What It's All About is swinging, building up solos to potentially ferocious levels and going for broke. That was always the philosophy that Roy Eldridge followed and, even though it was rather late in his career by the time he recorded this Pablo set, he was still pushing himself. His septet on the album is full of talented veterans including altoist Norris Turney, Budd Johnson on tenor, pianist Norman Simmons, and (on half of the set) vibraphonist Milt Jackson. The music (three Eldridge originals and two obscurities) features plenty of lengthy and spirited soloing.

Part of his five sessions that featured duets with different trumpeters, pianist Oscar Peterson's matchup with trumpeter Roy Eldridge has its strong moments. Eldridge did not quite have the range of his earlier years, but his competitive streak had not mellowed with age. Peterson pushes Eldridge to his limit and the music is generally quite exciting. Highlights include "Little Jazz," "Sunday," and "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea."

Dan Morganstern makes an excellent point in his liner notes when he laments the tendency to refer to Roy Eldridge as a “link between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie.” For one thing, Diz eschewed the kind of brilliant trumpet tone that characterized the work of Eldridge and Armstrong. Considered in this light, if one starts with Armstrong’s early achievements and then looks for anything like that kind of distilled joy in all the subsequent history of the music, one gets no further than the spectacular sides the man they called “Little Jazz” made for Columbia in January 1937. There’s just no one after that to “link” to, ever…

One of tenor-saxophonist Lester Young's final studio sessions (he died a year later), this date apparently had a lot of difficulties but the recorded results are excellent. Prez was joined by two great swing trumpeters (Roy Eldridge and Harry "Sweets" Edison) and a fine rhythm section for two standards, two originals and the ballad "Gypsy in My Soul." Young takes rare clarinet solos on two of the selections with his emotional statement on "They Can't Take That Away from Me" being one of the highpoints of his career.

Putting competitive trumpeters Dizzy Gillespie, Roy Eldridge, and Clark Terry and an Oscar Peterson Trio with bassist Niels Pedersen and drummer Louis Bellson together before a live crowd at the Montreux Jazz Festival was a typically inspired idea by producer Norman Granz. The trumpeters bring out the best in each other on "There Is No Greater Love," "On the Alamo" and "Indiana," although Peterson does not let himself get upstaged during this exuberant jam session.

Eldridge's final recording as a leader is a real gem. Although his chops were no longer in prime form, he was still pushing himself to the limit. With a brilliant rhythm section egging him on (pianist Oscar Peterson, bassist Niels Pedersen, and drummer Bobby Durham), Eldridge still went for the high notes (and generally hit them) during this exciting set from the 1977 Montreux Jazz Festival. Although the musicians did not know it at the time, the last two songs ("Perdido" and "Bye Bye Blackbird") were a perfect ending to a brilliant career. This dramatic CD reissue is highly recommended.

As far as Roy Eldridge's big bands go, this was the peak. With arrangements by Buster Harding and a stable of powerful young players, the Roy Eldridge Orchestra must have been formidable in live performance. Most of the recordings they made for the Decca label represent the ultimate in extroverted big-band swing. The explosive "Little Jazz Boogie" is one of the hottest records Roy Eldridge ever made. The flip side, "Embraceable You," bears witness to his profound abilities as an interpreter of ballads. Three sides by the Roy Eldridge Little Jazz Band recorded for V-Disc on November 14, 1945, allow for more intimate interplay…

Although the recordings made by the Delta Four on December 20, 1935, were not issued under the leadership of Roy Eldridge, they form the perfect beginning for a chronological survey of Eldridge's adventures as a major influential artist in the evolution of jazz trumpet between Louis Armstrong in the 1920s and Dizzy Gillespie in the 1940s. The Delta Four were one fine little swing machine. Their "Farewell Blues" has a solid bounce and Eldridge seems to sail over the heads of the rhythm players during "Swingin' at the Famous Door." In 1936 Eldridge's orchestra was equipped with Chu Berry, Buster Bailey, John Kirby, and Sid Catlett…