The Howard McGhee Collection 1945-53

Howard McGhee was one of the leading trumpeters of the pioneering bebop era, and was named “Best Trumpeter” by Down Beat magazine in 1949. His first recordings were with the bands of Andy Kirk and Charlie Barnet during the early ‘40s during which time he took part in the experimental bebop sessions at Minton’s Playhouse, and in 1945 he went to Los Angeles with Coleman Hawkins, recording with him and several other leaders there as well as taking part in Jazz At The Philharmonic concerts and tours. He recorded his first sessions leading his own bands during 1945 for he Modern and Aladdin labels. This great-value 93-track 4-CD set comprises a substantial proportion of his recordings as a leader or co-leader during a time when he worked prolifically with other leaders as well as with his own bands, from1945 through to a point in the 1950s where his output became much less consistent as his drug use started to affect his work. It includes recordings for the Modern, Aladdin, Melodisc, Dial, Mercury, Savoy, Vogue, Atlantic, Hi-Lo and Blue Note labels, and features performances with a host of important names, including Charlie Parker, Milt Jackson, James Moody, Flip Philips, Fats Navarro, J.J. Johnson, Horace Silver, Hank Jones, Ray Brown, Teddy Edwards, Charlie Mingus, Snooky Young, Billy Eckstine, Percy Heath, Kenny Drew, Max Roach and Oscar Pettiford, underlining the high regard in which he was held by his peers. The collection provides a highly entertaining insight into the work of an artists who has [perhaps not had the attention which his contribution to the genre merits.