Massive music from Ella Fitzgerald – 4CDs worth of sublime small group recordings – all of them live, and all of them previously unissued! The set follows the same format of the Verve Ella In Hollywood album – recorded in a small club setting, with combo backing that really lets Fitzgerald open up and swing – inflecting the tunes with the kind of warmth and spontaneity that she brought to her famous live performances of the time – which were almost always more compelling than her studio sides, no matter how great those were too! The first 3CDs feature material from two weeks' worth of recording in May of 1961 – with backing from Jim Hall on guitar, Lou Levy on piano, Wilfred Middlebrooks on bass, and Gus Johnson on drums – and CD four features Ella returning to Hollywood for two more nights in 1962, with trio backing from Paul Smith on piano, Middlebrooks on bass, and Stan Levey on drums. There's a massive 77 tracks in all – handsomely package in a hardcover 7" square book – which also features beautiful color pages inside, lots of notes on the music, and design that's every bit as groovy as the old albums on Verve. Titles include "Joe Williams' Blues", "It's De-Lovely", "Lorelei", "I Can't Get Started", "Round Midnight", "Perdido", "Little White Lies", "Lover Come Back To Me", "Across The Alley From The Alamo", "Love For Sale", "Exactly Like You", "Mack The Knife", "Teach Me Tonight", "My Kind Of Boy", "It Had To Be You", "Hard Hearted Hannah", "All Of Me", and "Too Darn Hot/Ella's Twist". And, in case you're wondering, there's almost no repetition in the set at all – all discreet, unique tunes – not just the sort of rehash you might get in other concert box sets of this nature! CD

Three wonderful albums from this legendary Brazilian singer – all presented in a single set! First up is Nothing Will Be As It Was Tomorrow – a record that's quite different from Flora's earlier work, but in a way that we find very compelling! The record was produced by Leon Ndugu Chancler, and it's got a smooth fusion sound that's kind of in a southern California R&B mode, played by a huge range of excellent Brazilian and west coast talents that include Patrice Rushen, Dorothy Ashby, Fred Jackson, Raul De Souza, Toninho Horta, and Airto. While this sound overwhelms the core of Flora's usual Brazilian jazz approach, it also expands some of the tracks to a great groove – with Flora's vocals on top, stretching out in a whole new way! Includes a great English language version of the Milton Nascimento classic "Nada Sera Como Antes", plus the cuts "You Love Me Only", "I'm Coming For Your Love", "Corre Nina", "Angels", "Bridges", and "Fairy Tale Song". Every Day Every Night is a beautifully soulful record from Flora Purim – still awash with touches from her Brazilian roots, but also done with a great 70s LA sound! Airto's helping Flora out on production, but the real hero here is Michel Colombier – who handles most of the arrangements and wrote a good deal of the tunes with Purim and Airto – mixing his own expansive studio talents with their organically-forged groove, in a way that makes the record a real standout from the California fusion scene of the 70s! Players include Randy Brecker, Lee Ritenour, George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Harvey Mason, and other jazz heavyweights – and titles include "The Hope", "I Just Don't Know", "In Brasil", "Blues Ballad", "Why I'm Alone", "Walking Away", and "Samba Michel". Carry On is one of Flora Purim's more R&B-sounding albums from the 70s, produced by George Duke with an appreciation for Flora's Brazilian jazz roots, but with a smoother sound that's in keeping with Duke's own work of the time! The combination is pretty sweet – a professional culmination of the mixture of fusion and Brazilian jazz that had been happening in the San Francisco scene during most of the 70s, and featuring many of the musicians who had helped make that groove so strong. Players include Airto, Sheila Escovedo, Joe Farrell, Ronnie Foster, Bobby Lyle, and Larry Williams – and tracks include "Niura Is Coming Back", "From The Lonely Afternoon", "Freeway Jam", "Beijo Partido", "Corine", and "Love Lock". Includes bonus tracks too – "Tango Blues" and "Sad Song". (Brazil, Vocalists) CD

Four early 80s classics from Johnny Mathis – presented here in a single 2CD package! Different Kinda Different is a tremendous start to the 80s for Johnny Mathis – and a set that really continues that strong shift into soul-based territory he begun in the 70s! Gene Page handles a lot of the arrangements here, and gives the whole thing that strong blend of strings and soul that he worked on other 70s classics for different artists – a perfect approach for that magnificent Mathis voice, especially when the tunes have a bit of a groove! Two of the best numbers here – "Different Kind Of Different" and "I'll Do It All For You" – are duets with Paulette McWilliams, who'd recorded on her own, but who really seems to hit her stride with Johnny, and in a way that's different than any of his other soul partners in duets. Other titles include "Never Givin Up On You", "With You I'm Born Again", "I Will Survive", "The Lights Of Rio", and "Love Without Words". Friends In Love is mature 80s work from Johnny Mathis – a set that features two duets with Dionne Warwick, plus some other nice material that shows that Johnny wasn't going to be left behind in the shadows of his older work! At some level, the approach of the 80s, and the rise of a new sort of adult contemporary scene, really helped Mathis find a new audience – especially when teaming with Dionne, who was also having a rebirth at the time! Titles include the classic duet title cut "Friends In Love", and another duet on "Got You Where I Want You" – plus other titles that include "What Do You Do With The Love", "When The Lovin Goes Out Of The Lovin", "I Remember You & Me", and "Somethin's Goin On". Special Part Of Me is a sweet 80s set from Johnny Mathis – one of those great later albums when he brought a good deal of soul into the mix! The feel here is almost more modern R&B than the vocal jazz mode that first brought Johnny fame – and it turns out that the Mathis mode is wonderful for such a setting – rich and full of feeling, and arguably better than some of his younger contemporaries on the charts! The ballads are beautiful, but there's also a few surprising midtempo numbers – and titles include a sublime remake of "Love Won't Let Me Wait", done with Deniece Williams – plus "Love Never Felt So Good", "Simple", "Priceless", "One Love", "Right Here & Now", and "Lead Me To Your Love" – plus "You're A Special Part Of Me", a duet with Angie Bofill. Live is a later live album from Johnny Mathis, and one that brings together classics, newer cuts, and a few titles he'd never sang before – all served up with a sound that shows the continuing strengths of the legendary singer! There's a variety of arrangers used on the set – including Gene Page and Michel Colombier – and titles include "Orange Colored Sky", "When A Child Is Born", "Begin The Beguine", "I Believe In Love", "Fly Away", "99 Miles From LA", and "A Certain Smile". CD

Massive music from Ella Fitzgerald – 2CDs worth of sublime small group recordings – all of them live, and all of them previously unissued before the Hip-O/Verve Select box set! The set follows the same format of the Verve Ella In Hollywood album – recorded in a small club setting, with combo backing that really lets Fitzgerald open up and swing – inflecting the tunes with the kind of warmth and spontaneity that she brought to her famous live performances of the time – which were almost always more compelling than her studio sides, no matter how great those were too! Vols 1 & 2s feature material from two weeks' worth of recording in May of 1961 – with backing from Jim Hall on guitar, Lou Levy on piano, Wilfred Middlebrooks on bass, and Gus Johnson on drums. A brief intro rolls into beautiful material on 2CDs – 37 tracks in all: "Lover Come Back To Me", "Too Close For Comfort", "Little White Lies", "I Found A New Baby", "Perdido", "'Round Midnight", "Take The 'A' Train", "Mr Paganini", "Nice Work If You Can Get It", "I Can't Get It Started", "Give Me The Simple Life", "Lorelei", "Witchcraft", "That Old Black Magic", "Lullaby Of Birdland", "Imagination", "Joe Williams' Blues" and more. CD

A vocal jazz classic! Joe Williams had come to great fame as the singer with the Basie band during the 50s, but this beautiful album is unlike his usual work with the group – and shows a sophisticated vocal side of Joe that's really amazing. The album was arranged by Jimmy Mundy, with lush backings that bring out a sensitive side to Joe's rich voice – heartbreaking on most tracks, as you'd probably guess by the album's title. The mix of ballads features a few familiar numbers from the late 50s, plus some real charmers from earlier years that Joe reinterprets on his own level. Titles include "What's New?", "A Man Ain't Supposed To Cry", "Say It Isn't So", "Can't We Talk It Over?", "I'm Through With Love", and "I'll Never Smile Again". A wonderful treasure from the years when Roulette was cutting some of the most sophisticated vocal sessions in America! CD

A vocal jazz classic – finally out on CD! Joe Williams had come to great fame as the singer with the Basie band during the 50s, but this beautiful album is unlike his usual work with the group – and shows a sophisticated vocal side of Joe that's really amazing. The album was arranged by Jimmy Mundy, with lush backings that bring out a sensitive side to Joe's rich voice – heartbreaking on most tracks, as you'd probably guess by the album's title. The mix of ballads features a few familiar numbers from the late 50s, plus some real charmers from earlier years that Joe reinterprets on his own level. Titles include "What's New?", "A Man Ain't Supposed To Cry", "Say It Isn't So", "Can't We Talk It Over?", "I'm Through With Love", and "I'll Never Smile Again". A wonderful treasure from the years when Roulette was cutting some of the most sophisticated vocal sessions in America! CD

Singer Jose James has always had a classic vibe to his vocals – but that quality is maybe put forward even more here on this well-crafted Christmas album – a set that somehow manages to bridge the gap between classic Holiday records and the more contemporary work that James has given us on recent records! The focus here is very strongly on his voice – upfront and unadorned, and presented at a level that reminds us that James has been one of the freshest new singers in jazz over the past decade or so – working with help from Aaron Parks on piano, Ben Williams on bass, and Jaharis Yokely on drums – plus a few great solo spots from Marcus Strickland on tenor. Titles include the beautiful "Christmas In New York" – plus "My Favorite Things", "Christmas Day", "The Christmas Waltz", "This Christmas", and "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas". (Holiday Music, Vocalists) CD

The genius of Betty Carter knows no bounds – and this album's a perfect illustration of that fact! The record is one of the few that Betty released on her own label – working in near obscurity at a time when she really wanted to break from the BS of the bigger companies, and the staid approach they were using towards vocal jazz. This set is one of Betty's most freewheeling – performed with trio lineups that include players like Onaje Alan Gumbs, Buster Williams, and Louis Hayes – really stretching things out past the simple "piano trio meets standards with singer" that you might hear on other records. The best illustration of the style is the amazing track "Sounds" – a 7 minute workout that has the trio and Betty cutting loose, taking jazz vocals a million miles past Ella or Billie or any other singer. Most other tracks are originals – and beautiful ones too – and titles include "What Is It", "I Can't Help It", "We Tried", "Happy", and "Tight". CD