VA - Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music (2000)

In conjunction with documentary filmmaker Ken Burns' ten-part 2000 PBS special, Columbia/Legacy and Verve teamed up to issue a special series of reissues covering much of the history of 20th century jazz. The central release of this program is the five-CD box set Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music, its 94 selections covering the history of 20th century jazz, from 1917 to the mid-'90s. Chronologically, the set is very skewed toward the first 50 years of that time span; there is only just under a CD's worth of music dating from after the mid-'60s. What's here is a very good range of classic jazz from throughout the decades, touching upon performances, many acknowledged classics, from many of the music's giants: Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, and up to Wynton Marsalis and Cassandra Wilson. There are just a few dubious inclusions (Grover Washington, Jr.'s "Mister Magic," for instance), and as music it's nearly wall-to-wall excellence. As far as core classics of the jazz repertoire, there are quite a few: Armstrong's "West End Blues," Goodman's "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)," Count Basie's "Lester Leaps In," Holiday's "Strange Fruit," Ellington's "Take the 'A' Train," Gillespie's "Salt Peanuts," Monk's "Straight, No Chaser," Davis' "So What," Dave Brubeck's "Take Five," Coltrane's "Giant Steps," Weather Report's "Birdland," and Hancock's "Rockit." As education, if you didn't know much about jazz before hearing this box, you'll have been exposed to a good deal of its major touchstones after digesting it. Just don't be under the impression that it covers all of the main mileposts, or even that it gives you all of the key launching pads from which to explore further.

2000 Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music (Disc 1 of 5)
Tracklist:

01. Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra - Star Dust [1931]
02. Mississippi Fred McDowell - Soon One Mornin' (Death Come A-Creepin' In My Room) [1959]
03. Lieut. Jim Europe's 369th Infantry (''Hell Fighters'') Band - Memphis Blues [1919]
04. The Original Dixieland Jazz Band - Livery Stable Blues [1917]
05. James P. Johnson - Charleston [1925]
06. King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band - Chimes Blues [1923]
07. Bessie Smith - Back Water Blues [1927]
08. Jelly Roll Morton - The Pearls [1926]
09. Jelly Roll Morton's Red Hot Peppers - Dead Man Blues [1926]
10. Clarence Williams's Blue Five - Wild Cat Blues [1923]
11. Clarence Williams's Blue Five - Cake Walkin' Babies (From Home) [1925]
12. Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra - Sugar Foot Stomp [1925]
13. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five - Heebie Jeebies [1926]
14. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven - Potato Head Blues [1927]
15. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five - West End Blues [1928]
16. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - The Mooche [1928]
17. Duke Ellington and His Washingtonians - East St. Louis Toodle-OO [1926]
18. Duke Ellington - Black Beauty [1928]
19. The Jungle Band - Mood Indigo [1930]
20. Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra featuring Bix Beiderbecke - There Ain't No Sweet Man (Worth The Salt Of My Tears) [1928]
21. Frankie Trumbauer and His Orchestra featuring Bix Beiderbecke - Singin' The Blues [1927]
22. Frankie Trumbauer and His Orchestra featuring Bix Beiderbecke - Riverboat Shuffle [1927]
23. Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra - Hotter Than 'Ell [1934]
24. Ethel Waters - I Got Rhythm [1930]

2000 Ken Burns Jazz - The Story of America's Music (Disc 2 OF 5)
Tracklist:

01. Duke Ellington - It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) [1932]
02. Duke Ellington And His Orchestra - Echoes Of Harlem [1936]
03. Benny Moten's Kansas City Orchestra - Moten Swing [1932]
04. Louis Armstrong And His Orchestra - St. Louis Blues [1929]
05. Louis Armstrong And His Orchestra - Ain't Misbehavin' [1929]
06. Jimmie Lunceford And His Orchestra - For Dancers Only [1937]
07. Benny Goodman And His Orchestra - King Porter Stomp [1935]
08. The Benny Goodman Sextet - Rose Room [1939]
09. Benny Goodman And His Orchestra - Sing, Sing, Sing (With A Swing) [1937]
10. Count Basie And His Orchestra - Jumpin' At The Woodside [1938]
11. Count Basie And His Orchestra - Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today [1938]
12. Count Basie's Kansas City Seven - Lester Leaps In [1939]
13. Jones-Smith Incorporated - Oh, Lady, Be Good! [1936]
14. Billie Holiday And Her Orchestra - Without Your Love [1937]
15. Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit [1939]
16. Billie Holiday With Eddie Heywood And His Orchestra - God Bless The Child [1941]
17. Art Tatum - Three Little Words [1944]
18. Pete Johnson And Big Joe Turner - Rebecca [1944]
19. Chick Webb And His Orchestra - Harlem Congo [1937]
20. Chick Webb And His Orchestra - A-Tisket A-Tasket [1938]
21. Django Reinhardt And Le Quartet Du Hot Club De France - Shine [1936]
22. Noble Sissle And His Orchestra - Dear Old Southland [1937]

2000 Ken Burns Jazz - Disc 3
Tracklist:

01. Coleman Hawkins - Body And Soul [1939]
02. Duke Ellington And His Orchestra - Cotton Tail [1940]
03. Duke Ellington And His Orchestra - Take The ''A'' Train [1941]
04. Artie Shaw And His Orchestra - Begin The Beguine [1938]
05. Glenn Miller And His Orchestra - In The Mood [1939]
06. Tommy Dorsey And His Orchestra - Well, Git It! [1942]
07. Billie Holiday With Eddie Heywood And His Orchestra - Solitude [1941]
08. Gene Krupa And His Orchestra - Drum Boogie [1941]
09. Dizzy Gillespie And His All Star Quintet - Salt Peanuts [1945]
10. Dizzy Gillespie Sextet - Groovin' High [1945]
11. Charlie Parker's Re-Boppers - Ko-Ko [1945]
12. Charlie Parker Quintet - Scrapple From The Apple [1947]
13. Charlie Parker Quintet - Embraceable You [1947]
14. Bud Powell Trio - Get Happy [1950]
15. Thelonious Monk - Epistrophy [1948]
16. Thelonious Monk - Straight, No Chaser [1951]
17. Dizzy Gillespie And His Orchestra - Manteca [1947]
18. Miles Davis Nonet - Moon Dreams [1950]
19. Charlie Parker - Just Friends [1949]
20. Louis Armstrong - Rockin' Chair [1947]
21. Sarah Vaughan And Her Trio - They Can't Take That Away From Me [1954]
22. Chet Baker And Gerry Mulligan - Walkin' Shoes [1952]
23. Billie Holiday - Fine And Mellow [1957]

2000 Ken Burns Jazz - Disc 4
Tracklist:

01. Horace Silver And The Jazz Messengers - Doodlin' [1954]
02. Clifford Brown And Max Roach - I Get A Kick Out Of You [1954]
03. Sonny Rollins - St. Thomas [1956]
04. The Modern Jazz Quartet - Django [1954]
05. The Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five [1959]
06. Miles Davis Sextet - So What [1959]
07. John Coltrane Quartet - Giant Steps [1959]
08. Cecil Taylor Trio - Rick Kick Shaw [1955]
09. Ornette Coleman - Chronology [1959]
10. Charles Mingus - Original Faubus Fables [1960]
11. John Coltrane Quartet - Acknowledgment (From A Love Supreme) [1964]

2000 Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music (Disc 5 of 5)
Tracklist:

01. Louis Armstrong - Hello, Dolly! [1963 and 1964]
02. Stan Getz And Charlie Byrd - Desafinado [1962]
03. John Coltrane And Duke Ellington - In A Sentimental Mood [1962]
04. Duke Ellington And His Orchestra - Tourist Point Of View [1966]
05. The Miles Davis Quintet - E.S.P. [1965]
06. Miles Davis - Spanish Key (Single Version) [1969]
07. Weather Report - Birdland [1977]
08. Grover Washington, Jr - Mister Magic [1974]
09. Herbie Hancock - Rockit [1983]
10. Ron Carter And M.C. Solaar - Un Ange En Danger [1994]
11. Dexter Gordon - Tanya [1978]
12. Wynton Marsalis - Soon All Will Know [1986]
13. Cassandra Wilson - Death Letter [1995]
14. The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra - Take The ''A'' Train [1992]