Session notes from the booth.

Reach for it when the set needs lift, conversation between parts, and something that can move without turning blunt. It leaves Here Goes (session takes) by Frank Sinatra off Platinum CD2 (2023) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Rio matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Rio by Daniela Soledade off Rio (2021) works when the set needs collective motion and color instead of blunt force. Daniela Soledade makes the most sense here as an ensemble proposition: the interest is in how the parts talk to each other, not just one lead line. This one earns its space through moving parts: sections shifting roles, rhythm pushing from underneath, and an arrangement that keeps relocating the center.

Listen for how the lead line, horns or keys, and the rhythm section keep trading weight instead of sitting in fixed roles. Notice how it hands the weight to Here Goes (session takes) by Frank Sinatra off Platinum CD2 (2023) instead of crowding the next move.

Here Goes (session takes) by Frank Sinatra off Platinum CD2 (2023) lifts the pressure after Rio by Daniela Soledade off Rio (2021) without snapping the thread. Reach for it when the set needs lift, conversation between parts, and something that can move without turning blunt. It leaves Upper Kern by Larry Carlton off Dynamic Audiophile Jazz Vol.1 (2019) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Platinum CD2 matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Here Goes (session takes) by Frank Sinatra off Platinum CD2 (2023) works when the set needs collective motion and color instead of blunt force. Frank Sinatra makes the most sense here as an ensemble proposition: the interest is in how the parts talk to each other, not just one lead line. This one earns its space through moving parts: sections shifting roles, rhythm pushing from underneath, and an arrangement that keeps relocating the center.

Listen for how the lead line, horns or keys, and the rhythm section keep trading weight instead of sitting in fixed roles. Notice how it hands the weight to Upper Kern by Larry Carlton off Dynamic Audiophile Jazz Vol.1 (2019) instead of crowding the next move.

Upper Kern by Larry Carlton off Dynamic Audiophile Jazz Vol.1 (2019) stays related to Here Goes (session takes) by Frank Sinatra off Platinum CD2 (2023) through jazz, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the set needs lift, conversation between parts, and something that can move without turning blunt.

Hearing it against Dynamic Audiophile Jazz Vol.1 matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Upper Kern by Larry Carlton off Dynamic Audiophile Jazz Vol.1 (2019) works when the set needs collective motion and color instead of blunt force. Larry Carlton makes the most sense here as an ensemble proposition: the interest is in how the parts talk to each other, not just one lead line. This one earns its space through moving parts: sections shifting roles, rhythm pushing from underneath, and an arrangement that keeps relocating the center.

Listen for how the lead line, horns or keys, and the rhythm section keep trading weight instead of sitting in fixed roles.

The sequence opens with The Theme (Take 2) by The Miles Davis Quintet to honor the jazz lineage and maintain the emotional pressure after On the up and Up by Stan Getz Quartet. The set then builds through R.E.M.'s Low, The Allman Brothers Band's You Don't Love Me (Live At The Fillmore East, 1971 - First Show), and Miles Davis & Gil Evans's I Don't Wanna Be Kissed (By Anyone But You) (Overdubbed Solo 1) to create a deepening arc that moves from 1990s color to 2010s energy while keeping the jazz core intact. The landing through I Never Knew by John Coltrane brings the set full circle with a strong, emotionally resonant conclusion that gives the hour a sense of completion and forward motion. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves The Theme (Take 2) by The Miles Davis Quintet off Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (1959) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Farewell and Goodnight by The Smashing Pumpkins off Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With The Smashing Pumpkins, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead. Notice how it hands the weight to The Theme (Take 2) by The Miles Davis Quintet off Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (1959) instead of crowding the next move.

The Theme (Take 2) by The Miles Davis Quintet off Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (1959) stays related to Farewell and Goodnight by The Smashing Pumpkins off Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995) through jazz, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the set needs lift, conversation between parts, and something that can move without turning blunt. It leaves Low by R.E.M. off Out Of Time (1991) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. The Theme (Take 2) by The Miles Davis Quintet off Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (1959) works when the set needs collective motion and color instead of blunt force. The Miles Davis Quintet makes the most sense here as an ensemble proposition: the interest is in how the parts talk to each other, not just one lead line. This one earns its space through moving parts: sections shifting roles, rhythm pushing from underneath, and an arrangement that keeps relocating the center.

Listen for how the lead line, horns or keys, and the rhythm section keep trading weight instead of sitting in fixed roles. Notice how it hands the weight to Low by R.E.M. off Out Of Time (1991) instead of crowding the next move.

Low by R.E.M. off Out Of Time (1991) stays related to The Theme (Take 2) by The Miles Davis Quintet off Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (1959) through rock, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars.

Hearing it against Out Of Time matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. off Out Of Time (1991) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With R.E.M., the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead.

This set begins with Time and Time Again by Counting Crows (slot 3) to maintain the emotional pressure steady after Hummer by The Smashing Pumpkins and keep alternative rock alive in the musical language. It then transitions to Tonight by David Bowie (slot 1) which honors the request line's need for a dusky slow-burn lane with warm low end, shifting into the 80s while maintaining the feeling. The set builds with Untitled by Aphex Twin (slot 2) to push the energy upward, then moves into 2020s with Fresh Out The Slammer by Taylor Swift (slot 10) for a contrast that keeps the emotional pressure steady. The sequence deepens with Let It Be (2021 Mix) by The Beatles (slot 4) and Give It Away (In Progress) by The Red Hot Chili Peppers (slot 5) before landing on You by Marvin Gaye (slot 13) and Epistrophy (theme - Sunday set one) by Thelonious Monk (slot 14) for a release that gives the next horizon inevitability. The final turn comes with I Don't Wanna Be Kissed (By Anyone But You) (Overdubbed Solo 1) by Miles Davis & Gil Evans (slot 11) to add lift and conversation, followed by Better Things by The Kinks (slot 6) and Crippled Inside (The Evolution Documentary) by John Lennon (slot 7) to close with the 70s, creating a full arc from 90s through 20s with a sense of movement and emotional shape. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves Time and Time Again by Counting Crows off August and Everything After (1993) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Sounds Of The Seventies - Super '70s matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. My Sharona by The Knack off Sounds Of The Seventies - Super '70s carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With The Knack, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead. Notice how it hands the weight to Time and Time Again by Counting Crows off August and Everything After (1993) instead of crowding the next move.

Time and Time Again by Counting Crows off August and Everything After (1993) lifts the pressure after My Sharona by The Knack off Sounds Of The Seventies - Super '70s without snapping the thread. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves Tonight by David Bowie off Tonight (1984) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against August and Everything After matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Time and Time Again by Counting Crows off August and Everything After (1993) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With Counting Crows, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead. Notice how it hands the weight to Tonight by David Bowie off Tonight (1984) instead of crowding the next move.

Tonight by David Bowie off Tonight (1984) cools the temperature after Time and Time Again by Counting Crows off August and Everything After (1993) and lets the turn breathe. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars.

Hearing it against Tonight matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Tonight by David Bowie off Tonight (1984) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With David Bowie, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead.