Search - Russ Freeman, Pacific Jazz Piano Trios :: Mosaic Select: Russ Freeman / Pacific Jazz Piano

Boy oh boy oh boy oh boy....

Gary L Connely | Hercules, CA | 05/09/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a box set!



The three discs included in "The Pacific Jazz Piano Trios" present four of the best 1950's West Coast piano jazzers in trio settings:



- Russ Freeman

- Richard Twardzik

- Jimmy Rowles

- Clare Fisher



The set includes all of the stuff from the joint "Trio" album by Messrs Freeman and Twardzik; Mr Rowles' album, "Rare - But Well Done;" Mr Fisher's "First Time Out" and "Surging Ahead" albums; and a dozen or more cuts culled from other Pacific Jazz recordings.



Russ Freeman was a classically trained pianist who played with guys like Dexter Gordon, Charlie Parker, Art Pepper and Chet Baker. He spent much of his career playing with Shelly Manne.



Richard Twardzik succeeded Mr Freeman in Chet Baker's quartet. He was a quirky, inventive player. The music included here is everything he did as a leader.



Jimmy Rowles was a big band player with exceptional soloist skills. He was best known for his work with Billie Holiday and Peggy Lee. He was also a fine composer.



Clare Fisher, the only one of the four still alive today, can play anything with keys - piano, organ, electric keyboards. He's an outstanding hard bop and latin jazz pianist.



The music in this set ranges from standards to originals by the leaders. It's hard to say that in 51 songs there are no clinkers - but what the heck, there are no clinkers. If you like main stream jazz, if you're a fan of the piano trio, you are going to love this box.



The sonics are excellent. Mosaic Records is probably the very best at what they do - reissueing limited editions of classic jazz recordings that might otherwise be lost. They take the time and invest the money to do it right. Their box sets aren't cheap, but their production standards - from the liner notes to the remastering - are top of the line. You won't have any complaints about quality.

"