Gary McFarland was an influential composer, arranger, vibraphonist and vocalist, prominent on Verve and Impulse! Records during the 1960s, when he made "one of the more significant contributors to orchestral jazz". This album, recorded in September 1969, features Top-of-the-pops instrumental covers of "My Cherie Amour", "Everybody's Talking", some background bossa nova and a criminally wasted cast of all-stars: Hubert Laws, Curtis Fuller, Sam Brown, Ron Carter, Grady Tate and Airto. McFarland's cover of the Beatles' "Get Back" is excellent though.

Released in 1994, "Dis Is da Drum" is Herbie Hancock's 39th studio album and his first solo album after leaving Columbia Records. Tracks like "Bo Ba Be Da" and "Dis Is da Drum" reflect Hancock's move towards acid jazz, while "Butterfly" makes a fourth appearance on a Hancock album following the original album (Thrust), a live album (Flood), and another studio album (Direct Step).

"The Sugar Man" is an album by Stanley Turrentine. The recording is a compilation of four separate dates, each with different conductors, arrangers and other personnel. The album was recorded in 1971 after his successful debut, "Sugar" for the CTI label, but not released until 1975 after Turrentine had left for Fantasy Records.

Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez was a rumba quinto master and an Afro-Cuban Latin jazz percussionist. He is most famous for being the composer of the jazz standard "Afro Blue", recorded by John Coltrane among others. He was an integral figure in the fusion of Afro-Cuban rhythms with R&B and soul, paving the way for the boogaloo era of the late 1960s. This album has been released in 1966 via Columbia Records.

"Gilberto with Turrentine" is an album by Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer Astrud Gilberto and American saxophonist Stanley Turrentine featuring performances recorded in 1971 released on the CTI label. The Allmusic review calls it a "set that had some mildly entertaining moments".

Rare live album recorded at New York's Village Gate. Includes a 10 minute jamming version of Mongo's classic number "Afro Blue". The band include: Marty Sheller, Ray Maldonado, Rogers Grant, Bobby Capers, Hubert Laws and others. Lots of greats solos from Mongo and his band.

Recorded in 1970 at Rudy Van Gelder's studio in New Jersey under the production auspices of Creed Taylor, the arrangement and conducting skills of Deodato, and the engineering expertise of Van Gelder himself, Jobim's "Stone Flower" is quite simply one of his most quietly stunning works – and certainly the high point of his time at Columbia.

Legendary guitarist and singer George Benson is joined by a historic band which includes Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Billy Cobham, Airto Moreira and more for this 1971 gem. The ensemble performs the ‘60s classic “White Rabbit”, “California Dreamin'” and “Summer Of '42”. Benson’s guitar is in full blaze on this must-have audiophile download. White Rabbit remains one of Benson’s finest outings.

"Spanish Blue" is an album by bassist Ron Carter recorded at Rudy Van Gelder's Studio in New Jersey in 1974 and released on the CTI label. The Allmusic review calling it an "Interesting concept with good solos".

One of Antonio Carlos Jobim's best-known albums, 1970's „Tide“ is a companion piece to 1967's „Wave“, a similarly lush and smooth collection for producer Creed Taylor's CTI Records. In fact, this album's lengthy title track is a theme-and-variations exploration of the main melodic line from WAVE's title track.

Chet Baker began his comeback after five years of musical inactivity with this excellent CTI date. Highlights include "Autumn Leaves", "Tangerine", and "With a Song in My Heart". Altoist Paul Desmond is a major asset on two songs and the occasional strings give variety to this fine session.

Herbie Hancock's "The Prisoner" was one of his first records after leaving the Miles Davis quintet in 1968. The album was done in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, a musical social statement focused around civil rights while exploring the vastness of the new jazz form known as post-bop. The recording features Garnett Brown on trombone, Joe Henderson on tenor saxophone and alto flute, Johnny Coles on flugelhorn, Buster Williams on bass, and Albert Heath on drums. Although post-bop wasn't as conventional as jazz or bop, Hancock's challenging compositions invite listeners into his world of simple melodies and emotionally austere music.

"Black Widow" is an album by Argentine composer, pianist and conductor Lalo Schifrin recorded in 1976 and released on the CTI label. The Allmusic review called it "one of the peak albums in Lalo Schifrin's lengthy catalogue and a necessity for anyone interested in his jazz work".

"Giant Box" is a double album by American arranger/conductor and composer Don Sebesky featuring performances recorded in 1973 and released on the CTI label. The Allmusic review states "This may have been Creed Taylor's most ambitious single project… Thankfully the musicmaking lives up to the billing. Everything that gave CTI its distinctive sound and identity is here – the classical adaptations, elaborate orchestrations and structuring, pop-tune covers, plenty of room for the star soloists to stretch out in a combo format… Giant Box still ranks as a sensational coup and a reminder of how potent CTI was at its peak".

"First Light" is the nineteenth album by jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. Recorded in 1971, it features string arrangements by Don Sebesky. It was his third album released on Creed Taylor's CTI label and features performances by Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Eric Gale, George Benson, Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette, Airto Moreira and Richard Wyands. The album is part of a loose trilogy including his two previous records at the time, Red Clay and Straight Life. First Light won a 1972 Grammy Award for "Best Jazz Performance by a Group".