[.ca] Jelly Roll Morton: 1926-1930

From Amazon.co.uk:
Morton, born in 1890, was the first true jazz composer. His great talent lay in creating small-band music which sounded so natural that you could almost believe it had been improvised on the spot. But when you listen more closely, you realise that no band could ever improvise music as perfectly proportioned and well balanced as that. He created his music with the musicians around him, not like an architect planning a building, but like a gardener trimming and training naturally growing plants. This five-CD box contains everything Morton recorded at the peak of his career, between 1926 and 1930. The bulk of it is band music by his Red Hot Peppers, with a scattering of piano solos, trios, quartets and some larger ensembles. It took years for the producers to collect the best possible original copies, which were then remastered by John R. T. Davies, a world expert on the restoration of classic jazz. The result is almost certainly the best Morton edition ever produced--or likely to be. --Dave Gelly

Sound and vision:
The reviewer of Nov. 1, 2002, who complained about the sound quality of disc one's cuts is missing a crucial problem about the U.S. CD-issue of those songs. As Gary Giddins noted in his book "Visions of Jazz," while the Bluebird tracks were produced to eliminate surface noise--static and scratchiness--they also wound up losing a lot of treble and bass, the high and low ends of the sonic spectrum. The JSP disc restores that dimension to the sound, albeit with the noise returned to the mix. But the vigor and pulse of the playing, the depth of the resonance of the sounds being created by the band, is of far greater value to listeners than an artificially "cleaned up" sound. It's not a question of the songs sounding bass-heavy; of course you want to be able to HEAR the bass, as you can't with so many other jazz recordings of the era. Give these tunes another listen and see if you don't agree.

great music - sound quality is overrated:
This is a good bargain and definitely worth grabbing. However, I found the sound on the first disc was not as clear as on RCA's "Birth of the Hot" which contains the same music plus a few alternates. The RCA version sounds amazingly clean - like recorded in the 50's. This one has a fair amount of surface scratchiness and is bass-heavy. The JSP Armstrong box has sound quality that is really superior to the CBS/Sony versions of the same music, but if you have the RCA recordings of all this material I don't think you need to replace them with this.

The Choice:
My collection has had a big empty space in it insofar as Jelly Roll goes. I was determined to fill it today but puzzled over which of the numerous discographies to purchase. Than I saw the JSP box on the shelf. From my JSP Django box, I new this collection, if nothing else, would have great sound quality. It certainly does. But it also contains wonderful material from the jazz cradle. With all the hype Louis gets, and justly deserves, this box is quite examplary of why Jelly Roll should be truly appreciated for what he also contributed to the early framework of the music.

Comprehensive but Lacking.:
The box claims "all available recorded work from 1926-1930," - let me suggest that everything is not always a good thing. There are a number pieces that, though they have different titles, are in effect the same song. These CDs also line up songs of vastly differning quality, forcing listeners to constantly adjust the volume, and in some cases, just advance past the unlistenable cuts. It is very cool to have this much Jelly Roll, but I would have traded quantity for better quality. Of course, we are talking about five CDs for \o$\c which is quite the deal. If you must have everything by Mr. Morton, this package is certainly comprehensive. If you are just looking for some fun listening, the Masters of Jazz discs are a better bet.

Beware JSP:
JSP Records is short for the owner. John Steadman Productions. He is famous in the record world for surreptiously recording concerts he has produced over the years and releasing the material on his label without either paying royalties or making any attempt at getting any permission from the artists he has. The list is very long. He has been called the "British Don Robey" and is so reviled in London he has to have a bodyguard. Beware JSP records. It's a shame this man gets away with what he does.

• Black Bottom Stomp
• Smoke-House Blues
• Chant
• Sidewalk Blues
• Dead Man Blues
• Steamboat Stomp
• Someday, Sweetheart
• Grandpa's Spells
• Original Jelly Roll Blues
• Doctor Jazz
• Cannonball Blues
• Hyena Stomp
• Billy Goat Stomp
• Wild Man Blues
• Jungle Blues
• Beale Street Blues
• Pearls
• Wolverine Blues
• Mr. Jelly Lord
• Red Hot Pepper
• Deep Creek Blues
• Pep
• Seattle Hunch
• Frances \oFat Frances\c
• Freakish
• Burnin' the Iceberg
• Courthouse Bump
• Pretty Lil
• Sweet Anita Mine
• New Orleans Bump \oMonrovia\c
• Down My Way
• Try Me Out
• Tank Town Bump
• Sweet Peter
• Jersey Joe
• Mississippi Mildred
• Mint Julep
• Smilin' the Blues Away
• Turtle Twist
• My Little Dixie Home
• That's Like It Ought to Be
• Each Day
• If Someone Would Only Love Me
• That'll Never Do
• I'm Looking for a Little Bluebird
• Little Lawrence
• Harmony Blues
• Fussy Mabel
• Ponchartrain
• Oil Well
• Load of Coal
• Crazy Chords
• Primrose Stomp
• Low Gravy
• Strokin' Away
• Blue Blood Blues
• Mushmouth Shuffle
• Gambling Jack
• Fickle Fay Creep
• Chant
• Sidewalk Blues
• Dead Man Blues
• Someday, Sweetheart
• Grandpa's Spells
• Original Jelly Roll Blues
• Cannonball Blues
• Hyena Stomp
• Billy Goat Stomp
• Wild Man Blues
• Jungle Blues
• Beale Street Blues
• Pearls
• Wolverine Blues
• Georgia Swing
• Kansas City Stomp
• Shoe Shiner's Drag
• Boogaboo
• Shreveport Stomp
• Mournful Serenade
• Shreveport Stomp
• Seattle Hunch
• Freakish
• Burnin' the Iceberg
• Courthouse Bump
• Pretty Lil
• Sweet Anita Mine
• New Orleans Bump \oMonrovia\c
• Tank Town Bump
• Sweet Peter
• Jersey Joe
• Mississippi Mildred
• Each Day
• Oil Well
• Load of Coal
• Crazy Chords
• Primrose Stomp
• Strokin' Away
• Blue Blood Blues
• Gambling Jack