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I was at a wedding party for my friends Keith and Kim at the Potrero Neighborhood Center, known as The NABE, last weekend in San Francisco. I spotted a guy in a Red Wings jacket who turned out to be Albert Johnson, a NABE employee who was born at Hurley Hospital and went to Clark Elementary (left) in Flint.

My friend, venerable music critic Michaelangelo Matos, has a good piece in Good magazine, titled, “Who’s A Dilettante?” It’s about how, despite the fact that he likes jazz, and listens to it, he’ll never be an expert on it. Which, for a critic, is sort of like admitting total defeat, because critics are supposed to be all-knowing-know-it-alls.

Supra’s latest offering for the skating population is the Diablo Mid. The sneaker features a mixture of abrasion-resistant suede and perforated black leather. This model is the signature ride of professional skater Erik Ellington, releasing this Fall.  via Sole Collector ShareThis

This article appears simultaneously in LA Progressive and The Progressive Curmudgeon (Ed. Vindication comes in many forms. Our Charley James agains shows why legwork beats sit-on-your-tail punditry every time!) by Charley James Long before Gregory Charles Royal became a judge on America’s Hot

After proving himself as a dynamic composer, arranger and tenor saxophonist, Benny Golson emerged in the late 1950s as a commanding leader and orchestrator. In 1958, as a member of the Jazz Messengers, Benny was instrumental in uniting and focusing the group's creative direction.

SSgt. Andy Pena Staff Sgt. Andy Pena performs in-flight calibrations on a HH-60 Pave Low while flying Sept. 3 over Ellington Field, Texas. He and members of the 55th Rescue Squadron deployed from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., to Ellington Field in response to Hurricane Gustav with less than 24 hours after notification.

Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. If you love the sounds of Duke Ellington, Erskine Hawkins and Nat King Cole, then a trip to the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame will definitely be in order if you happen to be in the area. Featuring an art-deco style, the Hall of Fame was originally founded in 1978 with the express purpose of honoring the long tradition of Jazz within the state of Alabama.

The Harlem Rens got a nice mention in the current issue of SPIN Magazine (August 2008). A friend of mine at Converse told me about an article that’s on the last page, in the Hidden Tracks section, called “Dunk The Funk.” The byline of the piece is “Could the Olympics save basketball’s musical soul?” My answer is “no.” Because it’s the wrong question.

It’s fun to picture a burly trucker barreling down Route 66 listening to a Coleman Hawkins 8-Track at full blast, but the scarcity of jazz in this format is pretty good proof that it didn’t happen very often. The 8-Track was mostly a medium for country music, and many 8-Tracks were sold at truck stops - hence, not a lot of jazz.

The better version was unavailable but you get the vibe. Get your cigar and a shot of cognac and just chill. Shout out to Frankie J! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugeU1Pi5hPM