5 comments about Masterpieces: 1926-1949.

1. This as a wonderful 3CD set with an incredible 68 tunes. The sound is great, and includes just a hint of 'hiss and pop' on the earliest recordings, (as it should), so you can imagine the 75 rpm record spinning and this jumping jazz coming out. Melodious masterpieces from the maestro.
   Foxtrot anyone?



2. This four disc set is just fabulous. It has many songs that I was having a difficult time finding. If you are new to Ellington this is a great place to start. And even if you have already known what a genius this man has been since he was born you'll love this set.



3. Recently had a 80th Birthday party for a family member. Showed pictures of his life story with Duke playing in background. Guests his same age as well as the birthday boy throughly enjoyed the moment.



4. This has blown me away.
   A bargain considering the price I paid for four disks.
   I love the variety and tones of the music.
   This collection spans several different styles.
   It's just wonderful.
   
   There are some old recordings here, which are authentic and par for the course.
   It would seem unreal if they were digital smooth.
   The classic feel of the sound just ads to the experience, and does not detract.
   I have hours of great music here.
   Enjoy!



5. Some of the reviewers have complained here that these are not the definitive versions. I have to say one of the delights of listening to "Jazz" of this quality is listening to different versions of each song. As a matter of fact that's a KEY issue. Ellington probably never played any of these songs the same way twice. That's just how it works. These guys were constantly exploring different ways to play it and different sound combinations, and that's a big part of the enjoyment. Isn't that an essential component of Jazz? Constant surprise. For me owning zillions of Ellington versions of stuff is wonderful.
   
   This box set has some pretty good sound, execllent in some places. Maybe not the very very best all over but heck there is some great stuff on here. I'm really digging it. On any recordings this old you have to use your imagination to really understand the amazing aural qualities that live performances must have had. If you give it a chance the essential information about sound that Ellington was transmitting will come through.

3 comments about Cool Cole.

1. For the money, this is as good of a box set as you are going to find. All of the trio's hits are here - - more to the point, the collection is a document of Cole at the height of his powers. It's stylish, urbane and superbly performed.
   
   This is an import for Amazon, and it appears from the Penguin Jazz Record Guide that it is going out of print. So if you are thinking about buying it, I'd buy it as soon as possible. You won't regret it.



2. I must have at least four different box sets of King Cole Trio material, but I feel this import, which covers a ten year span (1940-50) is arguably the best one to own, other than the huge COMPLETE CAPITOL RECORDINGS OF THE NAT KING COLE TRIO. Songs that aren't on previous collections, such as "In the Cool of the Evening", "Could Ja", "Lament In Chords". "Flo and Joe", "Exactly Like You" and "I Almost Lost My Mind" are featured here, plus the rare R&B rocker "For You, My Love", recorded with fellow Capitol artist Nellie Lutcher, is blazing with pure soul. Of course you have the Trio standbys: "Sweet Lorraine", "Straighten Up and Fly Right", "Route 66", "I'm An Errand Boy For Rhythm", etc., but also included are Nat's early solo hit songs, such as "Nature Boy", "Portrait of Jennie", "Lost April", "Mona Lisa" and "Lush Life". Plus with this excellent collection is a booklet which includes photos, a complete discography with group members, recording dates and places and the story of the Trio, and Nat's eventual rise to solo stardom. As good as it can get, and for a great price, too! Even if you own other box sets like I do, you'll want to have this one as well, and believe me, you won't be disappointed.



3. This four-CD boxed set collection of delightful tunes by the King Cole Trio surpassed all of my expectations; instead of simply hop-scotching its way through Nat "King" Cole's early days with thirty or so "hits," this set presents five magnificent hours of pure jazz at its best. One hundred and four grand tracks from the Trio, recorded from 1941-1950 (arguably the glory days of jazz), this is probably the best we'll get when it comes to collecting the essentials of a group that were truly the perfectors of the jazz era. No tricks here; just pure jazz in all its glory.

5 comments about The Song Is You.

1. A young Frank Sinatra made his first big band recordings with Harry James in 1939 before jumping ship and switching over to Tommy Dorsey, whom he felt he would receive more exposure from. He began touring with Dorsey in 1940 and remained with him for two-and-a-half years, including a string of sixteen Top Ten hits including the poignant I'll Never Smile Again, written by a Canadian WWII war widow. By January 1942, Frankie was testing the waters for his own solo career by recording a short session with Axel Stordahl that included Cole Porter's Night and Day, and left Dorsey in September 1942 for Columbia Records.
   
   The Song Is You collects Sinatra's Dorsey catalogue and features a fifth disc of largely unreleased radio broadcasts. Far from a "pure" jazz singer, Frankie plays these as slow, romantic ballads, but lacks the signature aggressive "punch" that his later Capitol material had. The tracklist includes such standards as Fools Rush In, I'll Be Seeing You, Night and Day, Stardust, and East of the Sun, along with charming themed pieces such as the Latin-inspired Dolores, but the majority of the songs weren't instantly recognizable (or overly memorable compared next to immortal works by Porter, Gershwin, and Cahn). The sound is unmistakably 1940s, and makes for very pleasant background music for reminiscing, reading, and daydreaming, bringing to mind an era of elegance and sacrifice as WWII raged on on several fronts. The sound quality has been remarkably restored, with nary a scratch, hiss, or pop, and the liner notes are a fascinating read.
   
   If you're enamored of very early Frankie (as I unabashedly am), The Song Is You is a must-own, along with The Complete Recordings Nineteen Thirty-Nine and A Voice in Time: 1939-1952. It's the perfect vehicle for both a young Sinatra finding his wings and for a Dorsey in top form, and sure to delight fans of both artists.



2. No fan of Tommy Dorsey or Frank Sinatra will want to miss this stunning collection of some of the best music ever made. This is Dorsey at his most melodic and Sinatra as he was evolving into the singer everyone would call, "The Voice." Soon young women known as bobby-soxers would be passing out during his songs.
   
   Just looking at the tracks on this 5-disc set is enough to make any music lover swoon. Some will be familiar to everyone, others less so, as this collection encompasses everything Tommy Dorsey and his Big Band recorded with Sinatra fronting the band. Those who are only familiar with the Sinatra of the later fifties, after his vocal problems in Mexico, will be stunned by the silky smooth, almost angelic quality to Sinatra's perfect pitch and phrasing.
   
   There is something to be said for the resonant quality added to Frank's voice later on, when his vocal chords hemorrhaged and it was feared his career was over. But hearing a very young Sinatra with one of the best of the Big Bands behind him is just incredible. It was an era of music that burned brightly and was too soon to pass into the romantic night.
   
   There is a marvelous booklet included in this boxed set filled with nostalgia and memories of great music and those who made it. Those buying this just for Sinatra, however, may be a bit disappointed. Tommy Dorsey's band is fabulous here, and sometimes Sinatra's contributions to the songs are minimal. This was the case with all Big Bands of the era. The music and the band itself was the big draw, not the singer.
   
   But Sinatra was so special it caused people to pause and listen, rather than dance, and though it was not his fault, it signaled a change for the music world that would, in the end, cause the Big Bands to fade into nostalgic memories of big ballrooms and dancing with your sweetheart.
   
   These 5-discs are just about the music, however, and listening to them is like turning back the hands of time. Where else could you hear Sinatra singing with the crystal clear voice of Jo Stafford, the Pied Pipers in the background? There is a 1930's and early 1940's innocence to most of this collection. It was a time when the song was as important as the singer or the band. While you could scoop up an entire basket full of song classics from this boxed set, it is the songs you've never heard which make it so wonderful.
   
   There is a romance to these songs which has now been lost. A lot of these songs are both romantic and fun, with terrific music surrounding the room and the song. Perry Como once stated in an interview that the difference between Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra was simply the Irish pixie vs. the Italian "all or nothing at all" attitude. Here in these Tommy Dorsey arrangements, Sinatra was closer to that Irish pixie of Bing's selections.
   
   Yet as you listen to them all, which you certainly must, you can hear echos of the Sinatra that was to come. Along with the happier, more lilting or sweet songs, there is an occasional glimpse of the Sinatra going for what Perry Como would call, "the suicide song." There was something in his voice, even then, that was like a shadow hanging over the words of a song. It was a shadow which would reach its zenith with Frank's "Only the Lonely" album, now considered one of the greatest concept albums ever recorded.
   
   There is a lighter and more romantic tone here, however, when a devastated Sinatra jumps into the middle of a Dorsey refrain. It is a more melancholy Sinatra who sings of love never coming back, perhaps because it had only been in his heart while he was being played a fool. Yet the beginning of that shadow is there if you listen closely.
   
   This boxed set will make you feel as young and full of life as Sinatra was. It is a true joy hearing this blend of Tommy Dorsey's Big Band and Sinatra's voice. I owned this for years and nearly wore it out before losing it somehow in a recent move. I intend to replace it soon and anyone who hasn't heard it must. Even rare secondary takes on songs are included, giving us alternate versions we might never have otherwise heard. The technical quality is excellent and the music itself out of this world. No music lover can let this one get by them.



3. Frank Sinatra toughened into a pugnacious, coarse, humorless performer who never completely lost his touch musically, but here he is an artist with a sweet voice and touch, to the point of sounding feminine, which in singing is wonderful. Whether his later toughness was to cover his sensitivity is for pop psychologists to ponder but if you want to know why the crowds sighed for him, here is the evidence. I would not trade this box set for the entire collection of his later output. Particularly choice is the radio disk, live in front of an audience from various dates. He was truly inspired in that setting. Aging is inevitable, but as you can hear with his idol Billie Holiday that doesn't have to mean an ugly decline. In this style and era, Sinatra had no equal. As you can hear today with Barbara Cook, you can even ripen with age.



4. Forget the Sinatra of Las Vegas, the Sinatra of Columbia, and the Rat Pack! This is THE Frank Sinatra! The best he ever sounded. Young, raw, confident! This set would get 50 stars if possible. To hear him sing with Connie Haines and The Pied Pipers - the interaction between them is superlative. Frank would never again capture the beauty of these recordings. This is like comparing the young Elvis and the Old Elvis - the young was the best. To complete your early Sinatra collection get the Frank Sinatra and Harry James recordings that are available on disc; 1939, the first year of his professional career 6 months prior to these recordings. Also of note are the V-Discs collection. GO OUT AND BY THIS BOX! You Won't regret it.



5. Frank Sinatra has been the topic of many a comprehensive boxed set,practically all his recorded output is available in some form or other but this superlative set is the best yet for they capture the youthful Sinatra in his first featured recordings;he was not a slowly blossoming artist,Frank was already fully in command of his artistry when he began making his first records here;from 'i'll be seeing you' onward this collection presents a youngster with a marvelous precocity,a true gifted artist,-'east of the sun' will send a chill up your spine at Sinatra's command of his vocal artistry and kudos also to Tommy Dorsey who had always led one of the finer and more tasteful of the Big Bands;the arrangements here are all succicently chosen and there are rarities galore.But dont buy this set just for Sinatra (or Dorsey for that matter),this is pristine and beautiful music for any taste and a Jazz lover like myself swears by this set.Way to go,Amazon!

2 comments about Guitar Bones.

1. I have all of Adrian's US CD releases, and in my opinion, Guitar Bones ranks among his finest work. In fact, it might just be his best album ever. For the first time since "Guitars and Other Cathedrals", a significant part of the album is recorded acoustically, which is an interesting change of pace. (I think the recording makes his guitar sound just a bit less lively than it should, although this is a very minor complaint.)

   The compositions on this recording are superb, and as always, the performances are mind-blowing. One reason I'm really getting to like "Guitar Bones" is that the music is just a touch understated. While every track is a winner, "La Giga Anziana", "O'Malley & Delacey", and "Ghosts In The Hills" really stand out.

   To sum up, this is another great Adrian Legg album. Make sure to keep an eye on Adrian's tour schedule, as his performances are very much worth seeing.




2. It has been about three and a half years, but Adrian Legg finally gave us a new album this week with Guitar Bones. And when I put in in my car CD player, I noticed a difference right away.

   From the first note, Legg's guitar has been produced differently. The slick and reverbery new-age sound that he has used to blow us away in the past has now been replaced with a much drier acoustic sound. In a way, it almost proves that Legg is better than we thought, since he can create a good sound on the guitar with no mistakes when he doesn't have the help of sound manipulation.

   Hence, Adrian states that's why he named this release Guitar Bones. It's all about simplicity.

   As always, he revisits a few songs from the early stages of his career along with dishing out new ones. St. Mary's, one of the most compelling, features oboe, bassoon, viola, and flugel horn alongside the guitar in this once-gothic now chamber-barogue sounding piece.

   And Adrian cannot stray from the waltz even if he really tried. La Giga Anziana stands for the Elderly Jig, and that's pretty much the way it sounds. A more uptempo jig that we are used to from Adrian comes with O'Malley & Delancey. After you hear this song for the third time or so, the playing becomes much more of a marvel.

   A difference of flavor also comes across in The One Eyed Turk, where Legg plays a resonator guitar with a slide. The man who used to bend notes from here to the sky all by himself is now using a slide! But that's oaky, because he sounds just as good at it as, say, Ry Cooder.

   My personal favorite so far is the epic (in terms of guitar pieces) Ghosts In the Hills. Over six minutes long, this beautiful song paints a mental picture of grand landscapes in nature without being very hoaky. It's a nice change from what I thought it would be about: a haunted house.

   The more familiar Legg sound is saved for last with Een Kleijne Komedye. A very splattery, dirty sounding guitar does a fast, dancy jig for us in the usual lighting-fast Legg technique we all like.

   So, in direct contrast to his previous album Fingers and Thumbs, Adrian Legg leaves behind that experimentation more in favor of an intimate sounding album. It will please Legg fans since this sounds like a very refined Guitars and Other Cathedrals. But in contrast to that, it's pretty short: 37 minutes.

2 comments about The Engine Room: A History of Jazz Drumming from Storyville to 52nd Street.

1. This is a great CD that show a complete panorama about the
   history of drums and drummers. They are 4 CD's selected by themes like:
   1.New Orleans Style/ 2.Swing is Here/ 3.Big Band's / 4. Modernism.
   Have an excellent book with a short history of each drummer, with
   good pictures from the greatest drummers.
   It has great's drums solos from Ray Bauduc, Baby Dodd's, Zutty Singleton, Sony Greer(very rare), Chick Webb, Sid Cattlet, Buddy Rich, Louis Bellson and some others not so famous, but very important to the history of the drums. And good executions from Tony Sbarbaro (his name are incorrect on cd: "Sharbaro"), Cozy Cole, Krupa, Manzey Johnson, Art Blakey playing on a big band, and more...
   I miss more drums solos. That's the reason i gave "4" and not "5" stars. Unfortunatly dont have any solo from the greatest Dave Tough, Jo Jones and Lionel Hampton (Hampton don even appears on cd).
   But the people who select this collection knows about the drum and drummers history!
   Every drummer or lover need's to have this collection!!!
   Is an excellent and well done jazz drumming class!!!
   
   
   
   
   



2. Like the companion set, Hittin' on All Six (jazz guitar), this collection brings together a wide range of excellent records that date from the earliest jazz recordings going up though early modern. Some of the selections are predictable, some are obscure, but they all are interesting. Lots of Sid Catlett, for example, and excellent choices on the big band side in particular (Cozy Cole, Jimmy Crawford and Jo Jones, to name three). No Lionel Hampton, but the fabulous cymbal beat of Alvin Burroughs with a Hampton small group. And of course, Chick Webb's Liza, which features wonderful drumming but also a really fine trumpet solo by Bobby Stark (the 2nd solo).

2 comments about The Vintage Years.

1. Bing Crosby 4 CD set called the vintage years is a great way to hear bing at his best. highly recommended



2. Taken from radio shows commencing with Disk A, between 1932-37, this 4 disk set offers a tuneful delight of Crosby renditions of songs of the era. Some of the songs on these disks are not generally available on other Crosby collections, and are a treasure for those who appreciate the artistry of Bing Crosby. It contains jazz, ballads and duets, and features such bands as Jimmy Dorsey, John Scott Trotter and others.

3 comments about Swing Time! The Fabulous Big Band Era 1925-1955.

1. This is hardly a definitive collection - how can there be an ultimate swing set with only three discs? - but it IS a great collection for the novice, or just for the collector.
   My favorite disc is disc one, which gives an overview of the roots of swing from the 1920's and early '30's. Some hoppin' tunes here, the kind of Jazz that had parents fretting over the music their children were listening to. Yes, that's something that many younger folks are not aware of. This period in time was the beginning of the teenager as a rebellious sort, and that continued on until the Great Depression put an end to the frivolousness of their ways - driving fast and wild in their automobiles, wearing outrageous clothes, crazy bobbed haircuts, diggin' these hep cat grooves while dancin' as if they were possessed. And you thought that the teen's of the 1950's were out of control! My grandmother and her sisters were part of the roaring twenties scene and turned their mother's hair white!
   The Great Depression and the unrest in Europe of the 1930's didn't stop the swinging sounds that came out of the big American cities. The youth of the day needed a release, and the edgy music of Swing was IT. Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, the Dorsey Brothers, Chick Webb, and so many more kept the sounds coming and the kids alive, allowing them to forget their troubles for a few minutes while Tain't What You Do, Let's Dance, and Stompin' At the Savoy played on.
   Of course, WWII soon came to America and, although there were some swinging cuts, for the most part the music began to ease on the jumpin' and jumped on the vocal sounds instead. This set, however, shows us that, although the smooth Frank Sinatra may have been king of the jukeboxes during the war, the hep sounds still did abound with Take The A Train, Caldonia, and Let Me Off Uptown.
   This collection is a great starter set as an introduction to a musical form that was, in its day, every bit at wild as rock and roll was in the 1950's. There are glaring ommissions (no Sing Sing Sing?) but neat trivia tunes such as Hot and Anxious by the Baltimore Bellhops, which is where Glenn Miller 'borrowed' the rif for his In The Mood (also on this collection).
   A worthy set that's worth your buck.



2. Consider this three CD set from Columbia as a sort of start-up kit into the fabulous world of Big Band music. I'm one of those souls who always feel they were born in the wrong era and for a nostalgia nut like me these recordings still give off a vibe both jazzy and innocent. This was a time when men and women made music without the use of any technological recording wizardry and through a combination of craftsmanship and sheer moxie created a sound that was the "rock" and "rap" for whom some call the "greatest generation." There's a youthful exhuberance here. Just close your eyes when you here the first cut of "Sweet Georgia Brown" by the California Ramblers (featuring future Big Band stars Red Nicols and Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey) and you soon realize that your hearing not your granddad but guys in their twenties and thirties letting loose and sharing in what was primarily a Black American art form.
   
   "Swing Time" is a wonderfully designed package that includes a lavish booklet featuring both history and enlightening analysis of the era from writer Michael Brooks. Some musicologists will no doubt gripe about what may or may not be included here. No matter, for my untrained ears these 66 cuts speak for themselves brilliantly. .



3. 5 STAR for the music and 1 STAR for the reproductions.

   The music is the greatest! However, the quality of the CD's were horrendous. I have records that are 50 years old, played hundreds of times, that sound better! No matter if they used CEDAR or any other method of restoration, they sound lousy to me!!!

5 comments about The Complete Blue Note & Pacific Jazz Recordings.

1. I've always been a fan of trumpet music ever since the early seventies and Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass (like Classics Volume 1). And when it comes to jazz, I enjoy all the greats, such as Davis, Marsalis, Dorham, Navarro, among others. But, I'm rapidly heading towards becoming a convert to the church of Clifford. Brown brings a different sort of dimension to the instrument, one which established the "jazz trumpet sound" that only the greatest players ever successfully imitate. There is some innate passion about Brown's playing, and in this 4-CD compendium, the listener gets to experience that across a broad range of songs, styles, and eras. Brown was a master at making the trumpet sound the way the songs sound, and that is what makes this set such a gem. Up when he needs up, down when he needs down, always the master of his intrument and never bound to its will, this is what a trumpet sounds like when they say "it sings". As was pointed out by another reviewer, most of this set has been issued in other places, so if you have JJ Johnson or Art Blakey in your collection already, you can probably forego this set, but if not, I recommend getting this set and being done with the other works. To round out your Clifford Brown recordings, I also highly recommend , one of my favorite jazz recordings of all time, Helen Merrill's Complete Recordings. Clifford's solo on "Don't Explain" is as stunning as Merrill's passionate (that word again) singing.



2. This might be the complete BN and Pac Jazz recordings, one CJ outing, one JJ Johnson and 2 sides with Art Blakey at Birdland, but it is far from the best and all this stuff is in print and has been for a long time. The box and booklet are beautiful and the pictures are interesting but is that why you buy cd's? These 4 cd's are available for $12 each retail. That's $48 retail. Why is this box like $60 retail? Forget it. Buy all the Verve titles of Brownie and Roach. Much better music and sound.



3. I know that just about everything Clifford Brown recorded is golden; a former friend of mine, more into trad jazz than bebop, once stated simply, "Clifford Brown could play ANYTHING and make it great", and if I had to pick a single Brown track as my favorite it would be his EmArcy version of "Ghost of a Chance." But these Blue Note and Pacific Jazz recordings, for some reason, just sound more "alive" than much of the EmArcy output. Maybe there was just something about the feeling of discovery, of other musicians listening to what Brownie was playing and responding in kind; maybe it's just because I like Gigi Gryce and the other saxists here better than I like Harold Land; or maybe it's because there is more variety of settings and tunes here than in his EmArcy output; but for whatever reason, this music just sounds so "alive" from first track to last. Of course, the final session, a live date at Birdland with the embryonic Jazz Messengers directed by Art Blakey, is indeed an "in-person" experience, but even the earlier tracks are bursting with excitement. And I especially love Brownie's own composition "Tiny Capers," a sort of jazz fugue in the beginning that seems to be custom-tailored for the West Coast musicians he recorded with at that session.
   
   Too many highlights to talk about here, but to listen to the whole thing capped by that brilliant Birdland session will just blow you away. This is without question one of the greatest sets of jazz recordings in the entire history of the music, not a single routine or uninteresting track in the entire box.



4. Clifford Brown, who is maybe the greatest jazz trumpeter second to Miles Davis is celebrated amazingly in this set. I checked this out at my town library, and I simply cannot get enough of it. I believe that the high point of this treasure is a live recording done at Birdland with the Art Blakey quintet. There is an absolutely fabulous version of "Night in Tunisia". This is an absolute must-have set for all jazz fans. Period!



5. As every jazz fan knows Clifford Brown died tragically in car accident at the ripe old age of 26. This box set collects all of the excellent music Brown made for Blue Note and Pacific as a leader and a sideman. There isn't a bad session in the bunch -- "Memorial Album," "Jazz Immortal," "The Eminent J.J. Johnson Volume 2" and both volumes of Art Blakey's "A Night in Birdland" are all jazz classics. Put them together in a cool scrapbook-style binder case (that until the recent Miles Columbia and Coltrane Impulse box sets was the most innovative and useful packaging for a cd box set in jazz in my opinion) and you've got one of handsomest reissues in jazz. However, don't judge a cd box set by its cover alone, the music inside is what counts and it's timeless.

5 comments about Way Back Home.

1. Purchased this item as a gift for my brother, he was blown away. I've listened to some of the tracks and I have to say that it appears to me to be one of the best collections I have come across. If you're a fan of the Crusaders you won't be disappointed, this is a wonderful set that shows the talent and diversity of these amazing musicians.



2. This is a great box set with much(but by no means all)of their best material. I'm glad that they included something from the "Unsung Heroes" album, but considering their output over the years, any any attempt at a "Best Of" compilation would be like trying to stuff a 13-course Roman meal in a doggie bag, thus the inevitable ommission("New Time Shuffle", for one example). Someone reviewing a '70's greatest hits collection of theirs said any one of us could come up with our own Crusader's "greatest hits" package and it would be every bit as good as the one he was reviewing, there is that much material to choose from. That's a compliment to the group and the quality of their music.This is a very fine collection, which should also encourage anyone to seek out the original recordings(which is what I am doing now!!)



3. the Crusaders have always been One of My All-Time Favorite Musical Acts Ever.there Fusion of Music has no limits.here you get a tight cover of the Beatles "Eleanor Rigby"(Which Happens to Be my Favorite Beatles Song they Ever did)"Sweet&N Sour",is the Jam dig that whole Built Up&Vamp.the way the horns kick In&Groove.Stewart Levine&The Crusaders Strike a Great Balance on all fronts.the Arrangements just got stronger&full of more Fusion&Risk with each passing Album&they always seem to explore another Musical Direction&Make it work.I Listen to this Box Set at least Once a Month.The Crusaders are one of the Greatest Musical Bands in any Style or Era for me.



4. The music on this set is terrific and the choice of music to put here is excellent. If you have an album/CD or two of the Crusaders and are looking for an easy way to survey their career then this collection is made for you and you'll not be disappointed.

   The musicianship and sound quality are first-rate throughout, no complaints there. I have two minor complaints. First the track order _may_ have made sense to whoever assembled this but not to me. Its not chronological nor is it in any other logical sequence that I can figure out. Within an indivdual CD, tracks are arranged in groups by the original release, but material from the same LP often appears on more than one CD. It may be that there was an attempt to group similar sounding tracks together--in any case, it makes it less useful as a history of the group but sounds fine. Second, the packaging is a flat box with the size of an LP--fine if you have LP-sized storage, not-so-good if your storage is CD-sized.

   Despite the niggles, and they are that, this is a set of great music and I enjoy it a lot. If you like jazz fusion, so will you!




5. I'm glad to see that they included something from the "Unsung Heroes" album(Crossfire, fine Wayne Henderson). There was another version of "Freedom Sound" that I liked better than the one on this collection, but all in all this is first rate music by one of the greatest jazz groups of all time, one that was not afraid to actually connect with an audience musically instead of playing over people's heads(You should read the interview that they did in Downbeat magazine in the mid 70's-Stix Hooper's comments especially-they discuss this issue at length). As for the title of my review, if only every album that they have ever done was still in print....

5 comments about Sun Bear Concerts.

1. One of the masterworks of Keith Jarrett off his post "Koln" period. He is still emotional and searching for the genial phraze. He still had the blues on those moments, without being to technical. Perfect that the original sound off the piano ( and not putting that extra high on it by remastering )is keeped I have the vinyl version to wich is a collector at this time and it sound even greater, but I don't have to stand up to turn the disk anymore.



2. As a benchmark I rate:
   Koln A (orverall)
   Concerts ('Bregenz') A
   Solo Concerts: 'Bremen' D, 'Lausanne' A-
   -------------
   Sun Bear Concerts:
   Kyoto Part I) A-, Part II) B-
   Osaka Part I) B+, Part II) B-
   Nagoya Part I) B-, Part II) B-
   Tpkyo Part I) C+, Part II) A-
   Sapporo Part I) A, Part II) C+
   Encores A+
   
   I place the other solo CDs in another category (ie. Vienna, La Scala) as they are more of what I would call 'neo-classical' rather than the 'free jazz' that these solo could be categorized as. All in all Sun Bear is a wonderful collection, but the shear size (and price) and the uneven quality make it difficult to recommend without reservations. There are brilliant moments, but as with anything, too much is too much, and Keith Jarrett sometimes goes on 'singing' the same tune while he is waiting for an inspiration to take him in a different direction. Fine for him but the listener can get a little irritated.
   
   One wishes for a 'Best Of Sun Bear'. That would be something! If you just can't get enough of Keith Jarrett and if like me you wish that more 'Kolns' existed, then this is worth it.



3. As everybody seems to agree, this is a very pricy box set. The music is however stunning and as a whole shows Jarrett to be a master solo pianist. Recommended if you have the money!



4. This is probably the highest fidelity recording I will ever hear and it will probably require the rest of my life to monitor all six CDs to the degree of reason of which they are worthy. I believe these live sessions would appeal to any kind of listener regardless of predisposition. I have to say that his improvisation transcends classical discipline without insensitive separation.



5. I've been searching for some music - any music - by any artist - that could compare to Koln concerts for more than 10 years now. There's nothing that comes close. Finally, I decided to take a look at Sun Bear concerts. The thought of spending $107 for a set of CDs seemed extreme. But, after reading the glowing reviews, and realizing there's nothing else out there to compare with Koln, I finally made the purchase. This is a great series of CDs. It, still, does not resonate as Koln does. Koln touches a place in my soul that no other music has ever done. But, there's no doubt this is the closest to Koln I've found. Especially the beginning part of the Kyoto concert. So, to those who love Koln and are looking for more, I don't hestitate to recommend this set. It's not as good, hard to say it's even "similar" but it's still very enjoyable and contains many magical parts.