VARIOUS ARTISTS                                                                                                                                 55 Years of Jazz                                                                                                                          Delmark DE 914

CD: Yves Francois – Lester Leaps In/Deep Blue Organ Trio – Goin’ to Town/King Curtis – Dynamite at Midnight/Ted Sirota’s Rebel Souls – Saro-Wiwa/Curtis Fuller – Equinox/Francine Griffin – It’s Crazy/George Lewis – Doctor Jazz/Malachi Thompson – Black Metropolis/Kalaparush (Maurice McIntyre) – In My Morning Song/Eric Alexander – Mode for Mabes/Coleman Hawkins – Bu-De-Daht/Sun Ra – Brainville/Art Hodes – Panama Rag: TT – 69:49.

DVD: Nicole Mitchell – The Creator Has Another Plan for Me/Ari Brown – Richard’s Tune/Jazz O’Maniacs – My baby/Fred Anderson – Flashback/Ritual Trio – Big M/Chicago Underground Trio – Power: TT – 75:42.

Another half decade has passed, another anniversary for Delmark and its founder/owner Bob Koester, whose efforts with jazz and blues over the decades is amazing. Such single-mindedness, such foolishness! But WE are very glad that he has this “need”, for we are the beneficiaries in the long run, as evidenced by this collection. It runs the gamut of re-issued vintage material (Curtis, Hawkins, Sun Ra, George Lewis) to almost hot-off-the-press latest things, all previously issued on CD. And Koester’s OTHER addiction, film, has resulted in there being a building wealth of filmed/videoed performances, often in context (you know, clubs). Nice booklet with full catalogue listing and brief comments on each selection and its album make for an attractive package. Go for it if you are sparse on Delmark in your collection, or haven’t yet jumped on videos. You cannot go wrong, even as an Xmas pressie!. And for those so inclined, there is “55 Years of Blues” – Delmark DE 915 – as well, a similar CD/DVD combo. Thanks Bob… be well. The music needs you.

Peter B. Lowry

published – IAJRC JOURNAL; v.42, n.1 – March 2009; p.100.