Half a century of quality jazz music

This British compilation contains some of Louis' finest music from the 1920's up to 1970. While the standard of re-mastering is high, there is a limit to how much can be done with very old recordings, even with the best technology available in the year 2000. Nevertheless, the engineers have done a superb job.

Louis (nicknamed Satchmo) is best remembered in Britain for What a wonderful world, which topped the UK charts in the sixties, and We have all the love in the world, which came close to providing Louis with a second chart-topper in the nineties following its use in a TV commercial.

The album includes several duets, with partners including Billie Holiday, Bing Crosby, Louis Jordan, two live tracks with Velma Middleton (Don't fence me in and Baby it's cold outside) and six tracks with Ella Fitzgerald. The Louis and Ella duets include Summertime, Tenderly and Stars fell on Alabama.

Most people remember Blueberry hill as a Fats Domino rock'n'roll song but it was originally an American hit for Glenn Miller. Dream a little dream is a song that was written in the thirties but is most commonly associated with the Mamas and Papas, who revived it with great success in the sixties. Among the other classic songs here are Hello Dolly, Jeepers creepers, Alexander's ragtime band, Stormy weather, Making whoopee, When the saints go marching in, Mack the knife and Ain't misbehaving, just to name a few.

It is, of course, impossible to include more than a sample of his great recordings on this set so it is quite possible that some of your favorites are missing, but this collection of the great man's music is about as good as you will find on two CD's.