The Soul of Ben Webster is a spectacularly expansive, deeply soulful, and historically monumental mainstream jazz anthology masterfully documenting the peak late-1950s studio recordings of the legendary American tenor saxophonist Ben "The Brute" Webster, beautifully compiled on double-compact disc in 1995 by the definitive Verve Records. Spanning over two and a half hours across 26 tracks, this high-fidelity archive primarily brings together the complete, legendary 1958 Verve sessions including the entirety of the seminal album "The Soul of Ben Webster", alongside brilliant late-50s companion recordings featuring fellow tenor icon Harold Ashby. Renowned for his instantly recognizable, breathy ballad warmth and his fiercely stomping, blues-drenched swing velocity, Webster commands the spotlight with unparalleled emotional authority. He is flanked by an absolute powerhouse vanguard of mainstream jazz royalty, featuring the elegant trumpet stylings of Art Farmer, the subtle guitar work of Mundell Lowe, and a flawless, telepathic rhythm engine helmed by pianist Jimmy Jones, bass legend Milt Hinton, and drummer Dave Bailey. The tracklist is an absolute treasure trove of classic acoustic jazz history, showcasing explosive original swingers like Fajista, Charlotte's Piccolo, and Blues-A-Plenty, alongside definitive, breathtakingly intimate readings of timeless standards including Chelsea Bridge, Moonlight In Vermont, and Billy Strayhorn's Satin Doll. Expanded with rare, previously unissued alternate takes of Blues For The Blues and Reelin' And Rockin', and exceptionally preserved in pristine dual-format lossless and high-bitrate audio with full booklet artwork scans, this definitive compilation stands as a mandatory cornerstone and a prized collector's holy grail for global purists of classic tenor saxophone history, mid-century studio swing, and historic Verve catalog lore.

It all began with a coincidence and complicity between Ronald Trisch, the head of the East German music agency, and Horst Lippmann, the West Berlin representative of major American artists. In January 1967, Ella Fitzgerald toured Europe with Duke Ellington and his orchestra. After a concert in West Berlin, January 25 was a day off. They jumped at the chance to organize a somewhat adventurous "detour" for Ella to East Berlin. At 11 p.m. on Wednesday evening, 3,000 people flocked to the Friedrichstadt Palace. This appearance in East Berlin would be the only one of her career. No big orchestra behind her, but the 3 exceptional musicians of the Jimmy Jones Trio to accompany her.

Jimmy Jones was an in-demand arranger and pianist throughout the 1950s and '60s, working with most leading jazz vocalists and soloists of the era. If you go into Tom Lord's Jazz Discography, you'll find Jones on 307 sessions. But if you modify your search, screening just for Jones's leadership dates, you'll find the number dramatically reduced to eight. In truth, there were only seven, since the tracks for an Atlantic Records session in 1957 were strangely never released.
Among these seven leadership recordings, the only trio session released as a six-song 10-inch LP was Jimmy Jones Trio. Jones recorded the album for the French Vogue label in October 1954 in Paris. The only explanations for Jones recording just one trio album over the course of his career is either that he was too busy or he was under contract as an arranger or accompanist to other artists and couldn't record legally under his own name…