This week has been a Granddad week for me. It started on Sunday when i went to my first dance recital. I raised three boys and one girl and that one girl is the mother of Emma. Emma turned 3 in February and has been taking both tap and ballet lessons. Sunday was her first recital. I must say overall it was very good and Emma did great … Here is the picture they used in the introduction of the students.
Later that night we babysat Emma and Lucas for several hours as their parents went to a photo shoot for their business Rego Photography. Monday my son and Logan the son of my third son Peter came and we played cards from 2:45 to 4:45.
Finally, last night we went to my oldest grandson Oliver’s Spring Band Concert. Oliver is 12 and is in 6th grade. The concert was very good.
The result of all of the above is that we missed Senior Tuesday and its 15% off this week. But we still made a trip to the Audoubon NJ Goodwill this morning, The vinyl today was the same ones I left last week after my pretty good haul and the books were the same too. I did find some that I must have passed over last week.
Today’s Goodwill Book Mini-Haul – Four Mystery Series Temptations
“I” is for Innocent – Sue Grafton
While I have never read a Kinsey Milhone book, I acknowledge the groundbreaking nature of her work. Wuthout her work I may never have read books from the likes of Laura Lippman, Carol O’Connell, Kathy Reichs or even Karin Slaughter!
And that’s why I have been collecting the Kinsey Milhone series. With the addition of “I” is for Innocent I ever have 11 of the series books!
The Eighth Sister – Robert Dugoni
Robert Dugoni is another of those authors whose books I should be reading but haven’t. Dugoni has two main series the Tracy Crosswhite series and the David Sloane series. The Eighth Sister appears to be a standalone featuring former CIA case worker Charles Jenkins.
Hundred-Dollar Baby – Robert B Parker
I read my first Spenser novel back in 1987. It was The Judas Goat Spenser #5. I also read Taming a Sea-Horse in 1987 it was Spenser #13. Subsequently I have never read another Spenser book even though I enjoyed the books ans characters!
Hundred Dollar Baby is Spenser #34! It was released in 2006 four years prior of his sudden death in 2010. The last Spenser novel written by Robert B Parker and his assistant was SixKill published in 2011. From 2012 t0 2022 Ace Atkins wrote 10 Spenser books. In 2023 Mike Lupica began writing the books and has since added 4 books to the series. The latest released in 2026 is Framed (Spenser #54)! Anyway I hope maybe Hundred Dollar Baby can get me back into the series!
A Cold Day for Murder – Dana Stabenow
One of the author’s who may have benefited from the success of Sue Grafton was Dana Stabenow. A Cold Day for Murder is the first book in the now 23 book series featuring Kater Shugak. This is another series that I should have read but didn’t I blieve I have a copy of this book but where it is I know Not! Anyway the copy i bought was released in 2023 so it has the feel of a new book! So maybe I can trick myself into reading it!
But considering that Kate is a native Alaskan ex-DA investigator who lives on a 160 -acre homestead in a generic nationa park in Alaska with her half-wolf, half-husky dog named Mutt; I should love this series!!
Links For Futher Exploration of the Four Mystery Series Temptations Authors
I am now finishing this post on Thursday after working this morning at Target! I din’t finish it last night becasue Zoe my sceond oldest grandchild only 6 months younger than Oliver had HER Spring Band concert. She plays saxophone and had a short solo in the third song! She was also named The Rising Star of the 6th grade band by the Music Teacher. Go Zoe! The best thingabout last night’s concert though is that the school is in the same block as our house so it was a short trip home!
Return with me now to that thrilling day at Goodwill last Wednesday. Let’s wrap up my finds at Audubon first…
First of the Amazing Finds — The CDs
Jackopierce – Bringing on the Weather
Jackopierce is a band whose name I’ve heard for many years, though I don’t think I’ve actually listened to their music — until now. Here’s a bit of background, courtesy of AllMusic:
Jackopierce is primarily a duo composed of Jack O’Neill and Cary Pierce. They formed the band in 1988 at Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas. Initially an acoustic duo, they later added Clay Pendergrass on bass and Earl Darling on drums in the mid-1990s. The band reunited in 2002 after a five-year breakup.
This is the pinnacle of Jackopierce. Nothing beats this album when you’re droning down the highway at midnight with a spring thunderstorm calling up ahead.
Lyle Lovett – The Road to Ensenada
Unlike Jackopierce, I already know and enjoy Lyle Lovett’s music — and this album is already in my library. From AllMusic:
Since Pontiac, Lyle Lovett has been experimenting with different sounds, whether it was the big band posturing of Lyle Lovett and His Large Band, the gospel overtones of Joshua Judges Ruth, or the ’70s singer/songwriter flourishes of I Love Everybody. With The Road to Ensenada, he hunkers down and produces his most straightforward album since Pontiac. As it happens, it’s also his best record since that breakthrough album.
Sting – If on a Winter’s Night
The Police and Sting were always more “radio bands” for me — meaning I mostly heard their music on the airwaves. But this quote made me curious:
If on a Winter’s Night… no other Christmas album exists in the head like this. It’s a holiday album for people who have never wanted to hear a holiday album, let alone own one.
That, plus the beautiful cover, made it worth picking up. Who knows? Maybe I’ve found a Christmas album I’ll actually enjoy!
Hiromi – The Trio Project: Move
Like Lovett, I already appreciate Hiromi’s music and have another album of hers in my library. This one features her killer rhythm section: Anthony Jackson on bass and Simon Phillips on drums.
Move is Hiromi’s second “Trio Project” recording and a worthy follow-up to 2011’s Voice. She describes the compositions as mirroring an average day, starting with the title track — a choppy excursion full of twists and turns. “Brand New Day” smooths things out but keeps the energy alive, and Hiromi switches between piano and analog synth on “Endeavor,” though that track feels a little more novelty than necessary.
The Verve Story: 1944–1994 – The Best of the Amazing Finds
Now this one tops the list in terms of excitement! A four-disc set with a great booklet, chronicling the legacy of Verve — one of jazz’s most iconic labels. The track list is stacked with my favorites:
Disc 1: Oscar Peterson, Lester Young, Bud Powell
Disc 4: Cal Tjader, Kenny Burrell, Wes Montgomery, Jimmy Smith
…and so much more in between. I can’t wait to give it a proper listen.
Now for the Native American Prints…
Over the last year, I’ve started collecting Native American prints and pottery — and this Goodwill trip added two watercolor prints to my growing display.
The first is a signed piece by J.C. Madden, known for Southwest-style watercolor prints, often featuring Native American women. His work isn’t super expensive, but it was a great find — especially at a Goodwill price with 20% off!
The second piece, which my wife actually spotted, fits perfectly among my pottery display. It appears to be the work of Carol Grigg, a Cherokee artist born in 1942. She’s known for stylized paintings of Native American riders and horses, often using desert-colored pastels. Her work tends to be more collectible than Madden’s — so this was a lucky find!
Wrapping Up Audubon
That wraps up the Audubon portion of the Goodwill adventure — CDs, jazz history, and art that fits right in with my collection.
Coming Soon: Part 3, where the day continues with two amazing finds — and a genealogy discovery that ties it all together!
Two Goodwill Stores – A Day of Amazing Finds! (Part 1)
The last two or three trips to Goodwill have been pretty good. However, today’s adventures at the Audubon and Willingboro, NJ stores were truly exceptional! So let’s do a quick recap of my Goodwill haul from today. I’ll start with our morning visit to Audubon…
No Vinyl – Boo! Hiss!
First stop? The vinyl section — and sadly, it was a bust. Someone must have donated a large collection of Jewish music, because there were multiple Theodore Bikel albums of Jewish folk songs. The most interesting LP I saw was George Carlin’s Class Clown — a classic, but not what I was looking for.
On to the Books!
While none of the books I found were rare gems, they were all solid pickups for me!
Gideon’s Corpse – Preston & Child (Gideon Crew #2)
I’m a big fan of Preston & Child’s Agent Pendergast series — I actually finished the latest book earlier this year. Gideon’s Corpse is book two in their five-book Gideon Crew series. I read the first book, Gideon’s Sword, way back in 2011. Maybe this find will rekindle my interest in this alternate series.
The Devil’s Sea (Dirk Pitt #27) – Dirk Cussler
It’s been many years since I read a Clive Cussler novel. The first I read was Raise the Titanic (#4), sometime in the mid-80s. I kept up with the series until about book #10, Dragon. I still have Sahara (#11) and a few others kicking around my shelves. Too many books, too little time!
This is the first Dirk Pitt novel written solely by Dirk Cussler, continuing the legacy of his father, who passed in 2020. Impressive that the series now stands at 27 books!
Spartan Gold (Fargo Adventure #1) – Clive Cussler with Grant Blackwood
This one’s a double draw for me: it kicks off the Fargo Adventure series, and it’s co-written by Grant Blackwood, whose collaborations with James Rollins and Steve Berry I’ve really enjoyed. The blend of action, adventure, and history is right up my alley — I love getting a little education along with my entertainment. The series has now reached book 13 — The Serpent’s Eye!
The Brain Fog Fix – Dr. Mike Dow
From Goodreads:
“A new epidemic is sweeping the country… ADHD, scatter brain, or ‘brain fog.’ People are thinking and feeling worse than ever. Why? Because our brains aren’t getting the support they need to produce the essential brain chemicals that keep us energized, calm, focused, and inspired…”
This book lays out a three-week plan to naturally rebalance serotonin, dopamine, and cortisol — a reset I’m definitely open to trying. If this book can do even half of what it promises for my ADHD tendencies, it’ll be the best 80 cents I’ve spent in a long time!
So once again I must confess to not wrting many new posts. One of my excuses is I am still trying to fully recover from the ankle sprain that occurred on my May 28th run! In order to facilitate that recovery, for the last several weeks I’ve been going to Physical Theraphy twice a week. Additionally, I’ve been working more at Target.Finally, last week in an attempt to get myself to write more I bought a new laptop.
Only I shopped price and bought an HP Chromebook. And while it works fine for using the Internet, which means it works well for most of my uses. It doesn’t play nicely with my iTunes music library. Now because not all of my music was recorded by iTunes and moved right into iTunes my albums and recording are located in various folders on various storage devices! So what I’ve beem doing is relocating them to devices where I know what I have and where they are located! I actually bought a 256 GB microSD card that I think will hold my whole library.
In the midst of all this my wife did make a trip to the NJ State Archives in Trenton on Wednesday of this week, That means that I get to head further north and visit The Princetion Record Exchange! Now because I’m still dont know how to rip CDs using the Chromebook, I only bought vinyl albums, which is actually what I wanted to buy anyway.
My LP Haul from The Princeton Record Exchange
Jazz
Master of the Art – Woody Shaw
I confess I didn’t know anything about Woody Shaw until I started to listen to more jazz in the middle 2010s. I only gave this album a quick listen but I likes what I heard…..from AllMusic
Master of the Art is the studio companion to the album Night Music, also reissued on Wounded Bird records from the original Elektra Musician masters, with the same band as on the live date, but with completely different songs and a short interview from the trumpeter. At a time when Shaw was one of the most consistently brilliant trumpeter’s of the modern era, this effort did nothing to hurt that estimable reputation.
Vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson and trombonist Steve Turre being on the front line made for an arresting sound, while the emerging pianist Mulgrew Miller was asserting himself as a major force, with drummer Stafford James and drummer Tony Reedus sounding like they had worked together for decades Read more at AllMusic
High Energy – Freddie Hubbard
Now Freddie Hubbard is someone I have know for longer and at least one cassette tape is in my collection. Again after a listen last night I liked what I heard.. The first time I heard Ernie Watts he was playing with John Mayall in the early 1970 from AllMusic….
One of Freddie Hubbard’s few decent efforts during his very commercial period with Columbia, this LP found his quintet (with tenor-saxophonist Junior Cook and keyboardist George Cables) joined by a small orchestra and a string section on a set of potentially dismal material….The leader/trumpeter is in good form and there is solo space given to Ernie Watts (on bass flute, soprano and flute) and tenorman Pete Christlieb…. Read More at AllMusic
Rough House Blues – Lou Donaldson
Like Woody Shaw I didnt know a lot about Lou Donaldson until several years ago, I really like hus album Alligator Bogaloo. I listened to this album as I was writing this post and I think I may like it the most of any of the albums I bought ! While AllMusic gave the album thee stars they didn’t have much to say about it…..
Best and most ambitious of mid-60s Argo albums. Oliver Nelson supplied the arrangements for this nine-piece band.
I am familiar with the work of Oliver Nelson through his work with Wes Montgomery in the 1960s. You cant go wrong iif he’s doing the arranging!
The Milt Jackson Big 4 at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1975 – Milt Jackson, Oscar Peterson, Niels Pederson and Mickey Roker.
Sadly, I discovered that I already have this album in my music library. But I say you can never have too much Milt Jackson….the presence of Oscar Peterson on the album made it a no-brainer when I saw it, From AllMusic,,,,,
This is the only album of my haul that got 4 stars from AllMusic,,,,,,
Vibraphonist Milt Jackson teams up with pianist Oscar Peterson, bassist Niels Pedersen and drummer Mickey Roker for this particularly appealing set. There are many exciting performances (particularly Blue Mitchell’s “Funji Mama,” “Speed Ball” and “Mack the Knife”) and some emotional ballad statements (“Everything Must Change” and “Like Someone like Love”). Bags and O.P. always bring out the best in each other and this well-conceived set is no exception. Read More at AllMusic
Folk
Today is the Highway – Eric Andersen
I bought my first Eric Andersen album Blue River in the early 1970s when it came out. I know that I went out and bought some of his prior albums quickly thereafter, However, I never bought this one. He’s had a strange career he spent most of the later 70s through the 1980s in Europe, He reemerged in 1989 with a new album, Ghosts Upon the Road. Since 1998 he’s been very active producing a numnber of outstanding albums. From AllMusic
Andersen’s debut album presented him playing in a folkie style that was just starting to become passé upon its release in 1965. It’s an inoffensive set of originals (except for a cover of “Baby Please Don’t Go”) in the early-’60s Greenwich Village style, accompanied only by his own guitar and harmonica (and, on two songs, by Debby Green on second guitar). Read More at AllMusic
Here‘s a baker‘s dozen playlist with random tracks for each album with the exception of The Milt Jackson Big 4…. I did include as the thirteenth track …. „On Green Dolphin Street“ by Milt and Oscar!
Five New Albums to Add to My Music Library from Tunes Used CD Store
Yesterday in the post re-introducing Me, Myself, Music and Mysteries I wrote that previously I had found a lot of music at Tunes in Marlton, NJ.That action reminded me that I still had a $15.00 Gift Card to Tunes that my son Peter had given me about a year ago.
So…. after finishing the post and no Eagles game to watch I decided to make a trip to Tunes. I really haven’t been to Tunes much since my kids have grown and online music sources like Rhapsody and Spotify have come into existence. It’s really a lot easier to check out new music from the comfort of your own house.
The trip today though reconfirmed that I really enjoy scouring the bins looking for those special bargains on great music. Sometimes the bargains are albums from musicians you know. Other times you may find an album from someone you have never heard. However, because the price is so low you can take a chance on the album.
The albums that I found yesterday are all from musicians that I am familiar. Some of the albums I have even written about on this blog. Anyway, here are the five albums that I bought with my $15.00!!
The Five Albums
Two of the albums that I found at Tunes yesterday I have previously listened to and enjoyed. However, I listened to them on Spotify, and I don’t have the physical CD. So it’s great to have them…..They are
Hot Rize – When I’m Free
Released in 2014, When I’m Free was Hot Rize’s first studio album in 24 years.
When I started to listen to a lot of music and collecting CDs, thanks to the used CD bins at Tunes in Marlton, in the early 2000s, I found the music of Tim O’Brien, an amazing multi-instrumentalist and singer. I also discovered the music of guitarist Charles Sawtelle. It took a while before I stumbled upon a great bluegrass album So Long a Journey (2002) from the band Hot Rize. I discovered that both O’Brien and Sawtelle were members of the band, along with Pete Wernick, and Nick Forster.
Subsequently, I discovered that the album was a live album that had been recorded in 1996 and was a reunion album of the band, that had retired in 1990. In 1990, the members had parted ways and went on to have distinguished solo careers Conitnue Reading
The Lonely Heartstring Band – Deep Waters
From My Previous Post
Among the albums that were released this Friday was Deep Waters the debut release on Rounder Records from the Boston-based band The Lonely Heartstring Band. Ken Irwin, a founder of Rounder Records, said
“The Lonely Heartstring Band is not only one of the most exciting bands musically we’ve heard in a while, but they combine artistry with a great attitude and commitment that makes them irresistible. Plus, they’ve just made an amazing record”
After listening to the album yesterday and today, I totally agree Deep Waters is a great album and these 2015 IBMA Momentum Award winners can flat-out bring it. Great pickin’ and singin’! Four out the five members of the band met as students at the Berklee College of Music, which says volumes about their respective musical abilities in my eyes and ears. The band was founded in 2012 by Charles Clements (bass & vocals), George Clements (guitar & lead vocals), Gabe Hirshfeld (banjo), Patrick M’Gonigle (fiddle, vocals), and Matt Witler (mandolin). Since its founding the band has built a devoted following playing and headlining at major music festivals and historic venues from Western Canada to California, from Kentucky to New Hampshire. – Read More
The other three albums are all jazz albums.
Miles Davis – Birth of Cool
I wore out Miles’s Bitches Brew when it was in college. Since then I have listened to and enjoyed a lot of his other albums. However, Birth of Cool was not in my music library until now!
From: AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
So dubbed because these three sessions — two from early 1949, one from March 1950 — are where the sound known as cool jazz essentially formed, Birth of the Cool remains one of the defining, pivotal moments in jazz. This is where the elasticity of bop was married with skillful, big-band arrangements and a relaxed, subdued mood that made it all seem easy, even at its most intricate. After all, there’s a reason why this music was called cool; it has a hip, detached elegance, never getting too hot, even as the rhythms skip and jump. Indeed, the most remarkable thing about these sessions — arranged by Gil Evans and featuring such heavy-hitters as Kai Winding, Gerry Mulligan, Lee Konitz, and Max Roach — is that they sound intimate, as the nonet never pushes too hard, never sounds like the work of nine musicians.
Furthermore, the group keeps things short and concise (probably the result of the running time of singles, but the results are the same), which keeps the focus on the tones and tunes. The virtuosity led to relaxing, stylish mood music as the end result — the very thing that came to define West Coast or “cool” jazz — but this music is so inventive, it remains alluring even after its influence has been thoroughly absorbed into the mainstream Read More at AllMusic
Here is a past post about Lee Konitz who played on Birth of Cool
Bud Powell – The Best of Bud Powell – The Blue Note Years
This album contains fifteen tracks from the following albums recorded on the Blue Note label. The tracks were recorded and released between 1957 and 1958. The critic’s rating on all of the individual albums are either 4 or 4.5 stars out of five! So, I think that I am going to enjoy this collection!
1957–58: Bud Plays Bird (Roulette / Blue Note) 1958: Time Waits: The Amazing Bud Powell (Vol. 4) (Blue Note) 1958: The Scene Changes: The Amazing Bud Powell (Blue Note)
Powell’s band mates on the various tracks include:
Fats Navaro, trumpet, Sonny Rollins, tenor sax, Max Roach and Philly Joe Jones, drums!
Yes, I think that I will really like this CD!! Here is a link to short post I wrote about Bud on his birthday!
The Mahavishnu Orchestra with John McLaughin- The Inner Mounting Flame
Columbia released The Inner Mounting Flame in 1971. I know I listened to it way back when, but somehow it never made it into my music library. Thank you Tunes and Peter for taking care of tha
From the AllMusic Review by Richard S. Ginel This is the album that made John McLaughlin a semi-household name, a furious, high-energy, yet rigorously conceived meeting of virtuosos that, for all intents and purposes, defined the fusion of jazz and rock a year after Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew breakthrough. It also inadvertently led to the derogatory connotation of the word fusion, for it paved the way for an army of imitators, many of whose excesses and commercial panderings devalued the entire movement.
Though much was made of the influence of jazz-influenced improvisation in the Mahavishnu band, it is the rock element that predominates, stemming directly from the electronic innovations of Jimi Hendrix. The improvisations, particularly McLaughlin’s post-Hendrix machine-gun assaults on double-necked electric guitar and Jerry Goodman’s flights on electric violin, owe more to the freakouts that had been circulating in progressive rock circles than to jazz, based as they often are on ostinatos on one chord. Read More
The Inner Mounting Flame is one of the 1,000 recordings in the book,1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die. (Note: My son Andrew gave me this book fpr Father’s Day.. You think he was trying to tell me something?)Just joking! Anyway the next time I listen to the album I guess I’ll only have 999 to go! Of course I actually have less because I know I have herd many of the albums already!!
At the end of each article there is a box that lists various information about the album. The information listed includes: the genre of the album, its release date, along with key tracks and a catalog choice track.The final two fields are the Next Stop and After That. After The Inner Mounting Flame the next stop is King Crimson’s Larks’ Tongues in Aspic. After That –Tortoise’sTNT. I know I have heard the King Crimson album, but I don’t know Tortoise’s TNT. So I’m off to find it!
So overall, I think I got a pretty good haul for my $15.00. Actually, I have to confess that the total bill came to $17.08. Which is still almost equal to the price of one CD! So by for now I have some listening and ripping to do!!
