The first ever comprehensive box-set of the greatest Jazz vibes-players in history - 18 original albums documenting the history of Jazz-vibes from Swing to Hard Bop and Featuring Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, Bobby Hutcherson, Roy Ayers, Cal Tjader and more…

Volume Eight of Mercury's partial transfer onto CDs of its mighty Complete Keynote Collection LP set contains some wonderful Red Norvo small combo swing sessions. "Subtle Sextology," "Blues a la Red," "The Man I Love," and "Seven Come Eleven" come from some sextet sessions that sound very much like the sextet 78s that Benny Goodman was putting out around then. That figures, because Norvo participated on many of the BG sides - and so did pianist Teddy Wilson and bassist Slam Stewart; the latter gets plenty of humorous hum-scat time on these sides, too. For "Russian Lullaby," "I Got Rhythm," and "Sing Something Simple," the personnel shuffles (Wilson and Stewart remain) and expands to a septet for which Johnny Thompson writes some creative charts. Norvo plays xylophone on "Lullaby" and delivers unquenchably swinging vibraphone solos at all times…

Although vibraphonist Red Norvo had been on records for nearly 20 years and had been a pacesetter in both swing and bop, it was when he formed his trio with guitarist Tal Farlow and bassist Charles Mingus in 1950 that he found the perfect setting for his vibes.
The Red Norvo Trio with Tal Farlow and Charles Mingus chronicles his 1950-51 recordings with the innovative guitarist and bass player, and are among the most influential examples of what has come to be known as chamber jazz. When economic conditions made touring with a sextet impossible, Norvo decided to dispense with a rhythm section. In Farlow and Mingus he found players who shared his fascination with sophisticated harmonies, and were able to hang with him at the brisk tempos he favored…

There is a cool and relaxed feeling to this session of "Midnight on Cloud 69" and ethereal quality which sets the tempo and mood of quietude. It is, contrary to the hot and heavy-breathed experience of daily living, and hiatus in which man may forget his tribulations and give vent to his imagination to trail the tail of a cloud as it glides through the dark and empty heavens.

In this segment of the Red Norvo story, the xylophonist's collaborations with his wife, Mildred Bailey, predominate. This was a fine jazz orchestra with excellent soloists. One great and glowing jewel in the band was clarinetist Hank D'Amico, and Norvo's sparkling percussive passages are always a delight. Each of the five instrumental tracks resound with that fascinating combination of xylophone and big band, tidy brass over solidly arranged reeds, and - beginning in January of 1938 - precision drumming by George Wettling, that mainstay of Eddie Condon and his Commodore jam bands. With 16 out of 24 tracks serving as features for Bailey's pleasant vocals, this package will satisfy anyone who has a taste for her style and personality…

Anyone who listens through the previous six volumes of Red Norvo on Classics will likely experience a visceral sense of excitement from 1943 onward as Norvo switches from xylophone to vibraphone and adopts a noticeably modern attitude toward the music. Norvo underwent a profound artistic transformation in 1944-1945, his many years of experience enabling him to settle into a new role as established recording artist and bandleader with an open-minded respect for young artists bearing new ideas. Norvo's remarkable skills as an improviser coupled with a willingness to participate in what music critics call the bop revolution often placed him squarely within the eye of the rapidly evolving cultural hurricane of modern music…

This CD reissue by Columbia in their Legacy series is a bit of a hodgepodge, covering a 2 1/2 year period in the bandleading career of xylophonist Red Norvo. Unfortunately the music is not programmed in chronological order but since most of these largely enjoyable 18 titles (including two never previously released) have rarely been reissued, this sampler will have to do until a more "complete" session comes along. Norvo's band during this period not only featured the occasional vocals of his wife, Mildred Bailey, but fine solo work from the tenor of Herbie Haymer, clarinetist Hank D'Amico and trumpeter Stew Pletcher in addition to the leader. The biggest key in Norvo's orchestra achieving a sound of its own, however, were the distinctive and inventive arrangements of Eddie Sauter. This CD contains great music that deserves to be reissued more coherently.