Fred Again

Outstanding Collection of the hottest numbes in the Golden Age of Big Bands: Artie Shaw & His Orchestra, Art Tatum All Stars with Tommy Dorsey, Tommy & Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, Stan Kenton & His Orchestra, Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra & others.
Artie Shaw - One of jazz's finest clarinetists, Artie Shaw never seemed fully satisfied with his musical life, constantly breaking up successful bands and running away from success.

Homer thinks maybe they should stop at his Uncle Butch's saloon for a drink before they get home. "You're home now, kid," the older man Al tells him. Three military veterans have just returned to their hometown of Boone City, somewhere in the Midwest, and each in his own way is dreading his approaching reunion. Al's dialogue brings down the curtain on the apprehensive first act of William Wyler's "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946). Seen more than six decades later, it feels surprisingly modern: lean, direct, honest about issues that Hollywood then studiously avoided. After the war years of patriotism and heroism in the movies, this was a sobering look at the problems veterans faced when they returned home.

' The JB's grab at a piece of the disco market that made Van McCoy a solo star with this production. It's excellent throughout despite James Brown's subdued arrangements on some songs. "(It's Not the Express) It's the JB's Monaurail," usually a six-minute song, rambles for over eight. Fred Wesley's funky trombone peppers "All Aboard the Soul Funky Train" (an update of "Night Train"). "Transmograpfication" is similar to jazz trumpeter Eddie Henderson's crossover attempts on his Sunburst and Realization albums. "Thank You for Letting Me Be Myself and You Be Yours" is better than the title, with a Dyke and the Blazers-type vocal that sets it right.' Andrew.Hamilton@allmusic.com

VA - A Time To Remember 1930-1939: 10 CDs each one including an exclusive 20-track music compilation of original hit recordings by the original artists.