Yardbird Suite: The Ultimate Collection

Charlie Parker | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 18, 1997)
• Original Release Date: March 18, 1997
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Rhino / Wea
• ASIN: B0000033PW
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,680 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #77 in Music > Jazz > Swing Jazz > Classic Big Band
  • #78 in Music > Jazz > Swing Jazz > Contemporary Big Band

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Groovin' High

2. All the Things You Are

3. Dizzy Atmosphere

4. Salt Peanuts

5. Shaw 'Nuff

6. Hot House

7. Now's the Time

8. Koko

9. Moose the Mooche

10. Yardbird Suite

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Scrapple from the Apple

2. Out of Nowhere

3. Don't Blame Me

4. Quasimodo

5. Klaunstance

6. Parker's Mood

7. Bloomdido

8. Star Eyes

9. She Rote

10. My Little Suede Shoes

See all 18 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

69 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars awesome package, but what are you after?, September 6, 2000

By 

R. Hutchinson "autonomeus" (a world ruled by fossil fuels and fossil minds) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Yardbird Suite: The Ultimate Collection (Audio CD)

For years I shied away from delving into Charlie Parker's music for lack of the knowledge to discriminate among a huge number of recordings, many of them of quite dubious provenance. These problems are unnecessary today, with guides like Penguin and AMG easily available. And now this fine Rhino package makes things even easier for someone checking out Bird for the first time. Great care has gone into the selection of tracks, as well as the packaging, with informative liner notes, photos, and gratuitously elegant touches like the spirals found on the clear underlay for each of the 2 discs.

Here, however, is something to think about -- do you want an attractive Parker box for your collection (this is a box containing 2 discs and a booklet) for show, or do you really want to listen to Bird intensely and repeatedly? This collection covers Bird's entire career, including several live sides with strings from his last years, which I personally have little interest in. I suggest that you might consider starting with the Savoy masters, say THE GENIUS OF CHARLIE PARKER, and/or the excellent collection of later Verve sides, BIRD'S BEST BOP ON VERVE. (There doesn't seem to be a single-disc collection of the Dial sides, and YARDBIRD SUITE contains a good dose of Dials.) You can't go wrong diving in right here, but if you hear this collection after hearing some of his essential Savoy, Dial and Verve recordings in concentrated form, you may better appreciate its riches. If this is where you start, listen closely -- if you do, you're certain to want to hear more!

36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great collection, February 24, 2000

By 

Ravi Desai "Ravi" (India) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yardbird Suite: The Ultimate Collection (Audio CD)

This 2CD Set is a great collection of Charlie Parker. There are a total of 38 tracks that cover his career from his early days as part of Dizzy Gillespie's band to his solo bebop recordings.

A This is a great set for anyone interesting in Parker's music. n added bonus to this set is that the packaging is excellent. each CD is in an individual "booklet style" case and it includes a 50 page highly readable booklet. The only disappointing feature about this set was that all the tracks are found on other albums(mainly from the Savoy, Dial and Verve catalogs). and there were no "new" unreleased recordings here. A good sampling that is ideal for anyone beginning a jazz collection but it will make you want to go and buy more of Parker. I would recommend the Complete Dial Sessions set.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice introduction, but mistakes on this set, November 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Yardbird Suite: The Ultimate Collection (Audio CD)

As pointed out, there are a few fatal flaws with this set. Besides the questionable source material and occasional overuse of noise reduction (both heard on this compilation's mastering of "Ko Ko," with the unusual 'twang' at the beginning and the heavily compressed sound quality), there are actually a few tracks where wrong takes were selected; basically, the compilation's claims of using only master takes are false. This CD substitutes inferior, alternate takes of "Relaxin' at Camarrillo" and "Embraceable You" for the originals. As for the track that somehow had its piano intro edited out, that would be "Moose the Mooche."

A year ago, I'd still recommend this set despite these flaws, but with the monumental "Complete Savoy & Dial Recordings: 1944-1948" having been released (with better sound, though a few minor problems with packaging and a few controversial pitch corrections), I'd have to go with that one. Yeah, "Yardbird Suite" is a lot cheaper, and most people will end up springing for it, but the 8CD box set is simply incredible.