There is a story about a sax player whose name I can't recall at the moment. He was on the bandstand playing when a drunk came up to the front of the stage and sneeringly said something like, "I came here because I heard you were good, but you're just playing like Charlie Parker." The sax player held out his sax to the guy and said, "Yeah? Ok, here, you play like Charlie Parker."

You might like to check out www.jazz.fm. It's an all jazz radio station here in Toronto. With a few exceptions from time to time, it's 24/7 jazz. It's a public station, so they're only allowed four minutes of advertising per hour. The only drawback is that a couple of times a year they have to do pledge breaks, but when they do that, they take requests. It's the only radio station I listen to.

Hi, Alan,

The sax player was Gene Quill. Yeah, that's a classic story.

I've been listening to jazz.fm (among other stations) for a while now, but thanks. Yes, it's very, very good. I also listen to jazz on XM radio, and I've been a loyal listener to Jazz After Hours since 1990. Jim Wilke (host of Jazz After Hours) has the great job in the world.

Lately I've been on an Art Blakey kick. Very enjoyable music.

Kevin