Moanin Jimmy Smith

Granted, a single-disc overview of Blue Note's finest recordings can't help but offer listeners more than a myopic view of the label's true scope, but for jazz neophytes, this nine-track collection will undoubtedly serve as a tantalizing taste of the company's riches. The song selection, though lacking few surprises, is consistently wonderful – how could a disc featuring John Coltrane's "Blue Train," Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage," Horace Silver's "Song for My Father" and Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder" be anything but? – and purists' complaints aside, for new fans it's a solid introduction to the Blue Note magic.

A 6 CD, 110 track compilation which includes a Jimmy Smith track, two Grant Green tracks, a Lonnie Smith track with David Newman on saxophone and Melvin Sparks on guitar and a Reuben Wilson track with Melvin Sparks on guitar.

A 6 CD, 110 track compilation which includes a Jimmy Smith track, two Grant Green tracks, a Lonnie Smith track with David Newman on saxophone and Melvin Sparks on guitar and a Reuben Wilson track with Melvin Sparks on guitar.

A 6 CD, 110 track compilation which includes a Jimmy Smith track, two Grant Green tracks, a Lonnie Smith track with David Newman on saxophone and Melvin Sparks on guitar and a Reuben Wilson track with Melvin Sparks on guitar.

There are as many flavours of jazz as there are pebbles on a beach, but the majority combine rhythmic invention with instrumental virtuosity to create a sound that can transport the listener to a different plane. Whether your ear is caught by the saxophone of Earl Bostic or Eddie Harris, the flute of Herbie Mann, Ray Charles’ effervescent keyboards (he played sax too) or the music of Cuban-born ‘King of the Mambo’ Perez Prado, whose 1958 US chart-topper ‘Patricia’ is familiar from countless movies and television ads,one thing is certain – the jazz instrumental still reigns supreme.

Compiled from both Warner and Universal Music’s extensive catalogues this 3CD collection of Classic Blue Note repertoire features the most iconic performances from the biggest names in the genre. Including the likes of musical legends Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Sidney Bechet, Thelonious Monk and many more…