Trombonist Slide Hampton, just 30 years old at the time of this octet session in Paris, had already developed into a forward-thinking arranger. Scoring a mix of standards and well-known jazz compositions for a group that included two trombones, two trumpets, tenor sax, baritone sax, bass, and drums, Hampton's stunning interpretation of "Exodus" (from the film of the same name) still sounds very fresh decades later. The brisk "Star Eyes" might suggest the so-called "cool" players of the 1950s, featuring excellent solos by trumpeter Richard Williams and bassist Butch Warren. Baritone saxophonist Jay Cameron shines in "Confirmation," while the leader explodes in a powerful rendition of "Moment's Notice".

A real standout from the great Shorty Rogers - and a smoking set that has him turning his many talents towards the world of bossa nova! By the time of this set, Shorty was as great an arranger as he was a trumpeter - really one of the go-to guys around LA for hipper soundtracks and vocal dates - and he really shows off his skills on a set of lively arrangements that pop and sparkle a lot more than other American bossa jazz outings of this nature! The set features lots of acoustic guitar and percussion - and bold trumpet and flugelhorn solos by Shorty.

One of Mel Torme's hippest albums of the 60s - and a strong shift towards more swinging material after some of his mellower work for other labels! There's a bit of electric piano in the mix, and plenty of that Atlantic records pop/soul jazz approach - a take on soul jazz that's similar to tunes by Herbie Mann at the same time, but with vocals. The whole thing's filled with greatly grooving tracks - and it draws no small influence from Jon Hendricks' excellent work of the time!

A firey stormer from the great Slide Hampton! The album's one of his few early sides for Atlantic - and like the others, it's a groundbreaking batch of larger group material, with slide out front on trombone, and the rest of the ensemble vamping along like a tight Blue Note combo. Players are excellent - and include George Coleman on tenor, Horace Parlan on piano, Hobart Dotson on trumpet, and Ray Barretto on drums - and Slide makes them come together so tightly, you'd think they were working together every night of the week!

Born in Memphis, Tennessee on November 11, 1911, singer, guitarist, and harmonica player William Borum worked as a professional musician only briefly - instead earning his living as a laborer - and saw the inside of a recording studio only twice in his lifetime. This album and its predecessor, Introducing Memphis Willie B., were cut in his hometown in the space of a single day, August 12, 1961. "It would be difficult to express emotion with a more tersely honest simplicity and directness," producer Samuel Charters said of Willie B.’s music. The Memphis bluesman may never have achieved fame and fortune from his music, but he drew on his life’s experiences to fashion blues poetry of the first order.

Tristano's piano solos are challenging and ambitious on these unaccompanied solo works, recorded between 1960 and 1962 (all except "You Don't Know What Love Is" Tristano originals). The variety and sheer amount of ideas, plus the facility of the lines and the overall performances, are impressive. This is a superb presentation of Lennie Tristano's work.

Trumpeter Donald Byrd and baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams worked together on several recordings between 1958 and 1961, and The Cat Walk (released on LP in 1962) is among the best. A quintet setting, with pianist Duke Pearson (another longtime Byrd collaborator), bassist Laymon Jackson, and a lively Philly Joe Jones on drums joining the front line of Byrd and Adams, the sessions for The Cat Walk benefited from the writing and arrangement skills of Pearson, who contributes three compositions here, the impressive opener "Say You're Mine," "Duke's Mixture," and "Hello Bright Sunflower," which borrows its melodic structure from the opening bars of "Lullaby of Broadway" and features Byrd using a muted trumpet…

Sinatra Sings Great Songs from Great Britain is one of the oddest albums in Sinatra's catalog. Recorded in the summer of 1962 and available only in the U.K. for a number of years, the album consists of songs by British composers, performed with British musicians, and recorded in Britain, while Sinatra was on tour. As it happened, Sinatra was tired and worn out during the sessions, and arranger/conductor Robert Farnon had written a set of charts that were ambitious, lush, ornate, and sweeping. Although the arrangements are provocative – occasionally they are more interesting than the actual songs – Sinatra was simply not in good shape for the sessions, which is clear from his thin, straining singing. As such, Great Songs from Great Britain isn't much more than a curiosity.

Following a series of concert dates in Tokyo late in 1961 with his quintet, Horace Silver returned to the U.S. with his head full of the Japanese melodies he had heard during his visit, and using those as a springboard, he wrote four new pieces, which he then recorded at sessions held on July 13 and 14, 1962, along with a version of Ronnell Bright's little known ballad "Cherry Blossom." One would naturally assume the resulting LP would have a Japanese feel, but that really isn't the case. Using Latin rhythms and the blues as a base, Silver's Tokyo-influenced compositions fit right in with the subtle cross-cultural but very American hard bop he'd been doing all along. Using his usual quintet…

Sonny Clark's fifth Blue Note recording as a leader is generally regarded as his best, especially considering he composed four of the seven tracks, and they all bear his stamp of originality. What is also evident is that he is shaping the sounds of his quintet rather than dominating the proceedings as he did on previous dates. Tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse and trumpeter Tommy Turrentine play very little harmony on the date, but their in-tune unison lines are singularly distinctive, while bassist Butch Warren and young drummer Billy Higgins keep the rhythmic coals burning with a steady, glowing red heat. Among the classic tunes is the definitive hard bop opener "Somethin' Special," which lives up to its title in a most bright and happy manner, with Clark merrily comping chords. "Melody for C" is similarly cheerful, measured, and vivid in melodic coloration…

A fluent and skilled musician, famous in his native country as a classical Spanish guitar player, Almeida went to the USA in the 40s to work in film and television studios. His jazz work was first widely exposed during a spell with Stan Kenton in the late 40s. Although continuing his film and television work, Almeida also took many opportunities to play jazz, joining forces with bass player Harry Babasin, altoist Bud Shank and drummer Roy Harte in 1953. The work of this group anticipated many of the hallmarks of the bossa nova craze that came a few years later. During his career Almeida won Grammy awards in 1959 for his performance on Danzas, and the following year for The Spanish Guitars Of Laurindo Almeida and Conversations With The Guitar…

Lightnin’ Hopkins is arguably the greatest Texas blues star of the 1960s era. A country bluesman of the highest caliber, his career began in the 1920s and stretched all the way into the 1980s. Along the way, Hopkins watched the genre change remarkably, but he never altered his mournful Lone Star sound, which translated onto both acoustic and electric guitar. His style, strong rhythms punctuated by his flowing but compact lead lines, created a stinging and heart-tearing evocative sound. This quintessential collector’s edition includes two of Hopkins’ finest albums: the long unavailable Lightnin’ Strikes, originally released in 1962 by Vee-Jay Records, and the self-titled Lightnin’ Hopkins, his1959 debut for the Folkways label. The two LPs are widely regarded as landmarks of the late-‘50s/early-‘60s blues revival. Both solid-blues masterpieces have been remastered and packaged together in this very special release, which also includes 5 bonus tracks from the same period.