This album is certain to be placed in the MJQ section of any shop that carries it. In reality though, only four of the cuts here feature the permanent, stand-alone, 1952-vintage Modern Jazz Quartet; the other eight having been done in the summer and fall of 1951, when they were still known as the Milt Jackson Quartet, with Jackson providing all of the original material. The differences are so subtle as to be indistinguishable – Milt Jackson and John Lewis are on every cut, while Al Johns subs for Kenny Clarke on drums, and Ray Brown precedes Percy Heath on four of the tracks. Clarke's drumming is more impressive in its quiet way, but Ray Brown's bass work is simpler and more forceful.

All vibraphonists owe a debt of gratitude to Lionel Hampton for paving the way in traditional and modern jazz, pioneering the instrument as more than in an accompanist role or being heard only in lounges. In his heyday, Teddy Charles was a prime example of taking Hampton's approach to a different level, eventually in hard and post-bop, but here he takes swing era tunes of Hamp's, changing up or editing their melodic structures with a quartet featuring pianist Hank Jones, and a larger ensemble with horn complement. This album as reissued on CD is known as Salute to Hamp and subtitled "The Vibraphone Players of Bethlehem, Vol. 1" as issued originally on the Bethlehem label, reissued by Avenue Jazz. It showcases Charles, not so much in an evolutionary fashion, but as a complete performer and bandleader. He is a singularly unique jazzman who anyone can appreciate, and is quite able to hold interest of listeners beyond conventional wisdom of what well-worn standards can sound like with just a little inspiration and soul.

Not only does this LP feature a "new quartet," but it marks the beginning of Gary Burton's longtime association with ECM. In general, Burton's ECM dates were more introverted and laid-back than his more diverse Atlantic releases, but they always had their moments of interest. On this set, the vibraphonist, guitarist Mick (then known as Michael) Goodrick, bassist Abraham Laboriel, and drummer Harry Blazer perform numbers by Chick Corea ("Open Your Eyes, You Can Fly"), Keith Jarrett ("Coral"), Gordon Beck, Carla Bley, and Mike Gibbs, in addition to Burton's "Brownout." Intriguing if not essential music.

One of the most important figures in all of jazz and one who both witnessed and contributed to the genre's development through the bop age, Lionel Hampton was revered as a skilled and creative musician, as an exceptional composer and as a charismatic and exemplary bandleader. He was the first player to showcase the vibraphone as a leading instrument, and was a talented pianist, drummer and singer too. During his career, Hampton worked alongside numerous other jazz greats including Louis Armstrong, Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, Buddy Rich, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, and Quincy Jones - among others - both as a sideman and as leader. Hampton provided opportunities to those who he saw as the upcoming generation of musicians and his keen ear in this regard helped the careers of many future legends. During the 1950s in particular, Hampton and his groups produced some of their finest and most challenging work and it is from this era that the contents of this compilation are drawn. Although not again reaching the same peak as he had done in his glory years, Lionel Hampton remained active for much of the rest of his life, receiving numerous accolades in the process. Among these was being named an American Goodwill Ambassador by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in '57, he was also awarded a National Medal Of Arts from President Bill Clinton in 1996.

Here is the 12th volume in the complete chronological recordings of Lionel Hampton as reissued by the Classics label. It opens with Hamp's final five recordings for the MGM label, waxed in Los Angeles on October 17, 1951. This was a 20-piece big band using charts written by Quincy Jones, and the music it made feels much different from what's to be heard in the next leg of Lionel Hampton's odyssey, a Norman Granz-produced quartet session with Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown and Buddy Rich, recorded in New York on September 2, 1953. While the big band sides are exciting and fun, with a hip vocal by Sonny Parker on "Don't Flee the Scene Salty" and a singalong routine led by Hamp on "Oh Rock," the quartet swings cohesively, stretching out for six, seven or nearly eleven minutes, for the LP era had begun and Norman Granz encouraged extended improvisations. The combination of Oscar Peterson and Lionel Hampton, whether cooking together on "Air Mail Special" or savoring the changes of a ballad like "The Nearness of You" made spirits to soar and sparks to fly.

Jorge Rossy turns to vibraphone and marimba and delivers a trio set filled with momentous originals for his ECM leader-debut. Marked by their immediate melodic appeal, the vibraphonist’s lines are in lively interplay with his colleagues, Robert Landfermann on bass and Jeff Ballard on drums. After Jorge’s recent contribution on drums to Jakob Bro’s trio with trumpeter Arve Henriksen on Uma Elmo, the present line-up sees him focusing on his own music. On Puerta the Spaniard shines as he navigates a programme that proves him as much an eloquent composer as a powerful melodic voice.

These recordings of the Terry Gibbs Quartet reveal, among other virtues, the extraordinary degree of sympathy between Terry and his partner, Miss Terry Pollard, the wonderful pianist of his group. After three years on the road together, the two Terries developed four hands that swing as one. The mental picture of a typical Gibbs performance involves flying mallets, racing thoughts and impulsive improvisation at their most dazzling. There is an essential percussive feel in what most of his fans have come to regard as a typical Gibbs performance; yet there are many occasions when he also offers a discreet and tasteful approach toward slow ballad numbers. All in all, this seems to be as complete a representation as you could wish of the Gibbs talent in every mood.