The third installment in the Classics Buck Clayton chronology documents the trumpeter's European adventures with recordings made between April 2 and October 21, 1953. Clayton had toured Europe in 1949, and after savoring the social atmosphere in the U.S. was happy to head back to France in February 1953 with drummer Kansas Fields, pianist Red Richards, and trombonist Big Chief Russell Moore, a Native American whose Pima heritage places his ancestral turf within the Gila and Salt River valleys in southern Arizona. In addition to playing live gigs with Mezz Mezzrow, the North Americans made phonograph records. On April 2, the Buck Clayton Quintet cut five sides for the Vogue label; "Patricia's Blues" is a particularly attractive example of Clayton at his most subtle, sensual, and soulful. A concert performance by this band led by Mezzrow with Gene Sedric in the front line took place at the Theatre de Champs-Elysee near the end of May. The recordings made at that event have been reissued under Mezzrow's name. Buck Clayton and Kansas Fields participated in four different recording sessions in Brussels, Belgium, between August and October, 1953. These would be the only records ever released under the name of Marion Joseph "Taps" Miller, a trumpeter and rowdy vocalist who became marginally famous for a minute when Count Basie named a tune after him in 1944. The heavy-handed Belgian musicians who participated in these sessions made enough noise to match Miller's extremely boisterous vocals. "Hot Dog," with its repeated demands for mustard and pickles, epitomizes Miller's approach to entertainment. Fortunately, tracks 16-23 find Clayton sitting in with a big band led by Django Reinhardt session man Alix Combelle, an intelligent, hip, and sophisticated tenor saxophonist whose complete chronological recordings occupy their own niche in the Classics Chronological series. ~ arwulf arwulf

Volume ten in the complete chronological recordings of Benny Carter, as compiled and presented on compact disc in 2006 by the Classics label, contains most of the originally issued master takes from his Verve and Victor sessions which transpired in New York and Los Angeles during the period between July 26, 1952 and January 4, 1954. What didn't make it onto this disc was a chunk of the Carter discography dating from August and October 1952, including the material released as the Alone Together album by "Benny Carter with the Oscar Peterson Trio and Buddy Rich" and a couple of tunes by Benny Carter's Orchestra with vocals by Savannah Churchill. Tracks one-three are performed by a solid little octet, while tracks four and six exhibit all the traits of polished early-'50s studio production, laying it on thickly using a large studio orchestra glazed with strings, a harp, and neatly harmonized group vocals. Even so, Carter sounds marvelous out in front with his creamy alto sax. Tracks five, seven, and eight are even better examples of Benny Carter's early-'50s sound. Tracks nine-twelve, played by Carter and a quartet led by pianist Oscar Peterson, were issued on a 10" long-playing Verve record with the word "Cosmopolite" on the cover. The remaining selections on this disc feature the Benny Carter Quartet augmented by a string and wind ensemble arranged and conducted by Joe Glover. At no point during this portion of his career did Carter sound like he was selling out or succumbing to convention. True, the addition of strings, beefed up orchestral charts, and especially the oozy vocals on "I Wanna Go Home" signal a momentary concession to perceived notions of popular taste, but in the larger scheme of things, and especially when placed into context as a relatively brief chapter in the remarkably long life and career of Benny Carter, this is pleasant enough stuff and it's precisely what Carter thought he needed to do during the early 1950s. ~ arwulf arwulf

Ray Barretto's concert in Puerto Rico's Tito Puente Auditorium on April 27, 2001 would prove the conguero's farewell to salsa. After decades of dual residency in both the worlds of salsa and Latin jazz, Barretto says "Adios" to the former, opting to spend his last few years in the industry recording more jazz-oriented material. This star-studded performance takes a look at the career and collaborations of the most significant conguero/bandleader of the latter half of the 20th century. Barretto's many years in the salsa limelight made him some good friends, many of whom take the stage to join him for his final offering to the salsa world. The vocal lineup is incredible, including Ray de la Paz, Adalberto Santiago, Victor Manuelle, Yolanda Rivera, and Tito Allen. Manuelle, who was filling in for Tito Gomez, is actually not listed in the credits, having been brought out of the audience to fill in on "Guarare" at the last moment. Though the performances are scorching hot, the sound quality leaves a bit to be desired. Poor fidelity aside, this two-disc set features 14 of not only great salsa hits, but the hitmakers as well. Ray Barretto certainly knows how to go out with a bang! ~ Evan C. Gutierrez