Louis Armstrong's career began nearly 15 years before Ella Fitzgerald's. In fact, Louis was one of Ella's first musical idols. Although both Ella and Louis had probably met and performed together previously, they wouldn't be heard on record together until January 18, 1946, when they waxed a single 78 rpm disc coupling "The Frim Fram Sauce" with "You Won't Be Satisfied". They wouldn't record a lot together until 1956, when producer Norman Granz reunited them for three memorable albums: Ella & Louis (presented here), it's sequel Ella & Louis Again and the selection of tunes from George Gershwin's folk opera Porgy & Bess. The results: some of the most fascinating jazz music ever produced. THE COMPLETE LP - 180-GRAM VIRGIN VINYL - LIMITED EDITION
180g vinyl compilation captures the emotional depth and storytelling of France's legendary "Little Sparrow" through her most iconic chansons recorded between 1946 and 1961. The 18-track collection features perennial classics like "La Vie en Rose" and "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien," showcasing the dramatic vocal power that made Edith Piaf a global cultural icon.
After being fired by Miles Davis and traveling to Philadelphia to combat his drug addiction, in mid-1957 John Coltrane accepted Thelonious Monk's offer and joined his band for a period of six months. They played at New York's Five Spot Cafe in a quartet format. Despite the exquisite quality of the band's music, it yielded relatively few studio recordings. This LP was issued by producer Orrin Keepnews in 1961, four years after the sessions took place, and after Coltrane had become a leader and jazz star in his own right. THE COMPLETE ALBUM + 2 BONUS TRACKS - 180-GRAM VIRGIN VINYL - LIMITED EDITION
Although Chet Baker and Bill Evans were both highly lyrical and introspective players who could have made a marvelous team, they only recorded together on a couple of occasions. By the time these recordings were made in 1958-59, Chet Baker had been a star for less than a decade. This 1958 instrumental album presented Baker in an unusual setting, accompanied by great jazz musicians with whom he would only rarely play and record: Evans, Herbie Mann, Pepper Adams, and Kenny Burrell. THE COMPLETE LP + 2 BONUS TRACKS - 180-GRAM VIRGIN VINYL - LIMITED EDITION
180-Gram Vinyl Limited Edition. Portrait in Jazz, recorded on December 28, 1959, was Bill Evans' third album as a leader, and also Evans' first LP with the talented bassist Scott LaFaro. The Evans LaFaro-Motian trio would record a second studio album, Explorations, on February 2, 1961, but they would reach a climax with their June 25, 1961 club recordings at the Village Vanguard in New York. LaFaro would die in a car accident soon after (on July 6, 1961), at the age of 25. A selection of pieces from the Village Vanguard session was made by Evans himself and originally presented on two albums: Sunday at the Village Vanguard and the one presented here, Waltz for Debby. THE COMPLETE LP + 1 BONUS TRACK - 180-GRAM VIRGIN VINYL - LIMITED EDITION
