This CD was released as part of the extensive
Bluebird
/
Legacy
Jazz Moods
series. There are two ways to look at this release. The 14 selections, other than the fact that most of them are cookers (or, in the parlance of the
swing
era, solid senders), are reissued in random order. The exact recording dates are not given (just the year) nor is there a personnel listing. The only liner notes, a paragraph on the back cover, informs listeners that "the
Miller
band was a star-laden organization which at various times featured the greatest soloists...." Nope,
's band was famous for its precise ensembles and did not have any famous soloists. The notes also state that "'Moonlight Serenade' is here, of course, are such other
mega-hits originally made for
and
Columbia
as 'Little Brown Jug'...."
"Moonlight Serenade"
"Little Brown Jug"
are not on this sampler and
's early records for
resulted in zero hits; none of the
recordings are here anyway. On the other hand, the music that is included is quite fun and does stick mostly to the rousing instrumentals, so listeners just wanting a sampling of
's
jazz
side will find these performances enjoyable. ~ Scott Yanow