Hey Kyle, Hey Stu. Do you remember the halcyon days of the blog when Derek and Marc used to post up stuff? Yeah me neither.

So re jazz flats and sharps, I think there are two different things going on here. One is the aforementioned live session phenomenon (jazz records were almost always recorded over one night or possibly two in the good old days, and doesn't happen much anynmore). My favourite example of this is an excruciating first trumpet figure by Tommy Turrentine on the first track of Sonny Clark's Leapin' and Lopin', a truly ugly miss on a fine record. FYI, any record by Sonny Clark is pretty much top notch.

The other is, in my opinion (in the case of Miles Davis anyway) the attempt to create a mournful, plaintive, soulful sound using non-traditional notes, long slides into and out of key, and breathy unusual embouchures. Thinking of Sketches of Spain, as well as Ascenseur Pour L'echafaud. Not to say he didn't sometimes resonate on a note that he wasn't expecting, but I'm pretty sure he accepted that would be part of the sound he was shaping.

Interesting conversation.