Subject: Miles Davis

• The 100 Most Important OC Musicians of All Time

  DJ Nobody: Twice as important as most OC musicians. Orange County has been a fertile breeding ground for musicians of many stripes since the beginning of electricity. We at Heard Mentality would like to ask you—the good-looking, intelligent readers of this blog—for your opinions on this important matter [see headline]. Let us know who you think deserves to be on this auspicious list; and if you wish to explain why they merit inclusion, by all means shout it out loud in the comments box. [

  September 11, 2007

• Deeper Into Miles Davis

  Paul Tingen, author of the thoroughly engaging and perceptive Miles Beyond: The Electric Explorations of Miles Davis 1967-1991, has graciously linked to my review of the late, great trumpeter's The Complete On The Corner Sessions boxed set on his website. I'm currently reading Miles Beyond (thanks, Nick) and, even though I've read the musical legend's autobiography, I'm learning a helluva lot more about Miles, his recording processes and his huge and hugely talented, rotating cast of band ma

  December 14, 2007

• Teo Macero, 1925-2008

  Just one of Teo Macero's indispensable contributions to musical awesomeness. Teo Macero, the cunning producer/composer/saxophonist who helped to shape Miles Davis' recordings of the '50s through the '70s into some of the most important and sonically advanced albums ever, passed away Feb. 19 at age 82. For his production and editing work on Kind of Blue, Bitches Brew and On the Corner alone, Macero is assured immortality among people who value innovative jazz and fusion music. He also worked wi

  February 22, 2008

• James Valentine, Guitarist for Square

  October 19, 2000

• Creepy, Squirming Larvae

  May 3, 2001

• Out of the Shadows

  December 25, 2003

• Swingin' Fundraiser

  Just got this email from a guy named Rick Berry. Unless you are Dustin Hoffman in "Rain Man," you probably don't remember, but I wrote about him a while ago when he was playing trumpet in a group called the Jazz Rx.The band isn't performing anymore and with all this free time, Berry has decided to run for city council in Long Beach. To help raise money, he's throwing a bash at DiPiazza's.Here's what he sent me:diPiazza Feb 11, 6:00 - 8:30 pm Jazz band with: Marcia Ford, vocals Rick Berry, trump

  February 4, 2009

• Robedoor Do What They Can to Make Their Live Act Stand Out

  February 26, 2009

• Rainy Day Jams: What's in your iPod?

  In case you didn't realize how shitty the people in front of you were driving on your way to work this morning, or that the shoulders of your hoodie are exceptionally moist, I just though I'd inform you that it's raining. Now if your iPod is worth its weight, you should probably have a decent stack of songs at the ready for such an occasion. Its probably been a couple hours since you've settled into work and, if you're lucky, the head honcho allows you to have a little music in your life while y

  February 16, 2009

• [Sprawl of Sound] Unearthed Gems by David Axelrod, Bill Cosby, New Nuggets From Leviathan Brothers

  June 5, 2008

• In Sound We Thrust

  17 Songs to Make Bedsprings Sing

  February 7, 2008

• Joey Jazz

  January 10, 2008

• In the Vanguard

  December 6, 2007

• Goodbye, Cool World

  OCMA sees a future in the past

  November 1, 2007

• Numbers by Paint

  Banyan Splatter the Aural Canvas with a Profusion of Surprising Hues

  October 4, 2007

• Sprawl of Sound

  Miles Above: The Complete On the Corner Sessions Documents One of the Greatest, Most Controversial Albums Ever

  September 20, 2007

• Sprawl of Sound

  Anti-occult Hero: Meet Heru John Basil, OC’s most far-out psychedelic loner

  August 16, 2007

• Chaos Magick

  December 13, 2001

• Fierce Ruling Diva

  Once too hot to handle, Betty Davis freaky funk is ripe for rediscovery

  June 14, 2007

• Monochrome Refreshments

  Scritti Politti

  October 26, 2006

• Peaceful Visions

  October 5, 2006

• La Cave

  October 13, 2005

• AudioMax-Ltd.

  March 31, 2005

• Better Than a Grammy

  January 20, 2005

• Free Moral Agents

  July 15, 2004

• Jazz Destroyers

  June 24, 2004

• No More Juice for You

  October 10, 2002

• Theres something about Maria

  April 11, 2002

• Aural Anarchy!

  March 14, 2002

• Thats Evil Goin On

  March 14, 2002

• New Music

  February 28, 2002

• Funk Master General

  February 21, 2002

• First the movie, now the band

  January 24, 2002

• New Music

  January 24, 2002

• New Music

  October 4, 2001

• Fair Deal

  September 20, 2001

• Karen in Evansland

  August 10, 2000

• The Punk Meets the Funk

  August 3, 2000

• Room to Groove

  July 13, 2000

• No Sellout

  May 11, 2000

• An Inveterate Ass

  April 20, 2000

• Jon Halperin

  October 7, 1999

• Tomorrow: Sonny Rollins at OCPAC

  Jazz has few living legends from its halycon days. Sure, there are some modern players (the Marsalis brothers come to mind) who picked up the torch when it was passed to them, but as far as 100 percent legit dudes from back in the day, the list is very short.Luckily for Orange County, Sonny Rollins, a man who stands firmly atop that list, is playing tomorrow night at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. Rollins' resume reads like a who's-who of jazz. The saxophonist played alongside John Co

  April 29, 2009

• Mingus Big Band

  May 7, 2009

• Sonny Rollins

  April 30, 2009

• Jimmy Fallon: Savior of Hip Hop?

    For some reason, when ?uestlove announced in November that The Roots would cease touring and become the house band for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, there was minor outrage. "Black Thought opening for Jimmy Fallon every night is the cultural equivalent of Miles Davis playing his horn on the subway platform to back up a semi-trained dancing spider monkey," wrote Gawker, while the Huffington Post reported that saxophonist and former Tonight Show bandleader Branford Marsalis advised the gro

  July 16, 2009

• Nino Moschella

  July 23, 2009

• The '59 Sound in the '09 Summer

  School's out. The sun poked through the "June gloom" yesterday. And most importantly, our 2009 Summer Guide was released this morning. It's official, summer has arrived... and while our guide has an abundance of information for making this summer the best one yet, we couldn't include everything. So without further ado, let me recommend an album that needs to be part of your summer rotation: The '59 Sound by The Gaslight Anthem.

  June 4, 2009

• [CD Review] David Sylvian, 'Manafon' (Samadhi Sound)

  September 17, 2009

• Eight Questions with Rick Berry

  ​Rick Berry's a lot of things. Some of these things include jazz trumpeter (currently in the Hollywood Canteen Swing Band), political candidate (he ran for Long Beach city council) and gardener (he's got a killer backyard garden). But to the rest of the world, he's got a new title that is pretty darn spiffy--marketing manager for the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra. If you're like me, you're wondering why a jazzman is getting in bed with classical music. I just had to ask.1. Tell the people a li

  October 13, 2009