Louis Armstrong - Highlights from His Decca Years (1994)

Tracklist

CD1:

01. Wild Man Blues (3:06)
02. Weary Blues (2:48)
03. Georgia Bo Bo (3:06)
04. Shanghai Shuffle (2:51)
05. I'm in the Mood for Love (3:11)
06. Old Man Mose (2:33)
07. Skeleton in the Closet (3:11)
08. She's the Daughter of a Planter from Havana (3:17)
09. Jubilee (2:39)
10. Struttin' with Some Barbecue (3:01)
11. Jeepers Creepers (2:45)
12. I'm Confessin' (That I Love You) (3:17)
13. Wolverine Blues (3:14)
14. Perdido Street Blues (3:08)
15. When It's Sleepy Time Down South (3:14)
16. I Never Knew (2:47)
17. I Wonder (3:01)
18. Muskrat Ramble (6:19)
19. Black and Blue (4:14)

CD2:

01. The Song Is Ended (3:14)
02. You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart) (2:55)
03. You Can't Lose a Broken Heart (3:16)
04. You Rascal You (3:08)
05. Gone Fishin' (2:34)
06. That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day) (3:07)
07. My Bucket's Got a Hole in It (3:46)
08. La Vie en Rose (3:26)
09. Someday (4:00)
10. Baby, It's Cold Outside (5:44)
11. Your Cheatin' Heart (2:44)
12. The Gypsy (3:19)
13. Tin Roof Blues (4:53)
14. Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child (3:31)
15. When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles with You) (4:04)
16. Memories of You (3:34)
17. King of the Zulus (4:40)

Music aside (and there are many fine moments here), this two CD sampler is a real mess. Rather than reissue complete sessions or at least repackage the music in chronological order, the 36 selections are divided into four overlapping sections ("In the Beginning," "The Decca Sessions, Part l," "The Collaborations," "The Decca Sessions, Part 2" and range from sideman stints in the 1920s with clarinetist Johnny Dodds and Fletcher Henderson ("Shanghai Shuffle") to streaky big-band performances from the swing era, five vocal duets and commercial performances (including "Your Cheatin' Heart") from the 1950s. It is a real mish-mash (with some classics like "I Double Dare You" being overlooked) and Armstrong's important Decca recordings deserve much better. Get the CD releases from the European Classics label instead.~Scott Yanow