Search - Coleman Hawkins :: Ken Burns JAZZ Collection: Coleman Hawkins

Ken Burns JAZZ Collection: Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Hawkins
Ken Burns JAZZ Collection: Coleman Hawkins
Genres: Jazz, Pop
 
Coleman Hawkins had one of the longest creative careers in jazz, and this compilation, spanning every decade in which he recorded (and accompanying Ken Burns's 10-part documentary Jazz), emphasizes that his imagination was...  more »

     
?

Larger Image

CD Details

All Artists: Coleman Hawkins
Title: Ken Burns JAZZ Collection: Coleman Hawkins
Members Wishing: 2
Total Copies: 0
Label: Polygram Records
Original Release Date: 11/7/2000
Release Date: 11/7/2000
Genres: Jazz, Pop
Styles: Modern Postbebop, Swing Jazz, Bebop
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPCs: 731454908528, 073145490852

Synopsis

Amazon.com
Coleman Hawkins had one of the longest creative careers in jazz, and this compilation, spanning every decade in which he recorded (and accompanying Ken Burns's 10-part documentary Jazz), emphasizes that his imagination was as enduring as his ruggedly bristling tenor saxophone sound. In the 1920s he was virtually the creator of jazz saxophone playing, freeing it from the mushy sound it had in dance bands. By the time "Bean" recorded his tune "Queer Notions" with Fletcher Henderson in 1933, he was already playing with elements of atonality in his music. 1939's "Body and Soul" is a breakthrough in the development of the jazz solo, a masterpiece of sustained harmonic invention. While many of his generation resisted the bebop revolution of the 1940s, Hawkins was a notable sponsor, among the first to hire its exponents and to record tunes like Dizzy Gillespie's "Woody 'n' You" and Thelonious Monk's "I Mean You." In the later years of his career, he played across a broad spectrum of jazz. There's a sublime meeting here with fellow swing tenor giant Ben Webster over a Latin beat on "La Rosita." Max Roach's "Driva Man" was one of the first works of explicit social protest in jazz. And Duke Ellington wrote the concluding "Self Portrait of the Bean" for Hawkins for a 1962 session in which they belatedly joined forces. --Stuart Broomer
 

CD Reviews

A good overview from a huge discography
J. Powers | Basehor, KS United States | 11/17/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Coleman Hawkins released so much music over his lifetime in so many styles of jazz that this is a good sampler. As far as the other reviewers complaining about the crackling, I think it's about time a company reissue 78 RPM-era recordings without removing the crackle and pops. Early jazz and blues was recorded in the kitchens of after-hours joints while breakfast was being cooked... that's the bacon sizzling in the background you hear. How else could Jimmy Rushing and Big Joe Turner maintain the girth that made them famous?
Seriously, the surface noise is a bit distracting, but a lot of those remasters where it is removed takes away subtle shades and nuances in the music. Remember too, that these sides were recorded prior to the use of magnetic tape. I'm sure that for a series like Ken Burns Jazz, which stood to make more money than any other jazz reissue campaign, the labels did not hesitate to use their best, most pristine masters available. As far as the packaging, well, yes, that could have been more attractive."
Great songs, bad sound
G. Sawaged | Canada | 08/10/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)

"It is the music that deserves the 5 stars here, which is what I am rating it. But the sound quality on some of the tracks is terrible. And seeing as the same problem exists on a lot of the Ken Burns series, while the same songs on other cd releases have been fine in the sound quality, I have come up with the only answer possible. That those songs have been transferred straight from the original 78 rpm records. It certainly sounds that way, but I don't understand why they should do that. Surely these great jazz artists deserve the best sound possible for their masterpieces. But, all that aside, this is still a good collection to have, especially for someone unfamiliar with Hawkins, as it covers most of his career and different record labels. The booklet contains a couple of photos and an interesting essay on Hawkins. If only the sound were better!"
Pour sound
Dimitry Feigin | Coconut Creek, FL USA | 01/25/2002
(2 out of 5 stars)

"Great artist and the selection of songs is good, but the quality of recording is very bad. Choose something else from this artist"