One of Art Blakey's first true moments of genius! This transitional version of the Jazz Messengers included two parts – Lee Morgan and Bobby Timmons – of the holy Morgan/Shorter/Timmons trilogy, and it's also got the added bonus of Benny Golson on tenor, who was at the height of his power at this point. The record really shines in ways that few Blakey albums shone since his days with Horace Silver – in that it's a forum for fresh new writing, most importantly Golson's landmark compositions "Blues March" and "Along Came Betty", and Timmons' instant classic "Moanin". The whole album's wonderful, though, and Golson's edgey modernism adds a strong dimension to the group's usual soulful romping groove! (And in fact, as a tribute to the group's success, the album was initially named Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, but quickly retitled Moanin in this version, after the big hit single!) CD

One of Art Blakey's first true moments of genius! This transitional version of the Jazz Messengers included two parts – Lee Morgan and Bobby Timmons – of the holy Morgan/Shorter/Timmons trilogy, and it's also got the added bonus of Benny Golson on tenor, who was at the height of his power at this point. The record really shines in ways that few Blakey albums shone since his days with Horace Silver – in that it's a forum for fresh new writing, most importantly Golson's landmark compositions "Blues March" and "Along Came Betty", and Timmons' instant classic "Moanin". The whole album's wonderful, though, and Golson's edgey modernism adds a strong dimension to the group's usual soulful romping groove! (And in fact, as a tribute to the group's success, the album was initially named Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, but quickly retitled Moanin in this version, after the big hit single!) CD also features a bonus version of "Moanin" and a warm-up track between Lee & Rudy. CD

A great reissue of one of the few albums ever cut as a leader by crack drummer Charlie Persip, though you might miss that as it's issued here under Conte Candoli and Lee Morgan's names! Morgan and Candoli share the front line on only two tracks, and the set was originally issued as one of Howard Rumsey's "Lighthouse Series" sides of the 50s – but it's a lot harder-driving and more energy-filled than most of the other Lighthouse-related sides coming out of LA at the time. Half the record features Persip's group – a set of east coasters that includes Lee Morgan, Benny Golson, and Wynton Kelly – and the other part features some of the players from that ensemble mixing it up with Candoli, drummer Stan Levey and other LA talents that include Frank Rosolino, Bob Cooper, and others. In all, the album's a great meeting of east and west coast hardbop styles – with short driving tracks that include "Reggie Of Chester", "Celedia", "Moto", "The Champ", and "Wildwood". CD

Featuring Benny Golson on tenor, Joe Locke on vibes, and Sir Roland Hanna on piano. CD

Features Fred Hersch on piano and Benny Golson on tenor sax! CD

A seminal session as a leader by the young Art Farmer – recorded for United Artists, and a great set of tight lyrical tunes, played by Farmer in his sparkling style – in a group along with Benny Golson on tenor and Bill Evans on piano. Evans is a special treat here, as the 1958 session was recorded at a time when he was making a fair bit of appearances in various rhythm sections for horn players (like Miles Davis) – and although this role in Evans' career was a short one, it yielded some amazingly beautiful moments, as you'll hear on this album. Art's brother Addison plays bass, and Dave Bailey rounds out the group on drums. Tracks include "Cold Breeze", "Mox Nix", "Jubilation", and "Fair Weather". Originally recorded for United Artists, but reissued here by Blue Note. CD

A really classic session – one that features an all-star lineup of players who were in the Dizzy Gillespie band of the mid 50s – stepping out here in a smaller group on their own for a one-off date on the Specialty Records label! Specialty normally recorded R&B at the time, but they knock it out of the park with this one – really letting the players stretch out with lots of soulful energy – in a lineup that includes the young Lee Morgan on trumpet, Al Grey on trombone, Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul West on bass, and Charlie Persip on drums – plus the fantastic Billy Root on baritone – a really great player who only recorded a bit back in the day! Arrangements are nice and hip – done by Benny Golson and Roger Spotts – and titles include "About Time", "DDT", "Whisper Not", and the very long "Dishwater" – a nice uptempo workout, Dizzy style! CD

A great lost date from the wonderful Gigi Gryce – a set that features the altoist in an sextet, but often swinging with a looser vibe than on some of his better-known albums from the 50s! There's a mix of soulful and modern here that's not unlike the Art Farmer/Benny Golson Jazztet – both players of Gryce's same postwar generation, and coincidentally recording for Mercury at the same time. Although the groove here is definitely different – less emphasis on the bottom, and more on the top – not just Gryce's wonderfully raspy alto, but also the trumpet of Richard Williams too. All other players are great as well – and Eddie Costa brings in some sweet vibes – in a lineup that also features Richard Wyands on piano, and either Reggie Workman or George Duvivier on bass, and either Walter Perkins or Bob Thomas on drums. Tracks include "Reminiscing", "Gee Blues Gee", "Blue Light", and "Night In Tunisia". CD

Ray Drummond on bass, Benny Golson on tenor saxophone, Mickey Tucker on piano, Curtis Fuller on trombone, Albert Heath on drums, and Art Farmer On flugelhorn. CD

A wonderfully experimental album from drummer Philly Joe Jones – and one that has just the right sort of "ethnic" feel to earn its "Around The World" title! Mostly, the ethnicity comes through in exotic reed work by Sahib Shihab, Herbie Mann, and Cannonball Adderley – who all play wonderfully on the album – alongside straighter sidemen who include Lee Morgan and Blue Mitchell on trumpets, Benny Golson on tenor, and Curtis Fuller on trombone. There's a bit of the Yusef Lateef late 50s sound on here – mixed with Philly's killer crack sock drum approach – a blend that comes off wonderfully throughout, and really makes the album a standout in Philly Joe's catalog from the time. Titles include "Land Of The Blue Veils", "Blue Gwynn", "El Tambores", and "The Tribal Message", which is a nice drum solo! CD also features a bonus take of "Stablemates". CD

With Benny Golson on tenor saxophone. CD

Pure genius from a great lineup – an assortment of players who've made quite a name recording sets like this one for the Japanese market! Tenorist Eric Alexander is very firmly in place on the set – giving it the same gentle soul and well-crafted sound as his own great albums – and other players include Jim Rotondi on trumpet, David Hazeltine on piano, Joe Farnsworth on drums, and Steve Davis on trombone. The horns in the frontline are beautifully poised throughout – tightly crackling on the head arrangements, then breaking out in soulful solos – in a way that reminds us a lot of some of the legendary work by the Benny Golson-Art Farmer Jazztet. It's no surprise that the group covers the Jazztet standard "Killer Joe" – and the album also features great versions of Duke Pearson's "You Know I Care" and Ahmad Jamal's "Night Mist Blues" – plus originals "Island" and "Hot Sake". CD

A really wonderful little chapter in the rich, and all-too-short career of bassist Oscar Pettiford – larger group recordings done for ABC in the mid 50s! The sessions show Pettiford to be surprisingly great at such a format – leading a group through Gigi Gryce arrangements that have a nice modern jazz take on earlier bop themes of the 50s. Gryce himself plays alto on the session, and other players include Jerome Richardson, Benny Golson, Art Farmer, Kenny Dorham, Jimmy Cleveland, Al Grey, Tommy Flanagan, and Lucky Thompson. The CD seems to include material from both Pettiford sessions for ABC – for a total of 17 tracks that include "Two French Fries", "Perdido", "Speculation", "Sunrise Sunset", "Smoke Signal", "Deep Passion", "Nica's Tempo", "Not So Sleepy", "Little Niles", and "Seabreeze". CD

Some of our favorite work ever by Esther Phillips – served up on a compilation that does a great job of sorting through her classic 70s sides for Kudu, CTI, and Mercury! Back in the 60s, Esther sung in a sad and bluesy sort of soul style – but in the 70s, at the time of these recordings, Esther picked up a sweet electric vibe, really hipping up her sound with lots of funky guitar, bass, and keyboards. The result is tremendous – as you'll hear on this set – as Esther works with arrangers that include Pee Wee Ellis, Bob James, Benny Golson and Harvey Mason to cut some wickedly soulful tunes! The set includes 18 tracks in all, with titles that include "Use Me", "Home Is Where The Hatred Is", "That's All Right With Me", "I've Never Found A Man", "Brother Brother", "From A Whisper To A Scream", "All The Way Down", "Black Eyed Blues", "Native New Yorker", "Changing", "SOS", "We've Got A Good Thing Going", "You Think Of Him", "Bedtime Stories", and "I Hope You'll Be Very Unhappy About Me". CD

Valery Ponomarev, Chris Rogers, and Josh Evans on trumpet, Benny Golson, Peter Brainin, and Steve Harrington on tenor saxophone, Todd Bashore on alto saxophone, Corey Wallace on trombone, Mamiko Watanabe on piano, and Victor Jones on drums. CD

On the one hand, our jazz snob side wonders why Diana Ross would be picked to star as Billie Holiday, but on the other, it makes perfect sense, as this soundtrack to the film was made during the early 70s, when she was at the top of her career, and one of the highest profile female soul singers. And she acquits herself quite well, with a solid performance that's more than respectable, helped along the way by sympathetic orchestral arrangements from Benny Golson and Oliver Nelson. While we may not turn to this recording over any of Billie's originals, it's a pretty remarkable turning point for Diana, establishing her "diva" status and helping to launch her solo career to new heights. 35 numbers in all, though many of them are dialogue or musical bits lifted from the film. Includes "All Of Me", "the Man I Love", "Ain't Nobody's Business If I Do", "Fine & Mellow", "You've Changed", "My Man", "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless The Child". CD

On the one hand, our jazz snob side wonders why Diana Ross would be picked to star as Billie Holiday, but on the other, it makes perfect sense, as this soundtrack to the film was made during the early 70s, when she was at the top of her career, and one of the highest profile female soul singers. And she acquits herself quite well, with a solid performance that's more than respectable, helped along the way by sympathetic orchestral arrangements from Benny Golson and Oliver Nelson. While we may not turn to this recording over any of Billie's originals, it's a pretty remarkable turning point for Diana, establishing her "diva" status and helping to launch her solo career to new heights. 35 numbers in all, though many of them are dialogue or musical bits lifted from the film. Includes "All Of Me", "the Man I Love", "Ain't Nobody's Business If I Do", "Fine & Mellow", "You've Changed", "My Man", "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless The Child". CD

A wonderful album from George Russell – a refreshing change from his overly-academic modernist work – and a brilliant bit of new ideas with some very down to earth expression! The session's an unusual one – a musical portrait of New York City, performed with an all-star cast who really flesh out the ideas in the music – linked together with these fantastic spoken bits by Jon Hendricks – patter about the city and the scene that really make the whole thing come alive! The lineup is virtually a who's who of modern jazz at the moment – John Coltrane and Benny Golson on tenors, Art Farmer on trumpet, Bill Evans on piano, Hal McKusick and Phil Woods on alto, and Max Roach on drums – coming together under some of the clearest leadership that George Russell has ever provided. The whole thing is great – and titles include "Manhattan", "Big City Blues", "Manhattan-Rico", and "A Helluva Town". CD

A very nice session by baritonist Sahib Shihab – and one of the most far-reaching works he cut in this country before disappearing to Europe for the better part of the 60s! The album's broken into two different groups – both have Sahib playing with Phil Woods on alto and Benny Golson on tenor, but one rhythm section is Hank Jones on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums – and the other is Bill Evans on piano, Oscar Pettiford on bass, and Taylor again on drums. Tracks are long, and mostly have a hardbop sort of approach – but there's also a slight undercurrent of mysticism too, of the sort that would show up more strongly in Sahib's later work. Titles include "Ballad To The East", "Jamila", "Le Sneak", and "The Moors". CD

Genius work from one of the most solid groups in 60s jazz – the quintet co-led by trumpeter Clark Terry and trombonist Bob Brookmeyer – a legendary ensemble that drew on the best talents of both players, but grew into something greater! Brookmeyer's playing valve trombone throughout on the tunes – played in a fluid, trumpety way that matches perfectly with Terry's own phrasing – and which almost creates a sense of counterpoint on the head arrangements, yet which never falls into styles that are too academic or modern. There's a fluid easy grace here that's really surprising – with none of Terry's gutbuckety tricks or Brookmeyer's too experimental moments – and overall, the group have a solid, soulful quality that almost reminds us of the Art Farmer-Benny Golson Jazztet, or of some of Farmer's other key recordings of the 60s. Rhythm is by the trio of Roger Kellaway on piano, Bill Crow on bass, and Dave Bailey on drums – and the CD features 3 albums' worth of material on 2CDs – 28 titles that include "Tete A Tete", "Pretty Girl", "Blue China", "The King", "Dancing On The Grave", "Sometime Ago", "Hymn", "Green Stamps", "Hawg Jawz", "Simple Waltz", and "Milo's Other Samba". CD

Featuring Paquito D'Rivera, Benny Golson, Antonio Hart, Clifford Jordan, Bobby McFerrin, Jackie McLean, and David Sanchez. CD

Dizzy Gillespie on trumpet and vocals, Jimmy Powell and Phil Woods on alto saxophone, Billy Root and Marty Flax on baritone saxophone, Nelson Boyd and Paul West on bass, Rod Levitt on bass trombone, Charlie Persip on drums, Walter Davis Jr and Wynton Kelly on piano, Benny Golson, Billy Mitchell, and Ernie Wilkins on tenor saxophone, Al Grey, Frank Rehak, and Melba Liston on trombone, and Ermet Perry, Joe Gordon, Lee Morgan, and Quincy Jones on trumpet. CD

An excellent live set – featuring great work by some of Dizzy's best sidemen of the late 50's! The ensemble is razor sharp, in that hip post-bop way that Dizzy was developing in the 50s, before moving into his Latin groove years of the early 60s. Benny Golson, Billy Mitchell, and Wynton Kelly all get a chance to solo nicely, and the tracks include renditions of "Manteca", "Dizzy's Blues", "Cool Breeze", and "Doodlin". Features three long bonus tracks too! CD

One of the hardest to find of the early Lee Morgan albums on Blue Note – and a very lyrical batch of hardbop tracks, played with a slightly exotic flair! Morgan's group on the date features melodic modernists Benny Golson on tenor and Gigi Gryce on alto sax – both of whom push Morgan past his youthful bop approach into more sensitive areas – especially Golson, who wrote and arranged the tunes on the date with a sublime mix of hardbop and deeper musical ideals! Rhythm is from the trio of Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Charlie Persip on drums – and titles include a great reading of Golson's "I Remember Clifford", plus four other originals by Benny – "Hasaan's Dream", "Domingo", "Mesabi Chant", and "Tip Toeing". CD

A really wonderful little chapter in the rich, and all-too-short career of bassist Oscar Pettiford – larger group recordings done for ABC in the mid 50s! The sessions show Pettiford to be surprisingly great at such a format – leading a group through Gigi Gryce arrangements that have a nice modern jazz take on earlier bop themes of the 50s. Gryce himself plays alto on the session, and other players include Jerome Richardson, Benny Golson, Art Farmer, Kenny Dorham, Jimmy Cleveland, Al Grey, Tommy Flanagan, and Lucky Thompson. The CD seems to include material from both Pettiford sessions for ABC – for a total of 17 tracks that include "Two French Fries", "Perdido", "Speculation", "Sunrise Sunset", "Smoke Signal", "Deep Passion", "Nica's Tempo", "Not So Sleepy", "Little Niles", and "Seabreeze". CD