HARRY JAMES AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1937-1939 | The Chronogical Classics – 903 (1996) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Trumpeter Harry James was very consistent in his musical tastes throughout his career. This CD, which has the first 22 selections that James recorded as a leader, starts off with eight numbers in which the trumpeter (still a Benny Goodman sideman at the time) uses many of Count Basie's top sidemen (including trombonist-arranger Eddie Durham, tenor saxophonist Herschel Evans and singer Helen Humes) for swinging performances highlighted by "Life Goes to a Party" and "One O'Clock Jump"; James' bands (particularly from the 1950s on) would often sound like a duplicate of Basie's. In addition, this CD has four tunes from 1938 in which James mostly uses Goodman players (plus baritonist Harry Carney), and he is also heard on the first six numbers by his big band (including "Two O'Clock Jump" and his earliest recording of his theme "Ciribiribin"). However, the hottest performances are four numbers in which James is backed by a boogie-woogie trio featuring either Pete Johnson or Albert Ammons on piano. This enjoyable CD is full of many examples of James' hot swing trumpet and is easily recommended to swing fans. Scott Yanow  
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HELEN HUMES – 1927-1945 | The Classics Chronological Series – 892 (1996) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

When she was just 13 and 14 years old, Helen Humes made her recording debut, cutting ten risque, double entendre-filled blues, naughty tunes that she later claimed to understand at the time. Until the release of this Classics CD in 1996, those numbers (which have backup in various settings by either De Loise Searcy or J.C. Johnson on piano, and Lonnie Johnson or the guitar duo team of Sylvester Weaver and Walter Beasley) had never been reissued on the same set before. Humes sounds fairly mature on the enjoyable blues sides. Her next session as a leader would not take place until 15 years later, when she was 28 and a veteran of Count Basie's Orchestra. The singer is heard here with groups in 1942 and 1944-1945, performing three numbers with altoist Pete Brown's sextet (a band including trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, who unfortunately does not solo), Leonard Feather's Hiptet (which has some rare solos from trumpeter Bobby Stark), and Bill Doggett's spirited octet. The latter date is highlighted by classic renditions of "He May Be Your Man" and "Be-Baba-Leba." Highly recommended. Scott Yanow
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HELEN HUMES – 1945-1947 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1036 (1998) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This second installment in the excellent Classics Helen Humes chronology covers the exciting material she recorded for the Philo (soon to become Aladdin), Black & White, and Mercury labels, first with her All-Stars in Los Angeles during 1945-1946 and then with Buck Clayton's band in New York in 1946 and 1947. Alternating between ballads, blues, and boogie-woogie, the singer exudes a wonderful passionate glow that sometimes borders on the sensual. The front lines of her West Coast bands were richly staffed with excellent players in trumpeter Snooky Young and saxophonists Willie Smith, Tom Archia, Corky Corcoran, Maxwell Davis, Wild Bill Moore, and -- fresh out of the Army -- Lester Young! Dig his beautiful solo on "Pleasing Man Blues." Note also the presence of some of the top rhythm section men in the Los Angeles area at that time: guitarists Allan Reuss, Dave Barbour, and Irving Ashby; bassist Red Callender; drummers Chico Hamilton and Henry Tucker Green; and pianists Arnold Ross, Eddie Beal, and the great Meade "Lux" Lewis, who adds a little mustard to the singer's sequel to her earlier hit record, "Be-Baba-Leba." Over on the East Coast, the Buck Clayton-led ensembles had equally strong support in tenor saxophonist John Hardee (his velvety introduction to "Blue and Sentimental" is nothing less than a tribute to Herschel Evans), pianists Ram Ramirez and Teddy Wilson, and the winning Kansas City combination of bassist Walter Page and drummer Jo Jones. Is this the best of Helen Humes? Pretty close to it; she's in the prime of her early maturity and the musicians are uniformly excellent. arwulf arwulf  
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HELEN HUMES – 1948-1950 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1333 (2003) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The last two years of the '40s saw Helen Humes growing considerably as a performer. While still showing her mastery of classic blues ("Married Man Blues") and high-octane swing (a frenetic live version of her previous hit, "Be-Baba-Leba"), she continued refining the type of blue-and-sentimental ballads she'd made famous during her Count Basie years (also the type of song that would carry her through the '50s). "Time Out for Tears" and "Don't Fall in Love With Me" find Humes reaching out to the trad-pop audience, and her version of "Somebody Loves Me" shows her finding the blues even in a Gershwin standard. As if her range wasn't stunning already, 1948-1950 also includes a splendid one-shot, a title called "I Ain't in the Mood" that sounds like it came straight from the Sun studio. John Bush
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HELEN HUMES - On The Sunny Side of the Street (1974-1993) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Several major jazz personalities are heard on this Black Lion reissue CD, recorded live at the 1974 Montreux Jazz Festival. The fine singer Helen Humes sticks to standards and blues while accompanied by either Earl Hines or Jay McShann on piano, tenor-saxophonist Buddy Tate, bassist Jimmy Woode and drummer Ed Thigpen. Although Hines and McShann are not the ideal accompanists, Humes fares quite well, winning the audience over with her enthusiasm and sincerity. by Scott Yanow
Tracklist:
1    Alright, Okay, You Win    5:08
Mayme Watts / Sidney Wyche
2    If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight    4:30
Henry Creamer / James P. Johnson
3    Ain't Nobody's Business    6:35
Porter Grainger / Everett Robbins
4    Kansas City    4:52
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
5    I'm Satisfied    3:43
Duke Ellington / Mitchell Parish
6    Blue Because Of You    4:55
Charles Carpenter / Louis Dunlap / Quinn Wilson
7    On The Sunny Side Of The Street    3:58
Dorothy Fields / Jimmy McHugh
8    I Got It Bad And That Ain't Good    6:02
Duke Ellington / Paul Francis Webster
Credits:
Bass – Jimmy Woode
Drums – Ed Thigpen
Lead Vocals – Helen Humes
Piano – Earl Hines (tracks: 5-8), Jay McShann (tracks: 1-4)
Producer – Alan Bates
Tenor Saxophone – Buddy Tate

COUNT BASIE AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1938-1939 | The Classics Chronological Series – 504 (1990) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The second Count Basie release on the Classics label, 1938-1939 offers a generous helping of the prime, groundbreaking swing the group brought to the national limelight from 1936-1942. These original Decca sides include everything from full-band charts by arranger Eddie Durham and fine vocals by Jimmy Rushing and Helen Humes to rare cuts of Basie accompanied only by his rhythm section. And, of course, there are many fine solos by star instrumentalist and jazz legend Lester Young, who came up with Basie between 1936-1940. In addition to Young's fine tenor saxophone statement on "Every Tub," other stellar contributions are made by trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison, trombonist Dickie Wells, and unsung reed player Herschel Evans, whose tenor solos on "Blue and Sentimental," "Doggin' Around," and his own composition "Texas Shuffle" especially stand out. Throughout the set, rhythm section members drummer Jo Jones, bassist Walter Page, and guitarist Freddie Green provide the kind of streamlined swing that not only became manna for dancers during the late '30s, but also garnered the admiration of jazz musicians all over the world. This is a nicely varied and highly gratifying set of Basie tunes. The sound is great too. [For those who want to get all of Basie's Decca sides on one collection instead of spread out over individual discs, there's MCA's 3-CD set Original American Decca Recordings.] Stephen Cook  

COUNT BASIE AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1939 Vol.2 | The Classics Chronological Series – 533 (1990) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The Count Basie Orchestra may not have been the number one band popularity-wise in 1939 (Glenn Miller and Artie Shaw were ahead of Basie), but it was certainly the most swinging ensemble. With Buck Clayton, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Dicky Wells, Lester Young, and Buddy Tate as major soloists, Jimmy Rushing and Helen Humes providing vocals, and the Basie rhythm section saying so much with so little, few bands were in Basie's league. This set has a variety of Columbia/Vocalion recordings from 1939, including the two-part "Miss Thing," "You Can Count on Me," "Song of the Islands," "I Left My Baby," and two numbers from a small-group date ("Dickie's Dream" and "Lester Leaps In"); there are plenty of gems to choose from, although one does regret the lack of any alternate takes, as is Classics' custom. Scott Yanow

COUNT BASIE AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1939-1940 | The Classics Chronological Series – 563 (1991) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The Count Basie Orchestra continued to grow in strength during the period covered by this CD, with Vic Dickenson replacing Benny Morton in the trombone section, high-note trumpeter Al Killian taking over for Ed Lewis, and Tab Smith being added as an alto soloist. Among the classics recorded by the definitive swing band are "I Never Knew," "Tickle Toe," "Louisiana," "Easy Does It," "Somebody Stole My Gal," "Super Chief," and a remake of "Moten Swing." This set would be well worth acquiring if only for the Lester Young solos, and there is much more to savor including spots for Buck Clayton, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Dicky Wells, Buddy Tate, Jimmy Rushing, Helen Humes, and Basie himself. Scott Yanow

LESTER YOUNG – The Complete Aladdin Recordings of Lester Young (1995) 2CD | MONO | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Although it has often been written that cool-toned tenor saxophonist Lester Young's experiences with racism in the military during 1944-1945 so scarred him that he never played at the same musical level as he had previously, the music on this essential two-CD reissue disproves that theory. It is true that his attitude toward life was affected and Young became somewhat self-destructive, but his postwar solos rank with the greatest work of his career. This two-fer, which has four selections from 1942 in which Young is heard in a trio with pianist Nat King Cole and bassist Red Callender and a rare 1945 session headed by singer Helen Humes (including a previously unknown instrumental "Riffin' Without Helen"), is mostly taken up with Young's very enjoyable 1945-1948 small-group dates. Highlights include "D.B. Blues," "Jumpin' with Symphony Sid" (which was a minor hit), "Sunday," and "New Lester Leaps In," among many others. Minor errors aside (trumpeter Snooky Young is left out of the personnel listing for the Humes date and Young's final Aladdin session is from 1948, not 1947), this is a well-conceived and brilliant set filled with exciting performances by one of the true greats of jazz. Scott Yanow
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