Rainey/Gregg Belisle-Chi: Yikes Too (2024 [2025], Screwgun/Out of Your Head, 2CD): Alto sax, drums, and guitar trio, one studio album from April, following a live set a month earlier in Seattle. Some fine stretches here, but slips and slides a bit. Slight edge to the live disc (which I accidentally played first). B+(***) [cd]

Benjamin Booker: Lower (2025, Fire Next Time/Thirty Tigers): Singer-songwriter from New Orleans, third album since 2014, defies categorization. B+(**) [sp]

Alan Chaubert: Just the Three of Us: Me, the Trumpet and the Piano (2021-23 [2025], Pacific Coast Jazz): Swiss trumpet/piano player (video shows him playing left-hand piano while fingering the trumpet with his right), studied at Berklee, recorded this trio -- seems to be his first album -- in NJ, backed with bass (Belden Bullock) and drums (Jon Di Fiore), playing jazz standards, where Monk and Evans figure prominently. B+(**) [cd]

Chlöe: Trouble in Paradise (2024, Parkwood/Columbia): Last name Bailey, started at 11 in the sister duo Chloe x Halle (two albums 2018-20), second solo album. [sp]

Alex Coke & Carl Michel Sextet: Situation (2024 [2025], PlayOn): Third group album, leaders play flute/sax and guitar, filling out the group with harp, pedal steel, bass, and vibes, so let's call this "chamber jazz," and file it away. B [cd]

Liz Cole: I Want to Be Happy (2024 [2025], self-released): Standards singer, from Los Angeles, first album, doesn't spoil indelible standards nor redeem Brazilian pieces (although faster beats slower), wrote a bit of lyric to an Errol Garner composition, ends with Tom Waits. B [cd]

Sylvie Courvoisier/Mary Halvorson: Bone Bells (2024 [2025], Pyroclastic): Swiss pianist, albums since 1997, this a duo with the famous guitarist. Engages slowly, but pays off in the end. A- [cd] [03-14]

Ermelinda Cuellar: Under a Lavender Sky (2024 [2025], self-released): "Texan-Peruvian" vocalist (Houston-based, of Peruvian descent, sings mostly in Spanish), wrote a couple songs, covers more -- including "Poinciana," "Song for My Father," and some Jobim -- quite ably. B+(*) [cd]

Deepstaria Enigmatica: The Eternal Now Is the Heart of a New Tomorrow (2022 [2025], ESP-Disk): Quintet from Memphis named for a rare deep-sea jellyfish, listing Chad Fowler (sax), David Collins (guitar), Alex Greene (keyboards), Khari Wynn (bass, credited as Misterioso Africano), and Jon Scott Harrison (drums). I found another group that latched onto the same name, with somewhat similar cosmic speculation (If Life on Earth Is to Abscise Than I Have Forever Been Quantized), but this one adds a bit of Memphis boogie to the free jazz fusion. A- [cd]

Jorrit Dijkstra: PorchBone (2023 [2024], Driff): Dutch alto saxophonist, based in Boston, debut 1992, was a leader in the Steve Lacy tribute band Whammies, seems to mean this title as a group name (per Discogs; Bandcamp credit is Jorrit Dijkstra's PorchBone). Only group album, preceded by Porch Trio -- with Nate McBride (acoustic/electric bass) and Eric Rosenthal (drums) -- joined here by a trombone trio (Jeb Bishop, Michael Prentky, Bill Lowe). B+(***) [bc]

Kenyon Dixon: The R&B You Love (2023, self-released): R&B singer-songwriter from Watts, seems to have been lurking in the background at least since 2015, although Discogs doesn't have most of what's in Wikipedia, and even Google doesn't shed much light on the shift from this 17-track, 44:24 digital album to two evidently related EPs released in 2024. B+(**) [sp]

Doseone/Steel Tipped Dove: All Portrait, No Chorus (2025, Backwoodz Studioz): Rapper Adam Drucker, from Idaho, got some notice recently for an album with Buck 65, but has a long history with Anticon (Buck 65's first label). Steel Tipped Dove is producer Joseph Fusaro, who has close to 20 albums since 2014. B+(**) [sp]

Paul Dunmall: Red Hot Ice (2024, Discus): British avant-saxophonist, has over 200 albums since 1986, impossible for me to keep up with, but often worth the efforth. He plays tenor and C soprano here, in a nonet -- with trumpet, trombone, baritone sax, guitar, two keyboardists, bass, and drums -- plus a few more for handclaps and electronics. B+(**) [sp]

Paul Dunmall/Kevin Figes: Duos (2022 [2024], Discus): Saxophone duets, both also playing a range of clarinets and flutes. Figes, also British, has many fewer albums as leader, but has side credits back to 1994. Interesting within its limits. B+(*) [sp]

Joe Elefante: Joe Elefante's Wheel of Dharma (2024 [2025], self-released): Pianist, Discogs only has a couple side-credits, Google thinks he's a singer, website shows five albums, including a big band and The Elefante Family Just in Time for Christmas. This is basically a hard bop album, with trumpet (Freddie Hendrix), sax (Erena Terakubo), bass, and drums. B+(*) [cd]

Ensemble C: Every Journey (2024 [2025], Adhyâropa): British pianist Claire Cope, second album, features vocalist Brigitte Beraha, the group expanded from 7 to 11 members. While there is much to be impressed with here, I find myself enjoying very little of it. [PS: Cites Maria Schneider, Pat Metheny, and "Michael Brecker's Grammy-winning 2004 Quindectet album" as inspirations.] B [cd]

Satoko Fujii GEN: Altitude 1100 Meters (2024 [2025], Libra): Japanese pianist, tons of albums since 1995, this a sextet with two violins, viola, bass, and drums (also some electronics from the violist), which lands it near the heavy end of the scale. B+(***) [cd]

Daniel Garbin: Rising (2023 [2025], 6x20): Guitarist, also plays sitar, from Romania, teaches at CUNY (Queensborough Community College), website has sections on mathematics and photography as well as music, seems to be his first album, originals (some co-written by Simona Pop), groove pieces I was perhaps too readily inclined to dismiss. B+(*) [cd]

LP Giobbi: Garcia (Remixed) (2024, Round): Jerry Garcia remixes, Discogs gives him co-credit, some vocals I could or should recognize, revived with hopping new rhythm tracks. B+(**) [bc]

Philip Glass: Philip Glass Solo (2021 [2024], Orange Mountain Music): Major minimalist composer, b. 1937, range includes soundtracks and operas, some relatively popular. This is solo piano, as was his 1989 Solo Piano. Very nice. B+(***) [sp]

Keiji Haino/Natsuki Tamura: What Happened There? (2024 [2025], Libra): Guitar and trumpet duo, the former gets top billing, possibly for raw vocal power, and possibly for pushing this over the edge, and scraping it bloody in the process. Most often I shy away from records this harsh, but here I'm convinced. Probably helped that it's just one 35:43 piece, so not only didn't wear out its welcome, but got a couple extra plays. A- [cd]

Jon Irabagon: Server Farm (2023 [2025], Irabbagast): Saxophonist (tenor and sopranino here), got big here, leading a 10-piece group with only one member -- Levy Lorenzo (kulintang, laptop, electronics, vibraphone) -- not previously well-known to me. Big and bold, although I don't care for the vocal. B+(***) [cd]

Rodney Jordan: Memphis Blue (2020 [2025], Baxter Music): Bassist, one previous album in my database, side credits from 1999, especially with Marcus Roberts and René Marie. Quintet with trumpet (Melvin Jones), sax (Mark Sterbank), piano (Louis Hervieaux), and drums (Quentin E. Baxter), mostly blues, a mix of jazz tunes (Gigi Gryce, Mulgrew Miller, "Autumn Leaves") and originals (last one is called "The Art of Blakey"). B+(***) [cd]

Laura Jurd & Paul Dunmall: Fanfares & Freedom (2023 [2024], Discus): Trumpet player, best known for her group Dinosaur, and long-established avant saxophonist, both British, leading a nonet through a piece commissioned by the Cheltenham Jazz Festival. B+(***) [sp]

Karl Latham: Living Standards II (2024 [2025], Dropzone Jazz): Jazz and rock drummer, side credits back to 1988, album title refers back to a 2016 album (which Discogs probably has the label wrong on), a guitar-bass-drums trio covering rock tunes like "Day Tripper," "Low Rider," "White Rabbit," and "White Room." Same concept here, the group expanded to include keyboards, extra percussion, and vibes ("special guest" Wolfgang Lackerschmid -- much of Latham's jazz discography is on his albums). The songs strike me as more obscure, but I've never paid much attention to Stephen Stills or Adrian Belew (of course, I do still recognize the Doors, Led Zeppelin, and Steppenwolf). B+(*) [cd]

Steve Lehman Trio + Mark Turner: The Music of Anthony Braxton (2024 [2025], Pi): While I've rated 69 Braxton albums -- looking at the list suggests I still have a lot of work to do -- I've never gotten a good sense of him as a composer, while having no doubts as to his chops, especially on his marvelous standards albums. On the other hand, several of his students have made superb albums from his compositions, and Lehman's own work, both as alto saxophonist and composer, over the last 20+ years has few peers. He wrote two pieces here, to go with five Braxtons and one Monk, and added the tenor saxophonist to his trio with Matt Brewer (bass) and Damon Reid (drums). A- [cd]

John Mailander's Forecast: Let the World In (2024 [2025], self-released): Nashville-based fiddle/mandolin player, seems to have started in bluegrass (Molly Tuttle, Billy Strings, Bruce Hornsby) but "moved beyond." Group name from a 2019 album, reused in 2021. Stringed instruments, drums, some sax, one vocal, feels rural but nothing that yells hoedown. B+(**) [cdr]

Michi: Dirty Talk (2025, Stones Throw): Pop/r&b singer from Los Angeles, first album. B+(*) [sp]

Jackson Potter: Small Things (2024 [2025], Shifting Paradigm): Guitarist, from Minnesota, debug album in 2021 seems to have vanished, new one is a quintet with dueling horns -- Alex Ridout (trumpet) and Troy Roberts (tenor sax) -- plus bass and drums, with voice and extra alto sax (Jaleel Shaw) on one track. B+(**) [cd]

Noah Preminger: Ballades (2024 [2025], Chill Tone): Tenor saxophonist, from Brooklyn, debut 2011, hype sheet suggests a connection to John Coltrane's 1963 Ballads, but unclear what that is, beyond the piano-bass-drums backing, and the slow, gorgeous crawl through a different set of songs. B+(***) [cd]

Redman: Muddy Waters Too (2024, Gilla House): Rapper Reginald Noble, from New Jersey, debut 1992 went gold, as did next four albums through 2001 (or six with collaborations, including one with Method Man). Fifth album since (including another with Method Man), this first since 2015 runs 32 songs, 81 minutes. B+(**) [sp]

Rick Roe: Tribute: The Music of Gregg Hill (2024 [2025], Cold Plunge): Pianist, has albums from 1994 and 2005, both Monk-themed, has side credits on a couple other tribute albums to Hill, a composer based in Michigan with no real discogrpahy of his own, but nearing a dozen tribute albums of late. Trio with Robert Hurst (bass) and Nate Winn (drums). B+(**) [cd]

Gina Saputo: Daydream (2024 [2025], GSJQ Productions): Standards singer, based in Los Angeles, several albums since 2003, backed by piano/bass/drums, with guest horns on several tracks. Opens with "You're No Good," but everything else is more standard (give or take a Monk). B+(**) [cd] [04-18]

Mark Scott III: Soft Light (2024 [2025], Miller Three Publishing): Guitarist, studied at UNT, based in Austin, first album, trio backed by bass (Ben Triesch) and drums (Mike Gordon). Has a light, steady touch. B+(**) [cd]

Sentient Beings: Truth Is Not the Enemy (2024, Discus): Quartet, album title from a 2023 album originally filed under John Butcher, replaced here by John O'Gallagher (alto sax), joining Faith Brackenbury (violin/viola), John Pope (bass), and Tony Bianco (drums). B+(***) [sp]

Stress Eater: Everybody Eats! (2024, Silver Age): Czarface spinoff, from 7L & Esoteric with Kool Keith in lieu of Inspectah Deck, longtime denizens of a comic/cosmic underground, this time with a focus on food. A- [sp]

Omar Thomas Large Ensemble: Griot Songs (2024 [2025], Omar Thomas Music, 2CD): Composer/arranger, Brooklyn born, parents Guyanese, studied at NEC, Maria Schneider protégé, third album (none I can find on Discogs, although they have one credit from 2013). My eyes can't decipher the print I have, so I'll just let this one run. Big for sure, or is grandiose the word? B+(*) [cd]

Warmdüscher: Too Cold to Hold (2024, Strap Originals): British post-punk group, name is German for "warm showerer" ("a derogatory term referring to somebody who is perceived as a wimp, or as not tough enough for life"), fifth album since 2015. B+(*) {sp]

Simón Willson: Bet: Live at Ornithology (2024 [2025], Endectomorph Music): Bassist from Chile, based in New York, side-credits since 2016, second album as leader, quartet with Neta Raanan (tenor sax), Evan Main (piano), and Kayvon Gordon (drums), recorded live. Raanan got some Debut notice in the 2024 FDJCP, and gets pushed even harder here. B+(***) [cd]

Paul Dunmall/Paul Rogers/Tony Orrell: That's My Life (1989 [2023], 577): British saxophonist, plays soprano here, Discogs credits him with 201 albums since 1986 (325 credits), so this is a fairly early set, a live tape from Albert Inn in Bristol, backed by bass and drums. I've only sampled him lightly (18 albums, 4 A-), so don't have much sense of how consistent he is, but this one sizzles all the way. A- [sp]

The Laws of William Bonney Saxophone Quartet: 1993-2007 (1993-2007 [2023], Acheulian Handwave): Saxophone quartet of Jeffrey Morgan (alto), Martin Speicher (sopranino/alto), Stefan Keune (sopranino/tenor), and Joachim Zoepf (soprano/baritone) -- each with fairly substantial discograpies (Morgan's possibly longest, but least known to me; Zoepf was in Kölner Saxophon Mafia, long on my shopping list but never found). Eleven tracks from four dates, no group records released. (Their namesake was better known as Billy the Kid, 1859-81). B+(***) [sp]

Jorrit Dijkstra/François Houle/Karlis Silins/Kenton Loewen: Coastlines: Music of Steve Lacy, Volume I - Quartets (2022 [2023], Afterday): The alto saxophonist previously recorded three volumes of Lacy tunes in the Whammies, returns here with a Canadian clarinetist who also has a long history with Lacy, who recruited the bassist and drummer (mostly associated with Gordon Grdina, but like Houle based in Vancouver). B+(***) [bc]

Jorrit Dijkstra/François Houle: Coastlines: Music of Steve Lacy: Volume II - Duos (2022 [2023], Afterday): Same idea, but loses a critical step without the rhythm section. B+(*) [bc]

Kölner Saxophon Mafia: Die Saxuelle Befreiung (1984, Jazz Haus Musik): German saxophone sextet (at least at this point), founded 1981, so a few years after World Saxophone Quartet (1977) and ROVA (also 1977). First studio album, after 1982's Live. They seem less focused on harmonics, and more on the intricacies of composition and flow, although results are mixed. B+(**) [sp]

Kölner Saxophon Mafia: Unerhört - Stadtklänge (1984 [1985], Jazz Haus Musik): Third album, the second side a 4-part suite. More ambitious, but also more refined. B+(***) [sp]

This will be another perfunctory installment, just noting the few albums I've managed to check out, with minimal embellishment or commentary. I'm effectively stalled, a state unlikely to change any time soon. I've had a rough week, although perhaps not as bad as I had feared. I expect more of the same, although I suppose I should be cheered that the arctic chill has retreated into usual Winter gloom. Also that two minor surgeries have moved to done from looming, and while I can't say I've recovered, I've survived no worse than expected.

I had the root canal last Monday, and go back to dentist for a crown on Wednesday, which should be uneventful. I had cataract surgery on my left eye on Thursday, and went back for post-op exam on Friday. I've written about it at more length in my notebook, but no need linking much less reiterating all that here. Both of these events seemed rather ominous coming out of the anaesthetic, but improved significantly the day after. The eye is still blurry, but I'm told that a day later my vision with it had improved from 20/80 to 20/50. I was cleared to drive home, and did confidently. Since then, it's hard to gauge further improvement. It is still not as good looking at computer or reading as the also-not-very-good right eye, but I'm fairly functional with the combination.

Still, "functional" does not mean I have much if any ambition to work on anything, including figuring out my future writing life. Aside from the paltry few records below, the only things I've written in recent days were the surgery write-up, a list of highly-rated television shows, and a post-dream tweet:

I didn't initially cross-post this on Bluesky, figuring I'd keep my powder dry there until I figured out what I wanted to do, but seeing as I had 27 notifications there this morning (vs. 2 on X), I let it rip (adding the book title).

I couldn't very well excerpt, much less explicate, Hobsbawm in that format, but the gist was that by 1932, the Weimar Republic parties had lost their credibility and their ability to govern, but the left had nowhere near the power to initiate a revolution, despite seeing the obvious need for one. As for the Nazis, they too were unable to seize power on their own, but were ultimately gifted it by aristocratic conservatives who deluded themselves into thinking they could control Hitler as a tool. Hitler offered them a degree of popularity they could never muster on their own. They, in turn, gave Hitler the power to destroy the whole nation.

But their decision to do so wasn't driven by necessity. The KPD, while growing as the SPD lost credibility through ineffectiveness, was far from being able to rise to power, and if sensible people just managed to keep their heads and smooth out the kinks in a badly shaken economy, both the Communists and the Nazis would have faded back into the Weimar muddle. The right picked the Nazis not because they had to, but because they relished the idea of using Nazi stormtroopers to impose their will on an unruly public.

A few months ago, I was thinking that the mainstreaming of the "Trump is a fascist" meme was simply bad tactics: the few people who even remotely understood it had already made up their minds on Trump — most against, but there are some people who like that aspect of Trump — while everyone else was simply confused. But now I'm beginning to realize that there are very few historical analogies, especially well known ones, that capture the present moment with such resonance and depth. And also that the real problem isn't the right fringe that Trump has rallied to power, and certainly not the leftists who see catastrophe unfolding so clearly, but the emboldened "center-right" who see Trump as their ticket to growing their already ridiculous oligarchy, and the cowardly "center-left" who have dissolved into nothingness.

Historical analogies are almost by definition always wrong, but we have few other techniques to clarify out thinking. But rather than start with "is Trump Hitler?" perhaps we should start with "is American Weimar?" Very few Americans know anything significant about Weimar Germany (or any other period of German history, even the Nazi period), but among the few that do, some on the left and more on the right could make a few connections. To the extent that you do, Trump and Hitler, regardless of their differences, are too unique to map to anyone else. The real question is who, in Trump's world, plays the role of Papen, Hindenburg, Krupp, Schleicher, et alem? (Thälmann is irrelevant to the handover of power, as are the more famous minions Hitler promoted and/or eliminated.)

I wouldn't expect much precision in such personal analogies, but general types keep returning in various guises — much as Napoleon III reinvented his namesake as farce. I'd also point out that much of Weimar was unique and specific to its time and place, while contemporary America is no less so. (A good background reference here is Barrington Moore's Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy, which includes several more comparative studies.)

Initially I retyped a promising piece from the following page (p. 58), which didn't quite get to where I recalled it going, but since it's typed, I'll offer it anyway:

This reminds me that I long ago broke the habit of marking up books. (I was taken aback some months ago when I opened up my old copy of Dialectic of Enlightenment and found that it was more underlined than not, mostly in ink.) The Hobsbawm books are full of bits I can imagine wanting to refer back to. (I found the quote above only by looking Papen up in the index.)

As my tweet suggests, I now think one has to look at all three Trump presidential campaigns to get a coherent picture of how he works, what his appeal is, and how badly Democrats have bungled the "assignment" of talking about him. (Chait's term in quotes, which despite its inherently snide air is useful for focusing on the one essential asked of every Democrat who's run against him, which is to beat him. Any other compromise is forgivable, but letting him win is not.) We also have to pay considerable heed to the Sanders campaigns, and the intense preoccupation of centrist Democrats with stopping Sanders even at their own expense.

Such ideas continue to percolate in my head while I'm otherwise doing next to nothing. Sorry about that, but I'm not ready to "face the music" (even when it's just music). I spent a lot of time last week fiddling with the jigsaw puzzle — which requires eyesight, but not so critically — and watching TV. I didn't get much of the latter done, but did finish Feud: Capote vs. the Swans — L gave up after 2-3 episodes, but I hung on and watched the 4th — picking up with the 5th (easily the best, with Chris Chalk as James Baldwin; way too much drinking himself to death after that, while the aging "swans" hardly seemed worth the trouble, although Jessica Lange's ghost of a mother added some value). I also watched Get Millie Black (which L had started without me, but we finished up together).

It's her TV, so unless I get impose, I only get to watch what she wants when she wants, and mostly this week she wanted to watch Oscar movies. To that end, we watched Anora, which milked 10 minutes of plot for 139 minutes of overkill editing, and The Substance, which was horrible — although both had a fair amount of what one friend calls "redeeming social value." With that, I've seen 3 (of 9) Best Picture nominees (the other is Conclave; L went ahead and saw Emilia Pérez without me, as well as 3 animation nominees — although I did catch the end of Memoirs of a Snail).

I watched the first 30-40 minutes of the Oscars, and found myself irritated or worse by virtually everything starting with the host change to Conan O'Brien — another reminder that elections have consequences? Sure, I haven't watched Jimmy Kimmel since the election, but not because I want to live in a world devoid of humor and meaning, where "the times" are only whispered about in hushed, ominous tones. While I took comfort from Kimmel's ridicule of Trump, I came away thinking that we have to find new ways of talking about Trump and his posse to his base. Still, that's no reason to back off when you're right.

Only thing to note on this week's music is that I finally dipped into the 2025 demo queue. I can't say I felt the need to move on, but found it took minimal thought to pull the next item from the queue, especially compared to searching out more 2024 prospects. Of the latter, note that the two A- albums came from Chuck Eddy's 150 Best Albums of 2024, which I belatedly added to my EOY Aggregate.

I suppose I should also note that I've added a fair number of individual top-10 lists, drawing mostly from the Uproxx Music Critics Poll. I originally went through the critics list and picked up names I recognized (pretty much anyone I had picked up in a previous EOY Aggregate). But at some point, I decided it would be ok to skew the results a bit toward hip-hop, so I grabbed the voter lists for several well-regarded albums, especially Doechii's Alligator Bites Never Heal -- now in 7th place, which also helped lift Kendrick Lamar's GNX to 2nd, Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter to 3rd, and Tyler, the Creator's Chromakopia to 11th. (I didn't go through their voter lists, but those three albums picked up more than other contenders, especially the Cure's Songs of a Lost World (drop from 2nd to 5th) and Adrianne Lenker's Bright Future (4th, I think, to 8th).

Quite possible I'll do a bit more of that sort of thing, and look for a few more lists, although at this point the utility of putting more work into this project is dwindling.

Frank Carlberg: Dream Machine (2023 [2025], Red Piano): Finnish pianist, has a couple dozen albums since 1992, was inspired by a 1959 sci-fi gadget to compose four "Dream" suites (13 pieces in all), with complementary keyboards from Leo Genovese (organ, farfisa, synths), outstanding tenor sax from Hery Paz, backed with bass (John Hébert) and drums (Dan Weiss). A- [cd]

Cumgirl8: The 8th Cumming (2024, 4AD): New York post-punk band and "multi-media collective," "their style and artistic practice are shaped by an opposition to patriarchy and capitalism," debut album 2020, this their second (although I've seen it billed as their first). B+(*) [sp]

Dengue Dengue Dengue!: Agita2 (2024, Club Romantico, EP): Peruvian DJ duo, Felipe Salmon and Rafael Pereira, a couple albums but mostly singles/EPs since 2012. Discogs abbreviates the group name here as "DNGDNGDNG," which in lower case seems to be top slugline on the Bandcamp page. Five tracks (20:40). B+(**) [sp]

Peter Erskine & the Jam Music Lab All-Stars: Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner (2024 [2025], Origin): Drummer, best known for Weather Report but he has a lot more range than that, with his most memorable early albums as leader being piano trios, and considerable side-work in big bands. Large group here, short of a big band on horns but long on strings, playing hackneyed movie themes arranged by Erskine and Danny Grissett. B+(*) [cd]

Flagboy Giz and the Wild Tchoupitoulas: Live From the French Quarter Fest 2023 (2023 [2024], Injun Money): New Orleans MC, took over the venerable New Orleans Indian group, best known for their Meters-backed 1976 eponymous LP. B+(**) [sp]

Andreas Gerth & Carl Oesterheit: Music for Unknown Rituals (2023 [2024], Umor Rex): German musicians, have fairly substantial credits since early 1990s, but not much more than their two duo albums as leaders. One of the best albums I've heard in the Hassell-Eno "4th world" domain. A- [sp]

Glorygirl2950: Queen of the Land (2024, self-released): Not much on her, some suggestion that her self-released label is UK-based, but Pitchfork review pegs this as "a welcome blast of rowdy Atlanta rap." Accent favors Atlanta. B+(*) [sp]

Brad Goode Polytonal Big Band: The Snake Charmer (2023 [2025], Origin): Trumpet player, called his first (1988) album Shock of the New, recorded four albums (2001-03) with Von Freeman titled Inside Chicago, career since has been vigorously eclectic, including a 2008 anticipation of this group called Polytonal Dance Party. Conventional big band, conducted by John Davis, playing six original compositions and two new arrangements ("Ornithology" is one) by Goode. B+(**) [cd]

Hieroglyphic Being: Quadric Surfaces (2024, Viernulvier): Chicago electronica producer Jamal Ross, prolific since 2008, soundtrack bits for "an abstract animation film by visual artist Gabriela González Rondon," pleasantly bleepy. B+(***) [sp]

Erik Jekabson: Breakthrough (2024 [2025], Wide Hive): Trumpet/flugelhorn player, from Bay Area, side credits from 1996, debut album 2003, eighth own album, has a long list of supporting musicians on most tracks here, including strings, flute, oboe, and some vocals (two tracks). Quite lovely, for the most part, as far as that goes. B+(**) [cd]

Jessica Jones Quartet: Edible Flowers (2020 [2025], Reva): Tenor saxophonist, actually two in the group as husband Tony Jones also plays, as well as sharing most writing/arranging credits, backed here by Stomu Takeishi (bass) and Deszon Claiborne (drums). Free jazz, solid and poised. B+(***) [cd]

Jupiter & Okwess: Ekoya (2025, Airfono): Congolese group led by Jean-Pierre (Jupiter) Bokondji, who grew up as a diplomat's son in East Berlin before returning to Kinshasa to organize his band, which lately has been big in Europe. B+(*) [sp]

Doug MacDonald: Santa Monica Session (2024 [2025], DMAC Music): Guitarist, many albums since 1981, quartet with piano, bass, and drums; three originals, five covers, closing with "Perdido." B+(*) [cd]

Polyfillas: Rude Boys of England E.P. (2024, self-released, EP): Brit band from Sunderland (on the North Sea, near Newcastle), Ava and Jamie Dangerous sing, play guitar, wrote the songs, backed with bass and drums: two old-fashioned punk anthems, the "reggae-tinged" 8:30 title track, and "two acoustic numbers" -- total 21:37. Experiments, I figure, each with a small measure of promise. B+(*) [bc]

Praktika: Balani Factory (2023 [2024], Blanc Manioc): Electronica duo from Finland, Heikki Rinkinen and Risto Eskolin, debut album 2016, impresses with a cornucopia of beats. A- [sp]

Valknee: Ordinary (2024, TuneCore): Japanese rapper, released an album in 2019, not sure what else. Jumps pretty hard to start with. Still, short as it is (10 songs, 26:42) it doesn't quite sustain. B+(**) [sp]

Vincenzo Virgillito: Precondition (2017 [2025], self-released): Italian bassist, born in Sicily, based in London, side credits since 1994 but this is his first as leader, and for that matter his first solo album. B [cd]

Jeong Lim Yang: Synchronicity (2023 [2025], Sunnyside): Bassist-composer, from South Korea, based in New York since 2011, has a previous (2017) album. Quartet here, focus on viola (Mat Maneri) and piano (Jacob Sacks), with Randy Peterson on drums. Enchanting. B+(***) [cd]

Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad: azz Is Dead 22: Ebo Taylor (2025, Jazz Is Dead): Hip-hop producers back with another installment (7 songs, 26:06) in their anti-jazz series, each new volume featuring someone semi-famous from way back when (usually the 1970s), in this case the now 86-year-old Ghanaian highlife star (who also appeared on last year's various artists sampler, JID 21). B+(*) [sp]

ZA!/Tomás De Perrate: Jolifanto (2024, Lovemonk): Barcelona band, active singe 2006, combines "African beats, noise, thick distortions, vocal loops, free jazz, sounds from the shepherds of Tuva, Balinese polyrhythms, math rock, dadaism, drones," etc. De Perrate is a flamenco singer of some note. Sounds, indeed, like all that got dumped into the blender. B+(**) [bc]

Andreas Gerth & Carl Oesterhelt: The Aporias of Futurism (2021, Umor Rex): I was so struck by Music for Unknown Rituals, I went back to the previous album, which more clearly shows their roots in avant-electronica, minus the acoustic touches and rhythmic quirks that made the later album so appealing. This has its own, more somber, appeal, almost industrial. B+(*) [sp]

Unpacking: I have a half-dozen still-unopened packages on my desk. Check back next week.

I've had a very rough week, or at least the last couple of days, and at the moment I'm so depressed I have nothing to say on this or any other subject. The only rationale I could come up with for posting this at all is that this way I won't have to give it another thought for the rest of the week.

This is the last Monday in February, so I've marked the archive file closed, and opened a new one for March, but I haven't done any bookkeeping (probably for months, but certainly not this month). I haven't forked off a frozen copy of my 2024 List, which is usually an end-of-February thing. I did review a few 2025 promos below, on a particularly miserable day when the Internet couldn't be trusted, but since then I've gone back to sifting crumbs from 2024. Neither pursuit netted much.

The one thing I should mention is that I answered some questions. Also that I'm on Bluesky (link to left), and not on Facebook. No more news to speak of.

It occurs to me that an update wouldn't be amiss here. I rushed this out Monday evening, just to get past it, while being very uncertain how the week was going to week was going to develop, other than that I had much to worry about. I'm scheduled for cataract surgery on Thursday, Feb. 27. While the prognosis for such surgery is usually very good, the short-term effects seem to be very hard to gauge. I am told, for instance, to expect that eyesight will be blurry (perhaps very blurry) for as long as a week. Even after that, my eyeglass prescription is likely to be way out of whack until after the second eye is operated on, and it too heals. I'm also reading things like bruising around the eye ("black eye") is to be expected. While my sight has been declining for years, with many things -- like reading print on CD cases -- practically impossible, I'm expecting the short-term disruption to be . . . well, I really have no idea.

Nonetheless, I had a more pressing (and depressing) problem on Monday. I had developed a dental problem over the previous week, and went in to have it checked that afternoon. We decided to do a root canal and crown, which took a little more than 3 hours. When the novocain finally wore off, I found myself with the exact same pain I had started out with, making me wonder if the dentist had missed the actual problem and done something irrelevant. I was also led to believe I'd be needing antibiotics and narcotics for pain, so I filled those prescriptions, but -- wisely it turns out -- waited before starting them.

I was pretty wiped out that evening, when I posted this, but next day wasn't too bad. The temporary crown has some annoying imperfections, but no significant pain, and no reason to think the tooth was infected. I also had to start eye drops for the surgery on Monday. I've always hated and dreaded eye drops, but by Tuesday was starting to get the hang of it, so I think that will be ok. Just, for now, trying not to think too much about it all.

My wife's birthday was last week, same day as the sole remaining nephew in these parts, so what she wanted to do was for us to go out to some upscale restaurant. However, the weather was awful cold on the day, so she consented to allowing me to cook up a bit of dinner. My self-imposed limit was to only use items in stock. She wanted Ants Climbing Tree, a classic Chinese dish of ground pork and cellophone noodles. I found a pound of ground wild boar in the freezer, so substituted that for the pork. I also found a chunk of boneless pork butt, which I could have used, but thought it might be better in Twice-Cooked Pork: boiled, sliced thin, and stir-fried with bell peppers in a sauce of hoisin, ground bean, black soy, and brown sugar. I made one of my fried rice combos with it, using velveted shrimp, Chinese sausage, stir-fried lima beans, sauteed zucchini, egg, scallions, and pine nuts. Recently, I've been starting fried rice with a shallot, adding some chicken stock to further soften up the rice, and adding a generous sprinkling of curry spices, so the rice could have served as a meal in itself. Dessert was flourless chocolate cake, with ice cream.

After the thaw, we did finally go out to George's Bistro on Tuesday, to see how the pros do it. That was my specific intent in ordering the duck à l'orange with cassoulet: I've made both dishes (only a couple times, and not with great success, but pretty close to what they served). Also had their profiteroles for dessert -- I've made them too, but they really nailed the presentation this time. All in all, a very nice dinner. Does, however, make me want to try something a bit more ambitious.

I had some more things I wanted to mention, but it's gotten late, so I should post what I have, and return when next I'm able. I should note that I finally finished Eric Hobsbawm's The Age of Extremes, which has been an extraordinary read these last few weeks. Not sure what's next: I have a half-dozen candidates readily available, none of which promises to come close in terms of historical depth and global sweep -- unless, as I'm tempted, I just carry on with Hobsbawm's slightly later memoir, Interesting Times.

On the other hand, unclear how much reading I'll be able to do in coming weeks. Also how much music I'll be able to write up. But for now, I can tease you with a couple of album covers, picked up as I've been going through Chuck Eddy: 150 Best Albums of 2024.

Ab-Soul: Soul Burger (2024, Top Dawg): Los Angeles rapper Herbert Stevens IV, sixth album since 2011. B+(***) [sp]

Beatenberg: The Great Fire of Beatenberg (2024, Leafy Outlook): South African pop/rock band, out of Cape Town, fourth album since 2011, as African bands go, they sound a lot like Vampire Weekend, but more consistently African. B+(***) [sp]

BigXthaPlug: Take Care (2024, United Masters): Rapper Xavier Landrum, from Dallas, second album. B+(**) [sp]

Fashion Club: A Love You Cannot Shake (2024, Felte): Alias for Pascal Stevenson, from Los Angeles, who plays most instruments and sings, although the credits include a dozen guest spots. Second album. Has a shoegaze fuzz I like, but I don't know what it means. B+(**) [sp]

Foxing: Foxing (2024, Grand Paradise): Rock band from St. Louis, fifth album since 2013, must have been confused in my mind with someone else, as they're way too hyperbolic for my taste. B- [sp]

Friko: Where We've Been, Where We Go From Here (2024, ATO): Indie band from Chicago, or duo -- Niko Kapetan (guitar/vocals) and Bailey Minzenberger (drums) -- first album, I'm only a bit impressed, and have no idea what genres like "chamber pop" and "noise pop" might mean. B+(*) [sp]

David Gilmour: Luck and Strange (2024, Sony): Famed Pink Floyd guitarist, did a nondescript solo album in 1978, returned with another roughly every decade since, this his fifth (not counting a couple live albums). Some signature guitar, plus keyboards recorded before Rick Wright died in 2008. B [sp]

Girl Ultra: Blush (2024, Big Dada, EP): Pop singer Mariana de Miguel, from Mexico City, released an LP in 2019, and has several EPs since 2017, this one 7 songs, 14:37. B+(*) [sp]

Groovology: Almost Home (2024 [2025], Sugartown): Mainstream jazz quartet from Honolulu, Aaron Aranita (woodwinds, piano) wrote five songs, David Yamasaki (guitar) two more (one reprised), Scott Shafer (drums) two, Ernie Provender (bass) one). B [cd]

Muriel Grossmann: The Light of the Mind (2024, RR Gems): Saxophonist, mostly tenor but plays them all, born in Paris, grew up in Vienna, wound up in Ibiza, 16th album since 2007, quartet with guitar, keyboards, and drums, strong whiff of Coltrane throughout. B+(***) [sp]

Tim Heidecker: Slipping Away (2024, Bloodshot): Folkie singer-songwriter, albums go back to 2000, has a rep for comedy. B [sp]

Eugenie Jones: Eugenie (2024 [2025], Open Mic): Jazz singer, fourth album since 2013, writes about half of her material, with covers like "Natural Woman," "Work Song," "Trouble Man," and "It Don't Mean a Thing." B+(**) [cd]

Justice: Hyperdrama (2024, Ed Banger/Because Music): French electronica duo, Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspare Augé, fourth studio album since 2007, they also have three live albums, six EPs, singles back to 2004. Grammy seems to like them. B [sp]

Jerry Kalaf: Safe Travels (2024, self-released): Drummer, composed this for piano-bass-drums trio plus string quartet (two violins, viola, cello), which gives it classical airs I rarely enjoy. Tolerable enough. B [cd]

Kehlani: Crash (2024, Atlantic): R&B singer-songwriter, last name Parrish, fourth studio album since 2017, along with as many mixtapes. B+(**) [sp]

b>Kehlani: While We Wait 2 (2024, Atlantic): Mixtape, came out a couple months after the studio album Crash, title refers back to a 2019 mixtape. I can't tell much difference. B+(**) [sp]

Khruangbin: A La Sala (2024, Dead Oceans): Psych-surf-dub-funk instrumental rock band, started at St. John's Methodist Church in Houston, name is the Thai word for airplane, first album 2015, after an album with Vieux Farka Touré and two EPs backing Leon Bridges, back on their own, and not totally vocal-free. B+(**) [sp]

Ravyn Lenae: Bird's Eye (2024, Atlantic): R&B singer-songwriter from Chicago, dropped last name Washington, second album after a couple EPs, has a nice groove it but never jumps out of it. B+(**) [sp]

Los Campesinos!: All Hell (2024, Heart Swells): Indie rock band from Wales, name from Spanish translates as "the peasants," released five albums 2008-13, only their second album since. B+(*) [sp]

Nobro: Set Your Pussy Free (2023, Dine Alone): Girl-punk band from Montreal, founded and led by bassist-singer Kathryn McCaughey, first studio album after EPs going back to 2016. Same attitude/vibe as the earlier EPs, but the songs hold up better. A- [sp]

Nobro: Live Your Truth Shred Some Gnar (2021 [2022], Dine Alone): Seven track EP, 20:43, at least on Spotify. Discogs shows 5 releases, all with 11 songs (31:47), most LPs with the title EP on the first side, and the 2020 EP Sick Hustle on the other. B+(**) [sp]

NxWorries: Why Lawd? (2024, Stones Throw): Duo of rapper Anderson .Paak and producer Knxwledge, released an album in 2016, Yes Lawd!, followed by remixes, and now this second album. B+(***) [sp]

Noel Okimoto: Hō'ihi (2024 [2025], Noel Okimoto Music): Drummer, from Hawaii, title translates to "respect, reverance," leads an octet with trumpet and sax, but neither as prominent as the vibes. B [cd]

Pearl Jam: Dark Matter (2024, Republic): Grunge rock band from Seattle, went multi-platinum with their debut in 1991, I've always credited grunge and gangsta with my turn away from rock/pop in the 1990s toward jazz/roots, and it's safe to say I've never had the slightest interest in this band. (Disliking Nirvana, as I did, at least took some will power.) This one I only bothered with once it hit the top of my unheard metacritic list, and I doubt I'll give it a second spin, but as background goes, I've enjoyed virtually every moment of this one, which I'm pretty sure has never happened before. B+(**) [sp]

Benjie Porecki: All That Matters (2024 [2025], Funklove Productions): Pianist, also plays organ, hype sheet says he has many previous sessions but this is first in my database. Trio with bass and drums. Six originals, four covers (notably Hampton Hawes, and organ for Sam Cooke). Nice album. B+(**) [cd]

Shellac: To All Trains (2017-22 [2024], Touch and Go): Noise rock band founded by Steve Albini (guitar, formerly of Big Black, but better known as a producer), Bob Weston (bass), and Todd Trainer (drums), all credited with vocals, debut album 1994. Sixth studio album, first in a decade, the last sessions recorded shortly before Albini's death. Short (10 songs, 28:13), which is probably just as well. B+(*) [sp]

Jae Sinnett: The Blur the Lines Project (2024 [2025], J-Nett Music): Drummer, I had him filed under vocals but just one here, has a dozen-plus albums back to 1986, runs a fairly hot fusion quintet with Ada Rovatti (tenor sax) and Allen Farnham (keybs), jacking up oldies from Edgar Winter, Steppenwolf, and Led Zeppelin. B+(*) [cd]

Steve Smith and Vital Information: New Perspective (2024 [2025], Drum Legacy): Drummer, fusion group, been around a long time, trio with keyboards (Manuel Valera) and bass (Janek Gwizdala). Fusion, two plays leaving little impression. B [cd]

Dave Stryker: Stryker With Strings Goes to the Movies (2024 [2025], Strikezone): Guitarist, originally from Omaha, came up in soul jazz groups (Jack McDuff, Stanley Turrentine), had a long-running group co-led by Steve Slagle, has been releasing a new album every January for as long as I can remember. This one is different, with a string orchestra arranged and conducted by Brent Wallarab, includes some horns (especially trombones), with the occasional guest soloist. Eleven movie themes. I swear I don't automatically hate every album with strings, but this is a good example of why I enjoy so few. B- [cd]

Rose Tang & Patrick Golden: A White Horse Is Not a Horse (2024, ESP-Disk'): Tang, who "plays in about 30 bands and ensembles in New York and Seattle," wrote the lyrics, and plays guitar, keyboards, and small percussion, improvising with Golden on drums. Earlier in life, she was a "prize-winning journalist," who had studied in China and Australia, and was dubbed by one "high school politics (Maoist/Marxist) teacher" as "Wild Horse Running off the Reins." Motto: "Learn through play. Play by ear. Fuck the rest." Impressive, even on piano, but miffed me a bit when the words lost coherence and the singer tried to compensate with volume. B+(***) [cd]

Leon Thomas: Mutt (2024, EZMNY/Motown): Second album, first singles (2012) released as Leon Thomas III, doesn't seem to be related to the jazz singer (1937-99), although the dates (III was b. 1993) aren't impossible. B+(**) [sp]

Richard Thompson: Ship to Shore (2024, New West): English folk singer-songwriter, goes way back, starting in the 1960s with Fairport Convention. B+(**) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Satchmo Sings (1955, Decca): Credited as "with Orchestra," musicians unnamed. Brunswick, in 1961, reordered and cycled this as Sincerely Satchmo: Louis Armstrong Sings Standards, citing Sonny Burke, Sy Oliver, and The Commanders. Recording dates could be earlier, with this LP cobbled together from singles. Sounds like standards now, but Armstrong wrote one ("Someday You'll Be Sorry") and most of the others were relatively recent ("I Wonder," "Pledging My Love," "Your Cheating Heart," "Sincerely," "The Gypsy"). I tend to think of his later sessions with Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington as where he matured as a singer, but he was clearly ready here. A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Louis and the Angels (1957 [2001], Verve): In the mid-1950s, Armstrong recorded several key albums for Columbia, and in 1957 he recorded at least three albums for Verve -- collected as Pops Is Tops: The Verve Studio Albums and More -- but he doesn't seem to have been done with Decca, his main label for the 1930s and 1940s. Adding to the confusion is that Verve reissued this and a couple more late Decca albums. Ten (of 12) songs here either have "angel" or "heaven" in the title, and the others drop in a lyric. Sy Oliver produced, heavy on the strings and chorus. B- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Satchmo Plays King Oliver (1959 [1960], Audio Fidelity): He got his start with Oliver in 1923, and followed him from New Orleans to Chicago, quickly outshining his mentor. A big part of the idea here seems to be to revive the old songs in state-of-the-art stereo -- at a time when reproductions of the originals were decidedly scratchy (they have since much improved) -- but the intervening decades have taken a bit of lustre off the music, while Armstrong has developed into a more skilled singer. Twelve songs, backed by "his Orch." (per the label; cover just has the title and a pic of star with trumpet, not cornet). They were his All-Stars at the time: Peanuts Hucko (clarinet), Trummy Young (trombone), Billy Kyle (piano), Mort Herbert (bass), and Danny Barcelona (drums). They were well schooled in this music, but not all that excited. [PS: Discogs lists a number of reissues of this album under various titles, including: Ain't Gonna Give Nobody None of My Jelly Roll (1964, Audio Fidelity); The Best of Louis Armstrong (1964 & 1970, Audio Fidelity; 1970, Camden, Bellaphon, Musidisc; 1993, Exit); Louis Armstrong and the All-Stars (1967, Concert Hall); With Love From . . . (1974, Capri); Louis Armstrong (1980, Impacto); Los Grandes Del Jazz 68 (1981, Sarpe); I Giganti Del Jazz Vol. 68 (1982, Curcio); plus a few more, undated. These are all literal reissues, but there is also an expanded edition, below.] B+(***) [r]

Louis Armstrong & the All-Stars: Satchmo Plays King Oliver (1959 [2000], Fuel 2000/Varèse Sarabande): A CD reissue of the 1960 LP, with a new cover, more credit for the band, and two extra songs, plus eight alternate takes, arrayed inline so you hear most songs twice before moving on. I never cared for that arrangement, and while it seems fairly harmless here, that one scarcely notices it suggests that the original music wasn't all that riveting. [PS: In 2018, Essential Jazz came out with The Complete Satchmo Plays King Oliver, which moved the alternate takes to a second CD, added various 1955-57 tracks of relevant material to the 76:29 "Master Takes" disc, and more 1926-50 tracks to "The Alternate Takes."] B+(**) [sp]

Louis Armstrong/Dukes of Dixieland: Louie and the Dukes of Dixieland (1960, Audio Fidelity): The Dukes were a New Orleans trad jazz band founded by Frank and Fred Assunto in 1948, up to 1974 when another group claimed the name. It's a bit shocking to note that as late as 1957 they recorded an album called Minstrel Time (but the cover shows no evidence of blackface, and I'm more bothered by the Confederate flag on the cover of their 1967 album, On Parade). I don't doubt that they were delighted to have Armstrong join them here, but they made few if any concessions in the song list, which not only includes "South" and "Dixie" but also "Washington and Lee Swing." Armstrong is most in control on the slow "Just a Closer Walk With Thee." [PS: This album was reissued as Louis Armstrong: Yeah! (1965, Fontana).] B [r]

Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington: The Great Summit: Complete Sessions (1961 [2000], Roulette, 2CD): I've long been confused on this release, probably because the title of my 1990 single CD is The Complete Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington Sessions, which has exactly the same 17 songs that were reissued in 2000 as The Great Summit: The Master Takes. Those 17 tracks were originally issued on two LPs: Recording Together for the First Time (1961, same artwork but different title as my CD) and The Great Reunion (1963). Ellington wrote (or co-wrote) the songs, and plays piano, but not orchestra: the rest of the band is Armstrong's combo, aside from clarinetist Barney Bigard, who did considerable work with both leaders (but not recently). The band works perfectly: Duke keeps them swinging, while the others support but don't crowd Armstrong, who has never sounded so cool. The first disc always has been a rock solid A. The second, titled "The Making of the Great Summit," goes beyond "complete" with nine alternate takes and a 1:09 "Band Discussion on Cottontail." The music is at best redundant, but the false starts and blown notes are annoying, and the disc as a whole is worthless. Only question is how much to devalue this given that you're unlikely ever to give the second disc a second spin. B+(**) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Let's Do It: Best of the Verve Years (1957-65 [1995], Verve, 2CD): An entry in Verve's Take 2 series of 2-CD compilations, a mixed bag series which picked up many of Verve's major 1950s artists, sometimes reissuing larger albums (like The Audience With Betty Carter), or combining 3-LPs on 2-CD (e.g., two Ben Webster sets, Music for Loving and Soul of Ben Webster), or sometimes compiling pieces from scattered LPs (like here). Armstrong didn't record a lot for Verve, and only the first duets with Ella Fitzgerald really panned out. They get a fair amount of space here, along with his lesser 1957 albums, and a couple of much later tracks (originally released on Fontana and Mercury). B+(*) [r]

Louis Armstrong: Disney Songs the Satchmo Way (1968 [1996], Walt Disney): Ten songs from Disney entertainments, a minor addition to the his song book efforts, done with a light touch and good humor, which is all you can hope for. Disney's own Tutti Camarata produced, with Maxwell Davies arranging, the strings mostly kept in check. Originally released in 1968 on Buena Vista. CD has new artwork, but no extra music. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Loves Cole: New Interpretations by Ella Fitzgerald of the Great Cole Porter Songs (1972, Atlantic): With her interlude at Capitol dead-ended, and Pablo not yet open for business, Granz produced this back-to-basics project, reuniting her with Nelson Riddle to recycle 13 songs from the first of her great Song Books. Unavailable as such on streaming, as Granz repossessed it in 1978 and reissued it as Dream Dancing. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Dream Dancing: Ella Fitzgerald & Cole Porter (1972-78 [1978], Pablo): Here Granz reclaims and recycles 1972's Ella Loves Cole, adding two newly recorded songs -- "Dream Dancing" and "After You, Who?" -- with Nelson Riddle arranging and conducting. While the new cuts don't add much, let's give this package a slight edge. But in both cases, the combination of singer, songwriter, and orchestra is a comforting delight. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Joe Pass: Take Love Easy (1973 [1974], Pablo): Pass (1929-94, name shortened from Passalaqua), was a guitarist from New Jersey, started recording for Pacific Jazz in 1962, in Gerald Wilson's big band and small soul jazz groups (Richard Holmes, Les McCann) and cool (Bud Shank), but he quite literally came into his own when Norman Granz signed him to Pablo in 1973 and had him record a solo album, revealing enough to be called Virtuoso. Granz recorded him often -- Wikipedia credits him with 50 Pablo albums -- including this first duo with Fitzgerald. My first reaction here is that they take it way too easy, but after a career of dazzling us with speed, she amazes with how slow she can go without stalling. Pass takes it even easier, but adds just enough they return for more albums. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: "Fine and Mellow" (1974 [1979], Pablo): Subtitle is Ella Fitzgerald Jams with a long list of named stars: Harry Edison and Clark Terry (trumpet), Zoot Sims and Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis (tenor sax), Joe Pass (guitar), Tommy Flanagan (piano), Ray Brown (bass), and Louie Bellson (drums). Lots of good things here, including a stretch where Terry slings even more scat than Ella. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1975 [1975 [1993], Pablo/OJC): With his new label, Granz seemed to be in a hurry to fill out the catalog, and the venue was famous enough to justify a live set. Nine songs, starting with "Caravan" and "Satin Doll," peaking with "It's All Right With Me," closing with "The Girl From Ipanema" and "T'aint Nobody's Bizness If I Do." Backed by Tommy Flanagan, Keter Betts, and Bobby Durham -- their names added to the 1993 CD cover. B+(***) [r]

Ella Fitzgerald/Joe Pass: Fitzgerald and Pass . . . Again (1976, Pablo): Fourteen more standards, sung expertly, with solo guitar accompaniment, artful but demure enough one can be excused for missing much of it. B+(*) [r]

Ella Fitzgerald With the Tommy Flanagan Trio: Montreux '77 (1977 [1989], Pablo/OJC): Different songs from 1975, but same group, with Keter Betts (bass) and Bobby Durham (drums). B+(**) [sp]

Ella: Lady Time (1978, Pablo): Cover just has her first name, an understated minimalism reflected in the band: just organ (Jackie Davis) and drums (Louie Bellson). Standards, most songs she's done before (like "Mack the Knife") although the Fats Domino opener is one I don't recall hearing before. B+(***) [sp]

When I left you two weeks ago, I vowed to do nothing else until I resolved my server problem. I wrote about it at some length then, and if you're really curious, you can follow the whole saga in gory detail through my server notes file. I still seemed to be nowhere near finding a solution last Monday, nor had I written much the previous week, so it was easy to scratch any thought of Music Week last week. By then I had sent out an initial round of letters, which generally got fast but not very satisfying responses. Last Monday I found myself again searching for more vendors -- especially ones offering DirectAdmin as an alternative to cPanel, as the latter appears to be a company one is best off not depending on. But I found a few positive reviews of a company that was still offering cPanel at reasonable prices, so I also dashed off a letter to Shock Hosting. While their prices seemed to be too good to be true, their reputation appeared solid, and I liked their reply: it got quickly to the important points, didn't get distracted with by details, and exuded confidence, especially on the thorny email problem. I slept on it, and woke up thinking it might be the best answer. In particular, I could hope that they could handle the migration quickly and expertly.

So I made sure I had my backups in order, signed up, and put them to work. After a few hours, they had moved five accounts, and were ready to serve web pages. That left me with the task of redirecting DNS to the new server, which I finally managed after some initial bungling. Also with shutting down the old server, and keeping them from billing me for another month, a task which was excessively fraught as they had made themselves virtually incommunicado of late: phone calls went to answering machine or simply rang endlessly; email to every known address that had worked previously bounced; a contact form on their still-running (but obviously dated) website accepting input but in no way acknowledging it. As the bill was scheduled for the day after I moved, I prepared to challenge the charges, but my card wasn't billed, so a sigh of relief there.

DNS normally takes 24-48 hours to propagate, so I took that as a sign to relax. When I did finally check later that evening, I was going to the new server, and getting web pages as expected. I notified all of the people I host websites for, and didn't get any alarms back. I had previously set up a second email address to collect the torrent of mail the old server's WHM put out. I deleted several thousand messages from the old server, but got nothing to replace them. I did test that the email addresses are working. But I let my service ticket expire without getting to the bottom of where the new server is sending notices. Most likely it is to a local mailbox. If so, they're waiting for me. If not, it's nice to know I have a vendor with a working support ticket system.

So so far, so good. I've logged in to the new WHM, and started taking notes on how it works, what's new, and what's no longer available (hopefully, just a lot of security headaches, as much of that is now buried underneath a layer of Cloud Linux). More thorough testing is in order -- among other things, there is always a good chance that running on a newer operating system will break old code (and yes, I'm looking at you, PHP) -- so if you do run across anything amiss, please let me know.

I still have some cleanup to do on the server planning files, although it would be easier just to declare them done and walk away leaving all the loose ends that way. In theory, they may help someone else navigate those waters. More likely, some AI robot will suck them up and blow a fuse. But for personal use, the planning files were useful as a means of organizing and sorting a fairly large amount of research.

My spreadsheet was much less useful, and given that most of my time was spent on the learning curve, much more frustrating. What I wanted was a somewhat simpler tool, which would allow me to construct a table with all the data, then limit my view to side-by-side comparison of selected columns. Experts will probably tell me that spreadsheets can do exactly that, and that my inability to do so was pure ignorance, and possibly stubbornness, on my part. While admitting the charges, I'd still counter that the UI sucks, then perhaps cite my authority in designing ones that don't suck.

Still, I have some more projects where a spreadsheet might be useful, so I'll admit to learning a few things that might come in handy. I'll also be moving on to more planning files, as I try to figure out what to do, and how to do it, before the political apocalypse hits me personally. The big one is where to focus my writing: too big to start here, or even speculate about. Others will cover more mundane topics, like how the music and books are organized around the house, and a few will involve shopping. One relatively easy one there is specing out a new computer for my wife: her old one is 6+ years old, and while the main complaint right now is a noisy CPU fan, it should be easy to do better. The more daunting one is buying a new car: that old one has 18 years on it, and something mysterious wrong with it (but it does have a CD player, which doesn't seem to be a thing these days).

The one file I already have opened is called Subscriptions. After Robert Christgau made his move to Bluesky, I figured I should follow suit, if only just to keep track of things. So when I finally had a bit of free time last week, I made my move and set up an account. My understanding at this point is very rudimentary, hence the planning file.

One reason practically no one knows about my Bluesky account is that I've been "permanently blocked" from Facebook, with my account scheduled for demolition. I wrote a bit about this in the Subscriptions file, so I won't repeat that here, other than to reiterate that I'm so disgusted with them I don't have any present intention of coming back. That said, don't think that I won't miss Clifford Ocheltree, among a few others. Maybe I'll sign up for a few Substacks. Maybe I'll create one of my own.

I spent most of the first week just listening to oldies, which definitely included Louis Armstrong's 16 Most Requested Songs. That got me thinking about Christgau's review of Ella & Louis, so I wrote a fairly long bit on that below. I don't own this particular edition, but I own and/or can stream all of it (and then some). I also noticed that I never reviewed What a Wonderful World, and that led me to consider a few more gaps in my Ella Fitzgerald. There, the obvious gap was that while I had long ago given The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books a curt A-, I hadn't broken out the constituent sets -- all of which had been released as separate CDs, many with secondary "Best Ofs." I own the box, but haven't played in ages, so that seemed like something pleasant I could do while sweating over server details. That, of course, led to more missed albums (with more of the Pablos yet to come). I'm rather surprised at how much I wound up writing. Perhaps there is a lesson there for the future?

Last couple days I picked up a couple new-ish albums from Christgau's February Consumer Guide, just to avoid coming up empty in those slots. Meanwhile, the new jazz demo queue is growing. I'll tend to it when I open up some desk space, but right now I'm in no hurry. Since the election, I've buried myself first in the Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll, and then in the server shopping. It's cold and miserable outside, and at 74 it's bothering me like never before. I've let lots of everyday things fall to the wayside. I'm finally getting a breather, and don't feel guilty about taking it a bit easy for a while. Especially as I can see the next big thing coming: I'm scheduled for cataract surgery on the 27th, with the other eye a month or so later. Most people I know got good results that way, but I'm a worrier and expect it to be a lot of trouble before it gets better. We'll see about that, but I don't want to take much on until we do.

As for the rest of the world, I realize that ignoring it won't make any difference, but paying close attention and speaking as loud and clear as I could didn't do much good either. Today I got a letter from a hitherto unknown reader:

I'm going to treat this as part of my Q&A and try to come up with a more thoughtful answer, but sure, I have things to say. While I've made very little effort to follow the news, and especially to let myself get involved in subjects like Democratic political strategy, I can't live in the same house as my wife and stay unaware of what's happening. And while I'm tempted to just point back to my post-election essay and add a heaping of "I told you so," some things I posited as possibilities then have evaporated, while I didn't anticipate a few things that have happened, or at least marginally shifted beyond my expectations. At some point I'll look into things like this and that more closely. But I'm also painfully aware that whatever I do come up with go nowhere and amount to nothing, at least as long as I'm operating the way I have the last few years.

I'm not oblivious to the fact that there are people, some known and others unknown, who appreciate my writing. I'm just trying to figure out what path makes the most sense for me at this particular time. I can't go into that here, but will write more about it in the near future. What I can do here is leave you with three thoughts:

I'm not unaware of or insensitive to the very real damage that Trump and Musk -- and it's probably good tactics to treat them as inseparable, with Musk by far the dominant personality -- are doing and will continue to do until they're stopped. I'm also no less opposed to genocide than I've been since I first used the word on October 9, 2023. But as I noted in my post-election piece, the Trump election definitively quashes the notion, which persisted very faintly as long as Biden was president, that anyone involved might develop a bit of conscience and stop the killing short of complete destruction.

One thing I put great emphasis on in my assessment of how bad a Trump election would be is opportunity costs. Trump's election ensure that the US will do nothing to address the very real problems that Democrats spent way too much time pretending to have finessed for at least the next four years -- plus whatever extra time it takes to undo what they do manage to do. Given the speed with which they are wrecking things, I may have underestimated those opportunity costs. One more thing that I likely underestimated was the extent to which Trumpist power is going to brutalize everyone, even those who resist it. Genocide in Gaza is not just a tragedy befallen a mostly helpless people, but a monument to the notion of "might makes right," which will encourage its use elsewhere, while numbing our response. As proverbs attest, such brutality is almost certain to return to haunt us.

Minor tech note: Long boxes look out of place in my album covers totem pole, I had two of them this week, and dealt with them inconsistently. I skipped Louis Armstrong's The Complete Hot Five and Seven Recordings, and went with the very similar (but properly cropped) The Best Of cover. However, for The Brill Building Sound, I went with a scan of Disc 1 instead of the whole long box (which could have been cropped to something very similar -- you'll have trouble making out the volume number, anyway).

Don't expect much from me in coming weeks. I have much else to do, and limited time and abilities. One thing I will promise to make an effort at is to respond to my questions. I have two in the queue now, and hope to field more.

Kasey Chambers: Backbone (2024, Metropolitan Groove Merchants/Essence Music Group): Singer-songwriter from Australia, 1999 debut was a pretty credible country album, released an album every 2-3 years up to 2018, then a gap until this one. She's still credible in country, except for the live closer, where she's a rock star. B+(**) [sp]

Jax: Dear Joe, (2024, Atlantic): Singer-songwriter Jacqueline Miskanic, or Gregg since she got married, first album after nearly a decade of singles, in a career that includes American Idol and thyroid cancer and a RIAA Gold hit that probably got this released, but not pressed. Christgau describes this as "utterly original," but didn't review it until after the Dean's List deadline, possibly because it got zero tracked reviews (but AOTY has 573 user ratings, but the User Score is 11, which raises more questions than it answers -- I can't recall ever having seen a rating that low). First play just annoyed me until the song "Zombieland" got my attention. Two (maybe three) more songs could register as pop, which got this a much needed second play -- much of the album is barely sketched out, easily obscured by outbursts of anthemizing. That's all I can afford, or perhaps stand, at the moment, but enough bits signify to make wonder if this might not just be smart ("spicy is better than bland") but prophetic ("we'll be laughin' when the Walmarts hit the fan"). A- [sp]

Ella Langley: Hungover (2024, Sawgod/Columbia): Country singer-songwriter from Alabama, first album after a 2023 EP. Heavy on the drinking songs, but "Nicotine" too. [Later reissued with five extra tracks I haven't heard, as Still Hungover.] B+(**) [sp]

Amadou & Mariam: La Vie Est Belle (1998-2022 [2024], Because Music): Duo from Mali, Amadou Bagayoko and Mariam Doumbia, 1989 debut translates as The Blind Couple of Mali. Dates are iffy here: this draws on six 2004-17 albums on Because Music (including Remixes), while reviews suggest a start date of 1998 (their first European album), and mention that the last cut was a single from 2022, although "Mogolu" appears to be new here, if not necessarily a new song. Not sure this improves on their better albums, but the beats -- even the remix ones -- eventually won me over. A- [sp]

Amadou & Mariam: La Confusion (2017, Because Music): The famed "blind couple of Mali," met in the 1970s, started recording in the 1980s, moved to Paris in 1996, where they were signed by EmArcy, breakthrough was Dimanche à Bamako (2004), their first on this label. Not counting Remixes, this is their fourth -- and not counting the 2024 compilation, their most recent. I don't have the patience to fully sort this out, but so far it's not clear this doesn't rank with their better albums. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: What a Wonderful World (1967 [1988], MCA): With all the Armstrong I've heard -- 61 albums, a dozen or more multiple CDs -- I was surprised to find I had missed this item, released in Europe and Canada in 1968 but evidently not in the US until the CD era, to cash in on the last and probably the best remembered of his iconic 1960s pop hits. Bob Thiele claims six song credits (mostly with George Weiss), and he produced, laying the schmaltz on so thick that only the unique and still masterful Armstrong can cut through it. Several more gems here -- "Cabaret" you must know, "Dream a Little Dream of Me" you really should; "The Home Fire" and "Give Me Your Kisses" and "I Guess I'll Get the Papers and Go Home," too. He proved his genius in the 1920s, and spread it far and wide in the 1950s. In his waning days, all he needs is an occasional flicker to remind us he's incomparable. A- [r]

Louis Armstrong: Rhythm Saved the World [The Original Decca Recordings: Volume 1] (1935-36 [1991], MCA): You know him: trumpet player from New Orleans, started out with King Oliver and almost immediately eclipsed him, joined Fletcher Henderson to invent big band jazz -- in a group that also, and for much longer, featured Coleman Hawkins -- moving on to his landmark Hot Five and Hot Seven groups, not to mention backing some of the most brilliant singers of the 1920s, and becoming one himself, and by the time he turned 30, he was leading and starting in his own big band. Still, his records in the 1930s rarely matched expectations: the band never really challenged the star, and the label threw pretty much anything at him -- "La Cucaracha," "Red Sails in the Sunset," "Old Man Mose," "Solitude," "Shoe Shine Boy," "The Music Goes Round and Round," "I'm Putting All My Eggs in One Basket" -- hoping something would hit. Indeed, some things do. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra: Heart Full of Rhythm [The Original Decca Recordings: Volume 2] (1936-38 [1993], MCA): His Orchestra gets cover credit, but the really hot stretch from 8-10, including a "Swing That Music" that really does, put Armstrong in front of Jimmy Dorsey's Orchestra. Armstrong's own crew seem less distinguished, with Luis Russell (piano) and Paul Barbarin (drums) the only names I recognize -- at least until J.C. Higginbotham shows up with his trombone, and is joined for "Struttin' With Some Barbecue" by Albert Nicholas, Wilbur de Paris, and Red Allen. A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra: Vol. III: Pocketful of Dreams (1935-38 [1995], Decca Jazz): They switched up the title here, but this is all 1938 except for two takes of "Got a Bran' New Suit" from 1935 tacked onto the end, with several unreleased tracks -- mostly alternate takes -- slipped in. The beefed up band opens strong, but they thin out after 8 tracks, and Higginbotham and Russell depart after 16, but Armstrong is such a delight they're hardly missed. A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Complete Town Hall Concert 1947 (1947 [2004], Fresh Sound): Released on 2-LP in the RCA Tribune series in 1983, copied to 2-CD a few years later (1992), all 21 tracks fit comfortably on a single CD (78:56). The set opened with Dick Cary (piano), Bob Haggart (bass), and Sid Catlett (drums), joined six tracks in by Peanuts Hucko (clarinet/tenor sax), Bobby Hackett (trumpet), and Jack Teagarden (trombone, a couple vocals plus his bit in "Rockin' Chair"), with drum relief from George Wettling (the encore?). This set the template for his later live albums, but you get an extra helping of old New Orleans classics. Not ideal sound. [NB: Napster fucked up and skipped every other song, so I had to play this twice to get everything. Christgau says this "is the Armstrong I play when I want the whole package." For that, I advise any of the four discs from The California Concerts, which offer peak performances -- the first from when "All Stars" meant Earl Hines and Barney Bigard; the last from when he had fully worked out his schtick with Velma Middleton -- although the "whole package" kept evolving up through the more subdued (and poignant) Louis in London in 1968.] A- [r]

Louis Armstrong: The Best Live Concert (1965 [1976], Disques Festival): Live set in Paris, with Armstrong coming off his big pop hit "Hello Dolly" -- the set list also includes "Cabaret," which he released as a single later, and "Mack the Knife," his biggest chart hit of the previous decade, as well as a broad selection of his standards, and a couple tunes I don't recall elsewhere ("Volare," "I Left My Heart in San Francisco"). Band is his standard hot five, but only Billy Kyle remains from even the later editions of the All Stars, and Jewell Brown won't make you forget Velma Middleton. Still comes close to justifying the hyperbolic title. [Later reissued on two separate CDs, even though it would fit on one. Seems like only a matter of time and copyright law before this gets resurrected on a single CD, like Fresh Sound did for Town Hall 1947.] A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Best Live Concert Vol. 1 [Jazz in Paris] (1965 [2000], Gitanes Jazz/EmArcy): First half, 11 tracks, 39:32, I give it a slight edge, but dock it for being incomplete. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Best Live Concert Vol. 2 [Jazz in Paris] (1965 [2000], Gitanes Jazz/EmArcy): Second half, 10 tracks, 39:07, a bit less exciting when the star takes his breaks, but those are part of the package; also docked for being incomplete. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong and Friends [Jazz in Paris] (1933-39 [2001], Gitanes Jazz/EmArcy): Everything here was recorded in Paris during the 1930s, but Armstrong is only present on the first seven tracks (1934), followed by other scattered sessions by long-forgotten bandleaders (Freddy Johnson, Arthur Briggs, Danny Polo) or singers (Greta Keller and Marlene Dietrich later made their way to greater fame in America, the latter more in movies). The Armstrong cuts are brilliant, but redundant to US recordings. The others are credible, especially on songs as catchy as "I Got Rhythm" and "Sweet Georgia Brown." B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings (1925-30 [2000], Columbia/Legacy, 4CD): Discogs has the whole package scanned, so you can see the care that went into compiling "the most important recordings in the history of jazz." I didn't buy this when it came out, because I already had multiple copies of most of it: JSP's 4-CD Hot Fives and Hot Sevens, which improved on the sound quality of Legacy's first Armstrong releases (1989-93, starting with The Hot Fives and extending into the big bands of 1931, as well as the superb 4-CD selection of early Armstrong on Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1994): roughly speaking, it gives you the better half of this more focused set, mixed in with truly extraordinary highlights from earlier and slightly later -- including select cuts from his sessions with blues singers (and Jimmie Rodgers -- I also own Affinity's 6-CD box of The Complete Recordings of Louis Armstrong and the Blues Singers, which isn't all great but is valuable history). One pass through all 255 minutes here is no way to listen, especially with expectations so high that anything not instantly recognized is likely to seem a bit off. But I have no doubt that further listening would sustain the expected grade. [PS: The first three CDs have also been released separately, in 2003, as Vol. 1 through Vol. 3. I had them listed in my database with their 4-star Penguin Guide grades, so I rather arbitrarily assigned them minimal A- grades: aside from the covers, I have no idea what the packaging looks like, but it is almost certainly a downgrade from the box. Still, I wouldn't be surprised to upgrade any/all of them should I have the opportunity to give them more time. There is also a sampler. Given that Complete was released in long-box format, I'll use the sampler for the cover gallery.] A [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Best of the Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings (1925-29, [2000], Columbia/Legacy): Sometimes the label would offer a cheap single-disc sampler to promote its more lavish box sets, and they did that here, with a generous 20 tracks (54:48), most stone cold classics -- even today "West End Blues" turned my head -- although they slipped in an alternate take to remind you that even as the copyrights have expired in Europe, they still have the originals. Mostly instrumentals, with only the first stirrings of the singer he would become. If, say, the only Armstrong you own is a later collection like 16 Most Requested Songs (1954-66 [1994], Columbia), you might look for this. [PS: I was going to offer Legacy's 2005 Jazz Moods: Hot as an alternative, as it draws from the same period, but the song count drops to 14, and the omissions include "West End Blues. On the other hand, it does deliver the hot.] A [sp]

Dingonek Street Band: Primal Economics (2018, Accurate): One-shot jazz band, led by trumpet player Bobby Spellman, who has a later nonet album under his own name, but all other credits since 2009 are group efforts. This group includes tenor sax (Greg Blair), baritone sax (Tyler Burchfield), soprano sax/clarinet (Emily Pecoraro), tuba (Josiah Reibstein, and drums (Buddy Bigboy). Touches of klezmer as well as New Orleans. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong: Ella & Louis (1956-57 [2021], Ober Entertainment/20th Century Masterworks): In Europe, copyrights expire after a very generous 50 years, whereas in America they can be extended as long as Disney thinks they can make money by monopolizing Mickey Mouse (and as long as US pols are willing to take some of that money to extend the favor). The longer copyrights have done little to keep American music in print -- even something as obvious as the Armstrong box above (and much more) is out of print (well, in this case the bits are still available, just not the bobs) -- while creating obstacles for importers and, more important right now, streaming companies. I have mixed views on Europe's post-copyright compilations: on the one hand, it generates a lot of opportunistic, redundant, and often slipshod product, but it also makes it possible for devoted fans and serious producers and compilers to keep the history alive, and keep it available (at least somewhere, somehow), and the best sets (which include JSP's and Proper's boxes, Fresh Sound's 1950s jazz, the deep blues and country catalogs of Document and Bear Family, Allen Lowe's book supplements, and the recent "revisits" by Ezz-Thetics) are real treasures. This is all preface to this particular album, which I'm only listening to by proxy -- I can stream the song list, just not attached to this particular artwork -- and only bothering with because Christgau gave it an A+, and I know that carries some weight with my readers. Why he picked this particular product I have no idea: my guess is that he's grown increasingly sentimental over Armstrong of late -- he picked Live in London as his favorite album of 2024 -- and this is music he's always loved but never written about; then he somehow stumbled on this particular CD, saw it as something new he could write about, that has some added value. Two problems here: one is that you can't buy (or stream) this in the US (at least it's not on Amazon); the other has to do with the selection and sessions. One of Christgau's best lines was when he described Norman Granz's "get rich slow" schemes. One of the most fruitful ones was getting Ella Fitzgerald to sing nearly everything in "the great American songbook." Pairing her with Armstrong was a side-project (their sessions aren't included in The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books -- the 16-CD box of 1956-64 studio sessions released in 1993) but it was perfectly in character. They recorded three albums (1956-57) together: Ella and Louis, Ella and Louis Again, and Porgy and Bess. The big revelation here was how adroitly Armstrong, who had a reputation for gravel-voiced crude comedy, adapted to such sophisticated fare, but he is every bit as note-perfect as Ella, and arguably even sexier. Their first album -- the first 11 songs here -- still feels a bit tentative, as if two consummate professionals (and their overthinking producer) were trying to find the fit. It was remarkable enough, but their reunion on More Ella & Louis far surpassed it, as both artists are less reserved, even willing to flirt a little. The CD helps itself to five fine songs from the second album, but any compilation that omits "Let's Do It," "They All Laughed," "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You," "I Won't Dance," "Our Love Is Here to Stay," and "A Fine Romance" is cheating you. By the way, the label here, Ober Entertainment, has been operating since 2020, making a specialty of picking up some famous album, then tacking on a few extra songs to create a bargain CD. The albums in their catalog are mostly obvious -- Monk's Music, Time Out, Mingus Ah Um, Concert by the Sea, At the Pershing, Jazz in Silhouette, and also a few non-jazz entries, like Moanin' in the Moonlight and Elvis Presley (the Dylan is renamed Debut Album) -- so any you pick up are likely to be enjoyed, but for me they mostly just muddy up the history. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Louis Armstrong: The Complete Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong on Verve (1956-57 [1997], Verve, 3CD): Useful if you want to put all your eggs in one basket, with the first disc giving you all of Ella & Louis plus five tracks from More Ella & Louis, the second completing the album -- it was originally a double-LP which also required 2-CD -- with space for two bonus live tracks. The third disc gives you Porgy & Bess, where the stars are backed by (up against?) Russell Garcia's Orchestra and the Judd Conlon Singers, with a 10:50 "Overture" delaying their entrance for a surprisingly unmemorable "Summertime" -- beyond which Gershwin has never seemed whiter -- at least until Armstrong gets a more congenial band toward the end. It's unlikely you'll ever play the third disc a second time, but the first two may be the best available configuration for this wonderful pairing. B+(***) [sp]

Fitzgerald has also sung a lot of Gershwin on her own. I gave The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books (1956-64 [1993], Verve, 16CD) an A-, but didn't break out most of the component sets, which were also reissued on CD around then (based on earlier LPs, issued as they were recorded). The George and Ira Gershwin Songbook was released in 1998 on 4-CD, where all but 2 tracks on the 4th CD were alternate takes and remixes. There was an earlier Ella Sings Gershwin on Decca from 1950, with just Ellis Larkins on piano. This was reissued with some extra tracks from 1954 as Pure Ella, in 1994, and widely hailed, but I thought it "sounds thin and arch," and disposed of it with a B-.

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book (1956 [1997], Verve, 2CD): Her first two singles were in 1936, with Teddy Wilson, better known for his work with Billie Holiday (now mostly remembered as her work with him), but she rose to prominence with Chick Webb, and took over his Orchestra when he died in 1939. She recorded with Decca until 1956, when Norman Granz picked her up, with the idea of her remaking the "great American songbook," which starts here, with eight classic songs per side for the 2-LP, plus three alternate takes for the CD reissue. Granz only wanted "hints of jazz," so he entrusted the music to Buddy Bregman, who added "rudimental strings" to a disciplined near-big band. Many fabulous songs, which she nails perfectly. The band never gets carried away, and the strings rarely help -- probably just what Granz wanted. [PS: I'm listening to the 1993 box set, but the component albums were later released separately, so I'll go with those release dates.] A- [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers and Hart Song Book (1956 [1997], Verve, 2CD): Recorded a few months later, another batch of prime show tunes, although fewer I recognize as brilliant or at least clever. Buddy Bregman returns with orchestra, probably the same musicians but leaning a bit harder on the strings. This works fine when the songs are so good the arrangements hardly matter. The vocals are impeccable. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald With Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (1957 [1999], Verve, 3CD): Next in sequence, I reviewed this back in 2020, so as a placeholder I'll just recycle that review (with a couple minor edits): Key thing here is the band: Ellington and His Orchestra. They got co-credit on the original 1957 4-LP set, before "songbook" became a single word and a Fitzgerald trademark. She is, of course, miles ahead of any singer Ellington ever hired, adding import and sass to lyrics that were often just an afterthought -- but that may be because the band never really needed them. Two real solid CDs here, although I like some of their later live recordings, where she is less inhibited by Granz's songbook concept, even more. Third disc bogs down a lot, and not just the alternate takes and chatter (but you never have to play it). B+(**) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Irving Berlin Song Book (1958 [2000], Verve, 2CD): Back to formula here, this time with Paul Weston arranging and conducting, some of the same musicians but less notable and more strings (except on items like "Alexander's Ragtime Band," where they would be ridiculous). The formula seems designed to raise the singer's respectability -- something she took pains to demolish on her best live recordings -- the net effect of all this professionalism is to focus attention on the songwriters. This one excels because Berlin not only wrote great songs you all know, but more great songs you don't, so Ella can go 32 deep with him and never hint at scraping the barrel (although a couple sink under the arrangements). You may also discover that he can be as witty as Porter (e.g., "Tropical Heatwave"). A- [cd]

PS: There's also a live version, recorded a couple weeks later but unreleased until 2022:

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Books (1959 [1998], Verve, 4CD): Nelson Riddle arranged and conducted, with a big band that included several stars (Benny Carter, Pete Candoli, Plas Johnson, Herb Ellis or Barney Kessel, Lou Levy or Paul Smith) plus a large string section. The first 1959 LP was Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Song Book "recorded under the supervision of Norman Granz," which was quickly followed by Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book "music arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle," but by the end of 1959 (and again in 1964) the whole set was reissued on 5-LP with Book changed to Books. It appeared on 3-CD in 1987 (back to singular Book), even before the 1993 box, which packages it as a box-inside-the-box, including its own miniature book and a packet of supplementary artwork. That's the edition I'm listening to, although the post-box separate release in 1997 tacked on a 4th CD of alternate takes and remixes (probably best ignored). Some great songs, of course, though not as consistent as the Berlin or Porter. [PS: I listened to disc 4 on Spotify. It's functionally a very listenable sampler, maybe even a bit better than the others, as the repeats tend to focus on the better songs.] B+(***) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: The Very Best of the Gershwin Song Book (1959 [2007], Verve): A tight 12-song, 44:50 sampler. While there are more string-laden ballads than I would have picked, even they are done with impeccable taste -- you can count on Nelson Riddle for that much, and Ella is superb, even breaking out a bit of scat on "I Got Rhythm." A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Song Book (1960-61 [1993], Verve, 2CD): Less famous than the earlier songwriters in this series, the obvious compensations are to cut the book back to six songs per side, and punch them up by bringing Billy May in. Perhaps Arlen's fame got diluted by working with so many lyricists -- serially with Ted Koehler, Yip Harburg, and Johnny Mercer, with further bits by Leo Robin, Ira Gershwin, and Billy Rose -- but the roster of songs is extraordinary, making this perhaps the most satisfying set in the series. A [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Jerome Kern Song Book (1963 [2005], Verve): Winding down, they dialed this back to 1-LP, 12 songs composed by Kern, with various lyricists (Otto Harbach, Dorothy Fields, Oscar Hammerstein II, Bernard Dougall, Johnny Mercer) -- still, only "A Fine Romance" is as indelibly etched in my mind as the top 6-10 songs from previous volumes. Nelson Riddle returns to the helm, so you can expect a smooth and steady ride. The lesser known songs -- a couple more I do recognize -- are interesting, and Ella is supreme, as usual. [was: B+] B+(**) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Song Book (1964 [1997], Verve): Last volume in The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books, a 13-song LP, again with Nelson Riddle arranging and conducting. Mercer was most often a lyricist, often with Harold Arlen, but claims two sole credits here. (This repeats one of seven titles from the Arlen songbook, "This Time the Dream's on Me," so omits some of his most famous songs, like "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" (no way Riddle could have competed with Billy May on that one.) B+(***) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Like Someone in Love (1957, Verve): Not in the Song Book series, but a more scattered set of standards given the same basic treatment, here by Frank De Vol and His Orchestra, mostly strings, the only musicians explicitly credited were Stan Getz (tenor sax) and Ted Nash (alto sax). [PS: A 1991 CD reissue added four tracks, but the current digital is back to the original 15.] B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald at the Opera House (1957 [1986], Verve): Title reminded me of other At the Opera House albums, one by Coleman Hawkins and Roy Eldridge, another by Stan Getz and J.J. Johnson. It turns out that all three come from a Jazz at the Philharmonic show on Sept. 29 in Chicago's Civic Opera House, where her set is backed by Oscar Peterson (piano), Herb Ellis (guitar), Ray Brown (bass), and Jo Jones (drums), with the others (also Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, Flip Phillips, and Sonny Stitt) joining in for the finale ("Stompin' at the Savoy"). The CD reissue adds a second set from Oct. 7 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Same songs (minus "Them There Eyes," but with "Oh, Lady Be Good!" added to the encore bash. I don't see any point in docking this for redundancy. It's good enough to play twice. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella in Rome: The Birthday Concert (1958 [1988], Verve): More live albums than anyone needs, but this one is at least as good as At the Opera House, and offers a broader selection of key songs. She's just backed with a trio -- Lou Levy (piano), Max Bennett (bass), and Gus Johnson (drums) -- at least until the "Stompin' at the Savoy" finale, when Oscar Peterson's trio takes charge. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Get Happy! (1957-59 [1998], Verve): This, including two extra tracks added to the CD, was cobbled together from seven sessions with five big bands, with Frank DeVol handling six tracks -- probably spare parts from other albums, shelved because they were too upbeat, with too much scat. We all know she's a great ballad singer, but I love it when she kicks up her heels on things like "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" and "Like Young." And I'll never turn down another "Blue Skies." Still, where's the title song? A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings Sweet Songs for Swingers (1958-59 [2003], Verve): "Sweet and Lovely," "Let's Fall in Love," "Makin' Whoopee," "Moonlight Serenade," "Can't We Be Friends," on down to "Lullaby of Broadway." Frank DeVol arranged and conducted. He's probably the least famous of her conductors, but he hits his mark as consistently as she does, although she's on a higher plane. Still, I'm afraid we're getting used to this excellence. [PS: CD reissue from 2003 has same 12 songs as the original 1959 album, but does credit Harry "Sweets" Edison on most tracks, along with "others unknown."] B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Hello, Love (1957-59 [2004], Verve): Scraps from three sessions, all with Frank DeVol arranging and conducting. More standards, but show ones this time, which means lots of strings and orchestral woodwinds, although you can hear a bit of tenor sax, credited to Ben Webster. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas (1959-60 [2002], Verve): Even as much as I loathe Xmas music, I'm surprised to find that I never checked out this inevitable product. Frank DeVol arranged and conducted 12 relatively secular ditties, from "Jingle Bells" to "White Christmas," the only surprise "Good Morning Blues" (Count Basie/Eddie Durham/Jimmy Rushing). CD picks up an earlier single with Russ Garcia, and some alternate takes, expanding 34:00 to 52:14, and dropping the grade a notch. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie! (1961 [1989], Verve): Session recorded in Los Angeles, 14 scattered standards, backed by Lou Levy (piano), Herb Ellis (guitar), Joe Mondragon (bass), and Gus Johnson (drums). More classic song book fare from scattered sources, with "Cry Me a River" a standout (as it always is). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Swings Gently With Nelson (1961-62 [1993], Verve): More with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, following Ella Swings Brightly With Nelson (1962) -- 1958's similarly titled Ella Swings Lightly was done with Marty Paich's Dek-Tette, but Riddle appears on several of the Song Books. Standards like "Sweet and Slow," "The Very Thought of You," "My One and Only Love," and "Body and Soul." CD adds two spare tracks, one far from gentle. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Rhythm Is My Business (1962 [1999], Verve): Mostly standards -- Ella gets a co-credit for "Rough Ridin'" -- and mostly upbeat, only a couple I associate with her. Bill Doggett plays organ, arranges and conducts a slightly short big band (3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 4 reeds, Hank Jones on piano, Mundell Lowe on guitar, two bass players, drums, but no string section. Ella, as usual, is up for anything. CD adds two extra tracks. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Sings Broadway (1962 [2001], Verve): Twelve songs from eight Broadway musicals dating from 1947-56, the CD adding nothing to the trim 34:05 LP. Frank DeVol arranged and conducted. As usual, this turns on the songs, some really excellent. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Count Basie: Ella and Basie! (1963 [1997], Verve): The late 1950s saw the emergence of Basie's "New Testament" band, which reached maximum power on an album that fully earned the title The Complete Atomic Basie. One thing the band did a lot of from 1956 on was to hook up with various singers, which included 1957 album with Ella and Joe Williams, followed by sessions with Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan, Sammy Davis Jr., and many more. Here they reunite on what is basically another Song Book album -- only "Shiny Stockings" is really specific to Basie (or actually Frank Foster) -- although Basie puts a bit more oomph into Ellington and Waller than Riddle or DeVol would. CD adds some unnecessary alternate takes. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: These Are the Blues (1963, Verve): Ten songs, from Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey via Leroy Carr and "Trouble in Mind" to Louis Armstrong, with "St. Louis Blues" the only base she's previously touched. Small group, keyed by Wild Bill Davis on organ, with Herb Ellis (guitar), Ray Brown (bass), Gus Johnson (drums), and Roy Eldridge (trumpet). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Hello, Dolly! (1964 [2005], Verve): This makes me wonder if the idea behind the Song Books wasn't some kind of "world's greatest singer" competition, where she does all the standards just to prove that no one else does them better, or at least consistently as well. At some point you enter the phase where people start challenging you with new songs, which about sums up the first three here: "Hello, Dolly!" (a hit for Louis Armstrong), "People" (Barbra Streisand), and "Can't Buy Me Love" (the Beatles). Frank DeVol arranges and conducts, so beaucoup strings on "People" and a lot of brass on "Can't Buy Me Love" -- Big Band Beatles is still something I doubt we need, but this is proof of concept (much better than Count Basie or Ray Charles with the moptops). After that, she goes back to familiar territory -- "Volare" is the closest thing to a challenge, but it isn't that new, and she's done it before -- where she and they are faultless but also unexciting. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella in Japan: 'S Wonderful (1964 [2011], Verve, 2CD): Two live sets, recorded three days apart in Tokyo, the first in Hibiya Kokaido Public Hall, the second in Hotel Okura. The Roy Eldridge Quartet backs, with Tommy Flanagan (piano), Bill Yancy (bass), and Gus Johnson (drums), and both discs add local musicians toward the end -- the first ends with a 10:53 "Jam Session." Two songs appear on both sets ("Cheek to Cheek" and "Bill Bailey" -- she does a lot of ad-libbing on the latter). Another good live album (or two). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Whisper Not (1966 [2002], Verve): A dozen standards, ranging as far as "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" but some old favorites, arranged and conducted by Marty Paich. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Brighten the Corner (1967, Capitol): Norman Granz sold Verve in 1961 to MGM, but he continued to produce Ella there through 1966, and again after 1973 when he founded his new label, Pablo. Verve declined as a jazz label over the 1960s, although producer Creed Taylor and arrangers like Claude Ogerman and Oliver Nelson had some success, until they moved on in the 1970s -- indeed, Verve's most memorable release of the late 1960s was The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967). After 1970, it virtually disappeared, as MGM went to PolyGram, which had picked up its own jazz label, EmArcy, from Philips, and ultimately to Universal Music Group, which revived Verve as its jazz label in 1999. Granz also managed Ella, but without his own label, he sent her to Capitol, and later to Atlantic, but a brief series of albums that under any other name would be long forgotten. This was her first post-Verve album, a collection of hymns -- one hesitates to use the word "gospel" as that suggests a measure of enthusiasm and joy that producer Dave Dexter Jr. has thoroughly precluded, not just through utterly bland arrangements but by hemming her in with the sedate backing vocals of the Ralph Carmichael Choir. Still, the cliché about singing the phone book comes to mind: even the most demure songs here are quite lovely, and few have ever been done this expertly. Then there's "I Shall Not Be Moved," where she stifles the temptation to sub "Stilled" for "Moved," but reminds you she could just as easily have aimed to raise the rafters. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas (1967, Capitol): From the same team that brought you the Brighten the Corner hymnal -- Dave Dexter Jr. (producer), Ralph Carmichael (choirmaster), Robert Black and Grace Price (arrangers) -- a very staid, pious, definitely not swinging Christmas. This reminds me of trying to sing these same songs when I was a child. And while she's much better at it than we were, I can still hear our voices in the penumbra here, and feel our (or maybe just my) embarrassment. PS: Streamers have a "Deluxe Edition" which merely appends Brighten the Corner. I think there is also a reissue combining this with Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas, which must produce cognitive dissonance as well as seasonal nausea. B- [r]

Ella Fitzgerald: Misty Blue (1967 [1968], Capitol): Capitol Records is famously located in Hollywood, and we're used to the cliché of Hollywood producers spitballing X-meets-Y-with-Z concepts and turning them into projects. To some extent, Capitol did that with Sinatra and Cole, but they never got this simplistic. Concept here is Ella sings recent country hits, but with big band orchestration, like Ray Charles, so they brought in Sid Feller to arrange and conduct. It doesn't work, although a couple light spots were pleasant enough ("Walking in the Sunshine," "Don't Let That Doorknob Hit You"). "Born to Lose" reminded me enough of Charles I looked it up and found out why. If you have the 4-CD Charles box, you may understand that the formula rarely worked for him either, the exceptions coming early and taking us by surprise. Granz made us feel like Ella could sing anything and make it her own. Dave Dexter Jr. makes us realize that she shouldn't sing everything, even if she's really good at it. B [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: 30 by Ella (1968 [2000], Capitol): Concept here is explained below the title: "All-Time Favorite Songs in the Fantastic Fitzgerald Fashion With Benny Carter's Backing." It's fairly common for veteran singers to squeeze bits of their hits into medleys, and Ella certainly has way more songs fans want to hear than could ever be fit into a set, but this is surprisingly formalized: six medleys of six songs each adding up to 53:29 (per the original LP back cover) -- the CD adds "Hawaiian War Chant" as a 2:18 bonus, because why the hell not? I don't know how that adds up to 30 -- maybe producer Dave Dexter Jr. dozed off and lost count? The song choices and transitions are clever, and Ella is as dexterous as you'd expect in maneuvering through Carter's maze, but most of the songs slip by unnoticed -- isn't recognition the sole point of medleys? -- and the band billed as "Benny Carter's Magnificent 7" seems to be lacking something -- swing, I think. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Sunshine of Your Love (1968 [1969], MPS/Prestige): Live album, produced by Norman Granz, recorded in San Francisco, the first side with Ernie Hecksher's big band, leading off with recent pop songs ("Hey Jude," "Sunshine of Your Love," "This Girl's in Love With You"), the second side with Tommy Flanagan's trio doing older standards (slipping in a Jobim). B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella (1969, Reprise): New label, new songs, produced by by Richard Perry -- opens with two by Smokey Robinson, includes two by Randy Newman, first side ends with "Got to Get You Into My Life," second side ends with "Knock on Wood." A young (26) Richard Perry produced: at this point his resume was thin and scattered (Captain Beefheart, Tiny Tim, Fats Domino), but became famous in the 1970s, especially with Barbra Streisand and Carly Simon. A respectable soul album at a time when songwriters were rising over interpretative singers (Dionne Warwick being the obvious comparison here). B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Things Ain't What They Used to Be (And You Better Believe It) (1969 [1970], Reprise): Norman Granz is back as producer, and he's brought in Gerald Wilson to arrange and conduct a star-laden very big band. Song selection falls short of ideal, but this is probably the most potent big band she's had in nearly a decade. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald in Budapest (1970 [1999], Pablo): Norman Granz sold Verve in 1961, but continued to produce her until she left Verve in 1967, after which he managed her, and gets credit for producing her live albums. When he launched his Pablo label in 1973, he rounded up the old gang and started producing new studio sets, while also releasing some of his store of live tapes. One of the best compilations of her live work was The Concert Years, a 4-CD Pablo box released in 1994, where the first disc combines a 1953 performance in Japan with two sets from 1966-67, and the later discs track her from 1971-83. This is another fine concert, backed by Tommy Flanagan's trio, long set at 78:17, hits many of her later high points, ending with "Mack the Knife" and "People." B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella à Nice (1971 [1982], Pablo): She was still managed by Granz in the years separating her Verve and Pablo records, so it's likely that her live act -- as opposed to her studio albums at Capitol -- never changed much. But this set offers one innovation: medleys. She starts with "Night and Day," followed by more Porter, then a "Ballad Medley" from "Body and Soul" to Gershwin, and "The Bossa Scene" (mostly Jobim), and later "Aspects of Duke," although she limits her Beatles bag to "Something" -- followed by "St. Louis Blues," closing out with "Close to You" and "Put a Little Love in Your Heart." Backed by Tommy Flanagan's trio. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Count Basie/Oscar Peterson/Stan Getz/Roy Eldridge/Eddie Lockjaw Davis/Ray Brown/Harry Edison/Al Grey/Tommy Flanagan/Ed Thigpen/Keeter Betts: Jazz at the Santa Monica Civic '72 (1972 [1991], Pablo, 3CD): I filed this under Jazz at the Philharmonic, and some sources credit the JATP All Stars, the nominal group that takes over after Basie's opening set. This show is regarded as the founding event of Norman Granz's Pablo label, much as the original 1944 Jazz at the Philharmonic First Concert led to Granz's Norgran, Clef, and Verve labels. But I figured I'd just go with the artist names on the front cover, in the order given, especially as that fits neatly in the series of Fitzgerald albums. The concert was originally released as four separate LPs, but by 1974 had been consolidated into a 3-LP box, which was converted to 3-CD in 1991. The first CD is mostly Basie, plus one track from the JATP All Stars (Getz, Davis, Eldridge, etc.), who fill the second CD except for an Oscar Peterson/Ray Brown duet. Ella headlines the third CD, backed by Flanagan's trio and, aside from a 4 song intermission, the Basie big band, with everyone piling on "C Jam Blues" for the finale. The word most often associated with Granz is "impressario," as his JATP shows were his labels were at least initially just a sideline to merchandise and promote his shows. The First Concert is especially notable, not just because "Blues #2" there has been nominated as the first rock and roll record but because the rhythm section was such a revelation (especially Les Paul on guitar and Nat King Cole on piano). The shows went on to generate dozens of albums, some with headline artist credits and many more just under the corporate logo. None of those, at least the dozen-plus I've heard, are essential, but most of them are jam sessions packed with loads of fun. If this seems less star-laden than the 1950s shows, it's because they're all getting older, not least Granz. His big three stars -- Basie, Fitzgerald, and Peterson -- got major revivals on Pablo (as did Eldridge and Edison, and others not present here, like Zoot Sims). The first two sets are fun as you'd expect, but Ella really earns her headline credit, and not just with her standards but also with a couple of outstanding then-new songs ("You've Got a Friend" and "What's Going On?"). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella in London (1974, Pablo): Norman Granz sold Verve in 1961, but continued to produce Ella there through 1966. In 1973, he started a new label, Pablo, and he quickly rounded up several of his 1950s stars, starting with Ella. This one is a live set from Ronnie Scott's, backed by Tommy Flanagan (piano), Joe Pass (guitar), Keter Betts (bass), and Bobby Durham (drums). B+(**) [sp]

Greta Keller: Greta Keller Sings Kurt Weill (1953, Atlantic): Cabaret singer and actress (1903-77) from Vienna, moved to Berlin c. 1929, appearing in her first film in 1931, then on to Paris, New York and Hollywood, before eventually returning to Vienna. If her voice and mannerisms seem familiar, that's because she was the archetypal model others (including Marlene Dietrich) drew on -- Cabaret, for instance, kicks off with one of her recordings. This 10-inch LP (28:50) kicks off with with six Kurt Weill songs in English (three with Ogden Nash lyrics), and closes with one more, after a medley in German from Threepenny Opera -- some of my favorite music ever. Perhaps a bit too somber, but a remarkable voice. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Mae Morse: Capitol Collectors Series (1942-57 [1992], Capitol): Jazz/pop singer (1924-99), started in 1942 with a hit of "Cow-Cow Boogie" backed by Freddie Slack and His Orchestra, followed with several more hits (all collected here; doesn't seem to have recorded much of anything later, but continued to tour). B+(**) [sp]

PS: This appears to be identical to The Very Best of Ella Mae Morse (1942-57 [1998], Collectables), which I previously graded B and should now upgrade to match.

Bobby Vee: Legendary Masters (1959-68 [1973], United Artists): One of those "teen idol" singers who appeared in the early 1960s, born in North Dakota, last name Velline, had a couple memorable hits early on -- "Devil or Angel" (1960), "Take Good Care of My Baby" (1961), "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" (1962) -- and hung on for a long career, touring until he got Alzheimer's in 2011 and died in 2016, but few albums after 1969. This has much more than anyone needs, including enough of I Remember Buddy Holly (1963) to quell my curiosity. B [r]

The Brill Building Sound (1957-67 [1993], ERA, 4CD): 1619 Broadway, corner of 49th Street, 11 floors, built 1931, became a center for songwriters and publishers in the 1930s, at first focusing on big bands and musical theater. In the late 1950s some of their tenants to cash in on the rock and roll market, with considerable success during the 1961-64 period, which produced 52 songs collected here (vs. 10 for 1957-60, and 12 for 1965-67). Along with a similar operation at 1650 Broadway, their product has been designated a "sound," but unless you lived through this period, nearly everything here sounds like something else from someone more famous. If you didn't, among artists here, you really should have single-artist compilations of the Drifters and the Shirelles (who have much more, and even better, work elsewhere, as do Dion and the Everly Brothers, with one stray song each). The next tier is probably Bobby Darin and the Shangri-Las, or maybe Neil Sedaka, although their songs, plus a dozen more fluke hits, are likely to show up on other compilations (e.g., "girl groups") from the period. But I started listening to a lot of AM radio around 1961, so most of this music is not just familiar but deeply embedded. From 1964 on, my own interest moved pretty hard to the British Invasion. The Brill Building songwriters tried to cash in on that too, and had a few more big hits with what are not little-remembered bands (Manfred Mann, Paul Revere & the Raiders), and they still resonate with me. I don't really know what the afterstory was: immediate competition came from other song factories, especially Motown, but after Dylan, Lennon-McCartney, Jagger-Richard, et al., artists who didn't write their own songs went out of style, and in the 1970s FM eclipsed AM, focusing on longer album cuts at the expense of punchy little novelty singles. Meanwhile, the most famous Brill Building alumnus, Carole King, became a big star, singing her own songs. So this box works for me as nostalgic time capsule, although it misses at least as much of 1961-64 as it captures (a period quickly deprecated as obsolete as soon as the Beatles hit, perhaps even more quickly than the new wave/punks bemoaned the mid-1970s). For the later 1960s, I may have to crack open that 4-CD Nuggets box, but it won't be as cheerfully integrated at this sampler is. [was: A-] A [cd]

Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era (1965-68 [1998], Rhino, 4CD): Back in 1972, rock critic and future Patti Smith guitarist Lenny Kaye compiled a 2-LP collection of late-1960s "psychedelic" rock, about half minor hits and the rest perfectly fitted: median chart position was 55, with "Psychotic Reaction" at 5, 5 more top-20 songs, 4 below 100, and 5 that didn't chart at all. I picked up the Sire reissue in 1976, and it immediately became a favorite. Rhino picked up on the idea, and starting in 1984 released a series of 12 LPs under the Nuggets name, with Volume 1: The Hits repeating 6 songs from the 2-LP, which they followed up with a CD series called Nuggets: Psychedelic Sixties (3 separate CDs, released 1986-89). In 1998, they reconceived the franchise, with this box set: Volume 1 completely reissues the original 2-LP, with 3 more CDs adding 91 more tracks (116 total, compare to 168 in the 12-LP series). Hard to say whether (or how much) the quality declines as the quantity piles on. I listened to a pretty average amount of rock in 1961-65, but cut way back during my asocial years (1966-72), so only a few of the scattered hits here -- "Wooly Bully" obviously, plus some things like "Louie Louie," "Laugh Laugh," and "She's About a Mover" -- hit a nostalgic nerve. Sure, this sounds very white, male, and American compared to at least 80% of the 1955-75 music I've been enjoying so much of late. But the sound is consistent and coherent, with its heavy guitar din, and resonates with a period I lived through, even if I wasn't very connected to it. B+(***) [cd]

PS: Rhino followed this box with Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts From the British Empire and Beyond (1964-69 [2001], Rhino, 4CD), which mostly focused on similar music from UK groups (most famously the Pretty Things, Small Faces, and the Move), with the Guess Who from Canada, and "beyond" extending as far as Os Mutantes.

Swamp Dogg: Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th St (2024, Oh Boy): B+(***) [sp]

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