"[T]he movie is so unrelievedly pessimistic that only the most dedicated misanthrope could love it."

You'd wind up with a lot of piano trios on such a list. Corea, Hancock, Tyner, Peterson … basically, most of my heroes.

Just off the top of my head …

Phil Dyess-Nugent called him that in the obit upon which we're commenting.

His role in SPR deserves more attention because calling him "the Lieutenant Colonel who makes the fateful decision that Mother Ryan has lost enough sons" is basically wrong.

I love this practice. Wired.com (for some reason) posted an interview with the Braves' organist several years ago, during the course of which he discussed several of his walk-up song choices. My favorite: For Mets pitcher Dillon Gee, he would play a simple seven-note sequence … A-B-C-D-E-F-(dramatic pause)-G.

It's good stuff. It was supposedly written by Leonard as an idea generator prior to season two, and watchers of the show should recognize several storylines — some short-term, some longer — that the writers have lifted since, often with slight modifications.

I was introduced to Jimmy Luxury's music in '99 by a co-worker who frequented the same bar as James Kelleher (his real name) in San Francisco. If you ever want to check out a real treat, lurk on eBay until you see a rare copy of his pre-Sony demo come up — both are titled "A Night in the Arms of …" but the key is that…

MITHRIL!

MITHRIL!