<div dir="ltr"><div><div><div>It seems that jazz fans are an ungrateful lot! How soon we forget those to whom we owe so much. Here's just a partial list: <br>Leslie Johnson, the founder and editor of "The Mississippi Rag," a
wonderful magazine devoted to our kind of music, passed away on 17
January 2009 (caveat: after several years of subscribing I became a contributor).</div>Mat Domber, the founder of Arbors Records, thanks to whom we have so many Rick Fay, Ruby Braff, Bob Wilber or Kenny Davern CDs, and have been introduced to so many excellent pianists, passed away on 19 September 2013;<br></div>George H. Buck Junior, the founder of GHB and Jazzology records, whose whole life was devoted to the preservation and diffusion of traditional jazz, passed away on 11 December 2013. <br></div><div>Did we remember to pay tribute on their anniversaries? After all, had in not been for the Rag, at least some of us would not become aware of many musicians and of great international jazz festivals. Had it not been for the George H. Buck labels, many deserving musicians worldwide would have been unrecorded, or recorded only on local labels without international distribution.<br></div><div>I, at least, had never even heard of Rick Fay before encountering his name on an Arbors CD; how many of you would have heard of Chris Hopkins or Paolo Alderighi had not Mat issued CDs thereof in the States?<br></div><div>So let's at least give credit to those who are still doing us such service, for Example Bob Erdos of Stomp Off or Paul Adams of Lake Records, who have given many of us many hours of pleasure, and are still doing so.<br></div><div>Cheers<br></div> <br><br></div>