Mort Herbert

Our first selection “Sing Sing Sing” re-visit a Krupa classic known as the “killer driller” when the great showman drummer stole the show from his band leader, Benny Goodman at the historic Carnegie Hall concert of 1938. For this particular version recorded in New York 1954 we hear Krupa alongside Eddie Shu on clarinet and Teddy Napoleon on piano for a fine ten minute workout! Nice! Our next selection “Gene Krupa Quartet” finds Krupa in a “first” as this is his first recording as a Quartet. Recorded in New York and Los Angeles in 1954 and 1955 he is joined again by Eddie Shu and Bobby Scott with Milt Hinton on bass in L.A. and John Drew on bass in New York…

Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington were (and are) two of the main stems of jazz. Any way you look at it, just about everything that's ever happened in this music leads directly – or indirectly – back to them. Both men were born on the cusp of the 19th and 20th centuries, and each became established as a leader during the middle '20s. …

Vladimir Cosma became a highly regarded and hugely prolific soundtrack composer for the French cinema in the 60s and 70s. Cosma is a stellar example of the rich traditon of French movie composers, from Auric to Delerue to Desplat. Like them, he seems to effortlessly breathe melodies. His music can be lush, it can be spritely. It shimmeres, cascades, and yes, sometimes, it kicks butt. This second box set of his scores, like the first, is a treasure chest for fans of rich, melodic film music.