Various Artists - High Society: Jamming In Jazz With Blue Note Jazzmen (1998)

"High Society: Jamming In Jazz With Blue Note Jazzmen" is a 2026 digital compilation-reissue from Blue Note Records that gathers the historic Blue Note Jazzmen sessions — pickup ensembles recorded for Alfred Lion's label in New York during 1943–1944. The program traces back to the legendary 10-inch LP BLP 7007 "Jamming In Jazz" (1951), which collected tracks from three formations nominally led by clarinetist Edmond Hall, trumpeter Sidney De Paris, and pianist James P. Johnson.
The recordings were born in a singular atmosphere: the musicians — Hall, De Paris, trombonist Vic Dickenson, guitarist Jimmy Shirley, bassists Israel Crosby and John Simmons, drummer Sidney Catlett, and stride-piano patriarch James P. Johnson — would convene for sessions between their nightly sets at the progressive Café Society. As one of New York's first racially integrated clubs, Café Society fostered a creative fellowship among its house musicians that defined the sound of Blue Note's early releases. The material — "High Society", "Blues At Blue Note", "Royal Garden Blues", "Night Shift Blues", "Ballin' The Jack", "Who's Sorry Now?" — balances classic New Orleans repertoire with 52nd Street mainstream swing and small-group blues improvisation.
The historical value of these sessions is twofold. First, they document the moment when the young Blue Note label, under Lion and Francis Wolff, fully articulated its credo: giving jazzmen unlimited rehearsal and recording time to capture living music without commercial compromise. Second, this stands as one of the final substantial testaments to James P. Johnson's mature style, recorded shortly before the strokes that would end his playing career. The 2026 reissue restores these recordings to current digital circulation as part of Blue Note's ongoing archival program.

Tracklist:
1-1 Edmond Hall's Blue Note Jazzmen - High Society [4:02]
1-2 Edmond Hall's Blue Note Jazzmen - Blues At Blue Note [4:13]
1-3 Edmond Hall's Blue Note Jazzmen - Night Shift Blues [4:09]
1-4 Edmond Hall's Blue Note Jazzmen - Royal Garden Blues [4:07]
1-5 Edmond Hall's Blue Note Jazzmen - Blue Note Boogie [3:56]
1-6 Sydney De Paris' Blue Note Jazzmen - Everybody Loves My Baby [3:33]
1-7 Sydney De Paris' Blue Note Jazzmen - Ballin' The Jack [4:46]
1-8 Sydney De Paris' Blue Note Jazzmen - Who's Sorry Now [4:16]
1-9 Sydney De Paris' Blue Note Jazzmen - The Call Of The Blues [4:20]
1-10 James P. Johnson's Blue Note Jazzmen - Tishomingo Blues [4:34]
1-11 James P. Johnson's Blue Note Jazzmen - Walkin' The Dog [4:32]
1-12 James P. Johnson's Blue Note Jazzmen - Easy River [4:35]
1-13 James P. Johnson's Blue Note Jazzmen - At The Ball [4:08]