Mary Lou Williams - The First Lady Of The Piano (1993)

Tracklist

01 Roll 'em
02 Fandangle
03 Mama, Pin A Rose On Me
04 Moonglow
05 Just You, Just Me
06 O.W.
07 Talk Of The Town
08 A Grand Night For Swinging
09 It Ain't Necessarily So
10 My Blue Heaven
11 A Fungus Amungus
12 Dirge Blues
13 Anima Christi
14 Miss D.D.
15 They Can't Take That Away From Me
16 'round About Midnight
17 Down Beat
18 Out Of Nowhere
19 Autumn Leaves

There are two different Mary Lou Williams albums entitled First Lady of Piano. One is an Inner City reissue of Vogue recordings from the early to mid-'50s. The other, and the subject of this review, was issued by the Giants of Jazz label in 1998 and consists of 19 studio and live recordings dating from the years 1952-1971. This variegated sampler combines our lady's intimate solo and small group rhythm sessions with some of that European Vogue material featuring tenor saxophonist Don Byas and choice cuts (including an invigorating ten-minute jam called "Down Beat") from a live date with a front line of trumpeter Harold "Shorty" Baker, trombonist Vic Dickenson and saxophonist Morris Lane. "Autumn Leaves" was recorded live at the Overseas Press Club in New York City on the last day of January 1971 with trumpeters Bobby Hackett and Dizzy Gillespie. Altogether this is a very nice portrait of a brilliant pianist whose recording career spanned more than fifty years.