NEA Jazz Masters (2004)

About this title: The NEA Jazz Masters program is sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, and since 1982 has been handing out honors and cash to legendary jazz artists. This collection of past award-winners (which is limited to recordings released by labels owned currently by Universal, namely Verve, Impulse!, MCA, and Decca) makes for some great listening. The tracks by such amazing artists as Count Basie, Carmen McRae, Dizzy Gillespie, and Sonny Rollins are taken from when they were at the peak of their game, not when they were given the Jazz Masters award. There are a few exceptions in the case of ... read more

Tracks:

1. Jumpin' at the Woodside [Basie]
2. Oh, Lady Be Good [Gershwin/Gershwin]
3. How High the Moon [Lewis/Hamilton]
4. Air Mail Special, Pts. 1 & 2 [Christian/Goodman]
5. Little Jazz [Eldridge/Harding]
6. They Can't Take That Away from Me [Gershwin/Gershwin]
7. Get Me to the Church on Time [Loewe/Lerner]
8. Mack the Knife [Blitzstein/Brecht]
9. Hootie Blues [Brown/McShann/Parke]
10. Every Day I Have the Blues [Chatman]
11. Hold 'Em Joe [Thomas]
12. A Night in Tunisia [Gillespie/Paparelli]
13. 'Round Midnight [Monk/Williams/Hanig]
14. Cherry [Redman/Gilbert]
15. Take Five [Desmond]
16. Day In - Day Out [Bloom/Mercer]
17. The Way You Look Tonight [Kern/Fields]
18. Cotton Tail [Ellington]
19. The More I See You [Warren/Gordon]
20. Forest Flower: Sunrise [Lloyd]
21. (Put Another Nickel In) Music! Music! Music! [Baum/Weiss]
22. Them There Eyes [Pinkard/Tauber/Trac]
23. What Is This Thing Called Love? [Porter]
24. Miles' Mode [Coltrane]
25. Gingerbread Boy [Heath]
26. Bird Alone [Lincoln]
27. Sacajawea [Shorter]
28. Lush Life [Strayhorn]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.