5 Classic Albums

Dizzy Reece is one of the most underrated trumpet player in the history of this music. Great collection of his recordings at a great price. If u love this music this label is putting out some great sets and sound quality is very good

The neglected master trumpeter, Dizzy Reece, is well-represented by the selections on this anthology. "Blues In Trinity" features fellow trumpeter Donald Byrd, frequent stablemate tenor saxophonist Tubby Hayes, and the gifted drummer/journalist Art Taylor. Most of the material consists of clever originals. "The Rake" features Dizzy in all-star company-Hank Mobley (ts), Wynton Kelly (p), Paul Chambers (b) and once again Art Taylor (d). The originality of the compositions and arrangements once again is a strength. "Soundin'Off" features Dizzy, the under-recorded Walter Bishop, Jr. on piano, with Doug Watkins and Art Taylor rounding out the rhythm section. "I Don't Stand A Ghost of A Chance With You",the sprightly Tadd Dameron composition "Ep Pob", "Yesterdays", and "Our Love Is Here To Stay" are session stand outs, IMO. "A New Star" features Dizzy with a pocket big band starring Tubby Hayes on tenor sax. A slick arrangement of "Now's The Time" is a session highlight. "Progress Report" finds Dizzy fronting a sextet, including the bebop classics "Out of Nowhere" and "Scrapple from The Apple." the remaining selections are taken from various rare Dizzy Reece EPs: Nowhere To Go,Top Trumpets, Transatlantic Alliance,, On The Scene, A Variation on Monk, the last of which is particularly masterful. This is a good place to make first acquaintance with Dizzy Reece. I can also recommend "Asia Minor", available from AMAZON. Dizzy's bright, singing tone makes him standout from more forgettable peers of his era as does his way with a ballad. Try this collection out-you'll be pleased, indeed.

great recordings. excellent quality. if you like Jazz trumpet music check this cat out.

I am pleased with the product and the speed in which it was sent.

When trumpet players of the 50's are mentioned, Dizzy Reece's name rarely (if ever) comes up. Similar to another good trumpet player, Louis Smith (hear his albums on the Blue Note label) Reece never became a household name. And that's too bad because he was a good, sometimes fine player-especially his Blue Note albums. This 4 CD set collects most everything Reece recorded in the 50's. His album "Asia Minor", from '62 is also good. This collection floats somewhere between 3 and 4 "stars" (probably in a pinch closer to 4) depending on the album and the tunes.Included are the albums mentioned on the Amazon page, plus the EP "Nowhere To Go" (1958), "Top Trumpets" (1956), "Transatlantic Alliance" (1957), "On The Scene" (1957), and "A Variation On Monk" (1957). So you're getting a lot of Reece's music in this collection, which is fantastic.Maybe it's because Reece spent so much time in Europe, which in the 50's meant you didn't exist as far as most American jazz fans were concerned. Reece recorded albums with (then) good be-bop/hard-bop players like Tubby Hayes (you need to hear his sax work), Victor Feldman, Phil Seaman, and others. His style was to stick pretty closely to the melody, and when the situation warranted, he would throw out a sparkling, well thought out, integrated (sometimes relatively lengthy) solo full of excitement, and then recede back into the group sound. His bands always consisted of good/great players, the arrangements were intelligent, the song choices good, and the music was never less than good to very good. But his style and tone never really stood out from other contemporary players who went on to forge their own distinct sound.Probably the high points here would be his Blue Note work. These are about as close as Reece ever came to forming his own style. But the earlier albums all have a number of good/great tunes, well worth hearing. Listen (especially) to Reece's ballad playing. It's a good mixture of hard-bop, and the blues. All in all, Reece deserves more notoriety than he has (if any) among jazz fans of this era or jazz in general.As with other releases from the Real Gone Jazz label, there's no notes-which is a real disservice, especially with players (like Reece) not as well known. But with his albums becoming more difficult to find, and expensive to purchase, this collection is the way to go. Is there anything truly unique about Reece's playing? No, not really. But his music is well worth hearing for fans of that era of hard-bop jazz. And while you're at it, check out the aforementioned Louis Smith on Blue Note. He too should be known for recording some good jazz. Reece plays a good trumpet-check him out and you'll hear what I mean.