JAZZ CD PICK OF THE WEEK - LOU DONALDSON

Here is my coveted Jazz CD Pick of the Week. A swinging cd from alto sax man Lou Donaldson. I must say that a few years back I was somewhat skeptical of Lou's recordings for some reason. I finally got hip to Lou and now own many of his cd's in my collection. This cd is titled Here 'Tis. This cd also features the debut recording of guitarist Grant Green and also features the sorely under-recorded Baby Face Willette on organ. Here is a Charlie Parker composition from this cd titled Cool Blues. Check it out!

DVD PICK OF THE WEEK - HARA KIRI

Yes, I know it's been quite a while since I hipped you all to my coveted DVD Pick of the Week. Since it's been a slow period for new movies I have been exploring the older Japanese classics. Here is one that I recently checked out from my good friends at Criterion.  Of course i had to get the super, duper, deluxe 2 disc edition. This dvd is titled Hara Kiri from noted film maker Masaki Kobayashi. Now for those looking for a ton of action this is not the film for you. This is a drama where the story slowly unfolds to the final conclusion. A film that I thoroughly enjoyed and am sure you will too! Here is the trailer from this 1962 classic. Check it out!

THE L.A. MARATHON AND SAXOMAN IS THERE - WHAT?

OK, now before you get too excited yes, SAXOMAN was at the L.A. Marathon this past Sunday but SAXOMAN was not running in the marathon. That would mean giving up precious time on my sofa that could be better spent listening to music and watching Asian cinema HAHA! No SAXOMAN was there to support the wife (aka Mrs. Saxoman) who was actually running in her first marathon! What? Yep, I kid you not. The wife had diligently trained for 6 months and on race day she was primed and ready to go! From Dodger Stadium to Santa Monica this was a 26.2 mile journey. Now as the race unfolded the wife was running stride for stride with the Kenyan's. Look at that little girl go everyone said! WOW, an amazing feat from this unknown runner. Maybe she's Ethiopian people wondered. HAHA! Now SAXOMAN met the wife at the halfway point (the Hollywood Chinese Theater) to provide a quick snack and a cool drink. As I was waiting I was killing time with characters dressed up like Captain America as well as the Hulk. I also saw several wanna-be rappers trying to peddle their home made cd's to unsuspecting Asian tourists. Oh well..... I also saw runners dressed up as Batman, Robin and a green leprechaun! Now after I met the wife I walked around the corner to where my car was parked (in front of Hollywood High) and there was an In-an-Out Burger. On my! Not knowing when I was going to eat and knowing the wife would still be running for a while I decided to stop in and get me a double-double. Now one of the odd things I noticed was that as I was eating I saw several runners coming in to get a double double as well! What? Yep, I guess runners get hungry too. I dunno.....I just don't see how you can run with that stuff sloshin' around your stomach. Oh well....Anyway, SAXOMAN then made it to Santa Monica (the finish line) to wait for the wife. Parking at the pier I had to walk a pretty good distance to get near the finish line. I was exhausted by the time I got there. I can just imagine how the wife must of felt. So I get a text message telling me the wife is done! What? already? This must be a world record or something. As I found my wife she seemed more refreshed then me! I saw other marathoners that looked like they were ready to die but not the wife. She was as happy and excited as can be. The medal shown here is the actual medal that the wife won. A great time and a big congratulations to the wife (aka Mrs. Saxoman).

BUSHY EYEBROWS - WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?

There are several guys I know that have extremely bushy eyebrows. For whatever reasons these guys just don't trim their eyebrows. Now there are some men that go to the other extreme of having their eyebrows waxed (not for SAXOMAN), but many men just let their eyebrows grow wild. Now I personally will trim any hairs that are growing out of whack and the same goes for nose hairs haha! I have noticed that men with bushy eyebrows tend to let their nose hairs grow as well. Gross! HAHA! Anyway, you out there! Trim those eyebrows (and nose hairs) while you're at it. HAHA!

REST IN PEACE - DR. JERRY BUSS

Now I know this post is a little late but I just wanted pay my respects to Dr. Jerry Buss, the late owner of the Lakers who recently passed away. Dr. Buss was the man who brought entertainment to the NBA. A basketball game became an entertainment event instead of just a game. Celebrities clamored for courtside seats as being at a Laker game became the place to be seen. A man committed to winning, Dr. Buss would spend whatever was required to bring a winner to Los Angeles. Anyway, Dr. Buss, so long, farewell and I hope the Lakers win many more championships for you!

REST IN PEACE - DONALD BYRD

I rtealize I'm a little behine in my blogs update. Here's a post I started a while back but didn't get a chance to finish. In early February we lost another of of the jazz greats. Jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd passed away. Now i have been a big fan of the jazz recordings of Donald Byrd and was sorry to hear of his passing. I have lots of Donald's earlier works in my collection and they are all winners. I especially like the recording with baritone sax man, Pepper Adams. Rest in peace Mr. Donald Byrd! You will be missed. In the meantime, groove to some cool Donald Byrd.