Louis Armstrong Discography

More than 300 tracks, digitally remastered and compiled over 15 discs. Includes all of Louis Armstrong's hits, hundreds of rarities and the complete discography. 2005.

This 1965 Paris concert by Louis Armstrong is not all that different in content from many of his live dates recorded during the last 15 years of his life. His all-stars had changed somewhat, with clarinetist Eddie Shu replacing Edmond Hall, singer Jewel Brown taking the place of the late Velma Middleton, and trombonist Tyree Glenn replacing Trummy Young, but the dependable pianist Billy Kyle (who died the following year) is still on hand to keep the band in a familiar groove. Armstrong sticks to his dependable opener, "When It's Sleepy Time Down South," following it with a spirited "Back Home Again in Indiana." Jewel Brown is acceptable on the snappy "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," but butchers "Can't Help Lovin' That Man of Mine" with an overly dramatic and very pop-ish rendition…

With five discs and 100 tracks, this holiday set is expansive and interesting. Some of the sides will be familiar to nearly everyone – classics like Bing Crosby's version of “White Christmas” and Perry Como's “Winter Wonderland” pop up in the stores and all over the radio dial during the season’s festivities – but other selections here are fairly rare and give things a depth that a lot of holiday collections don’t reach…

Thirteen hours of unreleased and ultra-rare music. The Eternal Myth Revealed is a 14 disc docu-biography of Ra's life and career, from his birth in 1914 up to 1959. In addition to his own music, it includes music he was influenced by, and a lot of stuff he may or may not have had a hand in as arranger, vocal coach, pianist or something else. Sun Ra's output was as prolific as Ellington's, and discographers have had nightmares and arguments attempting to document it accurately.

The first ever comprehensive box-set of the greatest Jazz vibes-players in history - 18 original albums documenting the history of Jazz-vibes from Swing to Hard Bop and Featuring Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, Bobby Hutcherson, Roy Ayers, Cal Tjader and more…

Coleman Hawkins was the first important tenor saxophonist and he remains one of the greatest of all time. A consistently modern improviser whose knowledge of chords and harmonies was encyclopedic, Hawkins had a 40-year prime (1925-1965) during which he could hold his own with any competitor…

A characteristically humongous (8-CD) box set from the wonderful obsessive-compulsives at Bear Family, documenting the Killer's '60s tenure at Smash Records. Lewis made consistently good music during this period, but the combination of his personal scandals and the British Invasion made him a pariah to radio programmers until mid-decade, when he returned to his country roots. Highlights of the set include the entirety of a Texas live show, with Lewis and his crack band rendering various early rock standards at dangerously high (i.e., proto punk) speed, some excellent duets with his (then) wife Linda Gail, and gorgeous renditions of standards like Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away" and Merle Haggard's "Lonesome Fugitive." Lewis fans with deep pockets should grab this one immediately…

For those who wish to develop a strong relationship with early jazz, there are certain records that may help the listener to cultivate an inner understanding, the kind of vital personal connection that reams of critical description can only hint at. Once you become accustomed to the sound of Johnny Dodds' clarinet, for example, the old-fashioned funkiness of South Side Chicago jazz from the 1920s might well become an essential element in your personal musical universe. Put everything post-modern aside for a few minutes and surrender to these remarkable historic recordings. It is January 1927, and the band, fortified with Freddie Keppard and Tiny Parham, is calling itself Jasper Taylor & His State Street Boys…

Big Charlie Thomas was one of many cornetists who recorded as sideman and accompanist during the 1920s, and have since drifted to the margins of jazz history. Like Ed Allen, he worked in groups that often had something or other to do with pianist and music publisher Clarence Williams. If Thomas' brief recording career is mapped out in discographical relief, the details are sketchy but fascinating. During the years 1925-1926 he is believed to have recorded with vocalists Rosa Henderson, Bessie Brown, Sara Martin, Mandy Lee, and Clarence Williams' wife Eva Taylor. In addition to various backing units, he blew his horn with the Dixie Washboard Band, the OKeh Melody Stars, Thomas Morris & His Seven Hot Babies, Buddy Christian's Jazz Rippers, and of course Clarence Williams' Blue Five. His involvement with this last ensemble places Thomas in the same circle as Morris, Sidney Bechet, and Louis Armstrong. So elusive are the recordings of Big Charlie Thomas that were it not for an album of rarities assembled and released during the '90s by the Timeless label, it would be difficult to access his legacy at all.