Maynard Ferguson had led many big bands before recording this Palo Alto LP. This was not one of his more significant units (few of the sidemen have been heard from much since) and the music, although more jazz-oriented than his earlier Columbia LPs (including versions of "Take the 'A' Train" and a vocal feature for MF on "As Time Goes By"), is not really that memorable. It's a lesser effort.

Canadian jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson was something of a prodigy as a youngster, playing solos with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Orchestra broadcasts when he was 13 years old, and was always destined for a career in music, training at the Conservatoire in Montreal until 1948. He moved to the USA and played with the bands of Boyd Raeburn, Jimmy Dorsey and Charlie Barnet before joining Stan Kenton for an extended stint in the early '50s. The recordings featured here represent his first forays into recording leading his own bands. This 43-track 2-CD collection comprises all the titles (excluding one which could not be included for reasons of space) from his albums on the Emarcy label The Maynard Ferguson Octet, Dimensions, Around the Horn with Maynard Ferguson and Boy with Lots of Brass, with line-ups ranging from an octet to a 13-piece big band. It features many original compositions, with a number by tenor saxophonist and arranger Bill Holman, along with arrangements of classic Songbook standards, with the musicians involved including Bud Shank, Shelly Manne, Milt Bernhart, Herb Geller, Georgie Auld, Red Callender, Nino Tempo, Ray Linn, Bill Holman, Ray Brown, Alvin Stoller, Bobby Timmons, Larry Bunker and many more. It's an intriguing and entertaining insight into his work as he leads his own bands on record for the first time

Maynard Ferguson Octet is an album by Canadian jazz trumpeter/trombonist Maynard Ferguson featuring tracks recorded at Capitol Studios, Los Angeles, CA. (tracks 1-5) April 25th 1955, (tracks 6-8) April 27th 1955 and originally released on the EmArcy label 1955. This early triumph from the solo career of the brilliant trumpeter remains bewilderingly rare - it's an avowed West Coast-jazz classic but it's been out of print for years. Verve Originals re-issued this 2008.

Trumpeter Maynard Ferguson leads his big band in a fiery date recorded in 1958, not at the Newport Festival but in New York. He was playing no-holds-barred, straight-ahead jazz at this time, and doing it with gusto. The band included Bill Chase in his pre-fusion period, Slide Hampton, and Carmen Leggion, and had a good mix between veterans and emerging youngsters.

By the early '80s, trumpeter Maynard Ferguson's disco-heavy "jazz" albums, so commercially viable through the previous decade, had already begun losing their hip cachet. Disco itself was on the wane and Ferguson, with his jumpsuits, smoky sunglasses, and obscenely high trumpet playing, was quickly becoming a parody of himself. Thusly, jazz fans in 1982 were generously bequeathed Hollywood, easily one of the ex-Kenton-ite's worst career efforts. Produced by bassist extraordinaire Stanley Clarke (who also supplied the title track), the result is an airbrushed and extroverted pop pastiche of dancefloor-ready songs that have absolutely nothing to do with jazz. Basically, by this point the MF Band was churning out well-produced, if predictable, instrumental versions of pop tunes with little if any improvisation…

Two Big Bands Play Selections From West Side Story & Other Delights is a 1991 album by Buddy Rich and Maynard Ferguson. It features a series of songs with each musician heading their own band. This was released by LRC Ltd.

In May 1967, when Maynard Ferguson was invited to appear at the Expo 67 Canadian Pavilion in Montreal, his Roulette period was behind him but his style and musical tastes had not really changed. Although he did not appear on record at all in 1966 (other than the soundtrack of a television show) and would not have a regular orchestra until 1970, the music on this CD sounds very much as if it were being played by an edition of the Maynard Ferguson Big Band. The obscure sidemen (all local players gathered together for the occasion) boast high musicianship and a few excellent (but unfortunately unidentified) soloists. MF is the main star throughout, showing off his remarkable technique and coming up with consistently exciting and generally creative solos in addition to enthusiastically leading the shouting ensembles.

Maynard Ferguson, passed on 14 years ago, regarded as a one off, there will never be another musician like him with his power and incredible high note technique on the trumpet. This is his Greatest Hits from his time with Columbia, Big Band Pop/Jazz/Disco like never hear before, some are rare mixes never available on CD before. In 1977, resulted in a top-40 (#22) pop single, "Gonna Fly Now" (from the movie Rocky), a rare accomplishment for a jazz musician in the 1970s. Film and television themes figured prominently in the surging popularity of MF. On this CD the "Theme from Star Trek," and "Main Title from Star Wars," Bernstein's "Maria" from West Side Story, "Scheherazade" from the classical music realm, " Dorothy's "Over The Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz. For the first time anywhere, on any format, we bring you the previously unreleased, "Shanti Mantra." Now, we leave you to the music and to your Memories Of Maynard.