Mosaic Select

Woody Herman & His Orchestra | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 23, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 3
• Label: Mosaic Select
• ASIN: B0011FMIRG
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #216,333 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Mo-Lasses

2. Blues for J.P.

3. Don't Get Around Much Anymore

4. Tunin' In

5. Sister Sadie

6. Sig EP

See all 18 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. That's Where It Is

2. Watermelon Man

3. Body and Soul

4. Better Get It in Your Soul

5. Jazz Me Blues

6. El Toro Grande

See all 14 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. The Good Life

2. Bedroom Eyes

3. The Things We Said Today

4. Just Squeeze Me

5. What Kind of Fool Am I?

6. Dr. Wong's Bag

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Woody Herman was dedicated to keeping his big band going and was focused more on music that satisfied him than focusing on making hits. Most of the selections in this three-CD set came from an overlooked period in the clarinetist's career, his early 1960s tenure on the Phillips label. At this point, Herman had recently welcomed new arrivals like trumpeter Bill Chase, tenor saxophonist Sal Nistico, and trombonist Phil Wilson, while still talented veterans like pianist Nat Pierce, tenor saxophonist Bill Perkins, and drummer Jake Hanna. Culled from six separate albums plus a 45 pm single, the Herman band may not reach the heights of earlier groups for some fans, but they are clearly a force to be reckoned with. Among the highlights are Pierce's sauntering arrangement of Joe Newman's "Mo-Lasses," the playful "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" that also interpolates Duke Ellington's "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart," Chase's lush interpretation of the pop song "A Taste of Honey," a frisky take of Charles Mingus' "Better Get It in Your Soul," return visits to old favorites like "Bijou" and "Apple Honey," plus "You Dirty Dog," a recent composition by Ellington for his small group record date with Coleman Hawkins. This is an excellent survey of music that deserves to be remembered. ~ Ken Dryden, Rovi

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete Philips Recordings, April 25, 2008

By 

David Renzi (Las Vegas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mosaic Select (Audio CD)

This is the motherload for fans of Woody's early- to mid-`60s band. Some rate this his greatest Herd ever, and it may be. The band is on fire, and here at last is its entire oeuvre for the Philips lablel. Great soloists (Sal Nistico, Phil Wilson, Nat Pierce) and ensemble playing, plus Jake Hanna and Chuck Andrus holding it all together. What's disturbing is the Amazon list price for a new copy. $83.00? Are you serious? I guess the preposterous price is a result of its import status, in which case Connecticut, home to Mosaic Records, the distributor of this three-disc collection, must have left the union when I wasn't looking. By all means get this if you're a Herman fan, but do yourself a favor and buy it directly from Mosaic Records for $44 brand new.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Swinging, big-band jazz, September 12, 2009

By 

Carlo Wolff "freelance writer" (Cleveland, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mosaic Select (Audio CD)

These Woody Herman recordings from the early to mid-'60s boast modernist arrangements, spectacular solos and a judicious selection of pop covers. These roaring, democratic dates suggest that Herman was a thoughtful sort capable of switching between incendiary soloing and giving his great players plenty of solo room themselves. The Mosaic Select box resurrects three albums from the long out-of-print Mercury and Smash catalog, including a live date from 1964. Big-band jazz is one of the nichiest areas in jazz, a niche genre of its own. This box attests to a period when jazz still had affinities with pop; the mid-'60s, after all, was one of the richest periods ever when it came to musical fermentation. This music--not avant-garde but intriguingly experimental and often daring--had wide appeal then and should have wide appeal now. Get it before it disappears again: Mosaic made only 5,000 of these.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Over Priced, August 11, 2009

By 

F. R. Maurer "Jazz Lover" (Arlington, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mosaic Select (Audio CD)

I agree with other review that this was a great band. . . I hope the Amazon price listing is a typo. If not, it is way overpriced. The cost for the three CD set is just under $40 if you order from Mosaic directly.