7-disc CD box set from legendary trumpeter
Roy Eldridge and the Verve Label. Includes his complete recordings 24-bit digitally remastered and booklet with rare photos.
Born in Pittsburgh in 1911, he began playing professionally in carnival
bands and such before making a name for himself in a few Midwest
regional bands. He arrived in New York in 1931, where Elmer Snowden,
McKinney’s Cotton Pickers and Teddy Hill all employed him. He also
backed Billie Holiday and featured with Fletcher Henderson. In the late
1930s, he was leading his own octet in Chicago with brother Joe on alto
saxophone..
Roy was a trailblazer socially as well as musically; in the 1940s, he
joined Gene Krupa’s band, making him the first black musician to tour
with Krupa. His classic version of “Rockin’ Chair” and the always
enjoyable feature “Let Me Off Uptown” with Anita O’Day are from this
period. He continued to perform and record as a leader, and worked for a
stint with Artie Shaw (1944-45). Later in the 1940s, he hooked up with
Benny Goodman, and also with Norman Granz for a tour in Europe with Jazz
at the Philharmonic. But fearing that the modernists in jazz were
getting all the attention Stateside, he stayed in Europe, believing his
career in America was over.
What happened next is why these Verve recordings exist.