Mosaic Selects
Ltd. Edition 3 CD Sets
Running Low

“While Mosaic never does wrong, this set is absolutely perfect. Three CDs of Andrew Hill, almost all of it previously unheard by the public. While these sessions probably sat in the vaults to lack of commercial viability at the time, they are every bit as good as Hill's contemporary Blue Note releases that have been released. Some of the lineups are chock full of heavy hitter sidemen- Sam Rivers, Lee Morgan, Woody Shaw, etc. Overall the set is a good indicator of the diversity of Hill's compositonal ideas in the late 60s. He is heard in large group settings, trio settings, and most amazingly working with a string quartet. I find the string quartet sessions to be the most remarkable on the set.” - Customer Review

Mosaic Select: Andrew Hill

"A remarkable burst of creativity over a two week span. Of course the Chet Baker reunion is marvelous. The Vinnie Burke strings are a great complement to Mulligan. I have to admit I was a bit worried about it. To be honest, while I love Gerry, I really bought this set for the Annie Ross session. Just fantastic! Her version of "I Feel Pretty" was worth the price for me. Transcendent.” - Customer Review

Mosaic Select: Gerry Mulligan

“ I've been purchasing Mosaic sets since the 90s and this is among my top five. Tyner's vision comes into focus on these sessions--powerful piano, extended modal songs, Eastern influences, and beautiful melodies. Remastering is top-notch as are the sidemen throughout.” - Customer Review

Mosaic Select: McCoy Tyner

Mosaic Singles
Neglected Gems
Running Low

“This is such a great session. It is still so surprising that this lineup of the Messengers is overlooked and underrated. This lineup deserves to be heralded as one of Blakey's best alongside the Golson/Morgan/Timmons/Merritt '58 and the Shorter/Hubbard/Fuller/Walton/Merritt or Workman '61-'64 lineups. And, of course, this set has all of Mosaic's usual exemplary production hallmarks.” - Customer Review

Art Blakey - Hard Bop

“ The mastering on this disc is fantastic. Excellent sonic clarity all around. That, combined with Lloyd's great sense of melody and forward-thinking songwriting make for a satifsying listening experience. Lloyd's cool and progressive style is a joy, and the interplay between all the band members is superb. Tony Williams was one of the funkiest jazz drummers around, too! Buy this and you will find yourself seeking out more Charles Lloyd. Not to be missed! ” - Customer Review

Charles Lloyd - Of Course, Of Course

Mosaic Select: Sidney Bechet (MS-022)

Mosaic Select

"Not only is the compendium a joy musically, but is also enables you to give aural witness to the maturation of Bechet over a 24-year period and also his graduation from sideman and accompanist to leader." - Cam Miller, The American Rag

Limited Edition: 5000 copies

3 CDs - $44.00

ADD TO WISHLIST

An Incandescent Driving Force
Sidney Bechet's legacy as one of the key figures in traditional jazz, is brilliantly displayed here in this set of recordings from 1923 through 1947 for the Columbia family of labels. His mastery of projecting an extremely powerful soprano saxophone and clarinet could carry any size ensemble and was looked upon with reverence by anyone who came in contact with him.

A primary goal in selecting these Bechet titles was to cherry pick the best solos or obbligatos from the seminal Clarence Williams Blue Five recordings on OKeh and bring them to the high sonic standards of a Mosaic package. These recordings represent Bechet in his twenties, yet he is already a dominating master of his craft. Our dilemma, however, turned out that these mid 1920s recordings are extremely rare and to find one in a clean enough condition to transfer was a real daunting task. However with help from collectors all over the planet, our restoration man for this set Doug Pomeroy was able to present the music in the best sound to date of this precious material. We used the original metal parts and lacquer discs to transfer the rest of the recordings on this set

The recordings from 1937 to 1947 begin with Bechet single-handedly lifting a big band while as a sideman with the Noble Sissle Orchestra on the rare Variety label. After leaving that band, he was featured as a leader on a magnificent date for Vocalion, pairing him with the under appreciated baritone saxophonist, Ernie Caceres. The first session under his leadership for Columbia, has Bechet pared with his protégé Bob Wilber who has graced our set by handling the notes giving us a greater insight of Bechet. The rest of the material comes from 1947 with Bechet's quartet that worked regularly at Jimmy Ryans. These quartet sessions reveal that Bechet did not only relegate his material to Trad tunes but to popular standards as well. An added bonus are the 14 previously unissued takes included here.

Read More About Sidney Bechet:
Track Listing, Personnel & Recording Dates »

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

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	*about Mosaic*
I don't have much sympathy for comments here and elsewhere that object to the completist nature of Mosaic's compilations. Our musical heritage is to a large extent to be found on sources that are fragile, deteriorating, and difficult or impossible for most music lovers to locate and access. Where it is currently available on cd it is often in substandard form. I think that consumers should bear in mind that Mosaic is not just providing entertainment but preserving our history. With that in mind I think it is not right for people to carp about the inclusion of alternate takes that don't interest them. I can understand the disinterest -- I am often disinterested, too -- but I appreciate that Mosaic is conscientiously and lovingly preserving our history as well as providing pleasure. That's what Mosaic does and it does it better than anyone else. For sure, that's not to everyone's taste; if it's not to yours, look elsewhere or examine the track list with more care before you buy. Or program your player to skip the tracks you don't want to hear.

	*Disc 3*
And immortal music it remains.

	*RE: Sidney B. - Yeah, and so what?*
The 'immortal' third disc also has only 9 individual songs. Nine! - out of nineteen which makes it almost unbearable to listen to no matter how great the music is. At least the first disc actually has 25 separate songs (more or less). The other guy's right- literally half of this box is comprised of alternate takes; good for scholars, but hard to pop into a player and enjoy on a regular basis. Great music nonetheless.

	*Sidney B.*
Here's the scoop. The third disc is truly immortal jazz, as good as anyone has ever played. Long, soulful Bechet solos in a small group setting: he's the only star. The second disc is very good Bechet as the lead soloist in larger groups with good backing musicians. The first disc is the young Bechet on his way up; he's not usually the sole focus in these various groups but one of several very competent soloists.

	*Three and a Half Stars If It Was Allowed*
This style of jazz doesn't hold up well to alternate takes and there are way too many of those on these three discs for me to wholeheartedly recommend the set. I'd take the Bechet found on disc one of the HRS box any day. Still, it's Bechet man! - the cat's a genius.

	*Classic Early Jazz*
This set really swings. Anyone who has doubts about Bechet's genius needs to get this set. Cake Walking Babies From Home is one of my favorites, but all of this is good.

	*ka;idfne*
kdjgaidhfuiv;briuahdf

	*Father Sid*
My first impression is there's two discs that any jazz fan would enjoy and one disc that is more for the traditionalist fan. Bechet's playing transcends time periods and styles; he simply plays bluesy, soulful jazz. The first great jazz saxophonist, a master before Coleman Hawkins. The sound quality is a delight.

	*Mr.Bechet FOREVER!!!!*
BEST STUFF EVER!!!! Mosaic did it again!!!!

	*Congratulations to Mosaic*
It´s an enormous merit to bring those recordings never released before to the surface. For a Bechet connoisseur and member of the Sidney Bechet Society who owns the entire work of the artist ever published they are invaluable. Thanks and congartulations to the Mosaic people!

	*Yeah,some STUFF!!!!*
Great! Swingin'! Stuffostuff!

	*This set is a gem!*
I've owned an EP which has four cuts from the Bechet 1947 quartet sessions since the 60's. "Just One Of Those Things", "My Woman's Blues" etc. I've always loved Bechet's passionate playing on these. Now we have the complete recordings from the two sessions on this set (Disc 3). The recordings from 1923/24/25(Disc 1)with Clarence Williams are great too with Louis Armstrong on six tracks and an assortment of vocalists. Disc 2 features Sidney with Noble Sissle's Orchestra, Sidney's own orchestra and Bob Wilber's Wildcats. The booklet contains excellent annotations written by Bob Wilber. Great stuff!

	*nobody does it better*
his sound is outstanding .if anybody has the hrs set you will know, how great he is he was a wild man many tried to follow him and couldnt compent with him .this set should be on your desert island,especially for jazz freaks.

Mosaic Select: Sidney Bechet (MS-022)
Limited Edition: 5000 copies
3 CDs - $44.00

Customer Reviews:

"It´s an enormous merit to bring those recordings never released before to the surface. For a Bechet connoisseur and member of the Sidney Bechet Society who owns the entire work of the artist ever published they are invaluable."
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