Retrospective [Box set, Original recording remastered]

Jimmy Smith | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 19, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 4
• Format: Box set, Original recording remastered
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Blue Note Records
• ASIN: B0002Y4TUQ
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #32,003 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Blue Note years, October 27, 2004

By 

Blues Bro "bluesbro" (Lakewood, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Retrospective (Audio CD)

4 CD's remastered by Ron McMaster, with the best of Jimmy Smith at Blue Note records, from his first session up to his very last session in the 80's. Specially worthy are the first 2 CD's including a bunch of material that is out of print, including Jimmy's first albums. I am really happy overall with the track selection, I'd probably change one or two: 'Flamingo' is really a Lee Morgan feature, and the albums 'Cool Blues' and 'Six views of the blues' are not represented here'; but this still is the definitive Jimmy Smith compilation. Booklet includes session details and essay on the tracks that are included here. Pricey, but it is worth your money.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Where it began on the B3 for Jazz and Blues alike, December 9, 2006

By 

Earsby (Norman, OK United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Retrospective (Audio CD)

I was reading this month's Down Beat and Jimmy Smith has (finally) made it to the Hall Of Fame. This Retrospective is an excellent place to start for new listeners or for Jimmy Smith fanatics alike. Every cut on the 4 CDs are worthy of inclusion and there are some great ones included for Jazz or Blues fans. I'm listening to my copy right now. I just got finished listening to the "Duel" between Jimmy and Art Blakey, a 10 minute duet between B3 and drums that is alone worth the price of admission. This boxed set includes a nice booklet with a bio of Smith's career and the dates of recording of the songs, etc.

This boxed set would make an excellent gift idea or just a great way to add some seminal organ Jazz/Blues to your collection. The people who this would probably appeal to are keyboard afficionados, Jazz history buffs, any Hammond B3 organ fans, and even anyone who enjoys the awesome sound of that classic B3 organ/Leslie speaker combination. After all, you might as well get some inspiration from the source, because Jimmy Smith is the first and most important B3 Organ player from the 50s to the 80s. He is a "god" of the B3 in Jazz.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Single best collection of Smith's Blue Note Years, January 3, 2011

By 

Jason Weber - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Retrospective (Audio CD)

I am impressed this collection contains the absolute best of Smith's Blue Note years and hardly leaves anything left to be desired, it contains the absolute best songs spanning his early years from his 1956 albums to his departure from them in 1962 to record for Verve. Smith is the absolute best organist in the history of jazz and this collection is the perfect showcase of his versatility and skill on the Hammond B3. It contains his most well-known jams like The Champ, The Sermon, Back at the Chicken Shack, and Midnight Special. This album is the greatest thing for casual organ jazz/Jimmy Smith fans as it gives you the essential songs on most of his most famous Blue Note albums. If you are die-hard you probably will want individual albums, but this collection still contains a lot of his hard to find earlier stuff recorded in the 50s, and you get more than you bargain for. Plus it is remastered.