Coleman Hawkins - Greatest Hits

Coleman Hawkins | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 16, 1996)
• Original Release Date: July 16, 1996
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B000003G35
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #578,114 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Okay set of Coleman's RCA years (off and on 1939-1957) but you can do better, July 6, 2011

By 

Johnny Boy "The Record Collector" (Hockessin, DE) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Coleman Hawkins - Greatest Hits (Audio CD)

Coleman Hawkins is a legendary saxophone player, but you don't need me to tell you that. Hawkins, during his 30+ year career made some of the most legendary jazz music ever recorded. His legacy is still very much alive, even 42 years after his passing in 1969.

What makes Hawkins' career difficult to anthologize is that he recorded on so many different labels over his career. Prestige, Verve, EmArcy, Impulse, and of course RCA are just some of the labels he recorded on. This 1996 release, part of a budget series of discs RCA issued for their jazz and classical artists called 'Greatest Hits,' is a bit of a poor title. Hawkins didn't have many hits, so to issue a record called 'Greatest Hits' (even though it is a part of a series, to be fair), is a bit misleading.

And you get a solid overview of Hawkins on RCA from 1939-1956 on this disc, plus a 1931 recording with Fletcher Henderson & His Orchestra (where Hawkins got his start) featuring Hawkins prominently, 'Sugar Foot Stomp.' The inclusion of this one and perhaps his signature 1939 side, 'Body and Soul' automatically warrant this disc three stars.

I will say, though, you can do better. Try any of Bluebird's CD issues of Hawkins' music, or might I suggest another disc entitled 'Body and Soul' if you want a better retrospective of Hawkins' RCA material. But, if you are on a budget and you stumble upon this cheap (it is out of print, but I have seen it for sale at a few used record stores), get it. It will provide you with a very rewarding listening experience. Hawkins is one of the best saxophone players to ever live (in an elite group with Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, and Sonny Rollins, among others), and it's definitely mandatory listening.

If you don't own this disc, than don't buy it here. Go seek out a Bluebird retrospective instead for Hawk's RCA years. But if you stumble upon it at a CD store and it is cheap and you don't own any of this stuff, buy it on the spot. Every tune on this disc (except for maybe 'She's Funny That Way,' which I tolerate, but I wouldn't rank it with Hawkins' most essential work) is essential, ESPECIALLY 'Body and Soul.'