T.j. Nichols

Combining elements of A Christmas Carol and Rain Man (1988), this modern-day parable of greed and redemption was crafted with generous helpings of sentimentality by director Mike Nicholas. Harrison Ford stars as Henry Turner, a slick, ruthless corporate attorney willing to spin any falsehood to win a case. A bully to his teenage daughter Rachel (Mikki Allen), Henry also cheats on his wife Sarah (Annette Bening) and treats everyone from the maid to his assistant with cruel selfishness. Stepping out to a local mini-market for a pack of cigarettes late one night, Henry accidentally interrupts a burglary and is shot in the head by a stick-up artist.

Lionel Hampton - The Complete Lionel Hampton Victor Sessions 1937-1941 (2007) {5CD Set Mosaic MD5-238}
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© 1937-41, 2007 Mosaic Records / BMG | MD5-238
Jazz / Swing / Vibes

Garnished with a fistful of alternate takes, the 2007 release of Mosaic's 107-track Complete Lionel Hampton Victor Sessions 1937-1941 is a welcome and long overdue CD realization of The Complete Lionel Hampton 1937-1941, a six-LP box set released during the 1970s by the Bluebird label. Only Teddy Wilson came close to achieving what Hamp did in the late 1930s and early '40s, by bringing together the greatest soloists on the scene for a staggeringly productive and inspired series of recordings that essentially defined the state of jazz during the years immediately preceding the Second World War.

This is an attractive eight-CD set, whose discs are also available as eight separate releases, that could have been a great reissue but settled for being merely quite good. To celebrate the 80th anniversary of the first jazz recording, RCA released a disc apiece covering each of the past eight decades. In listening to the music straight through, one becomes aware of RCA's strengths and weaknesses as a jazz label.

Lou Donaldson - The Complete Blue Note Lou Donaldson Sessions 1957-60 (2002) {6CD Set, Mosaic MD6-215}
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© 1957-60, 2002 Mosaic Records / Blue Note / Capitol | MD6-215
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

A soul survivor in every sense of the term, this alto saxophonist is one of the few remaining jazz artists who made a major impact on the jazz community via an extensive run with producer Alfred Lion and the Blue Note label (Horace Silver being another Blue Note legend that comes to mind). From his first recordings for the label with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, it was clear that Lou Donaldson put melody and sound at a premium, coming up with an amalgam that combined the creamy smoothness of Johnny Hodges with the quicksilver bop inflections of Charlie Parker.

Various Artists - Produced by George Martin: 50 Years In Recording (2001) {6CD Box Set, Parlophone–EMI 532631}
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© 2001 Parlophone / EMI Records | 07243 532631 2 6
Rock / Jazz / Pop / Fusion / Folk Rock / British Invasion

George Martin is one of the world's most famous record producers and yet, despite a long and varied career, he is most celebrated for his era-defining work with the Beatles. The six-CD box set Produced By George Martin commemorates his 50 years behind the desk. The discs are in chronological order and loosely themed–early years, comedy recordings, 60s hits, orchestral, etc. While generally presented in a chronological fashion, each disc is likewise aptly subtitled. Disc one – "Crazy Rhythms" – features pre-rock & roll big band ("High Society"), skiffle ("Don't You Rock Me Daddy-O"), and dance music ("Scottish Polka" and "Saturday Jump"). In addition, there are tracks from other well-known yet rarely heard artists such as Jimmy Shand ("Bluebell Polka") and Rolf Harris ("Sun Arise"). The "Transports of Delight" on disc two highlight spoken-word and comedy sides produced by Martin in the '50s and '60s.