Count Basie

1952-1953 (2005). From July 26, 1952 to December 12, 1953, Count Basie continued to record for Norman Granz's Clef label, variously utilizing a quintet, sextet, nonet, and 16-piece big band. Released in 2005, this volume in the Classics Chronological Series documents all of the issued studio titles from this time period, neatly omitting no less than 15 Birdland radio broadcasts so as to focus upon the Count's protean adventures within the intimate confines of recording studios in New York and Los Angeles. Basie's excellent instrumentalists include trumpeter Joe Newman, trombonist Henry Coker, reedmen Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Paul Quinichette, Marshall Royal, Ernie Wilkins, Frank Wess, Frank Foster, and Charlie Fowlkes…

The eight CDs that make up this collection document the second rise of Count Basie's big band. The second band had been created at the urging of Billy Eckstine, who convinced Basie that even though the era of the large jazz-swing orchestra – an era he was an architect of – was by all appearances over, he could make a real go of it with his brand of blues and swing.

“Sinatra-Basie”; “Count Basie and the Kansas City 7”; “The Atomic Mr. Basie”; “Basie Plays Hefti” plus five previously unissued mono tracks from Newport 1956.
“Sinatra-Basie” continues our new series revealing the hidden qualities of stereo sound and here we again quote from the original liner notes to give you a flavour of what to expect within the grooves. “I’ve waited twenty years for this moment” said Frank Sinatra as the recording session for this historic meeting of two genuine musical giants of the 20th Century began on the 2nd October 1962. A few more quotes… With arrangements by Neal Hefti… ”it is the balance of power (between Sinatra and Basie) “that is so successful”…

Count Basie - The Complete Roulette Live Recordings Of Count Basie and His Orchestra, 1959-1962 (1991) {8CD Set Mosaic MD8-135}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 3.14 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 1.24 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 71 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1959-62, 1991 Mosaic Records | MD8-135
Jazz / Big Band / Swing

Count Basie defined the jazz meaning of swing. His band could get more bounce from a line that any other. And though his soloists were never of highest dazzle, they always fit the program. These live recordings from 1959, 1961 and 1962 capture the Count at his comfort. Mosaic has done its usual fine job with them on eight CDs. Roulette itself has reissued 12 of the cuts on a single CD entitled ``Basie in Sweden,`` for those who just want a taste.

With signs of a resurgence of interest in big bands in the late 1950s, Maxwell Davis came up with the idea of producing a series of albums for Crown Records recorded in the finest stereophonic sound, in a tribute to such legendary bandleaders as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Lionel Hampton, Woody Herman, Charlie Barnet and Stan Kenton, among others. For this purpose, he wrote all new arrangements and reimagined and conducted a number of tribute bands to perform the music with the signature spirit that made their original leaders famous. The personnel for each album consisted primarily of prominent members and soloists who performed with the original bands, with additional valuable contributions from some of the best jazz musicians working in the Hollywood and New York studios.

Count Basie & Lester Young - Classic 1936-1947 Count Basie and Lester Young Studio Sessions (2016) {8CD Box Set Mosaic MD8-263}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.86 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 1.27 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 44 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1936-47, 2016 Mosaic Records | MD8-263
Jazz / Big Band / Mainstream Jazz / Swing / Saxophone

It’s a universally acknowledged truth that great music never sounds out-of-date, and Count Basie is remarkably evergreen. His “Old Testament” band epitomizes the big-band swing era-the rhythmic, harmonic and melodic devices that made 1930s America dance. But in practice that band epitomizes swing itself. “Count Basie took the Kansas City blues and made it happy,” Tony Bennett once remarked, perhaps summing up the enduring appeal that makes a collection like the eight-CD Classic 1936-1947 Count Basie and Lester Young Studio Sessions the Lord’s work.

In 1964, Count Basie handed the reins of his band over to composer and arranger Billy Byers, purportedly to modernize his sound to the times. More accurately, Byers energized the band with his bright charts loaded with counterpointed exchanges and interplay, plus a depth and density the Basie band had long since relinquished to other similarly sized groups. With stellar personnel - including Eric Dixon, Frank Foster, Frank Wess, Marshall Royal, Al Aarons, and Don Rader - Byers and Basie stoked the coals of the band with some red hot bop and intricate charts atypical to the laid-back approach that always served the band and its fans well. The upbeat tracks, the roaring "Basie Land," hard charging "Rabble Rouser" and the tumbling melody of "Gymnastics" are particularly noticeable, as the horns jump in and out of unison…