Glaring Omissions


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By all accounts, I'm a certified jazz lover and fanatic.

However, there are several jazz greats that one should have in his collection, if one calls himself an aficionado. So, at the risk of being kicked out of this forum, I will list the greats that one might think essential to a jazz collection....that are missing from my collection. I have over 4,000 albums, the vast majority of which is jazz.

I was introduced to jazz while in college in 1971. I was dependent on my friends and the local jazz station for my exposure to new music. If the station didn't play it, I had no access. So, a lot of the guys on my list didn't get any airplay, consequently I wasn't exposed to them.

Nat King Cole.......(I do have several Freddy Cole albums)

Billie Holiday......(Her voice makes my skin crawl & too much melancholy in her music.)

*Stan Getz...........I just never got around to it.

Duke Ellington......I've just never heard any of his recordings that I cared to buy.

Louis Armstrong......Just not my cuppa tea.

*Chet Baker...........Just never got around to it.

Charlie Parker.......I couldn't get past the poor audio quality of the recordings that I've heard.

Charles Mingus... I've never heard a Mingus recording in my life.

*Lester Young.....They never played him on the radio.

*Coleman Hawkins...They never played him on the radio.

*Gerry Mulligan....Just never got around to it.

I do plan to make an effort to familiarize myself with those that have an asterisk (*) before their name above.

I already own more music than I have time to listen to. That, and an addiction to Pandora, doesn't leave much room for new stuff.

Do you have any glaring omissions?
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128x128mitch4t
Mitch4t,
You are right, "we all like what we like" and that's how it should be. I love many(virtually all) of the musicians on both your preferred and glaring omission list. Taste is individual and unique. There are fantastic musicians on your omission list. Regarding Chet Baker I'm not much into his voice but absolutely love his trumpet/flugelhorn playing.
I find it near fascinating that you like Dexter Gordon but not Lester Young. Dexter was heavily influenced by both Lester and the icon himself, Charlie Parker.
Charles,
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Hey Charles...I don't dislike Lester Young, I just haven't heard any of his music....he's a glaring omission. I just might like him if I'd heard any of his music. I think the only time I ever heard any of his music was the little snippet that I heard on the Ken Burns Jazz documentary.

While listening to Pandora, I've just discovered Johnny Griffin. I'd never even heard of him until a month ago, the cat is monster! I've been soaking up a lot of his music over the last month. I've listened to jazz radio for decades...how could I have never heard of Johnny Griffin??
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Mitch4t:

***** I just happen to like different ones that you do...and my love of jazz is as legitimate as yours. All of it is jazz. I prefer different musicians*****

This is not about me.

This is about a self proclaimed 'Jazz Fanatic' making a list of the icons of the genre and then, saying he does not like their music. And has never heard, arguably, the greastest of them all, Mingus!!

Against the law? Nope. Will get you thown off the forum? Hardly. Illegitimate? Absolutely.

In any event, it's not worth fighting about. And lets all remember, we post, in order to get comments. We all know our 'rights'.

Cheers
I've listened to/absorbed Michael Brecker's discography much more than I ever did John Coltrane's! I own 4-5 Coltrane records and have most of his work with Miles but....it certainly doesn't mean I'm any less of a Jazz fan. Music appreciation is deeply personal, there is no right or wrong, it simply is.
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