The Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve (1946-1959) 8 CD-Set

With his airy, vibratoless tone and sophisticated harmonic imagination, Lester Young (1909-59) was arguably the most influential tenor saxophonist after Coleman Hawkins. As the star in Count Basie's big band and Billie Holiday's favorite soloist, Young's breezy solos, along with his patented porkpie hat and unique hipster jargon, affected legions of musicians. This 8-CD compilation marks the 90th anniversary of Young's birth and contains all of the recordings he made for producer Norman Granz from 1946 to 1959, the last 13 years of Young's life. This collection aurally illustrates his supernatural ability to enliven the most familiar pop tunes and rise above his own pharmaceutically challenged physical state to create magic. The keys to Young's music making is his emphasis on knowing the lyrics to songs and on telling a story, delivering a melodic solo that communicates as it innovates.

All too often, jazz critics have promoted the myth that Lester Young's playing went way downhill after World War II—that the seminal tenor man was so emotionally wounded by the racism he suffered in the military in 1944-45 that he could no longer play as well as he had in the 1930s and early 1940s. To be sure, Young went through hell in the military, and his painful experiences took their toll in the form of alcohol abuse, severe depression and various health problems. But despite Young's mental decline, he was still a fantastic soloist. This eight-CD set, which gathers most of the studio recordings that he made for Norman Granz's Clef, Norgran and Verve labels from 1946-1959, underscores the fact that much of his post-War output was superb. At its worst, this collection is at least decent, but the Pres truly excels on sessions with Nat "King" Cole and Buddy Rich in 1946, Oscar Peterson and Barney Kessel in 1952, Roy Eldridge and Teddy Wilson in 1956 and Harry "Sweets" Edison in 1957. Disc 8 contains two recorded interviews with the saxman—one conducted by Chris Albertson in 1958 for WCAU radio in Philadelphia, the other by French jazz enthusiast Francois Postif in Paris on February 6, 1959 (only five or six weeks before Young's death on March 15 of that year). The contrast between the fascinating interviews is striking; in Philly, Young is polite and soft-spoken, whereas in Paris, the effects of the alcohol are hard to miss. Sounding intoxicated and using profanity liberally, Young candidly tells Postif about everything from his experiences with racism to his associations with Billie Holiday and Count Basie. But as much as the set has going for it, The Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions on Verve isn't for novices, casual listeners or those who are budget-minded (Verve's suggested retail price in the U.S. was $144). Collectors are the ones who will find this CD to be a musical feast. Alex Henderson

With his airy, vibratoless tone and sophisticated harmonic imagination, Lester Young (1909-59) was arguably the most influential tenor saxophonist after Coleman Hawkins. As the star in Count Basie's big band and Billie Holiday's favorite soloist, Young's breezy solos, along with his patented porkpie hat and unique hipster jargon, affected legions of musicians. This 8-CD compilation marks the 90th anniversary of Young's birth and contains all of the recordings he made for producer Norman Granz from 1946 to 1959, the last 13 years of Young's life. This collection aurally illustrates his supernatural ability to enliven the most familiar pop tunes and rise above his own pharmaceutically challenged physical state to create magic. The keys to Young's music making is his emphasis on knowing the lyrics to songs and on telling a story, delivering a melodic solo that communicates as it innovates.

Composed primarily of small combos, these tracks' themes are set by the piano players. Nat King Cole's walking bass lines and drummer Buddy Rich's pepperings cushion Young's Icarusian flights on "I Cover the Waterfront," "The Man I Love," and "Polka Dots and Moonbeams." On "I Found a New Baby" Young's delivery previews the bebop of Charlie Parker and on "Too Marvelous for Words" Young's subtones echo the long, tall sounds of Dexter Gordon. A quartet with pianist John Lewis, drummer and Basie bandmate Jo Jones, and bassist Gene Ramey offers similar results with Young's poetic versions of the riff tune "Neenah" and "Three Little Words," with Lewis's telepathic comping. Oscar Peterson's supersonic style, Barney Kessel's guitar, bassist Ray Brown, and percussionist J.C. Heard light a fire under Young on the down-home "Ad Lib Blues" and "It Takes Two to Tango"--with Young's hilarious vocal. With another quintet featuring Gildo Mahones at the keys and Connie Kay at the traps, Young revisits his days with Count Basie on the festive "Jumpin' at the Woodside." Another Basie bandmate, Harry "Sweets" Edison, lends his territory-toned chops to the hit "One O'Clock Jump." On "You Can Depend on Me" and "Gigantic Blues" Roy Eldridge's hot trumpet and Vic Dickenson's muscular trombone provide the perfect counterpoint to Young's ethereal excursions. The two takes of "St. Tropez" are the only recordings with Young on clarinet, and the leader delves into Latin jazz on "Frenesi," "In a Little Spanish Town," and "Another Mambo."

By the time he made his last sessions in Paris in 1959 with drummer Kenny Clarke and pianist Rene Urtreger, Young had lost his technical luster, but he gained a deep spiritual presence, as evidenced by the haunting takes on "I Cover the Waterfront" and "Oh, Lady, Be Good." The noted jazz author John Chilton's biographical essay, along with Harry "Sweets" Edison's loving memoir, Dave Gelly's musicological analysis, and two recorded interviews with Young are detailed, profane, and informative. But Bryan Koniarz's "Hipster's Dictionary" of Young's slang steals the show. From the Lestorian lexicon we get words like "Far Out" for guitarist Slim Gaillard, "little claps" for applause, and "Lady Day" for Billie Holiday, who in turn named the great saxophonist "Prez," for he was the commander in chief of jazz. Eugene Holley Jr.

Track Listing (personnnel can be found in artwork scans):

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve CD DISC 1:
1. Back to the Land
2. I Cover the Waterfront - (12" LP take)
3. I Cover the Waterfront - (master take)
4. Somebody Loves Me
5. I've Found a New Baby
6. Man I Love, The
7. Peg O' My Heart
8. I Want to Be Happy
9. Mean to Me
10. Too Marvelous For Words - (78-rpm take)
11. Too Marvelous For Words - (LP take)
12. 'Deed I Do
13. Encore
14. Polka Dots and Moonbeams
15. Up 'N' Adam
16. Three Little Words
17. Count Every Star - (master take)
18. Count Every Star
19. It All Depends on You
20. Neenah - (alternate take)
21. Neenah - (alternate take)
22. Neenah - (master take)

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve Songs DISC 2:
1. Jeepers Creepers
2. Thou Swell - (USA 78-rpm take)
3. Thou Swell - (Canada 78-rpm take)
4. September in the Rain
5. Undercover Girl Blues
6. Frenesi
7. Pete's Cafe
8. Little Pee Blues
9. Foggy Day, A
10. In a Little Spanish Town
11. Let's Fall in Love
12. Down 'N' Adam
13. Lester Swings
14. Slow Motion Blues
15. Ad Lib Blues
16. Just You, Just Me
17. Tea For Two
18. Indiana
19. These Foolish Things
20. I Can't Get Started

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve Album DISC 3:
1. Star Dust
2. It Takes Two to Tango
3. On the Sunny Side of the Street
4. Almost Like Being in Love
5. I Can't Give You Anything But Love
6. There Will Never Be Another You
7. I'm Confessin'
8. Willow Weep For Me
9. This Can't Be Love
10. Can't We Be Friends
11. Tenderly
12. New D.B. Blues
13. Jumpin' at the Woodside
14. I Can't Believe That You're in Love With Me
15. Oh, Lady Be Good!
16. Another Mambo
17. Come Rain or Come Shine
18. Rose Room
19. Somebody Loves Me
20. Touch Me Again
21. It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve CD DISC 4:
1. I'm in the Mood For Love
2. Big Top Blues
3. Mean to Me
4. That's All - (alternate take)
5. That's All - (master take)
6. Red Boy Blues
7. Pennies From Heaven
8. She's Funny That Way - (breakdown)
9. She's Funny That Way - (master take)
10. One O'Clock Jump
11. It's the Talk of the Town
12. I've Found a New Baby
13. I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve Songs DISC 5:
1. I Didn't Know What Time It Was
2. Gigantic Blues
3. This Year's Kisses
4. You Can Depend on Me
5. Pres Returns
6. Prisoner of Love
7. Taking a Chance on Love
8. All of Me
9. Louise
10. Love Is Here to Stay
11. Love Me or Leave Me

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve Album DISC 6:
1. St. Tropez - (alternate take)
2. St. Tropez - (master take)
3. Flic
4. Ballad Medley: A Ghost Of A Chance / I Cover The Waterfront
5. Love Is Here to Stay
6. Sunday - (rejected version)
7. Perdido - (incomplete take)
8. Waldorf Blues - (alternate take)
9. Waldorf Blues - (master take)
10. Sunday - (master take)
11. You're Getting to Be a Habit With Me - (alternate take)

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve CD DISC 7:
1. You're Getting to Be a Habit With Me - (master take)
2. Romping
3. Gypsy in My Soul
4. Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone
5. They Can't Take That Away From Me
6. Salute to Benny
7. Ballad Medley: The Very Thought Of You / I Want A Little Girl / Blue And Sentimental
8. Mean to Me
9. I Didn't Know What Time It Was
10. Oh, Lady Be Good!
11. Almost Like Being in Love
12. Three Little Words
13. I Cover the Waterfront
14. I Can't Get Started

Complete Lester Young Studio Sessions On Verve Songs DISC 8:
1. Indiana
2. Pennies From Heaven
3. New D.B. Blues
4. Lullaby of Birdland
5. There Will Never Be Another You
6. Tea For Two
7. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
8. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
9. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
10. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
11. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
12. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
13. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
14. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
15. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
16. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
17. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
18. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
19. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
20. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
21. Interview With Lester Young by Francois Postif
22. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
23. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
24. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
25. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
26. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
27. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
28. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
29. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson
30. Interview With Lester Young by Chris Albertson



FLACS+CUE+LOG+SCANS@300DPI
INCLUDES 53 PAGE BOOKLET IN PDF

DISCS 1&2
http://rapidshare.com/files/164730887/lstryng-cmpltvrve12.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164737526/lstryng-cmpltvrve12.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164749096/lstryng-cmpltvrve12.part3.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164753371/lstryng-cmpltvrve12.part4.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164757687/lstryng-cmpltvrve12.part5.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164724897/lstryng-cmpltvrve12.part6.rar

DISCS 3&4
http://rapidshare.com/files/164771562/lstryng-cmpltvrve34.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164775647/lstryng-cmpltvrve34.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164779832/lstryng-cmpltvrve34.part3.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164784192/lstryng-cmpltvrve34.part4.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164764550/lstryng-cmpltvrve34.part5.rar

DISCS 5&6
http://rapidshare.com/files/164813984/lstryng-cmpltvrve56.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164820437/lstryng-cmpltvrve56.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164823672/lstryng-cmpltvrve56.part3.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164827613/lstryng-cmpltvrve56.part4.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164808495/lstryng-cmpltvrve56.part5.rar

DISCS 7&8
http://rapidshare.com/files/164834086/lstryng-compltvrve78.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164837489/lstryng-compltvrve78.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164840508/lstryng-compltvrve78.part3.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164843147/lstryng-compltvrve78.part4.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164846427/lstryng-compltvrve78.part5.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164850038/lstryng-compltvrve78.part6.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/164827629/lstryng-compltvrve78.part7.rar

COMPLETE ARTWORK SCANS
http://rapidshare.com/files/165288425/lstryng-compltvrve-scans.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/165291893/lstryng-compltvrve-scans.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/165284681/lstryng-compltvrve-scans.part3.rar

All files are password-free!