... LP, Vinyl record album

Wome of Woody Herman's cooler, groovier work of the 60s – with work from young talents that include Don Rader on both trumpet and arrangements, plus Dusko Goykovich on additional trumpet, Nat Pierce on piano, and Sal Nistico on tenor! LP, Vinyl record album

Stravinsky's Ebony Concerto is dedicated to Woody Herman – and played here by Herman's orchestra. LP, Vinyl record album

A classic from the undisputed master of the swing jazz jam session! Jumpin' At The Woodside has Buck Clayton recreating a Count Basie vibe, but in a much more open-ended, and long-grooving way! Most of the tracks on the record are nice and long – really opening up with a solo-heavy, jam session sort of style – and players shift from track to track, and include Woody Herman on clarinet, Coleman Hawkins on tenor, Al Cohn on tenor, Urbie Green on trombone, and Ruby Braff on trumpet. Titles include "Broadway", "Rock A Bye Basie", "Jumpin At The Woodside", and "Blue & Sentimental". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic set of interlocking tenor work from 3 giants who made up the best part of Woody Herman's classic 4 horn lineup – Al Cohn, Bill Perkins, and Richie Kamuca – all coming together here in small group formation! The album's a wonderful example of the way that the hornplay of the larger Herman group had an influence on the smaller combos of the west coast scene – and Perkins and Kamuca are especially great here, working with a strong sense of precision, but also some nice humanity in their tone. Other group members include either Jimmy Raney or Barry Galbraith on guitar, Hank Jones on piano, John Beal on bass, and Chuck Flores on drums – and titles include "Cap Snapper", "Pro Ex", "Hags", "Gay Blade", and "The Walrus". CD

The question in the title is almost a moot point – because with the quality of a record like this, we hardly care if other bands come back at all! Duke's working here on a batch of older big band standards – as you might guess from the title – but the tracks all have a nice little flourish that's filled with plenty of those later Ellington touches – a seemingly effortless ability to place interesting horn bits and rhythmic twists into tunes that you thought you might already know. The set features new takes on classics associated with the bands of Esrkine Hawkins, Glen Gray, Woody Herman, Les Brown, and others – and titles include "Rhapsody In Blue", "Smoke Rings", "Artistry In Rhythm", "The Waltz You Saved For Me", "Woodchopper's Ball", and "Good Bye". LP, Vinyl record album

Stan Getz on Columbia Records – a period that's filled with wonderful moments and lots of surprises – all of which are on this great little set! Folks normally think "Verve" when they think of Stan Getz – but his Columbia years have some wonderful elements too – as Getz was really stretching out, and doing some amazing things with his tenor – taking on Coltrane inspirations, moving into some freer fusion modes, and even going back to some of those great Brazilian and modal styles he explored at Verve in the 60s! This package is filled with great records – a number of which haven't been on CD in the US – and also some rare bonus material too! Titles include the electric Chick Corea grooves of Captain Marvel, the bossa-revival of The Best Of Two Worlds, the soaring sounds of The Master, the Jimmy Rowles piano of The Peacocks, the soulful Another World, the gentle Children Of The World, the rare dutch soundtrack Forest Eyes, and a Bonus Disc of rare live material from 1977 at Montreux, the 1979 Havana Jam, and a Carnegie Hall Woody Herman tribute! CD

Pretty amazing work from one of the greatest under-rated talents of 50s modern jazz! John LaPorta was a brilliant multi-instrumentalist who's probably best known for his work with Mingus in the mid 50s Jazz Workshop years, and for his earlier sides with Woody Herman – but it's on records under his own name that LaPorta really begins to shine. This great set features 14 tracks that were recorded in the 50s, but never issued before – and 9 more that were from the album Conceptions, issued briefly in the 50s by Fantasy Records. The first 14 tracks form a long suite of jazz-based compositions, handled with a modernist chamber-type approach – and based around some really great solo work on trumpet, baritone, tenor, and bass. The feel is almost like a 50s jazz soundtrack – with lots of moody moments paired with others that break out in a stronger swinging groove. The remaining tracks are equally nice – in a similar style, and showing LaPorta as a composer who could have handled just about any ambitious jazz project of the time. Titles include "Forward Motion", "Jazz Canon", "Images", "Lucidity", "Little Fantasy", "Ferme LaPorta", "En Rapport", and "Triplets You Say". CD

Fantastic small group work from tenorist Sal Nistico – and one of the few records that really finds a way to capture his genius! Sal got his start in the Woody Herman band of the 60s – and although a standout there, he really shines even more brightly here in a small group setting – with a sharp edge on his horn that maybe only comes through this well in a handful of his European recordings, especially for the Ego label. In the spirit of that imprint, the great trumpeter Ted Curson is on board – and Sal's tone is also balanced out nicely by some equally great work from Nick Brignola on baritone. The rest of the combo is equally great – with superb rhythm from Ronnie Mathews on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Roy Haynes on drums – and titles include "Be My Love", "Blues For KD", "Bambu", "Fee Fi Fo Fum", and "Anthropology". LP, Vinyl record album

Music from Glen Miller, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Chick Webb, Tommy Dorsey, Lionel Hampton, Louis Armstrong, Artie Shaw, Jimmie Lunchford, Woody Herman, Fletcher Henderson, and much more. CD

A collection of highlights spanning the entire history of the Monterey Jazz Festival, with performances by Cannonball Adderley, Toots Thielemans, Woody Herman, Joe Henderson, Jon Hendricks, Jimmy Giuffre, Johnny Griffin, Buddy Rich with Dizzy Gillespie, Clark Terry, Joe Williams, Benny Golson, and Joanne Brackeen. LP, Vinyl record album

How many different iterations of the "Four Brothers" were there? We don't know, but as near as we can tell, this grouping might most resemble the "original", with four West coast heavies joining forces for a swinging side. Originally making up the sax section of Woody Herman's Thundering Herd, Zoot Sims, Al Cohn, Herbie Steward and Serge Chaloff are the brothers, and they're joined by fellow Herman alum Buddy Jones, plus Elliot Lawrence and Don Lamond in the rhythm section on this side for Vik. As you'd expect, the numbers are all West coast gems, by the likes of Cohn, Sims, Jimmy Giuffre, Gerry Mulligan and Manny Albam amongst others, and featuring the brothers blowing in a remarkably spry manner for such a heavyweight lineup. 10 tracks in all: "Four And One More", "So Blue", "The Swinging Door", 'Four In Hand", "A Quick One", 'Four Brothers", "Ten Years Later", "The Pretty One", "Aged In Wood" and "Here We Go Again". CD

With Jimmy Rowles and the Woody Herman Big Band. CD