1 comments about Women in Jazz.

1. IF YOU WANT TO HEAR SOME VOCAL JAZZ, THEN YOU CAN'T DO ANY BETTER THAN PUTTING ON ELLA FITZGERALD, BILLIE HOLIDAY, CARMEN MCRAE, SARAH VAUGHN AND LENA HORNE, WHICH IS WHAT YOU GET WITH THIS 3 CD SET. "A FINE ROMANCE" LOUIS ARMSTRONG SINGING A DUET WITH ELLA. A NICE BOX SET, GREAT SELECTIONS, ALTHOUGH NOT THE GREATEST RECORDING QUALITY.

5 comments about Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia (1933-1944).

1. I'm not going to add to what others have already said about this box set, except to say that it is well worth the money.
   
   Just an FYI -- this set can still be bought new as of 12/24/07 at amazon.co.uk; that's where I bought my copy.
   
   Cheers.



2. Fantastic set except for the packaging, mine was falling apart the day I opened it. I know this is out of print now and I am wondering if it was ever repackaged after the inital crummy packaging run that I purchased. If anyone knows post a note here so I can look for it on Ebay. Cheers.



3. I have listened to this music my whole life long, from the early 10"LPs on, and I already had 4 different reissues on CD of Lady Day OK & Columbia recordings, but - friends - what these guys have done is an incredible sound improvement, quite different from previous CDs & LPs. And the package is almost perfect, just like an old 78s album. Do not worry too much about what other friends have written, the sleeves beeing too tight and so on: you just have to be a little careful. Had I to stay on the famous lonely island, this is the jazz album I would need to have with me!



4. Giving this release less than 5 stars is just irresponsible. These sides are beyond critiscm, they are part of the legacy of the human spirit. Yes, there are cheaper imports, but those are rip offs. This time Columbia did a great job and they deserve your hard earned money. Of course, it would be nice that 10 copies of this were sent to every library in the country, I cant think of a better way to improve jazz apreciation in this country.



5. I would need much much more than a thousand words to tell you about my feelings related to this sublime music.How many times I cried listening to some tunes,or was feeling incredibly high and happy listening to other ones.
   If you want me to play to the "desert island" game,I would only take this set with me;you don't know how I treasure Monk,Duke,Armstrong,Trane,Bud,Bird,Bill Evans,Bechet,Fats Waller,Hines or Tatum,but I''d surely forget them all to keep these Columbia years of Lady Day with me.Here is the most fantastic music I've ever heard,here are the highest moments of the history of jazz.NOBODY never recorded such a bunch of masterpieces in some eleven years;nobody,even Duke.Here is a colossal set of the most amazing music you'll ever hear.
   This is the third time I purchase these sessions:first,I bought them on 33rpm,some 25 years ago;then on separate CDs;then,a friend of mine let me listen to this set,and what a shock!!! The sound is so great that I thought I was discovering tunes I knew for years and years.It seems that Billie and the guys are playing in your room,just in front of you!!!
   Now,for those who have no idea of what's in this very beautiful set,let's have a glance at the musicians you'll listen to:the ghotta of jazz is here!!! LESTER YOUNG,Teddy Wilson,Johnny Hodges,Duke Ellington,Count Basie,Benny Goodman,Chu Berry,Jo Jones,Buck Clayton,Roy Eldridge,Ben Webster,Benny Carter,Charlie Shavers,Red Allen,Cootie Williams,Hot Lips Page,Bunny Berigan,Jack Teagarden,Walter Page,Milt Hinton,John Kirby,Cozy Cole,Sid Catlett,Kenny Clarke,Freddie Greene,Dickie Wells,Hary Carney,Harry James,and many more.
   About the tunes: masterpieces,masterpieces and masterpieces!!!
   It would take some ten pages to describe it.Of course,the most magnificent ones are those in which Lester Young plays.Lester and Billie,Pres and Lady Day;they had the most magical musical complicity of the history of jazz,they really LOVED each other,even if their lives had separate ways;Lester,the Greatest of all jazz saxophone players,was born 1909;Billie,the Baltimore child,was born in 1915;they both died 1959,Lester in March,and Billie in July.The tunes they recorded during these years,the tunes you'll listen to in this set are very simple to describe: it's LOVE.and maybe the most beautiful that ever was.Maybe,these are the most sublime masterpieces in the history of Music."when you're smiling","he's funny that way","travelin' all alone","mean to me","foolin' myself","me,myself and I","born to love","gettin' some fun out of life","I'll never be the same"....I could listen to these tunes a hundred times everyday.This music is magic;it'll make you feel great.And you'll cry sometimes too,because of too much beauty.Here is the very best of Jazz,a music that gave us tons and tons of beauty;Billie's voice is at her most expressive,so young,so fresh,so joyful,and so sexy (and even sometimes,so sexual);Lester 's playing ,even if he only blows short choruses,is the most beautiful one that ever was ("all of me","foolin' myself","born to love","mean to me",...).
   Here is sublime music;the most magnificent you'll listen to.I couldn't live without these records.They are my copanions since I was 15 years old;I spent hours and hours listening to them,wether I felt high or bad;and even after 23 years of frequent listening,they seem to me as fresh and new as when I discovered them.
   Thanks a million,Lady Day (a nickname Lester gave to Billie),thanks a million for so much beauty.It never happened in the history of Art.

3 comments about The Pacific Jazz Years.

1. This is a really great collection of West Coast cool. I actually enjoy this more than the standard commercial Chet Baker albums. Yes, it has some of that on the first disk, but more very lyrical and upbeat bop tunes, even big band on the last disk. If you like this style, or are even close, I recommend this. It will grow on you.



2. This may be one of the finer Pacific Jazz archives in itself, to forget for a moment the velvet sledgehammer that was Chet Baker. Including some great arrangements and performances by almost all the luminaries of West Coast jazz (Russ Freeman, Gerry Mulligan, Art Pepper etc.), this collection stands as a more than adequate representation of the jazz of the moment. I can sit down and hear the width of a Los Angeles street, I can see the light in the air, in every cut on these eight sides. Jazz was indeed a community event.

   As for individuals, however, Chet Baker shines as a craftsman of melody on these sides. Have a listen to some of your other recordings of the melodies tested here and you'll hear Baker structuring his approach to his improvised melodies. Some sections, some entire solos, are laid down exactly the same as in successive versions. This shouldn't surprise anyone, as jazz has often been constructed line by line in this way, but it is a joy to hear such a competent craftsman at work.

   My favorite tracks are on the first disc, which features many live takes. These are by far some of the freshest recordings Baker, Mulligan et. al, made of their material. Truly fresh, uninhibited, and to some degree, untested material that brought fame to Baker ultimately, but which emerge of the discs, beautifully engineered and produced, as the raw experiments which led to the identity of these men, but also of this region, this style (if you will) and this medium.




3. How to review a genius like Chet Baker? Sorry, I'm not in the position to do. I have no words for his outstanding work. He was incomparable, indeed.

2 comments about L-O-V-E: The Complete Capitol Recordings 1960-1964.

1. Put simply, a Nat King Cole fan's dream! Everything is here from 1960-64. That includes live shows, albums, singles, b-sides and outtakes. Lots of rare stuff here. The book is by music historian Will Friedwald, and contains scores of color photographs(struck from the negatives) of Cole from his album cover sessions. Highly reccomended!
   
   However, a few things to note:
   
   If you own or are used to hearing the US CD and or LP versions of the albums, you may notice some changes. The Bear Family folks appear to have altered the stereo tapes a bit. Intruments, rhythm sections and choral accompaniments often appear differently than they did on the original CDs. Some are rearranged, others piled on top of each other in one channel or ear. The tracks for "Nat King Cole/George Shearing Plays" for instance, have Nat singing in the left ear, instead of the usual center. Nothing major, just different.
   
   Also, if you plan on making legal, backup copies of these discs (I sure don't want to be jamming these rare CD's in and out of my car CD deck!), a word of warning. They will often leave small popping noises on the copies. The sounds aren't noticable on speakers. But they are in earphones.



2. This is the second of two deluxe sets covering the last ten years of Nat King Cole's career (the first is STARDUST, which covers 1955-1959). They are both outstanding productions, and each has a full-sized hardcover book filled with rare black and white and color illustrations, and an outstanding essays on each album by Nat King Cole expert Will Friedwald. Friedwald writes with insight and with wit, and for a Nat King Cole fan it's priceless to hear what he has to say about each song.
   
   Nat King Cole was in his own way a rather restless artist, who often wanted to try something new. But he also sang classics, and revisited songs that earlier had brought him success.
   
   There are 292 songs on this set, and many of them are excellent, and so keep that in mind if you are deciding whether this set is worth the money. If you are a Nat King Cole fan, you must buy this set, even if it means sacrificing a bit in some other area of your life.
   
   Here are some of the great albums on this set:
   
   First is Nat King Cole at the Sands, an outstanding live set recorded in the wee hours of the morning. Songs like The Continental just have such joy and beauty in them that they really need to be heard. And don't miss the hilarious song Mr. Cole Won't Rock and Roll where he parodies rock and roll and himself at the same time. You will almost certainly laugh out loud while hearing this 8 minute epic.
   
   Second is NKC's experimental album Wild is Love. I've never fully warmed up to this rather strange lp, but I do enjoy that he was stretching himself. And it is interesting!
   
   Third is The Christmas Song, which is obviously a great classic for the holidays.
   
   Fourth is The Touch of Your Lips, a great collection of romantic ballads that just make you feel good.
   
   Fifth is the giant three album collection called The Nat King Cole Story, which features stereo remakes of many of the greatest hits from this star of popular music from earlier in his career, including Mona Lisa, Smile, Unforgettable, etc. There are 36 classics on this album. Outstanding!
   
   Sixth is the jazzy fast-paced Let's Face the Music and Dance...
   
   Seventh album, eighth, 9th, 10th, etc., etc. plus singles. To find out about them you'll just have to buy the set yourself. And don't forget you'll get that great large-format 182 page coffee table hardcover book by Nat King Cole expert Will Friedwald.
   
   Bottom line: buy this set if you are a Nat King Cole fan. You won't regret it! In fact, buy Stardust too while you're at it!

1 comments about The Concert Years.

1. ***1/2 My brother gave me a Jazz calendar and the cover for The Concert Years was on Jan's, so I thought I'd get each one as the year progresses.
   
   If you like Ella (you probably know by now), and you like Ella's jazz - then you will certainly like this collection. Most of the songs on this compilation are pretty good. One or two though come across slightly lame - not unlike Frank Sinatra coming across as groovy in the early 1970's.
   Spans many years, all live of course. Class act.
   
   I might add: Wadibi-dee-doo-bop-bop-bop-bop-bop. Skiddly-daz.

3 comments about Best of the Song Books: The Collection.

1. Ella Fitzgerald's Best Of The Songbooks is an excellent three CD set that really highlights the very best of the songbooks Ella sang by Cole Porter, The Gershwins, Harold Arlen and many others. The sound quality is excellent and the artwork is very nicely done. This is a must have for Ella Fitzgerald fans who don't want to have the expense of buying all her songbooks which can be quite pricey.
   
   The first CD starts with "Something's Gotta Give:" this tune shins bright as Ella swings so well to make this tune sparkle! The big band arrangement makes this number even stronger; and Ella also does a great job on "Bewitched, Bothered, & Bewildered" with an elegant piano arrangement. Ella's voice is as clear as a bell and she aces this easily--god for her! The First Lady Of Song proves that she wasn't ever a slacker. "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm" also has a big band arrangement that I really like; and there's Ella swinging brightly on "The Lady Is A Tramp." "The Lady Is A Tramp" is a major highlight of the first CD and I'm sure you'll like it very much. "They Can't Take That Away From Me" features Ella Fitzgerald squarely front and center as she delivers this without a superfluous note; and "Hooray For Love" never sounded better than when Ella Fitzgerald sang it!
   
   The second CD continues the great hits. "Laura" gets a sublime interpretation from Ella Fitzgerald; and the lush musical arrangement really impresses me quite a bit. "Laura" is nothing short of a stunning ballad that never fails to move me. "It Was Written In The Stars" has great brass while Ella sings; and "How Long Has This Been Going On?" sounds fresh and new when I hear Ella sing this classic love song even if the lyrics aren't the happiest I've ever heard. "Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me" has an elegant piano arrangement to accompany Ella who aces this like the pro she always was and still remains! There's also "Ill Wind (You're Blowing Me No Good);" Ella performs this with panache and I love every note of it! "Trav'lin' Light" is a number I first heard when Billie Holiday sang it; and when Ella Fitzgerald sings it still sounds new and exciting to me.
   
   The third CD has plenty to make us happy, too. "From This Moment On" has a strong upbeat melody that is very catchy and Ella sings this flawlessly with great feeling; and there's also "All The Things You Are" with its great use of the brass as Ella Fitzgerald sings this to perfection--and beyond! "I'm Beginning To See The Light" shines like a new masterpiece when Ella performs it so very well; and "I Remember You" has a sensitive yet energetic treatment from Ella. Similarly, "Just One Of Those Things" sparkles brightly when Ella Fitzgerald delivers this ballad without a flaw.
   
   In short, Best Of The Songbooks by Ella Fitzgerald is packed full of incredibly timeless number by so many composers and lyricists that I am baffled as to why this is currently out of print--I hope that changes soon! I highly recommend this for fans of both the great Ella Fitzgerald and classic pop vocals.



2. Ella's voice is legendary, and that legend is well deserved. The songs are all classics, and the instrumentals backing them up is superb. What else is there? This box set is flawless.



3. Ella's songbook collection is some of (if not) the best recordings of American standard music. This cd is really the best of the best. One of the Best Singers singing the Best Music of our time. This is and essential collection everyone should have.

2 comments about Mrs. Clinkscales to the Cotton Club, Vol. 1: 1926-1.

1. JSP is well-known for issuing an artist's complete works covering a set time interval. This Ellington set is another attempt to meet that objective. While it appears at first glance from the title of this 4-CD package that Duke's earliest recordings occurred in 1926, they didn't. There are 4 titles here by the Washingtonians (the name of Duke's first band) from 1924 and 1925 which were issued on Blu-Disc (Choo Choo, Rainy Nights) and Pathe (I'm Gonna Hang Around, Trombone Blues).
   
   Duke had moved to New York (from Washington) by 1923 where he joined Elmer Snowden, the original leader of the Washingtonian's. In '24, Duke became the leader/arranger of the band and Snowden (the banjo and rhythm player) departed. Snowden was replaced by Fred Guy.
   
   It seems that JSP has committed a serious faux-pas by labelling the title of this CD as Volume 1 (1926-1929) instead of as 1924-1929. With an artist of Ellington's stature and fame, this type of error is not excusable. Additionally, the tracks are not compiled chronologically by recording date which would have made a lot more sense with this type of issue, listenability notwithstanding.
   
   The purchaser may also be given the impression from the title of this set that it covers all of Ellington's recordings through 1929. It doesn't. The final title on disc 4 (Doin' the Voom Voom) is from January 1929, although Ellington continued to record more than 2 dozen additional titles through December 1929.
   
   What you do get here is a lot of the earliest Ellington in decent sound considering that some of these titles were likely recorded acoustically, that show the development of this band from 6 players to a 12-piece orchestra. What is obvious right from the beginning, is that Ellington's genius as an arranger and writer were already in full bloom. As the band size increased, Ellington began to create parts that featured specific players in the band; those parts were written for both player and instrument as that player interpreted their instrument. The entrance of Johnny Hodges in 1928 playing soprano and alto sax was a case in point and certainly a milestone in the history of band jazz.
   
   Now that many of the earliest jazz titles from the French Classics label have been deleted (at least for the present time), this JSP set might not be a bad place to start for anyone interested in early Duke, and the price is very reasonable in view of the number of sides presented.
   
   Alternatively, there are better reissues out there (some of them mastered from the original 78 stampers). GRP, now Universal (the owners of the original Ellington Decca titles) has issued in very fine sound, a 3-CD set of the Ellington Decca sides from 1926-1931, many of which overlap the titles on the JSP set.
   
   It would appear then that JSP has haphazardly thrown together this set in a hurry, and as such, it ought to be re-done. Volume 2 of Duke's work by JSP is an attempt to continue but that is another story (and a poor attempt to continue Volume 1 at that).



2. Present here are the great Brunswick and Vocalion sides, from the 1926-1931 collection(highly recommended as a 3 CD set on GRP/Decca) as well as many many compositions from 1926-1929.This stellar JSP box has great sound,clarity with sufficient liner notes and recording history making it a necessary purchase capturing Duke at this early stage of the game.
   We are talking about collecting the other major labels of the time in their Duke output with all the great orchestras, Washingtonians,Cotton Club,Whoppe Makers,Harlem Footwarmers,Alberta Prime sides,Florence Bristol etc.
   Value from JSP is here like usual...

2 comments about The Complete Sarah Vaughan on Mercury, Vol. 4, Pts. 1 and 2: (1963-1967).

1. virtually an unconditional fan with over 100 sarah vaughan cd's collected, it's certainly one of my all-time favourites
   in the easy listening jazz pop category.
   for the real jazz connaisseurs out there, i give it to you this is not the sarah at the consumate epitomy of the vocal jazz tradition but this compilation does not serve this purpose.
   the context here is the plentiful and easy fun lovin' 1960's
   where America had almost everthing going for it.
   Mercury being the decider here for sarah (though not for much longer) the word was out to produce of maximum of commercial hits with, apart from a few over-honeyed
   ballads, a base line which said : give fun to your audience as much as you can, and boy, what fun did our generous sarah give them / us.
   this last Mercury compilation contains eight albums on
   6 cd's (124 songs!) with a good number of bonus rare savoury tracks 'details unknown' (this is for you collectors out there who want more than the albums you've already got).

   having said that, sarah's talent could not be smothered by
   the 'commercial dogma' and she does a great job throughout ,cleverly instilling her unique jazz flava into the
   fun. for balladry, my favourite is her spine-tingling interpretation of 'the shadow of your smile' which for me
   is unmatched by anyone to this day, the fun tracks are
   her 1963 live performance in Copenhagen, the 1964 Viva Vaughan bossa nova flavoured album and her covers of
   the prozac placebo 'l-o-v-e' and the twist dance hit 'sneakin up on you'.
   this collection is a rare item these days as it was issued at
   the dawn of the cd era in 1987 and would definitely need
   to be reissued and remastered by Universal/Mercury at
   an affordable price.
   as for the price offered at Amazon, i fail to understand why, apart from the rarity issue, the compilation is advertised in the used section as 'low priced' at usd 249,-- when the list price is usd 103,-- ???????
   finally, for those who want to get into sarah's serious jazz stuff, i would highly recommend the 'Roulette Years' exhaustive studio sessions 8 cd box set recently reissued and remastered by Mosaic records - it's a pure gem and a
   must have collector's item (5'000 copies only). i also recommend most of the stuff issued on the Mainstream label (virtually only available on vinyl) as well as the stuff issued on the late Verve label founder Norman Granz' label Pablo Records.
   Enjoy ...... !
   that's all for now from over-obviously die-hard Sarah Vaughan fan.




2. Contains 8 great albums.Contains 22 songs never printed before.The Sassy Swings The Tivoli(a double album) covers a lot of Sarah's former Roulette & also contains 7 classic songs in the collection that were never released in Holland or Japan.Sarah never does anything the same way twice,"It Ain't music,close order drill,or yodaling, It's not music".Listen to"Poor Butterfly","More I See You","Green Dolphin Street" never reprinted.The 6th disc is a 2 on 1 Containing 2 trips"It's A Man's World & Sassy Swings Again".The 5th disc containg "Pop Art" & "The New Scene" go from good pop to classic jazz & back again worth listening.Also contains the 2 classic albums "Viva Vaughan"& Mancini Song Book"listen to the song "Slow Hot Wind"one can feel that Slow Hot Wind.The McRae songs "Who Can I Turn To?"& "The Shadow Of Your Smile" are not anything nice just excellent.Liner notes on the first 3 are the same but on the 4th complete works are very different because Sarah had just left Roulette.Don't miss this one;it is different;it ranks 3rd in the collection of complete works.I had these albums for years & lost them. When I got them from your man @amazon in perfect shape @ a great price I was elated.

1 comments about The Complete Debut Recordings.

1. Wow! Extensive box set. All of this music is above average jazz, but not all of it is up to Mingus' standards. The music on this box was recorded before the initial breakthrough Mingus triumph of "Pithecantropus Erectus."

   Mingus formed the small Debut record company in the early '50s with fellow jazz great, drummer Max Roach. Times were hard. Running the company and playing on all the tracks of his own albums, as well as others' albums took quite a toll on Mingus.

   Until....Epithany. Mingus found the formula for success by allowing his players a freer, more improv approach, other than sticking to the written out structures. This worked. MINGUS AT THE BOHEMIA, included in it's entirety (which is far more than originally issued on the single album) really shows Mingus coming into his own as a leader.

   Early versions of "Haitian Fight Song," and "A Foggy Day" are included, giving insight to each song's developement.

   "Rhapsody In Blue," "Jeepers Creepers," "A Night In Tunisia," and "Cherokee" are standouts.

   Contains a rare Miles Davis album, "Blue Moods," with Mingus on bass and Elvin Jones on drums. Very cool.

   Also contains the entire "Jazz At Massey Hall" concert featuring Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Max Roach, and ofcourse, Charles Mingus.

   If you are interested in the developement of Charles Mingus, this is a prime place to stop.

   Very nice packaging and informative booklet.

   May be too much material for the casual fan.

No comments about Sultry Ladies of Jazz, Vol. 1.