Early bop material from the great
Sonny Criss – a collection of rare early live sessions, done at a time when he was one of the leading lights of the Central Ave scene! The first 3 tracks on the set feature
Sonny blowing away on a set of longer tunes – recorded in 1947 with Howard McGhee, Teddy Edwards, and Hampton Hawes – on tracks that include "The Man I Love", "Orinithology", and "Body & Soul". The next 4 tracks are from 1949, and already show
Sonny maturing into the soulful player of later years – working with Hampton Hawes in a quartet, on tracks that include "Calidad", "Tornado", "The First One", and "Blues For Boppers". Next up are 4 tracks from the classic Charlie Parker/
Chet Baker date from June 1952 at the Tradewinds – a session that alto featured some great work from
Criss on tracks that include "The Squirrel", "They Didn't Believe Me", "Indiana", and "Liza". Last up is one more Tradewinds recording from September of 1952 – with
Sonny leading a quartet on a great reading of "Strike Up The Band".