I'm by no means a Marsalis basher, but I haven't completely warmed to anything he's done since 'Blues Alley,' at least, nothing he's released as a leader. I prefer the early material, and the last thing of his that I truly loved was 'Marsalis Standard Time, Vol. 1.' Like many, I'm guessing, the only Wynton disc I actually go back to on a regular basis is the superb 'Black Codes (from the Underground).' I think the difference between the early band and the later bands is more than simply the loss of Branford, Kenny Kirkland and Jeff "Tain" Watts, although those losses do have a major impact. It's funny, but to my ear it just doesn't seem like Marsalis has enjoyed himself much since those three left -- but I may be reading too much into it. The early sessions were beholden to Miles, but they burned, whereas the later bands, more influenced by New Orleans traditional jazz and Ellington, just don't swing convincingly for me. More often than not, the septet sounds fussy and self-important, and as a result, its swing is fatally constipated. (Others may very well disagree with me, but I heard the band more than a few times and my opinion never varied.) Since the Vanguard box set is all from that era, you won't find me recommending it. And yes, I've listened to the whole thing. Oddly enough, the greatest Marsalis performance I ever heard was at a Borders in-store celebrating the launch of his (contract-fulfilling) dozen releases in 1999. The store was crowded, but the band -- Eric Reed on digital piano, Christian McBride on bass and Lewis Nash on drums -- just tore shit up. Away from the spotlight and the grandiose role he's expected to play in his position as spokesman for the music, Wynton can still play a whole lot of trumpet. Steve Smith ssmith36@sprynet.com NP - Tony Malaby, "Gate's Pass," 'Sabino' (Arabesque) -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web.com/ .