In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here, for the first time in history, we have a snapshot of what that band was like on the road, playing live In Berlin at Philharmonic Hall. As listeners will easily hear, this band rocked the house, and swung hard! Illinois himself is in rare form, playing soulfully and strong, ripping through all his classics with fervor and fire. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, and Phil Wilson. Featured here within the band are veterans such as Irvin Stokes, Johnny Grimes, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, and Babe Clarke; as well as young lions such as Frank Lacy, Joey Cavaseno, Jesse Davis, and Henry Scott.

The tenor-sax legend fulfilled his lifelong dream of assembling a big band-like those he'd toured with in his youth-in the '80s. That band (esteemed vets as well as young lions) only recorded one studio album; here they are the previous year, swinging the roof off the Village Vanguard with "Woody 'n' You," "One O'Clock Jump," "Cottontail," "Tickle Toe," "Ghost of a Chance" and more! Squatty Roo.

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here we have a very early snapshot of what that band was like at the world famous Village Vanguard club in New York City. This is the third time Jacquet had played the Vanguard, and had previously broken attendance records in the club with what seemed to be a guerrilla marketing campaign in the streets of NYC in order to launch the debut of his Big Band. Some NYC Jazz fans may recall flyers being distributed all over town, especially in the Times Square area, revealing that the "missing in action" Jazz Legend Illinois Jacquet was indeed "back" with a full 15 piece Big Band on tow. Well, the promotions worked effectively, announcing that "The King" was back to take the jazz world by storm! As listeners will easily hear, this band rocked the house, and swung hard! Illinois himself is in rare form, playing soulfully and strong, ripping through all his classics with fervor and fire. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, and Jimmy Mundy. Featured here within the band are veterans such as E.V. Perry, Irvin Stokes, Johnny Grimes, Kiane Zawadi, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, Norris Turney, and Babe Clarke; as well as young lions such as Robert Trowers and Joey Cavaseno.

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here we have a very early snapshot of what that band was like at the world famous Village Vanguard club in 1987, New York City. This is the third time Jacquet had played the Vanguard, and had previously broken attendance records in the club with what seemed to be a guerrilla marketing campaign in the streets of NYC in order to launch the debut of his Big Band. Some NYC Jazz fans may recall flyers being distributed all over town, especially in the Times Square area, revealing that the "missing in action" Jazz Legend Illinois Jacquet was indeed "back" with a full 15 piece Big Band on tow. Well, the promotions worked effectively, announcing that "The King" was back to take the jazz world by storm! This is the band after returning from their first major European tour for five weeks during the Summer of 1987, and their last engagement before hitting the studio to record "Jacquet's Got It" for Atlantic Records. As listeners will easily hear, this band rocked the house, and swung hard! Illinois himself is in rare form, playing soulfully and strong, ripping through all his classics with fervor and fire. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, Phil Wilson, and Jimmy Mundy. Featured here within the band are veterans such as Irvin Stokes, Rodney Richardson, Johnny Grimes, Eddie Preston, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, Babe Clarke, and the great Cecil Payne; as well as young lions such as Duffy Jackson, Frank Lacy, Henry Scott and Joey Cavaseno. Young Joey Cavaseno, who now has moved up to what will become a full-time position as lead alto with the band, who has now gained Jacquet's trust, brings in two new excellent young talents in the form of high-note specialist Henry Scott on trumpet, and trombonist Frank Lacy on trombone, working that plunger as well as swinging hard. This performance also features a very relaxed and deeper Jacquet than on most of his recordings; including a funny moment when Jacquet admonishes a patron who is smoking too close to the bandstand, to extinguish their cigarettes. We hope you will enjoy!

The Jacquet Files, Vol. 5: Big Band Live at the Village Vanguard 1987 - In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his 'little big band' of the 1940s. - Acoustic Bass - Fred Hunter, Alto Saxophone - Jesse Davis, Alto Saxophone, Clarinet - Joseph Cavaseno, Baritone Saxophone - Rudy Rutherford, Drums - Clyde Lucas, Piano - Richard Wyands, Tenor Saxophone - Babe Clark, Eddie Barefield, Tenor Saxophone, Leader, Alto Saxophone - Illinois Jacquet, Trombone - Frank Lacy, Kiane Zawadi, Robert Trowers

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his 'little big band' of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled 'Jacquet's Got It' on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here we have a very early snapshot of what that band was like at the world famous Village Vanguard club in 1986, New York City. This is the second time Jacquet had played the Vanguard, and had previously broken attendance records in the club with what seemed to be a guerrilla marketing campaign in the streets of NYC in order to launch the debut of his Big Band. Some NYC Jazz fans may recall flyers being distributed all over town, especially in the Times Square area, revealing that the 'missing in action' Jazz Legend Illinois Jacquet was indeed 'back' with a full 15 piece Big Band on tow. Well, the promotions worked effectively, announcing that 'The King' was back to take the jazz world by storm! As listeners will easily hear, this band rocked the house, and swung hard! Illinois himself is in rare form, playing soulfully and strong, ripping through all his classics with fervor and fire. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, and Jimmy Mundy. Featured here within the band are veterans such as E. V. Perry, Irvin Stokes, Johnny Grimes, Kiane Zawadi, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, Bill Easley, and Hugh Brodie; as well as young lions such as Robert Trowers and Joey Cavaseno.

JACQUET FILES VOLUME 10

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Released now for the first time is a live performance of that band in all their swinging glory. The place is Burghausen, Germany, and the year is 1996, featuring a younger lineup than our previous release, but swinging hard nonetheless. Yalloppin' Hounds' cohorts Joey "G-Clef" Cavaseno, and Brian "Lord" Sledge are featured, along with Mike Grey, the son of trombone legend Al Grey of Count Basie fan, and Gray Sargent, Jacquet's long time guitarist discovery.

Japanese reissue. Part of Universal Japan's 'Hard-to-get' hidden Jazz masterpieces campaign. 2021.

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here we have a very early snapshot of what that band was like at the world famous Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City. This is the first time Jacquet Big Band had played the Blue Note, after previously breaking attendance records at the Village Vanguard, with what seemed to be a guerrilla marketing campaign in the streets of NYC in order to launch the debut of his Big Band. Some NYC Jazz fans may recall flyers being distributed all over town, especially in the Times Square area, revealing that the "missing in action" Jazz Legend Illinois Jacquet was indeed "back" with a full 15 piece Big Band on tow. Well, the promotions worked effectively, announcing that "The King" was back to take the jazz world by storm! As listeners will easily hear, this band rocked the house, and swung hard! Illinois himself is in rare form, playing soulfully and strong, ripping through all his classics with fervor and fire. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, Jimmy Mundy and Phil Wilson. Featured here within the band are veterans such as E.V. Perry, Irvin Stokes, Johnny Grimes, Eddie Preston, Carmell Jones, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, and Babe Clarke; as well as young lions such as Eric Allen, Frank Lacy, Jesse Davis and Joey Cavaseno. Young Joey Cavaseno, who now has moved up to what will become a full-time position as lead alto with the band, and Cavaseno, who has now gained Jacquet's trust, brings in two new excellent young talents in the form of Jesse Davis on second alto, and trombonist Frank Lacy on trombone. On this recording the listener will be delighted to hear trombonist Lacy really setting in with his natural plunger talent, sounding as good as the greats who preceded him. Cavaseno has now become quiet assertive in what would become his trademark lead alto sound for years to come. The most special aspect of this performance is it features the great trumpeter Carmell Jones, who demonstrates his amazing bebop dexterity, after not being heard from in years. Irvin Stokes plays the perfect foil to Jones, as his funky soulful plunger demonstrates the opposite side of the trumpet. This performance also features a very relaxed and deeper Jacquet than on most of his recordings; we hope you will enjoy!

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here we have a very early snapshot of what that band was like in a super rare and intimate rehearsal setting in the basement of Jacquet's own home in St. Albans, Queens NY, a space he lovingly named "Count Basement Studio". These legendary musicians would rehearse a full 5 day week, often 7-8 hrs per day to prepare for a week-long engagement, such as this one, which was preparing for a week at the Village Vanguard in New York City. (refer to SR-279, the release previous to this one). Some of the performances on this recording are of course, messy, raw and blemished, but they also reveal the pathos with which The Master dedicated himself to perfecting his craft. As the second in our Jacquet Files series, we are proud to unveil the warm sounds of this hard swinging band in all it's glory! One thing to note on these recordings is the difference between the publicly performing Jacquet, and the private-among-his-peers versions. In public Illinois was expected to play his well-known solos, very much in the tradition of his most famous solo of all, as on Lionel Hampton's "Flying Home." However, in this relaxed setting at home he was actually heard to be improvising more spontaneously, and that is the real value of this recording: the fact that Jacquet was still evolving and perfecting his skills as a soloist. Also notable are his performances on Alto Saxophone on the first take of Lester Young's Tickle Toe (track 1) and track 12, Duke Ellington's "In A Sentimental Mood". His alto playing shows an entirely different personality than his tenor, which is also rare to hear and of definitive value. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, and Jimmy Mundy. Featured here within the band are veterans such as E.V. Perry, Irvin Stokes, Johnny Grimes, Kiane Zawadi, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, Bill Easley, and Hugh Brodie; as well as young lions such as Robert Trowers and Joey Cavaseno.

The Jacquet Files, Vol. 7: Big Band Live at the Blue Note 1987 - In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors. Here is an example of that reality.

In 1981 Tenor Sax legend Illinois Jacquet pursued his career-long dream of assembling a truly great big jazz band in the tradition of his mentors, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton, bands with whom he recorded and toured in his youth. He would apply all the wisdom and experience he gleaned as their sideman, as well as from his years of leadership over his many small groups, and would include songs he made famous with his "little big band" of the 1940s. The Illinois Jacquet Big Band was filled with luminaries and young stars, but unfortunately would only record one studio album entitled "Jacquet's Got It" on Atlantic Records, in 1987. Here we have a very early snapshot of what that band was like at the world famous Village Vanguard club in New York City. This is the third time Jacquet had played the Vanguard, and had previously broken attendance records in the club with what seemed to be a guerrilla marketing campaign in the streets of NYC in order to launch the debut of his Big Band. Some NYC Jazz fans may recall flyers being distributed all over town, especially in the Times Square area, revealing that the "missing in action" Jazz Legend Illinois Jacquet was indeed "back" with a full 15 piece Big Band on tow. Well, the promotions worked effectively, announcing that "The King" was back to take the jazz world by storm! As listeners will easily hear, this band rocked the house, and swung hard! Illinois himself is in rare form, playing soulfully and strong, ripping through all his classics with fervor and fire. These wonderful arrangements are mostly by the pen of Eddie Barefield, Wild Bill Davis, and Jimmy Mundy. Featured here within the band are veterans such as E.V. Perry, Irvin Stokes, Johnny Grimes, Kiane Zawadi, Richard Wyands, Eddie Barefield, Rudy Rutherford, and Babe Clarke; as well as young lions such as Robert Trowers, Frank Lacy, Jesse Davis and Joey Cavaseno. There as an interesting story behind this gig, as some may notice, this date being the second night at the Vanguard, during the same stint as our last release, The Jacquet Files, Volume 3. However, significantly, Norris Turney, former lead alto saxophonist with Duke Ellington is now missing from the lineup. During the March 14th date, Jacquet, a newly reformed and "clean" alcoholic, (due to the watchful eye of his common-law wife Carol Scherick) took not that altoist Turney was missing parts due to being drunk off whiskey. Noone knows what words were exchanged between Turney and Jacquet, but the next night we find that Turney has been suddenly replaced by young Cavaseno, who now has moved up to what will become a full-time position as lead alto with the band, and Cavaseno, who has now gained Jacquet's trust, brings in two new excellent young talents in the form of Jesse Davis on second alto, and trombonist Frank Lacy on trombone. This performance features some of the most raw and exciting Jacquet tenor solos on record; we hope you will enjoy!

Originally recorded for the Clef label in 1956, Swing's The Thing features the tenor great in a stellar sextet with Roy Eldridge (trumpet), Jimmy Jones (piano), Herb Ellis (guitar), Ray Brown (bass) and Jo Jones (drums). While Jacquet's sessions as a leader may have been infrequent during this time, this session hits a magical mark with the 6-song set being highlighted by the tracks "Las Vegas Blues," "Harlem Nocturne," and "Achtung." Verve Acoustic Sounds Series features transfers from analog tapes and remastered 180g vinyl in deluxe gatefold packaging.

After stints with Lionel Hampton and Cab Calloway, this tenor man took center stage. His sax is backed by Charles Mingus, Bill Doggett and Joe Newman on these 1945-47 recordings. He dazzles on ferocious swingers and tender ballads alike: Bottoms Up; 12 Minutes to Go; South Street Special; Merle's Mood; Jacquet Bounce; Diggin' the Count; What's This 23 tracks!