Music

If there's one thing missing from radio, it's live music.

A recent novel, "Two O'Clock Eastern Wartime," by John Dunning was a delightfully loving look back at the live radio broadcasts of the 1930s and '40s, when radio stations still had their own house bands to provide live music – either as background to live drama shows or just for the pure joy of live music.

In this issue: Skin on Skin Michael J. Williams remembers Mongo Santamaria Death to trendy pomade cretins! Deke Dickerson in three dimensions By Buddy Seigal Thomas Mapfumo Michael J. Williams on the Lion of Zimbabwe Dude, you're like, old and stuff George Shearing on music, aging and more By Buddy Seigal Remembering a giant of jazz Jazz critic Stanley Dance, captured in correspondence Capos & Consonants Jamie Reno's observations on the music world The Rock & Roll Hall of Shame Vince Gill is still the Next Big Thing Reviews Booker T. & the MGs — "Soul Men" Booker T. & the MGs / The Mar-Keys — "Stax Instrumentals" Cher — "The Very Best of Cher" Freddy Cole — "In the Name of Love" Hiromi — "Another Mind" Maria Muldaur — "A Woman Alone With the Blues" The Mar-Keys — "Last Night! / Do the Popeye" The Mar-Keys / Booker T. & the MGs — "Stax Instrumentals" New Order — "International" New Order — "Retro" Bud Powell — "Paris Sessions" Review archive — reviews from all issues of Turbula

And if such a concept seems foreign today, it's worth remembering that the man who discovered Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Ray Vaughan in the 1970s is the same man who forty years earlier discovered Count Basie when he tuned into a live jazz broadcast from Kansas City. John Hammond might not ever have become the talent scout he was without that radio station's broadcast.

KSDS-FM 88.3 in San Diego presents a regular live jazz broadcast on Tuesday evenings; KPRI-FM up the road a bit in Carlsbad used to do something similar with rock and folk acts.

But for the most part, radio is canned music – a big part of the reason the music industry sees its sales continue their dive into the tank.

The record company suits can blame file sharing (er, "pirating" is what they call it, no?) over the Internet all they want, but as long as they keep pitching Mariah Carey to an increasingly savvy audience, they can count on their sales – and profits – sinking faster than Iraqi oil futures.

This issue, we add yet more CD reviews (and be sure to check our archive for even more reviews), a new installment of Capos and Consonants from Jamie Reno, an interview with jazz legend George Shearing, a remembrance of the great congero Mongo Santamaria, and a look at the music and spirituality of Thomas Mapfumo of Zimbabwe

Finally, we share Turbula editor Jim Trageser's correspondence with the late Stanley Dance – confidante of Duke Ellington, pioneer big band critic, and upholder of all that was pure and traditional in jazz.

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