Very fluid later work from Count Basie – a set that has that nice open-ended Pablo Records approach, but which still comes across with that brilliant Basie groove that first emerged most strongly in the 50s! Players are a mix of young and old, and the group includes Grover Mitchell and Booty Wood on trombones, Sonny Cohn and Jim Crawford on trumpets, John Williams on baritone, Eric Dixon on tenor and flute, Kenny Hing on tenor, Chris Woods on alto and flute, Joe Pass on guitar, and Cleveland Eaton on bass. Tracks are on the long side, and titles include "88 Basie Street", "Bluesville", "The Blues Machine", "Contractor's Blues", "Katy", and "Sunday At The Savoy". LP, Vinyl record album

The Basie band is plenty big here – but never too much so to lose their confident swing of earlier years! The Count is still firmly at the helm at the time of this recording – leading and playing keys with that spacious, stepping quality that makes a Basie number of the later years groove so nicely. But there's also some wonderfully complex patterns on the horns – new shadings and colorings that come through on the album's batch of all original tracks by Sam Nestico, whose presence in the group in the 70s really helped shape its sound. Sam's work here is every bit as valuable as Neal Hefti's in the 50s – and tunes like "Front Burner", "Freckle Face", "Orange Sherbert", "Soft As Velvet", and "Midnight Freight" push the group far past the cliches they might have fallen into during these later years! LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Blues For Alfy", "Ticker", "Tree Frog", "Festival Blues", and "Swee' Pea". CD

The 50s Basie band, loud and proud – recorded beautifully by Verve on the stage of the Newport Jazz Festival in 1957 – a great year, both for the group and the fest! The lineup here features Count Basie firmly at the helm on piano – with players who include Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, and Frank Foster on tenor – plus Thad Jones and Joe Newman on trumpets – all tightly grooving on arrangements by Ernie Wilkins, AK Salim, and others – filled with plenty of Basie jumps, leaps, and vamps! Jimmy Rushing sings vocals on the track "Sent For You Yesterday & Here You Come Today" – and other tracks include "Lester Leaps In", "Swingin At Newport", "Polka Dots & Moonbeams", and "Evenin". CD also contains 5 more bonus tracks from another Verve album – Count Basie & Joe Williams at Newport, most with Williams on vocals – including "All Right Okay You Win", "The Comeback", "Roll 'Em Pete", "Smack Dab In The Middle", and "One O' Clock Jump". CD

A great little gem from the Count Basie years on Verve – a tight little record that has Basie really reinventing his sound for the 50s – an album that's filled with short, uncomplicated tracks that have a surprisingly easy-going groove! The arrangements are swinging and tight, with that Hefti-styled focus on a core element that really moves the tunes along – delivered by some great solo work from players that include Joe Newman on trumpet, Henry Coker on trombone, and Marshall Royal on alto. Basie has plenty of space to tinkle the ivories in mellow soul lines, too – and tracks include "Sure Thing", "Why Not", "Fawncy Meeting You", "Bootsie", "Bunny", "Cash Box", and "Basie Talks". CD

A Basie 2-fer! First up is Kanas City Suite – a great little set – despite our initial fears! We'll admit that we're the first ones to shy away from anything that says "Kansas City" in the title – as we expect a lot of hoke – but this album's a surprisingly great batch of tunes, original numbers written by Benny Carter in honor of the KC of days past, but arranged and performed by the Basie group in a swinging style that's got the best touches of their Roulette years, plus a bit of Ellingtonish ambition in the horn charts. Titles include "Katy Do", "Miss Missouri", "Jackson County Jubilee", "Sunset Glow", "Meetin Time", and "The Wiggle Walk". Easin It is a soulful Basie swinger – thanks to some great tunes from Frank Foster! Most tracks are longer than usual for a Roulette album – and titles include "Brotherly Shove", "Easin It", "Blues For Daddy-O", "Four Five Six", and "Mama Dev". LP, Vinyl record album

With Al Grey, Bill Hughes, Groer Mitchell, Melvin Wanxo, and John Watson Sr on trombones; Paul Cohen, George "Sonny" Cohn, George Minger, and Waymon Reed on trumpets; Bobby "Jersey Bounce" Plater, Eric Dixon, Curtis Peagler, JC Williams, and Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis on saxophones; Freddie Green on guitar, Norman "Dewey" Keenan on bass, and Harold Jones on drums. CD

Count Basie and Quincy Jones were always a mighty mighty combination – and there's no finer proof of that fact than this sweet little set! Quincy had a way of swinging Basie's group even more than Neal Hefti did – really letting the piano step out front, and swinging the larger horn parts in this mode that was extremely soulful, yet never with the hoke that could sometimes mar a Basie set – a style that was very 60s groovy, and which really helped breathe new life into the Count's ensemble! The album's a killer all the way through – and the tunes are all originals – written by Quincy, and arranged especially for the set – great little numbers that include "Nasty Magus", "Dum Dum", "Boody Rumble", "Count Em", "Belly Roll", and "Lil Ol Groovemaker Basie"! LP, Vinyl record album

A very late set from Basie – but still swinging hard in the best Pablo mode! Some tracks also feature a smaller group – with Booty Wood on trombone and Eric Dixon on tenor. CD

With Roy Eldridge on trumpet, Benny Carter on alto, Zoot Sims on tenor, Vic Dickenson and Al Grey on trombone, Ray Brown on bass, and Jimmie Smith on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

With Freddie Green on guitar, Keter Betts on bass, and Mickey Roker on drums, with orchestra! LP, Vinyl record album

The title's not a hokey TV reference or anything like that – but a strong reminder that the Count Basie group was still very much in their prime during the 1970s, thanks especially to the recording talents that the Pablo label brought to records like this! Most of the work here was arranged and composed by Sam Nestico – the talent who was bringing a really fresh voice to the Basie group while still keeping most of its best elements intact. The track "Bundle O Funk" features some great Fender bass in the grooves, and is arguably one of the few funky tracks that Basie ever recorded – but other tracks get back to an all acoustic groove, and include "The Great Debate", "Ya Gotta Try", "Reachin Out", "Featherweight", and "Prime Time". LP, Vinyl record album

We totally dig Basie's work from the mid 60s! He was working with Quincy Jones at the time – and Quince laid down some very soulful arrangements that used the best jazz elements of the Basie group to turn out some great pop instrumental tracks with a very groovy sound. This album's a perfect example of that format, as it features some great Basie sidemen, grooving nicely to Quincy's hip swinging arrangements of pop material like "Walk, Don't Run", "Fly Me To The Moon", "This Could Be The Start Of Something Big", and "One Mint Julep". CD

Includes the songs "Honeysuckle Rose", "Blue And Sentimental", "Taxi War Dance", "John's Idea", "Topsy", "Every Tub", "Swinging The Blues", "Jumpin' At The Woodside", "Boogie Woogie", "How Long Blues", "Panassie Stomp", "Jive At Five", "Lady Be Good", "Doggin' Around", "Texas Shuffle", "Dickie's Dream", "Lester Leaps In", "Tickle Toe", "Red Bank Boogie", "Cherokee (Parts 1 & 2)", and "One O'Clock Jump". CD

An amazing little record – with results that are even greater than the sum of its parts! As you'd guess from the title, Count Basie takes on the 60s sounds of The Beatles – but he's doing so with arrangements from the great Chico O'Farrill – who really keeps things interesting throughout – throwing in those hip rhythms and odd twists and turns he first forged with his Latin recordings – in ways that definitely live up to the groovy pedigree of the tunes. And the Basie group's got a groovier sound than usual – probably due to the arrangements – and Basie plays some nice organ riffs on a number of the album's tracks – one of the Count's rare outings on the instrument, always a treat. Titles include "Help!", "Can't Buy Me Love", "I Wanna Be Your Man", "All My Loving", and "And I Love Her". Proof that The Beatles' influence was way farther reaching than you'd ever expect! CD

Features some great vocals by Jimmy Rushing – plus early Basie swingers! LP, Vinyl record album

With Lester Young, Herschel Evans, Buck Clayton, Harry Edison, Benny Morton, Dicky Wells, Freddie Green, Jo Jones, Walter Page, and others. LP, Vinyl record album

A quartet date with Basie on piano, Dizzy Gillespie on trumpet, Ray Brown on bass, and Mickey Roker on drums. Titles include "Back To The Land", "Constantinople", "You Got It", "St James Infirmary", "Follow The Leader" and "Ow". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

Hard to believe it took a few decades in the careers of both players for them to record together – but that's exactly what you've got here – a landmark meeting of Count Basie and Duke Ellington from the early 60s, near the tail end of Duke's classic stretch on Columbia! Teo Macero produced the session with just the right amount of care and class to keep the whole thing from being an exercise in cliche – and there's a surprising amount of depth here that you might not expect – the best modern elements of Duke's orchestra on Columbia, coming into play with a bit more of the fire and vamp of the Basie group at the time! Titles include "Battle Royal", "Wild Man", "Segue In C", "Jumpin At The Woodside", "To You", and "Take The A Train". LP, Vinyl record album

With Willie Cook and Dale Carley on trumpet and flugelhorn, Grover Mitchell on trombone, Bill Hughes on bass trombone, Eric Dixon on tenor and flute, Bobby Plater on alto and flute, Freddie Green on guitar, Cleveland Eaton on bass, and Gregg Field on drums, with Tee Carson on piano, and Mary Stallings and Acapella Gold on vocals. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the more obscure albums by Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross – a session of Basie tunes, performed with backing by the Count, plus additional lead vocals by Joe Williams, the voice most closely associated with the Basie group at the time! The style is similar to the trio's Sing A Song Of Basie album for ABC, but handled here with a bit more of an edge, and a rougher, more freewheeling groove that's a better fit for the great Basie sound of the late 50s – a great adaptation of the groove by Jon Hendricks, Dave Lambert, and Annie Ross! The record's a nice sometimes-overlooked chapter in the excellent Count Basie run on Roulette – and titles include "Every Tub", "Rusty Dusty Blues", "The King", "Shorty George", and "Let Me See". LP, Vinyl record album

The title's a bit of a joke – because the record features a batch sidemen from the Count Basie band – Thad Jones, Joe Newman, Freddy Green, Billy Mitchell, Frank Foster, and others – all working with Sarah, but the Count's name is missing, due to contractual obligations! Despite that lack, though, the grooves are very much in the best Basie mode – full of soul and searing horn lines – at a level that makes the album one of Sarah's liveliest from the time! Players include Thad Jones and Joe Newman on trumpet, Al Grey on trombone, Frank Foster and Frank Wess on tenor, and Freddie Green on guitar – and Ronnell Bright handles the piano, instead of Basie. Titles include "Darn That Dream", "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes", "Doodlin", "Just One Of Those Things", "No Count Blues", and "Missing You". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful reunion of the team of Frank Foster and Frank Wess – caught here in an easy-going and laidback style that's miles away from their work with Count Basie! The youthful rhythm section of Kenny Barron, Rufus Reid, and Marvin Smitty Smith really adds a lot to the set – giving the record a later sort of soul jazz vibe, one that's perfect for the pair to solo over in open-ended lines. Both Franks play tenor sax, and Wess plays flute and alto as well – while Foster does some excellent work on soprano sax. Titles include "Bay Street", "Two For The Blues", "But For The Likes Of You", "Nancy With The Laughing Face", "Your Beauty Is A Song Of Love", and "A Time For Love". CD

With Count Basie, Charlie Christian, Ziggy Elman, Lionel Hampton, Fred Astaire, Johnny Guarnieri, Cootie Williams, and Georgie Auld. CD

An excellent collection of Billie's 30s work for Columbia Records – featuring 3LPs worth of material, represented with much better sound than the original 78 rpm release of the songs. Billie's in the company of a host of great jazzmen – including Count Basie, Lester Young, Teddy Wilson, Charlie Shavers, Artie Shaw, Cozy Cole, Roy Eldridge, Red Allen, and countless others. 48 tracks in all – with titles that include "Your Mother's Son In Law", "Riffin The Scotch", "Them There Eyes", "Without Your Love", "Swing Brother Swing", "Back In Your Own Back Yard", "You Go To My Head", "Long Gone Blues", "I Can't Get Started", "All Of Me", "God Bless The Child", and "Gloomy Sunday". LP, Vinyl record album

Tight trio material from the legendary Richard Groove Holmes – caught live at Count Basie's Nightclub in Harlem, working hard and heavy with a trio that features Gene Edwards on guitar and George Randall on drums! This live set is the kind of record that beautifully shows why Groove was so popular with live audiences in the 60s – because he can burn all night long, with no tricks, no gimmicks, just a straight-on soul jazz groove and some amazing work on the Hammond! Most cuts are pretty long – and there's some great groovers on here like Gerald Wilson's "Blues For Yna Yna", a cover of "Girl From Ipanema", Jimmy Heath's "Gemini", and Groove's own "Living Soul". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the tenorist's best-known tracks – recorded with a group that features Hank Jones on piano, Freddie Green on guitar, and Count Basie on organ! 78 RPM, Vinyl record

A really classic set from drummer Jo Jones – really more of a small group Count Basie outing – given that Basie himself guests on piano, and other players here include Freddie Green on guitar, Lucky Thompson on tenor, Emmet Berry on trumpet, and Bennie Green on trombone! The style is swing-based and very tight – but the record also has that easy, open-ended Vanguard jazz groove – recorded here by John Hammond with a good sense of tradition and respect for the players. Titles include 2 takes on "Shoe Shine Boy", plus "Caravan", "Georgia Mae", "Lover Man", "Lincoln Heights", and "Embraceable You". LP, Vinyl record album

Enoch Light performs music by Glenn Miller, Count Basie, Artie Shaw, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, and others. CD

A great little set that collects 36 tracks by singer Henri Salvador – one of the darlings of the Parisian postwar scene, and a very talented vocalist with a range of styles that runs from Latin jazz to breezy ballads to more tropical-inflected work. The package is a great introduction to Salvador's work – much of which shares the same Latin pacing as Serge Gainsbourg's earliest sides (of the "Colour Cafe" era). Titles include "Une Ile Au Soleil", "Les Papous", "Fugue En Rire", "Faut Rigoler", "Dracula Cha Cha Cha", "Blouse Du Dentiste", "Ma Pipe", "Juanita Banana", and "Count Basie". 36 tracks in all – and a very groovy collection throughout! CD

A very cool package – one that has Frank Sinatra narrating his career in music – as he performs re-recorded versions of classics, with backings by Nelson Riddle, Johnny Mandel, Count Basie, Gordon Jenkins, Don Costa, and Billy May! The spoken bits are wonderful – and the whole thing is one of the best "texts" you could ever find on the Sinatra persona in the 60s! CD

A very cool package – one that has Frank Sinatra narrating his career in music – as he performs re-recorded versions of classics, with backings by Nelson Riddle, Johnny Mandel, Count Basie, Gordon Jenkins, Don Costa, and Billy May! The spoken bits are wonderful – and the whole thing is one of the best "texts" you could ever find on the Sinatra persona in the 60s! LP, Vinyl record album

An early moment of greatness for Jimmy Smith – an album that features his young, raw Hammond in the combo of Don Gardner – with a groove that's part jazz, part soul, and part R&B! The Smith of this era bears much more of a link to some of the first organ jazzers of the 50s – players like Wild Bill Davis or even Count Basie – especially given that most of these cuts are short and vamping, with less of the longer solos you'd hear on Jimmy's early Blue Note work. According to the title, Bill's also featured on some of these tracks – but as usual with Crown, the notes aren't great – so it's a bit hard to tell what's what. We can say, though, that the whole thing is mighty nice – rough-edged early soul jazz, with lots of cool twists and turns on the Hammond, guitar, and tenor! Titles include "Hands Off", "Hobo", "Paradise Found", "You Feel It", "More Soul", "Good Rockin", and "It's A Sin To Tell A Lie". CD

Music from the Kansas City Six, the Kansas City Seven, Count Basie's Kansas City Seven, and Freddie Green & his Kansas City Seven. CD

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

An all-star tribute to Ella Fitzgerald – a special show recorded live at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, in celebration of what would have been her 100th Birthday! The whole event is hosted by David Allen Grier, and begins with a vintage 1934 Apollo Amateur Night radio broadcast – before going into a host of Ella favorites, done by others – mostly with backing by the Count Basie Orchestra! Patti Austin sings "A Tisket A Tasket" and "When I Get Low I Get High", Andra Day sings "Ain't Misbehavin", Ayo & Afro Blue perform "Oh Lady Be Good", Lizz Wright sings "Love You Madly" and "The Nearness Of You", Cassandra Wilson sings "Cry Me A River", and a few other numbers feature different pairings of the artists involved. CD

A fantastic double-dip into the mighty catalog of Flying Dutchman Records – one of the hippest early 70s imprints in the worlds of jazz, soul, and funk! The blend of music here is great – as the collection features some key cuts by the bigger names on the label, plus some overlooked gems that really get at the all-great spirit of their recordings – pulled together with a vibe that matches the upbeat, positive spirit of the many other entries in the Free Soul series from Japan! There's plenty of vocal cuts on the collection, but some instrumentals too – and the 2CD package features 39 tracks in all, over 160 minutes of music – with titles that include "Money Honey" by Esther Marrow, "Love Each Other" by Leon Thomas, "Soulful Strut" by Steve Allen, "Heavy Soul Slinger" by Bernard Purdie, "When You Are Who You Are" by Gil Scott-Heron, "Bridges" by Cesar 830, "The Creator Has A Master Plan" by Louis Armstrong, "A Chance For Peace" by Lonnie Liston Smith, "Head Start" by Bob Thiele Emergency, "Tite Rope" by Harold Alexander, "Nicole" by The Cyrkle, "From This Moment On" by Shelly Manne, "He Don't Appreciate It" by Esther Marrow, "Mama Soul" by Harold Alexander, "Just In Time To See The Sun" by Leon Thomas, "This Is The Me Me" by Richard Groove Holmes, "I Think I'll Call It Morning" by Gil Scott-Heron, "El Arriero" by Gato Barbieri, "Footprints" by Lonnie Liston Smith, "Gypsy Queen" by Count Basie, and "See Saw Affair" by Cesar 830. CD

A mighty sweet collection of grooves from the Flying Dutchman label – that early 70s hotbed of funk, soul, and spiritual jazz! The set features some of the best-remembered gems from the label – plus some nice surprises along the way – all spread out in a double-length set, with selections by Japanese DJ Daisuke Kuroda! There's some great interplay between vocal numbers and instrumentals – and Kuroda definitely picked some of the heaviest-hitting artists of the label, a number of whom appear here more than once. Titles include "Shape Your Mind To Die" and "Love Each Other" by Leon Thomas, "Beautiful Woman" and "A Chance For Peace" by Lonnie Liston Smith, "Gypsy Queen" by Count Basie, "When You Are Who You Are" and "The Needle's Eye" by Gil Scott Heron, "This Is The Me Me" and "Onsaya Joy" by Richard Groove Holmes, "Peace" and "Chains" by Black & Blues, "Nicole" by The Cyrkle, "Skull Session" by Oliver Nelson, "Friends & Neighbors" by Ornette Coleman, "Tite Rope" by Harold Alexander, "Heavy Soul Slinger" by Bernard Purdie, "Descarga" and "See Saw Affair" by Cesar 830, "Lady Day & John Coltrane" and "Home Is Where The Hatred Is" by Gil Scott Heron, "The Creator Has A Master Plan" and "Just In Time To See The Sun" by Leon Thomas, "Chains Of Love" by Esther Marrow, and "Mama Soul" by Harold Alexander. CD

UA makes the film copyright cash register jingle again on this second set of tracks from their James Bond films, performed by other artists in the catalog. Tracks include "Thunderball" & "Underwater Chase" by Al Caiola, "007" & "The Golden Horn" by Count Basie, "James Bond Theme" by Perez Prado, "License To Kill" & "Search For Vulcan" by Leroy Holmes. LP, Vinyl record album

With Teddy Wilson, Charlie Christian, Count Basie, Cootie Williams, Johnny Guarnieri, Skippy Martin, George Auld, and Jo Jones. CD

A classic live set from Ray Charles – one that equally showcases all the best sides of his sound in the mid 60s! The group's got a nice dose of jazz – which it shows right at the start – almost a mix of Basie swing and R&B, of the sort that Ray was sporting heavily in the late Atlantic years, but didn't always get to display in the countrified early years on ABC – and players include David Fathead Newman on tenor, Hank Crawford on alto, and Julian Priester on trombone – all horn players who really help the whole thing swing! Ray plays some great piano alongside his vocals – and tunes include rollicking versions of "I Got A Woman", "You Don't Know Me", "Makin' Whoopee", "Hallelujah I Love Her So", and "What'd I Say". LP, Vinyl record album