Way more than just a gimmicky bossa nova session - and a surprisingly great showcase for the inventive rhythms of the Brubeck group, and the sensitive alto work of Paul Desmond! The record's got a really different feel than some of Dave's other work for Columbia - in that the modernism is put slightly on the back burner - letting drummer Joe Morello snap out with some lightly gliding percussion that's a bit more straight ahead than usual, and which offers a unique take on the bossa groove. Paul Desmond's the real star of the set, though - and his alto steps out here with the best gentle presence of his later work for RCA and A&M - beautifully blown throughout, and with a tone that most other players would die for!

One of the more obscure Dave Brubeck albums is really a showcase for the young singer Carmen McRae who performs nine numbers: six composed by the pianist/leader, one song apiece by altoist Paul Desmond and bassist Eugene Wright and the lesser-known standard "Paradiddle Joe." McRae is in fine voice but strangely enough all of the songs (except for "Strange Meadowlark") have been long forgotten.

Although a touch underrated, Jazz at Oberlin is one of the early Dave Brubeck classic recordings. The interplay between the pianist-leader and altoist Paul Desmond on "Perdido" borders on the miraculous, and their renditions of "The Way You Look Tonight," "How High the Moon" and "Stardust" are quite memorable. Brubeck's piano playing on "These Foolish Things" is so percussive and atonal in one spot as to sound like Cecil Taylor, who would not emerge for another two years. With bassist Ron Crotty and drummer Lloyd Davis giving the Quartet quiet and steady support, Brubeck and Desmond were free to play at their most adventurous.

Thirteen years into their tenure, the Dave Brubeck Quartet was still able to mine the creative vein for new means of expression. Despite the hits and popularity on college campuses, or perhaps because of it, Brubeck, Paul Desmond, Eugene Wright, and Joe Morello composed a restless band with a distinctive sound. These eight tracks, all based on a tour of Japan the year before, were, in a sense, Brubeck fulfilling a dictum from his teacher, the French composer Darius Milhaud, who exhorted him to "travel the world and keep your ears open." The sketches Brubeck and Desmond created all invoke the East, particularly the folk melodies of Japan directly, while still managing to use the Debussian impressionistic approach to jazz that kept them riding the charts and creating a body of music that, while playing into the exotica craze of the moment, was still jazz composed and played with integrity…

This set is a near-classic, one of many from this period, by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Drummer Joe Dodge had just joined the group, and he works with bassist Ron Crotty in laying down a solid and subtle foundation. The real action, however, takes place up front with pianist Dave Brubeck and altoist Paul Desmond. Their individual solos are full of creative ideas on six standards - most memorable are "All the Things You Are," "Laura," and "I'll Never Smile Again" - and their interaction and tradeoffs are timeless.

The 17 selections on this disc represent the earliest recordings by one of the most important and definitive jazz combos in history. These are interesting because Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond on alto sax had established the basic sound long before bassist Gene Wright and drummer Joe Morello would join them for the 'classic quartet' era. One other thing that is interesting is even though recording technology was relatively crude in the very early 1950s the sound quality on this album is more than acceptable.

Previously Unreleased Takes from the Original 1959 Sessions.

This is the third and final guest appearance by clarinetist Bill Smith in the place of Paul Desmond with the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Like the earlier record dates, this 1961 session focuses exclusively on Smith's compositions, resulting in a very different sound for the band than its normal mix of the leader's songs and standards. Smith was a member of Brubeck's adventurous octet of the late '40s and, like the pianist, also studied with French composer Darius Milhaud. So the clarinetist is willing to take chances, utilizing a mute on his instrument in "Pan's Pipes," and having drummer Joe Morello use his timpani sticks on the piano strings in the swinging "The Unihorn." Smith proves himself very much in Desmond's league with his witty solos and equally amusing, pun-filled liner notes…

For this entry in Dave Brubeck's series of Time albums, his Quartet with altoist Paul Desmond performs "Elementals" with an orchestra and plays five briefer originals including four that have unusual time signatures; "World's Fair" is in 13/4 time.

With the support of the American State Department, the Dave Brubeck Quartet, including new members Joe Morello and Eugene Wright, began a major tour of Europe early in 1958. Their first concert in the Netherlands was held on 26 February in the legendary Concertgebouw Hall in Amsterdam, usually reserved for performances of classical music. Since 1951 and the collaboration between Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond, the band had gained a stunning reputation. In 1954, Dave Brubeck was featured on the cover of Time magazine. Rumor has it that Duke Ellington knocked on Brubeck’s hotel door to congratulate him. Brubeck is said to have responded, “It should have been you.” He dedicated one of his most famous pieces, “The Duke”, included on this album, to his fellow pianist.

10 CD box set containing sixteen original LP albums by the legendary jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck, including 'Time Out', which was the first jazz album to sell more than a million copies and featured the best-selling jazz single of all time, "Take Five". These classic albums were recorded between 1946 and 1960 and document arguably the most important years of Brubeck's career…