This 10 CD set offers an exciting overview of some of the most important recordings made by American jazz stars in Paris in the Fifties. They are milestones of Modern Jazz, Bebop and Hard Bop recorded by some of the most important players of the time, including Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, Lionel Hampton, Chet Baker, Sarah Vaughan, Mary Lou Williams, Lester Young and Donald Byrd. Treated like second class citizens at home, many American jazz stars not only got more recognition and respect in the French capital, but found much better playing conditions as well. From concert-halls like "L'Olympia" to the clubs of the "Latin Quarter" they were appreciated and celebrated, and their music met with a glowing enthusiasm.
Stu Williamson was not yet 24 when these recordings were made. He had this quality as a trumpet player and as a musical person that allowed him to take his place alongside the half dozen other trumpet players who formed the core of what was the fairly permanent West Coast jazz scene. Judging from his work here, the authority in his musical voice was unmistakable.
Singer/actress Lena Horne's primary occupation was nightclub entertaining, a profession she pursued successfully around the world for more than 60 years, from the 1930s to the 1990s. In conjunction with her club work, she also maintained a recording career that stretched from 1936 to 2000 and brought her three Grammys, including a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1989; she appeared in 16 feature films and several shorts between 1938 and 1978; she performed occasionally on Broadway, including in her own Tony-winning one-woman show, Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music, in 1981-1982; and she sang and acted on radio and television.
If you asked a passing stranger who the most famous female jazz singer was, Ella Fitzgerald would almost certainly be the first name to spring to mind. Sometimes called The First Lady Of Song , her record sales testify to the fact that she was the most popular US female jazz singer for over 50 years. In a career that started with her first recording in 1936 and lasted until the early Nineties despite coronary bypass surgery in 1986, she recorded over 200 albums that sold over 40 million copies and won 13 Grammy awards. In 1955 Fitzgerald left Decca Records and joined the newly founded Verve. This 3 disc compilation showcases the wide-ranging vocal capabilities of a legendary singer as she delivers some of the most famous songs from her repertoire, sung at the height of her career.
15 complete original Sinatra albums and 43 bonus tracks on a limited edition 9CD box set. Legendary records from Frank Sinatra's golden age as a popular sophisticated vocalist released on Capitol with three on the singer's own label Reprise - with accompaniment from orchestras conducted by Nelson Riddle, Billy May and Johnny Mandel. Digitally remastered. Includes detailed booklet.