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Emerald City Nights: Live at the Penthouse (1965-1966) brings forth a collection of previously unreleased recordings of the iconic pianist Ahmad Jamal captured live at the hallowed Seattle jazz club. Featuring trios with bassist Jamil Nasser, and drummers Chuck Lampkin, Vernel Fournier and Frank Gant.

With a beautifully economical piano style full of grace, depth, tone, and plenty of swing, Ahmad Jamal is simply one of the greatest pianists in the history of jazz, but he has been woefully underexposed, even as he has been a giant influence in the genre, on Miles Davis, for one, and Gil Evans, who flirted with Jamal's chamber jazz style. This set collects eight of Jamal's seminal albums, 1955's Chamber Music of the New Jazz, 1956's Count 'Em 88, 1958's Ahmad Jamal Trio at the Spotlight Café and Ahmad Jamal at the Pershing: But Not for Me, 1959's Jamal at the Penthouse, 1960's Happy Moods, and 1961's All of You and Standard Eyes, all in one package. Together they form perhaps Jamal's richest creative stretch, making this set a welcome delight.

Well into his golden years, Ahmad Jamal continues to tour and record with the vigor of a man half his age. What is also evident is that his artistic sense is as high as it has ever been, as he consistently doles out fresh new melodies charged by his extraordinary talent, which is hardly reined in.

Recorded at the Pershing Club in Chicago, IL, Jamal's third album (including the hit "Poinciana") was the turning point in his career. His liberal use of silence influenced many jazz musicians, including Miles Davis.

There are some magical moments on this quartet set featuring pianist Ahmad Jamal, bassist James Cammack, drummer David Bowles and percussionist Willie White. Jamal's control of dynamics and inventive use of space proved to be as effective as it had been when he first made his mark in the 1950s, although his chord voicings and general style had evolved. Jamal and his group perform ten of his originals with taste, swing and subtle surprises.

Tranquility (1968). This hard-to-find recording is of value if only to hear Jamal's interpretation of two Burt Bacharach-Hal David gems from the '60s, "I Say a Little Prayer" and "The Look of Love." Since the early '50s, Jamal has managed to generate commercial appeal within the piano trio format by crafting memorable arrangements without resorting to clichés. (Jamal's trio concept paved the way for the success of Ramsey Lewis, the Three Sounds, and others.) He treats the entire trio - not just the piano - as his instrument and has mastered the use of space and dynamic variation in shaping his distinctive group sound. Jamal has a keen sense of formal structure; his concise renderings of standards and pop tunes always offer a fresh take on the familiar by deconstructing and reconstructing melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic themes…

Avid Jazz continues with its Four Classic Album series with a re-mastered 2CD second set release from Ahmad Jamal, complete with original artwork, liner notes and personnel details.
“Chamber Music Of The New Jazz”; “Ahmad Jamal Trio”; “Count ‘Em 88” and “Listen To The Ahmad Jamal Quintet”.
Born in Pittsburgh in 1930 Ahmad Jamal started playing piano at 3 years old and turned professional at 14! His early influences include Earl Hines, Erroll Garner and Mary Lou Williams and he had the distinction of being spotted as a “coming great” by none other than Art Tatum. He discovered Islam in his 20s and in 1950 Fred Jones became Ahmad Jamal as he took the Muslim faith…

Ahmad Jamal's minimalist style has served him well throughout his career, as he enjoys making frequent sudden detours in the midst of a performance, with his intuitive rhythm section able to adapt on the fly. His longtime bassist James Cammack and drummer Idris Muhammad are joined by Latin percussionist Manolo Badrena for these 2007 sessions.