Customer Reviews

Complete RCA Victor Small Group Master Takes

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

...and that's no small (group) feat! Benny Goodman, known primarily for his work with big bands, really shows us what he is made of in the small group setting. The small group tests a musician's talent and skill since there is nothing for them to hide behind. There's no one trying to hide here among the various trios and quartets (and one quintet) most notably featuring Goodman, Teddy Wilson (piano), Gene Krupa (drums), and Lionel Hampton (vibes) among others. We're even treated to a small handful of songs featuring the vocal talents of Helen Ward, Martha Tilton, and Lionel Hampton himself!

There is a lot to love in this collection. It's historically significant in that this group of musicians were the first interracial jazz combo to perform in public. The skill and musicicianship of the players is impeccable. Benny Goodman is a true master of the clarinet and he does nothing to dispel that fact here. The 24-bit high resolution remastering makes the sound quality of these recordings (made between 1935-1939) quite excellent and clean, not the muffled, muddy and flat sound quality heard in other reproductions from this era. This is also an excellent collection for those who aren't big fans of alternate takes. This is identical to the (3-CD) "Complete Small Group Recordings" without all of the alternate takes. It's also hard to ignore this collection when it is about half the price (as of this writing) of the edition which includes the alternative takes.

In any event, this 2-CD set comes highly recommended. If you enjoy this type of music, you will not be disappointed. It's great listening from beginning to end!

Great buy. I puchased my copy for just $11 online - 2 disks and 47 tracks. Sure, you can pay more (much more) for the three disk set, but why? If the extra disk's worth of alternate takes and excellent liner notes are important to you, then go with the other set. On the other hand, if you're just looking for a couple of hours of good music for a reasonable price, I highly recommend the Definitive set. Sound quality very good considering that this music was recorded in the 1930s.

I have been listening to jazz for many years now, and my favorite kinds are probably bebop (e.g., Charlie Parker) and early-1960's post bop (e.g., Blue Note recordings like Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage" or Wayne Shorter's "Speak No Evil" or "Adam's Apple"). Over the past couple of years, though, my appreciation for older pre-bebop jazz has grown. Though I enjoy big-band swing, I find that I enjoy small-group swing even more. Benny Goodman, as nearly as I have been able to determine, was one of the masters of this kind of "chamber jazz" (Artie Shaw's Gramercy-Five recordings are also great small-group swing and well worth seeking out on an ASV/Living Era 2-CD set called "Summit Ridge Drive").

If you have Charlie Christian's "Genius of the Electric Guitar" and/or "The Benny Goodman Sextet Featuring Charlie Christian (1939-1941)" (both Benny Goodman sextet recordings from a later period than this Definitive-Records set), you'll probably love this beautifully remastered 2-CD set from Definitive Records. As other reviewers have noted, the liner notes are fairly short and simple, but personnel information for all of the tracks is there, and the set sounds wonderful for music of this era. I can't recommend this set highly enough to fans of Benny Goodman and small-group swing in general.

Some other reviewer once said "If you want to know what Benny Goodman was all about, you have to listen to the trio and quartet recordings". He is totally right. Despite having the best white swing band of the 30's, Goodman also recorded a string of records with his racially-integrated trio and quartet which become the birth of what we know as the modern "jazz combo". These recordings are amust for any jazz fan or musician. All the master takes, good remastering without going overboard and at a nice price. Essential for any big band collection.

Many believe that these recordings are the beginnings of the "Jazz Quartet." This is Benny Goodman like you've never heard him before.

Another Definitive label swindle. Evidently pirated from the RCA Complete set. Certainly "24 bit remastering from originals" is a lie. There are compression algorithm artifacts throughout every track. It's obviously been remixed and severely sonically compressed, with the 2k range in particular at intolerable levels.

I'm going to try "Bluebird's Best: Legendary Small Groups" on the strength of the rest in that series of CDs. Only a best-of selection, but I always find a single hour of 78-length arrangements (normal for this era) is quite enough.

This is the collection to have if you like BG's small group quartet performances. No need to rush out and buy the 3 disc collection from capitol because it's all here, brilliantly arranged and interspersed with occasional vocals from Goodman's wife. Definitive records knows what they're doing; these recordings have finally received the proper treatment they deserved all along.