Oscar Peterson - Somebody Loves Me (4 CD, 2005/FLAC)

Oscar Peterson was one of the greatest piano players of all time. A pianist with phenomenal technique on the level of his idol, Art Tatum, Peterson's speed, dexterity, and ability to swing at any tempo were amazing. Very effective in small groups, jam sessions, and in accompanying singers, O.P. was at his absolute best when performing unaccompanied solos. His original style did not fall into any specific idiom. Like Erroll Garner and George Shearing, Peterson's distinctive playing formed during the mid- to late '40s and fell somewhere between swing and bop. Peterson was criticized through the years because he used so many notes, didn't evolve much since the 1950s, and recorded a remarkable number of albums. Perhaps it is because critics ran out of favorable adjectives to use early in his career; certainly it can be said that Peterson played 100 notes when other pianists might have used ten, but all 100 usually fit, and there is nothing wrong with showing off technique when it serves the music. As with Johnny Hodges and Thelonious Monk, to name two, Peterson spent his career growing within his style rather than making any major changes once his approach was set, certainly an acceptable way to handle one's career. Because he was Norman Granz's favorite pianist (along with Tatum) and the producer tended to record some of his artists excessively, Peterson made an incredible number of albums. Not all are essential, and a few are routine, but the great majority are quite excellent, and there are dozens of classics.  

Duke Ellington - Live and Rare (3 CD, 2002/FLAC)

 Many of this three-CD set's tracks are available elsewhere, excepting three previously unreleased performances from the 1968 Newport Jazz Festival announcement party, long-unavailable recordings made specifically for Reader's Digest (plus some unreleased alternate takes), as well as unissued rehearsals for the bandleader's guest appearance with Arthur Fiedler & the Boston Pops. The press party is a noisy affair and the recording quality is hardly polished, as the crowd can't seem to shut up during Ellington's rollicking "Sweet Fat and That," "Satin Doll," and "Carolina Shout" (erroneously credited to Ellington instead of James P. Johnson), which is suddenly broken off by the pianist, who seems to be a tad rusty. The Eastbourne tracks represent the band in its decline; although veterans Harry Carney and Russell Procope were still around, the lack of many other star soloists is noticeable, and although there are some excellent musicians present (Johnny Coles, Harold Ashby, and Harold Minerve, to name a few), the band is clearly running out of steam. The music from the 1965 Pittsburgh Jazz Festival, featuring Ellington in a duet with Earl Hines, a solo performance, and one song with a rhythm section, has been reissued more than once. The Reader's Digest sessions are rather conservative, trying not to overwhelm the neophyte jazz fans the magazine was likely targeting; the music is pleasant with some good solos, but rather bland compared to typical Ellington dates. The Tanglewood concert with Fiedler is enjoyable, though the decision to intersperse excerpts of Ellington's prerecorded responses to a promotional interview between songs is a bit odd, with the bandleader actually digressing into talking about his weight problem. Put it all together and you have a set that may appeal to the die-hard Ellington collector, though it is hardly essential for most jazz fans.

Charles Mingus - The Complete Columbia Recordings (3 CD, 1998/FLAC)

 

Mercurial bassist and bandleader Charles Mingus was signed to Columbia Records for the briefest of time during 1959. His Columbia recordings, however, remain some of the most inspired, mood-jumping jazz in history. This three-CD collection fattens the original LPs, Mingus Ah Um and Mingus Dynasty, along with 10 tracks in their original, unedited form. The third CD includes six alternate takes from the sessions, one of them previously unissued altogether. These songs nail why Mingus is possibly the most relevant jazzer for the '90s generation. They're either foot-stomping in intensity or poignantly yearning with their lyrical tapestry of orchestral colors. Nowhere will you find better, more flowing jazz statements than the sad "Goodbye Porkpie Hat" or in the blasting "Boogie Stop Shuffle" 

Frank Sinatra - Reprise Rarities (Vol. 1-4) (2021/FLAC)

 The collection showcases non-LP singles, alternate versions, and bonus tracks from previously-released box sets. 

Art Blakey & Les Jazz-Messengers - Au Club Saint-Germain Vol. 1-3 (3 CD, 1994/FLAC)

 

This three-LP box set from French RCA  features the 1958 Jazz Messengers live in Paris stretching out on 11 songs. Trumpeter Lee Morgan, tenor saxophonist Benny Golson and pianist Bobby Timmons formed a potent team, backed up by bassist Jymie Merritt and the powerful drumming of leader Art Blakey. This hard-to-find set gives one a definitive look at the influential band.

• Lee Morgan - trumpet
• Benny Golson - tenor saxophone
• Bobby Timmons - piano
• Jymie Merritt - bass
• Art Blakey - drums
• Kenny Clarke - drums (Vol.3, #3,4)
• Gana M'Bow - conga (Vol.3, #2-4)

Recorded live at Club Saint Germain, Paris on December 21, 1958.

Erroll Garner - The Man I Love (3 CD, 2011/FLAC)

 One of the most distinctive of all pianists, Erroll Garner proved that it was possible to be a sophisticated player without knowing how to read music, that a creative jazz musician can be very popular without watering down his music, and that it is possible to remain an enthusiastic player without changing one's style once it is formed. A brilliant virtuoso who sounded unlike anyone else, on medium tempo pieces, Erroll Garner often stated the beat with his left hand like a rhythm guitar while his right played chords slightly behind the beat, creating a memorable effect. His playful free-form introductions (which forced his sidemen to really listen), his ability to play stunning runs without once glancing at the keyboard, his grunting, and the pure

VA - Blue Note 50th Anniversary Collection (5 CD, 1989)

 

CD 1 (1939 - 1956): From Boogie to Bop

CD 2 (1956 - 1965): The Jazz Message

CD 3 (1956 - 1967): Funk & Blues

CD 4 (1964 - 1989): Outside In

CD 5 (1970 - 1989): Lighting the Fuse

Paul Motian - Paul Motian: Old & New Masters (6 D, 2013/FLAC)

 

This six-CD set, with recordings from 1972 to 1984, includes the albums Conception Vessel, Tribute, Dance, Le Voyage, Psalm and It Should’ve Happened A Long Time Ago. Paul Motian’s innovative drumming with the great trios of Bill Evans and Paul Bley had already assured him of a place in jazz’s history books, but Motian had not considered life as a bandleader until ECM proposed a recording session under his own name. “Conception Vessel” opened floodgates of creativity. Through these recordings we hear not only the evolution of several outstanding Motian ensembles and the birth of the enduring Motian/Frisell/Lovano trio, but also the growth of confidence of a unique jazz composer. In Paul’s music, memories of Turkish and Armenian melodies he had heard as a child were filtered through a love of jazz. Early in his career, Paul had played with Thelonious Monk, and Monk’s wayward sense of dynamics remained a reference for him, but he also loved the free expressive possibilities of the new jazz. Keith Jarrett and Charlie Haden, regular partners in Keith’s trio and quartet, encouraged Paul’s creative flight on, respectively, “Conception Vessel” and “Tribute”. With “Dance” and “Le Voyage”, the trios with Charles Brackeen recorded 1977 and 1979, Motian shaped a soundworld entirely his own, and a blueprint for the future. 

Eddie Harris - Artist's Choice: The Eddie Harris Anthology (2 CD, 1993/FLAC)

 Eddie Harris' tenure at Atlantic in the 1960s and '70s was his most productive, but previously it was represented only by a pair of single-album collections. Now a fine two-disc anthology containing selections chosen by Harris and his comments fully covers his Atlantic years. The discs include his huge singles "Exodus" and "Love Theme From the Sandpiper (Shadow of Your Smile)," plus soul-jazz numbers like "Get on Down," "Funkaroma," and "1974 Blues"; his most famous single composition, "Freedom Jazz Dance"; and his remakes of "Giant Steps" and "Love for Sale." Harris has creatively utilized the varitone attachment on his saxophone and the reed trumpet while constructing and playing his blues, soul, and funk solos with zest and a minimum of gimmickry. 

VA - Modern Jazz - The Complete Dial Recordings (10 CD, 1995/FLAC)

 

Each Mosaic project falls into at least one of three categories. Some sets we know will be significant because of the demand for a hard-to-find jazz artist or the unique scope of a Mosaic box. Some sets we bring out because, popular or not, the music must be heard. And sometimes… we just love it. Want it. Have to have it. Which brings us to The Complete Dial Masters. As the saying goes, check all the boxes.

As most jazz fans know, among the most important records to hear in your life are Charlie Parker's Dial Sessions, recorded between 1946 and 1947. They are classics with Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Howard McGee, Wardell Gray, J. J. Johnson, Duke Jordan, Teddy Edwards, Teddy Wilson, Errol Garner, Tommy Potter, Max Roach and others.

But Dial was way more than Parker. It was a microcosm of the explosive changes happening at a moment in time.