Customer Reviews

Lester Young Story (Mini Lp Sleeve)

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No-one could have invented Lester Young. He just emerged with perfect, unique sense of both phrasing and timing. (His father BTW was a tough teacher -- who also taught Ben Webster). Lester Young was badly misunderstood in his early band days -- notably by the wife of Fletcher Henderson who berated him harshly for his easy, smooth tone and his way of laying out just behind the beat. The style of the day was the heavy stampeding sound of Coleman Hawkins. It was a revolution in the making and Mrs Henderson missed it. That's one reason why his first record session -- the one that produced the miraculous solo of "Lady Be Good" -- was recorded when he was already 27 years old. Oh, what we have missed!!
Lester Young turned the tide of jazz toward a more laconic, laid-back style, and ultimately toward bebop. But until he began to fade in the late 1950s he was one of America's unsung geniuses. It is amazing how few people -- even some musicians -- have heard of him today. You really must, if you haven't!!
These are the tracks that only a few got to hear in their day. Listen to him on the tracks with Benny Goodman and guitarist Charlie Christian -- Ad Lib Blues, I Never Knew, etc. The entire structure of "Lester Leaps Again" with Basie and his rhythm section is breathtaking. So is his floating entry into "Way Down Yonder In New Orleans" -- i.e., IF ITS THE MASTER TAKE. Does punk, or hard rock or any of today's popular musics have anyone with this genuinely original style. Frank Sinatra would not have had the sense of timing that became his by the 1950s had Pres not shown the way in the 1930s. Listen to his haunting, sexy, loving phrases behind Billie Holiday toward the end of "Me Myself and I" and you will have witnessed someone at the peak of an American art that few have scaled -- even in their own fields. His solo on Basie's "One O'Clock Jump" is a classic.
Reviewer Mahlser has got to spend some more time on the other three disks -- and then with all the Clef and Verve sessions that followed. He'll get it. And you should have this set at home, for yourself, for your kids and grandkids. Visitors will love it too. Oh yes, I recommend this set!!

Proper is a newer label out of the U.K. that focuses on boxed-set compilations of some great American music - and not just jazz. This Lester Young compilation is amazing, especially for the price. Mostly all of Prez' classic early stuff is included - with Basie, Holiday - but what floored me was the inclusion of some of the 1943-44 (immediately before Lester had to go into the war) material with the small Basie groups including Slam Stewart, Sid Catlett, Buck Clayton, Freddie Green, and the "Kansas City Seven, Six, and Five": namely "Afternoon of a Basie-ite", "Destination K.C.", and more. I have most of this stuff scattered on various LPs ("The Lester Yong Story Vols. 1-5" on Columbia, and the aformentioned tracks with alternates on the Emarcy label) but to have a set like this on CD for this low of a price is a dream come true for anyone interested in Prez' best stuff. Yes, his post-war material is still good and valid, but there can be no doubt that this is the cream. I have only a few complaints: Where is "Evenin'" with Jimmy Rushing and the Count? That is one of Lester's classic solos and a classic Basie tune. I could easily do without "Blitzkrieg Baby", an RCA recording with Una Mae Carlisle in 1941. But that is nit-picking. Proper has many other great box sets of Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, and more, with great pictures and presentation. Someone has the right idea. It will be interesting to see which takes of some of these they have chosen. As a huge fan of 'alternate takes' myself, that is an important part of a great compilation. I see no way to go wrong with this set.

Hard to argue with this one. 4 CDs of timeless, brilliant music, cheap, with good liner notes and, most importanly, nicely remastered. All of Lester Young's most important tracks are here and some harder to find gems as well. If you are looking for a first Lester Young purchase, this is a "no brainer" as they say...

This four CD set brings together a wide range of Prez's top performances, which can be hard to collect bit by bit. Very intelligent and well-written liner notes. Sound quality overall is very good, with some exceptions. Oddly enough, the famous primal recording of "Lady be good" with Basie and Smith in 1936 is a bit below par. No matter, that one's easy to find (e.g. the Columbia "Essential Basie vol.1). My only other criticism would be the lack of coverage of Lester's recordings from the fifties. Wayne Shorter picks up some these in his selection, "Ultimate Lester Young" on Verve. Of course, the fifties recordings couldn't be included because the fifty year copyright on sound recordings hadn't lapsed yet. Proper is one of the better re-issue labels based in Europe, but bear in mind that they are in some sense "bootleggers". Why is there no established tradition in music of granting anthology rights for vintage recordings, as there is in the literary world?

This set contains the best music I own -- Lester Young's playing is constantly breathtaking and moving. There is not a throwaway tune in here. Add the many Billy Holliday appearances and the excellent packaging and you've got a true winner. These CD's have not left the CD changer since my purchase, and I don't expect them to any time soon. Truly amazing.

You have every right to be suspicious of a four-CD set this cheap, but this is great stuff. The selection of songs and the recording quality are both top-notch. I don't know how they do it, but don't pass this up on the idea that anything this cheap can't be good.

This is the best music I own by far. Lester Young's best tunes are here and they are magnificent. Great to hear Billy Holliday pop-up occasionally. The surprises are many and it is all a treasure. Excellent packaging. Highly highly recemmended.

If you are making your first purchase of a Lester Young CD you really can't go past this one, especially if you want an overview of his playing in his prime years. This probably has his best recordings from the beginning in '36 to '49 with maybe a few ommissions here and there, but I'd be surprised if there is a better 'Prez' compilation out there for the first time listener. Good value for money too with 4 CD's.

This four CD set is a comprehensive survey of Lester Young's career. The collection addresses the major phases of the tenor saxophonist's professional life and includes key performances. The first CD, "Lester Leaps In" (1936-1939) showcases Young in classic performances featuring vocalist Billie Holiday and pianists Teddy Wilson and Count Basie withWalter Page on bass, Freddie Green on guitar, and Jo Jones on drums. "Afternoon of a Basie-ite," (1939-1944) the second CD in the set, presents Young in Basie's Kansas City Seven as well as in Dickie Wells' band and as part of Billie Holiday's orchestra. Again, the performances are jazz classics. And they offer not only the Lester Young performances along with classic recordings of the Count Basie orchestra in its prime and Billie Holiday in hers. Disc 3, "Lester Leaps Again" (1943-1946) records Young with the Basie orchestra (again with the core rhythm section of Greene, Page, and Jones) as well as with his own group. It includes recordings with pianists Johnny Guarnieri and Nat Cole and drummers Sidney Catlett and Buddy Rich. The Young-Cole-Rich trio recordings are worth the price of the set. Disc 4, "Ding Dong" (1946-1949) doesn't reach the end of Young's career, but it does include performances that demonstrate that despite some reports he never lost the power and lyricism of the early years. The Jazz at the Philharmonic (JATP) recording (1949) with Roy Eldridge, Charlie Parker, and Flip Phillips show that even in his supposed decline he was always a force to be reckoned with. (His contemporaries said that despite his seeming lightness if he were given enough choruses Young would bury any competition.) This CD set is a tremendous bargain, particularly because it encapsulates so much great jazz. In this set Lester Young, Billie Holiday, Teddy Wilson and Count Basie and other greats of the swing era are available in cleanly remastered recordings of classic performance. The accompanying booklet contains carefully prepared discography and commentary.

Fantastic value, could serve as the backbone of a fledgling jazz collection. Proper produces excellent anthologies, at amazing prices. The sound quality, tune selection, packaging, and booklet combine to make this an exceptional buy.

The whole idea of purchasing a box set is getting the chance to immerse yourself in an artist's music. To be disappointed that all tracks are not of equal caliber - or equally to your taste - is to completely miss the point, what you have is the full context. (Disc 1 alone is worth the price of the set.) That Young played with so many other greats of his day adds enormously to the fun, and the insight.

For tone, phrasing, lyricism, and sheer polish it is impossible to top Young. Roaming around in this sprawling 4-CD retrospective will help you appreciate that what we think of as jazz today would be impossible without his contribution. All the great players that followed owe him at least some of their lunch money. After that realization has occurred, you'll keep returning to this collection simply because his playing is absolutely exquisite. Young, even at his worst, is still better than just about anyone else.