The James Logan Courier

By Mark Stryker
Detroit Free Press (MCT)

There's a lot to admire about "Songs of Mirth and Melancholy" (3 stars, Marsalis Music), the rewarding new duet album by saxophonist Branford Marsalis and pianist Joey Calderazzo. Calderazzo has been a mainstay of Marsalis' quartet since 1998, and the rapport the two have built comes into bold relief without bass and drums in the mix.

At its best, the music strikes a compelling balance between attention to detail and relaxed improvisation. Primarily a collection of uniquely tailored ballads, the album creates a mood of weighty contemplation, introspective but never hermetic. Marsalis and Calderazzo put their chips on melodic integrity and development, staying in the moment and patiently drawing out the formal and emotional character of the material.

From wikipedia:
Paul Edward Yost (June 30, 1919 – May 27, 2007) was the American inventor of the modern hot air balloon and is referred to as the "Father of the Modern Day Hot-Air Balloon." He worked for a high altitude research division of General Mills when he helped establish Raven Industries in 1956.

Inventor
Born on a farm 7 miles south of Bristow, Iowa, Yost first became involved in lighter-than-air ballooning when he leased his single-engine plane to General Mills to track their gas balloons. He became a senior engineer in the development of high-altitude research balloons.


Learn more about Ed Yost, free from LighterThanAir.org.