Miles once said, "All my inspiration today comes from Ahmad Jamal." These recordings are the reason why. The mid fifties was a fertile time for jazz; fresh, original ensembles were taking shape all over the country. The Modern Jazz Quartet, the Dave Brubeck Quartet, The Jazz Messengers and the Ahmad Jamal Trio immediately come to mind. Among musicians, each group had its imitators and its creative disciples who took its innovations one step further.
Günter Wand (1912-2002) left us dozens of gramophone records: complete symphonic cycles and impressive live recordings of his concerts with the NDR Symphony Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic. The archetypical anti-star all his life and for that very reason under-appreciated, this conductor only attained international recognition in his old age as an unequalled interpreter of classical music. Accordingly, most of these multiple-award-winning benchmark recordings date from his later years. Wand's music-making moved those who heard it with its impeccable balance of perfection coupled with faithfulness to the original, emotional fulfilment, intellectual control, utmost sensitivity and spiritual penetration. He described his mission as "serving music", a cause to which this totally unpretentious man remained committed for seventy years. He rose to be one of the true "greats" of the twentieth century, a figure standing head and shoulders above our restless times, his name synonymous with the highest musical quality.
This set pulls together all three albums from the pop-punk wannabies: Pop Art (1988), Velveteen (1989) and Little Magnets Versus The Bubble of Babble (1991). The last of those three is still unreleased in the UK on CD, so this is its debut on the format over here. Each long-player here comes with non-album bonus tracks and then three further CDs offer a wealth of seven-inch versions and extended remixes.
At 55 Anita O'Day was having a bit of a renaissance, having kicked drugs and become more active in the 1970s. This live in Japan set (reissued on CD by Evidence) finds the singer stretching out on nine numbers ("Gone with the Wind" is nearly 11 minutes long) and carefully choosing a tune or two from each of six decades (1920s to the '70s). Of the latter "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life" and Leon Russell's "A Song for You" (given a definitive treatment) are effective; other highlights include "Undecided," "I Get a Kick out of You" and "Opus One." This is one of O'Day's best recordings of the 1970s.