Apparently, the inclusion of the nostalgic Goffin/King song “Goin’ Back,” and the rejection of Crosby’s icky threesome song “Triad,” (which found its way onto The Jefferson Airplane’s superb Crown of Creation) caused him to split. The story goes that the horse on the cover represents Crosby, but if it's really a parting shot, why show the head instead of the tail?

Will there ever be another jazz singer with the elegance, clarity, and emotional depth of the late Shirley Horn? I don’t think so. Horn put more into, and got more out of her pauses than many singers get of the notes they actually sing. Her piano playing was equally sophisticated yet economical. Everyone from Joni Mitchell to Diana Krall has been influenced by Shirley Horn.

Back in 1987, I interviewed the young up and coming and not particularly well-known Warner Brothers recording artist Chris Isaak. Thanks to a reasonably successful recording career, an effective and consistent live show, and an unusual “reality”-type comedy series on Showtime, Isaak divides his celebrity between being a respected recording artist, and a campy “celebrity,” known in some quarters simply for being known.

With his swept-back ‘50’s hair and Eddie Cochrane-like haberdashery, Chet Baker-ish schnozz, hollow body electric guitar and especially his shiver-inducing, close-to-the-microphone intimate wail, Isaak was heralded as both a musical throwback and a “new” Roy Orbison at a time when “New Wave,” synth-based “hair bands” still dominated radio airplay.

When Nicholas Cage, holding up a Beatles LP at the beginning of \"The Rock,\" said \"These sound better!\" kids must have been listening!

The truth wins out!

The first time I recall hearing a vibraphone was on a record at E.J. Korvette's. I was perusing the vinyl back in 1960 something or other when the store clerk put on a copy of Terry Gibb's That Swing Thing (Verve V6-8447), cuing up Bobby Timmon's catchy as the flu "Moanin'" which this clueless suburban adolescent had never heard.

Donovan may claim to not be a Dylan wannabe, but when you listen to "Catch the Wind," this compilation's opener, his claim rings hollow. It's so Dylan, so "Chimes of Freedom," and so derivative, there's no escaping the Dylan in him.

You’ll just have to get over the squashed, harmonically truncated and bleached sound that infects much of this musically outstanding album from 2002 (they’ve released more albums since) from this 15 member Canadian collective if you have any hope of enjoying it.

Always the teacher, Julian “Cannonball” Adderley commences this live set from 1959 with a backgrounder on the difference between church music and soul church music, before launching into Bobby Timmons’s “This Hear,” with the composer on piano, Adderley on alto sax, brother Nat on cornet and the rhythm section of Louis Hayes on drums and Sam Jones on bass setting up a crowd-pleasing soulful groove.

The time between receiving this and finally writing about it is ludicrous. I’m almost embarrassed to post this in March of 2006. It’s been covered more extensively than most new jazz albums and I wouldn’t be surprised if it outsold most of them as well. On the other hand this music hasn’t been heard in almost 50 years, so what’s a more few months?

Note: The SACD review appeared here May of 2004. A new LP, mastered by Steve Hoffman has just been issued. Hoffman used the original 15ips Pye stereo master mixes played back on a vintage (1964)vacuum tubed Ampex MX-35. Enjoy!