Jazz producer/historian. A one-time DJ, during the early,
anything-goes days of
US FM rock
radio, at WABC-FM (now WPLJ); he became the Keeper of the Vaults at
Blue Note Records in 1975, producing
reissues and releases of never-before issued (e.g. because original BN boss Alfred Lion would hear a slight flaw in the session) recordings, in an era when
BN was either selling
new crap like Noel Pointer, or nothing.
He started Mosaic Records, originally to produce deluxe reissues from The Vaults when Blue Note balked at releasing fancy multi-LP sets along the lines of what Warner Bros. did with Charlie Parker's Savoy Records recordings, i.e. putting every unused take and false start on vinyl, alongside the master takes. Mosaic has spread a wider net over the years, including content licensed from other Vaults.