The Swordsman (1948) Joseph H. Lewis, Larry Parks, Ellen Drew, George Macready

Larry Young, one of the most significant jazz organists to emerge after the rise of Jimmy Smith, is heard on this limited-edition six-CD set at the peak of his creativity. Formerly available as nine LPs, the set includes the original Larry Young albums Into Somethin', Unity, Of Love and Peace, Contrasts, Heaven on Earth, and Mother Ship, while drawing from the compilations 40 Years of Jazz, The History of Blue Note (Dutch), The World of Jazz Organ (Japanese), and The Blue Note 50th Anniversary Collection Volume Two: The Jazz Message, and also including guitarist Grant Green's Talkin' About, Street of Dreams, and I Want to Hold Your Hand. Young was still very much under Smith's influence on the first four sessions released as Talkin' About, Into Somethin', Street of Dreams, and I Want to Hold Your Hand (all featuring a trio with Green and drummer Elvin Jones plus guests Sam Rivers or Hank Mobley on tenor and vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson).

These quartets, Haydn's last great quartet collection, represent a peak of musical achievement that may have been equaled, but has never been surpassed. Haydn invented the string quartet way back in the 1750s, and by the time he came to write these works some 40 years later, his mastery was so natural and effortless that it's hardly noticeable. All you hear are the great tunes, dramatic surprises, fresh rhythms, and ever-new string textures. These immaculate performances by the Tokyo Quartet went a long way toward establishing it as one of the most exciting young string quartets to emerge in the past two decades, and they have been superbly recorded. A classic set, then, and essential listening.

Arriving ten years after The Dark Horse Years: 1976-1992, The Apple Years: 1968-75 offers the first act of George Harrison's solo career presented in a handsomely produced, impeccably remastered box set. The outside packaging mirrors The Dark Horse Years but the discs housed inside the box show a greater attention to detail than the previous set: each of the albums is presented as a paper-sleeve mini-LP replicating the original album art (Extra Texture does indeed have extra texture on its sleeve), while the brief hardcover book contains perhaps the glossiest paper to ever grace a rock music box set…