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Overall, a very fine three-album set loaded with many tunes which were new to me and my collection of 'The Count'. A very warm analog to digital mixing, which makes the tone mellow and easy to listen on all tracks. This is a definitive anthology--enjoy all of the gems presented.
This is the first edtion of my favorite band. Basie is also my #1 piano man. All the tracks are here, and the sound is mostly good. It is nice to have all the Decca material in one package.
So do yourself a favor and order this set right now. Tracks like "Jumpin' At The Woodside", "Topsy", "Shorty George", and "One O'Clock Jump" are so infectious that if you're not feeling them you might want to check and make sure you have a pulse.
This is some of the best and hardest swinging jazz you will ever hear. If you are worried about the sound quality, you can stop worrying.
This superb box set belongs in any serious jazz collection. With great players like Lester Young, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Herschel Evans, Freddie Green, and Jo Jones, along with Basie himself, it's impossible not to make great music.
Everything sounds crisp and clean. Whoever remastered these tracks really knew what they were doing.
There's just no way you can not enjoy this music. I guarantee you will have no regrets.
Another novel voice was that of tenorist Lester Young, whose 'hollow' tone, minimal use of vibrato and unusual choice of notes was also radically different from what was the norm (as exempified by Hawkins, Webster and Berry). This particular set is to be preferred over the Definitive set in that it comes complete with extensive and very informative liner notes about the band's history and development. One of the great thrills is the incredible and incomparable rhythm section, so completely different in style and character from that of the 'King' of Swing Benny Goodman or most other swing bands, black or white, and it would be quite a while before others had mastered Jo Jones' extraordinary use of the hi-hat and Freddy Greene's subtle but strong beat on the guitar. This set includes all recordings Basie and his Orchestra waxed between 1937 and 1939 for Decca (including some alternate takes and and the titles with the rhythm section only). So I can safely say that this set is an essential item for anyone interested in the big bands, classic jazz and swing and good music in general. (The freshness would gradually wear off as the band failed to progress musically, churning out the same kind of music in the same kind of way for some 50 odd years, but that is another story).
Although the band did and its arrangers did not explore the harmonic possibilities of a big band in a way that an Ellington or a Lunceford did, the set abounds with delightful, infectious music (despite the sometimes trite material), which sounds as fresh as it did seventy years ago.
Herschel Evans of course was the tenorist who was more in line with that norm and both saxists were often pitted against each other (Evans' tragically early death in early 1939 all but devastated Lester Young).
Also the sound quality is very good, digital restoration, with John RT Davies' name involved, being done with the utmost care (but all Decca "Legendary Masters of Jazz" issues (Herman, Barnet, J Dorsey, Eldridge Bob & Bing Crosby etc are very good).
During these years the band evolved from a slightly ragged and sometimes out of tune, but always intensely swinging, amalgam of individuals to a cohesive, streamlined swing machine.
Arranger and solo credits (to my surprise I discovered that Fletcher Henderson and Don Redman contributed quite a few scores) and of course complete personel listings (which the Definitve issues also give) are included as a matter of course.
The other soloists such as Harry Edison and Buck Clayton on trumpet, Benny Morton and Dickie Wells on trombone and vocalists Jimmy Rushing and Helen Humes (who replaced Billy Holiday, who due to contractual reasons, was prevented from recording commercially with Basie) are given ample opportunity to put their talents across as well.
Basie's delicious piano playing should need no further intorduction.
I cannot say the same of the Definitive sets (not just the Basie issues), which sound flat and shallow and presumably are not always drawn from the best sources (like the Classics issues), giving evidence at times of added reverb and pseudo stereo.
Highly recommended.
I didn't think I would like this set very much, but I couldn't find anything written anywhere that said anything bad about these classic Decca recordings. The sound is terrific, the music is wonderful, and Basie and his players sound like they were having fun when they were ripping through these classic tunes. In fact, most sources consider this a "cornerstone" of a jazz music collection and The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings: Eighth Edition (Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings) makes this part of their "core collection". Rightly so. I went in with high expectations and low hopes, but my expectations were more than met and my lack of faith unjustified. This is another "must have" compilation for any jazz enthusiast.
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