The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz

The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz is a box of six LPs with a selection of classical jazz, released in 1973 by the Smithsonian Institution and jazz critic Martin Williams . The selection ranges from the beginnings of jazz and ragtime ( Scott Joplin ) to John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman .

It was published with extensive liner notes (by Martin Williams) and a foreword by Sidney Dillon Ripley . The compilation was well received and recommended , for example, by the New York Times critic Ben Ratliff for jazz beginners. The issue was so successful that it achieved double platinum status. It appeared in the 1970s at a time when classical jazz was struggling for public attention. The templates for selection were not ideal. In 1987 a Revised Edition appeared in which the recordings were reworked (for example in the original mono). In addition, some recordings were replaced by others and there were a total of 7 LPs (later on 5 CDs). After the death of Williams (1992) the recordings were re-mastered again (by Bruce Talbot), but the selection remained that of Williams. However, the complete recordings have now been recorded (Williams had partially selected certain solos and other parts). After 1999, however, it was no longer issued.

In 1985 a Smithsonian Collection of Bigband Jazz was released. In 2011 a 6 CD Box Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology (Smithsonian Folkways) was released with a different selection (111 recordings) that also includes musicians from outside the USA. The editor was John Edward Hasse and involved an international panel of 42 jazz critics (including Dan Morgenstern and Alyn Shipton ) instead of just one as in the Smithsonian Collection.

Track List (1973)

Side one

1. Scott Joplin  - “ Maple Leaf Rag ” (Joplin), New York, April 1916, - 3:16
2. Jelly Roll Morton  - “Maple Leaf Rag” (Joplin), Washington DC, May 1938 (Library of Congress) - 2:37
3. Robert Johnson  - Hellhound on My Trail (Johnson), Dallas, June 20, 1937 - 2:39
4. Bessie Smith  - “ St. Louis Blues ” ( WC Handy ), with Louis Armstrong, New York City, Jan. 14, 1925 (Columbia Records) - 3:12
5. Bessie Smith - “Lost Your Head Blues” (Bessie Smith), with Fletcher Henderson (p), New York City, March 18, 1926, - 2:57
6. King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band  - “Dippermouth Blues” ( Joe King Oliver ), Chicago, June 23, 1923, Okeh Records - 2:22
7. Jelly Roll Morton ’s Red Hot Peppers - “Grandpa's Spells” (FJ Morton), Chicago December 16, 1926, RCA Victor, - 2:55
8. Jelly Roll Morton's Red Hot Peppers - “Dead Man Blues” (Morton), Chicago, September 21, 1926, RCA Victor - 3:00

Side two

9. Jelly Roll Morton's Red Hot Peppers - “ Black Bottom Stomp ” (Morton), Chicago, September 15, 1926, RCA Victor, - 3:14
10. The Red Onion Jazz Babies ( Louis Armstrong , Sidney Bechet , Clarence Williams et al.) - “Cake Walking Babies (From Home)” (B. Smith, A. Troy, and C. Williams), NY City, December 22, 1924, Gennett Records, - 3:28
11. Sidney Bechet and His Blue Note Jazzmen - “Blue Horizon” (Bechet), NY City, December 20, 1944 - 4:26
12. James P. Johnson  - “Carolina Shout” (Johnson), NY City, October 18, 1921, Okeh - 2:47
13. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five  - “Struttin 'with Some Barbeque” ( Lil Hardin Armstrong , Don Raye), Chicago, December 9, 1927 - 3:04 am
14. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven - “SOL Blues” (Excerpt) (Louis Armstrong), Chicago, May 14, 1927 - 1:05 am
15. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven - “ Potato Head Blues ” (Excerpt) (Louis Armstrong), Chicago May 13, 1927 - 1:14
16. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five - “Hotter Than That” (Lil Hardin Armstrong), Chicago, December 13, 1927 - 3:02 am
17. Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five - “ West End Blues ” (Joe King Oliver), Chicago, June 28, 1928 - 3:17 am

Side three

18. Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines  - “Weather Bird” (Louis Armstrong), Chicago December 5, 1928 - 2:46
19. Louis Armstrong and His Sebastian New Cotton Club Orchestra - “Sweethearts on Parade” (C. Lombardo and C. Newman) - 3:15
20. Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra - “I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues” ( Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler ), Los Angeles, December 23, 1930 - 2:59
21. Frankie Trumbauer and His Orchestra - “ Riverboat Shuffle ” ( Hoagy Carmichael , Irving Mills , and Mitchell Parish ), New York City, May 9, 1927 - 3:15
22. Frankie Trumbauer and His Orchestra - “Singin 'the Blues” ( Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh ), New York City, February 4, 1927 - 3:02 am
23. Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra - “The Stampede” (Henderson), New York City, May 14, 1926 - 3:18 am
24. Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra - “Wrappin 'It Up” (Henderson), New York City, September 12, 1934 - 2:48
25. Bennie Moten ’s Kansas City Orchestra - Moten Swing (Bennie Moten and Buster Moten), Camden, December 13, 1932 - 3:26 am

Side four

26. Fats Waller  - “ I Ain't Got Nobody ” ( Roger A. Graham and Spencer Williams ), NY City, June 11, 1937 - 3:09 am
27. Meade Lux Lewis  - “Honky Tonk Train” (Lewis), Chicago, March 7, 1937 - 3:01 am
28. Benny Goodman Trio - " Body and Soul " ( Frank Eyton , Johnny Green , Edward Heyman , and Robert Sour ), NY City, July 13, 1935, RCA Victor - 3:30
29. Coleman Hawkins and His Orchestra - “Body and Soul” (Eyton, Green, Heyman, and Sour), New York City, October 11, 1939, RCA Victor - 3:02
30. Coleman Hawkins Quartet - “ The Man I Love ” ( George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin ), New York City, December 23, 1943, Flying Dutchman - 5:10
31. Billie Holiday and Her Orchestra - "He's Funny That Way" ( Neil Moret and Richard A. Whiting ), New York City, December 13, 1937 - 2:41 am
32. Billie Holiday and Eddie Heywood and His Orchestra - “ All of Me ” ( Gerald Marks and Seymour Simons ), New York City, March 21, 1941 - 2:59
33. Ella Fitzgerald  - “ You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To ” ( Cole Porter ), Antibes, July 1964, Verve Records - 2:56

Side five

34. Art Tatum  - “ Willow Weep for Me ” ( Ann Ronnell ), New York City, July 13, 1949, Capitol Records - 2:58
35. Art Tatum - “ Too Marvelous for Words ” ( Johnny Mercer and Richard A. Whiting ), Hollywood 1956 - 2:25
36. Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra - “Lunceford Special” ( Eddie Durham ) - 2:51
37. Gene Krupa and His Orchestra - “ Rockin 'Chair ” (Carmichael) - 3:02
38. Roy Eldridge and Benny Carter  - “I Can't Believe That You're in Love with Me” (Excerpt) ( Clarence Gaskill and McHugh) - 3:02
39. Lionel Hampton  - “When Lights Are Low” (Benny Carter) - 2:15
40. Count Basie and His Orchestra  - “Doggin 'Around” ( Edgar Battle and Herschel Evans ) - 2:57
41. Count Basie - “Taxi War Dance” (Basie and Lester Young ) - 2:55

Side six

42. Count Basie's Kansas City Seven - “ Lester Leaps In ” (Young) - 3:14
43. Benny Goodman Sextet - “ I Found a New Baby ” ( Jack Palmer and Spencer Williams) - 2:57
44. Benny Goodman Sextet and Charlie Christian  - “Blues Sequence” (from Breakfast Feud ) (Goodman) - 2:24
45. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - “ East St. Louis Toodle-Oo ” (Ellington and Bubber Miley ) - 3:38
46. Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra - “New East St. Louis Toodle-Oo” (Ellington and Miley) - 3:04
47. Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra - “Creole Rhapsody” (Ellington) - 6:00
48. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - “Harlem Air Shaft” (Ellington) - 3:00
49. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - “Concerto for Cootie” (Ellington) - 3:22

Side seven

50. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - “ In a Mellotone ” (Ellington) - 3:19
51. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - “ Ko-Ko ” (Ellington) - 2:42
52. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra - “Blue Serge” ( Mercer Ellington ) - 3:22
53. Don Byas  - “ I Got Rhythm ” (George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin) - 5:07
54. Dizzy Gillespie Sextet - “ I Can't Get Started ” ( Vernon Duke and Ira Gershwin) - 3:08
55. Dizzy Gillespie's All Star Quintet - “Shaw 'Nuff” (Gillespie and Parker) - 2:57
56. Charlie Parker 's Re-Boppers - “KoKo” (Parker) - 2:57
57. Charlie Parker - “ Embraceable You ” (Excerpt) (George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin) - 2:14
58. Charlie Parker - “Embraceable You” (Alternate Version) (Excerpt) (George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin) - 2:01

Side eight

59. Charlie Parker Quintet - “Klacktoveedsedsteen” (Parker) - 3:02
60. Charlie Parker Sextet - “Little Benny” ( Benny Harris ) - 3:30
61. Charlie Parker's All Stars - “Parker's Mood” (Parker) - 3:01 am
62. Erroll Garner  - “Fantasy On 'Frankie and Johnny” (Garner) - 2:55
63. Bud Powell Trio - “ Somebody Loves Me ” ( Buddy DeSylva , George Gershwin, and Ballard MacDonald ) - 2:48
64. Sarah Vaughan  - “Dancing in the Dark” ( Howard Dietz and Arthur Schwartz ) - 2:37
65. Sarah Vaughan - “Ain't No Use” (Leroy Kirkland and Sidney J. Wyche) - 3:55
66. Lennie Tristano  - “Crosscurrent” (Lennie Tristano) - 2:52

Side nine

67. Miles Davis and His Orchestra - “ Boplicity ” ( Gil Evans and Cleo Henry ) - 3:02
68. Tadd Dameron 's Sextet - " Lady Bird " (Tadd Dameron) - 2:54
69. Dexter Gordon Quartet - “Bikini” (Gordon) - 3:32
70. Thelonious Monk Quartet - “Misterioso” (Monk) - 3:22
71. Thelonious Monk Quintet - “Criss-Cross” (Monk) - 3:00
72. Thelonious Monk - “Evidence” (Monk) - 2:35
73. Thelonious Monk Quintet - “ Smoke Gets in Your Eyes ” ( Otto Harbach and Jerome Kern ) - 4:32
74. Thelonious Monk - “ I Should Care ” ( Sammy Cahn , Axel Stordahl , and Paul Weston ) - 3:16

Side ten

75. Thelonious Monk - “Blues Improvisation” (Excerpt from “ Bags' Groove ”) ( Milt Jackson ) - 2:54
76. Miles Davis with Gil Evans' Orchestra - “ Summertime ” (George Gershwin) - 3:22
77. Sonny Rollins Quartet - “Blue 7” (Rollins) - 11:22
78. Modern Jazz Quartet  - “ Django ” ( John Lewis ) - 5:34
79. Charles Mingus and His Orchestra - “Hora Decubitus” (Mingus) - 4:44

Side eleven

80. Sonny Rollins Plus 4 - “Pent-Up House” (Excerpt) (Rollins) - 7:32
81. Cecil Taylor  - “Enter Evening” (Taylor) - 11:05 am
82. Miles Davis Sextet - “ So What ” (Davis) - 9:11

Side twelve

83. Ornette Coleman  - “Lonely Woman” (Coleman) - 5:02
84. Ornette Coleman - “Congeniality” (Coleman) - 6:45
85. Ornette Coleman - “Free Jazz” (Excerpt) (Coleman) - 10:14
86. John Coltrane  - “ Alabama ” (Coltrane) - 5:07

1987

Additional recordings in the 1987 edition:

• Jelly Roll Morton: King Porter Stomp
• Louis Armstrong: Big Butter and Egg Man
• Jimmy Noone's Apex Club Orchestra: Four or Five Times
• Red Nichols and His Five Pennies: Dinah
• Billie Holiday: These Foolish Things
• Jimmy Lunceford : Organ Grinder's Swing
• Quintette Hot Club de France ( Django Reinhardt and others): Dinah
• Duke Ellington: Diminuendo in Blue and Crescendo in Blue
• Charlie Parker: Lady Be Good
• Charlie Parker: Crazeology (two recordings)
• Bud Powell Trio: Night in Tunisia
• Lennie Tristano: Subconscious Lee
• Nat King Cole , Red Norvo , Stan Getz : Body and Soul
• Sarah Vaughan: All Alone
• Sarah Vaughan: My Funny Valentine
• Horace Silver Quintet: Moon Rays
• Charles Mingus Quintet: Haitian Fight Song
• Wes Montgomery Quartet: West Coast Blues
• Bill Evans Trio: Blue in Green
• World Saxophone Quartet : Steppin '

Jazz - The Smithsonian Anthology

On the 2011 anthology are:

• Dick Hyman , Maple Leaf Rag - 2:27
• Bunk's Brass Band ( Bunk Johnson ): In Gloryland - 3:00
• Original Dixieland Jazz Band : Livery Stable Blues - 3:07
• King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band: Dippermouth Blues - 2:18
• Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra: The Stampede - 3:14
• Jelly Roll Morton's Red Hot Peppers: Black Bottom Stomp - 3:12
• Frankie Trumbauer: Singin 'The Blues (Till My Daddy Comes Home) - 3:00
• Bessie Smith and James P. Johnson : Back Water Blues - 3:17
• Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Black And Tan Fantasy - 3:06
• Bix Beiderbecke and Paul Whiteman Orchestra: From Monday On - 3:02
• Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five: West End Blues - 3:17
• Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines: Weather Bird - 2:42
• Eddie Condon 's Hot Shots: That's a Serious Thing - 3:29
• Eddie Long , Lonnie Johnson : Handful of Riffs - 3:04
• James P. Johnson : You've Got to Be Modernistic - 3:10
• Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra: Moten Swing - 3:21
• The Boswell Sisters : Everybody Loves My Baby - 2:20
• Sidney Bechet: Maple Leaf Rag - 2:55
• Fats Waller and His Rhythm: Dinah - 3:06
• Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra: Swing That Music - 2:49
• Meade Lux Lewis: Honky Tonk Train Blues - 2:57
• Billie Holiday with Teddy Wilson and his orchestra: Meant To Me - 3:06
• Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra: For Dancers Only - 2:37
• Count Basie and His Orchestra: One O'Clock Jump - 3:02
• Chick Webb and His Orchestra: Harlem Congo - 3:16
• Quintette Hot Club de France ( Django Reinhardt ): Minor Swing - 3:14
• Mary Lou Williams with Andy Kirk and His Clouds of Joy: Mary's Idea - 2:56
• Lionel Hampton: When Lights Are Low - 2:12
• Coleman Hawkins and His Orchestra: Body and Soul - 3:00
• Benny Goodman and His Orchestra: Honeysuckle Rose - 2:59
• Art Tatum: Tiger Rag - 2:18
• Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra: Ko-Ko - 2:39
• Cab Calloway and His Orchestra: Hard Times (Topsy Turvy) - 3:17
• The Chocolate Dandies ( Roy Eldridge , Benny Carter): I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me - 4:10
• Artie Shaw and His Orchestra: Stardust - 3:30
• Gene Krupa and His Orchestra: Let Me Off Uptown - 3:30
• Dizzy Gillespie's All-Star Quintets: Shaw 'Nuff - 3:03
• Dizzy Gillespie and His Orchestra: Manteca - 2:58
• Mary Lou Williams: Virgo from The Zodiac Suite - 3:06
• Dexter Gordon : Dexter Rides Again - 3:13
• Lester Young , Buddy Rich Trio: I Want to Be Happy - 3:56
• Bud Powell : Indiana - 2:43
• Charlie Parker Quintet: Embraceable You - 3:43
• Woody Herman and His Orchestra: Four Brothers - 3:15
• Thelonious Monk Quartet: Misterioso - 3:21
• Tadd Dameron Sextet: Lady Bird - 2:50
• Machito and His Afro-Cuban Orchestra: Tanga - 3:50
• George Shearing Quintet: September in the Rain - 3:13
• Lennie Tristano Sextet: WOW - 3:20
• Miles Davis Nonet: Boplicity - 2:59
• Count Basie Octet: The Golden Bullet - 2:27
• Shorty Rogers and His Giants: Popo - 3:01
• Gerry Mulligan Quartet with Chet Baker : Walkin 'Shoes - 3:10
• Stan Kenton : 23 Degrees North, 82 Degrees West - 3:09
• Clifford Brown - Max Roach Quintet: Daahoud - 4:02
• Modern Jazz Quartet: Django - 7:01
• Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers: The Preacher - 4:17
• Erroll Garner Trio: I'll Remember April - 4:20
• Chico Hamilton Quintet: Jonaleh - 2:18
• Lucky Thompson Trio: Tricrotism - 4:33
• Sonny Rollins : St. Thomas - 6:45
• Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Call For All Demons - 5:11
• Nat King Cole and His Trio: When I Grow Too Old to Dream - 3:31
• Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald: Stompin 'at the Savoy - 5:12
• Stan Getz , JJ Johnson : Blues in the Closet - 9:02
• Oscar Peterson Trio: Ol 'Man River - 2:35
• Miles Davis, Gil Evans: Summertime - 3:18
• Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers: Moanin '- 9:33
• Count Basie and His Orchestra: Meet BB - 3:27
• Miles Davis Sextet: So What - 9:22
• John Coltrane Quartet: Giant Steps - 4:43
• Charles Mingus: Better Git It in Your Soul - 7:22
• Dave Brubeck Quartet: Blue Rondo à la Turk - 6:43
• Ornette Coleman Quartet: Ramblin '- 6:34
• Cannonball Adderley : Work Song - 5:06
• Sarah Vaughan : Wrap your Troubles In Dreams - 2:03
• John Coltrane Quartet: My Favorite Things, Part 1 (Single Version) - 2:42
• Bill Evans : Waltz For Debby - 7:00
• George Russell Sextet: Round Midnight - 6:33
• Ella Fitzgerald with Duke Ellington Orchestra: Cotton Tail - 3:25
• Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers: One by One - 6:19
• Stan Getz, Astrud Gilberto : The Girl From Ipanema - 5:22
• John Coltrane Quartet: A Love Supreme Part I: Acknowledgment - 7:46
• Miles Davis Quintet: ESP - 5:28
• Clark Terry - Bob Brookmeyer Quintet: Haig & Haig - 4:28
• Jimmy Smith and Wes Montgomery : King of the Road - 4:10
• Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Isfahan - 4:11
• Gary Burton : The New National Anthem (from A Genuine Tong Funeral) - 6:38
• Chick Corea : Matrix - 6:25
• Miles Davis: Miles Runs the Voodoo Down - 2:49
• Mahavishnu Orchestra : Celestial Terrestrial Commuters -2: 53
• Herbie Hancock : Watermelon Man - 6:29
• Toshiko Akiyoshi - Lew Tabackin Big Band: Long Yellow Road - 6:27
• Cecil Taylor : Jitney No. 2 - 4:11
• Pat Metheny : Bright Size Life - 4:43
• Anthony Braxton and Muhal Richard Abrams : Maple Leaf Rag - 3:37
• Weather Report : Birdland - 5:56
• Keith Jarrett : My Song - 6:10
• Irakere : Iya - 5:53
• Art Ensemble of Chicago : Bush Magic - 5:06
• World Saxophone Quartet : Steppin '- 7:15
• Steve Coleman Group: The Glide Was in the Ride - 3:58
• Abdullah Ibrahim : Manenberg (Revisited) - 6:07
• Michael Brecker : Nothing Personal - 5:31
• Tito Puente : Airegin - 4:12
• Wynton Marsalis Septet: Down the Avenue - 4:45
• Nguyên Lê : Ting Ning - 3:40
• Masada ( John Zorn ): Kilayim - 3:21
• Medeski, Martin & Wood : Hey-Hee-Hi-Ho - 3:13
• Martial Solal and Johnny Griffin : Neutralisme - 4:30
• Tomasz Stanko : Suspended Night Variation VIII - 4:20

literature

• John Edward Hasse: Review of: The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz (WW Norton), Folklore Forum, Volume 7, 1974, pp. 227-230.
• John C. Nelson: The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz: A Review, Black Music Research Journal, Volume 1, 1980, pp. 95-112

Web links

• Thomas Cunliffe: The Smithsonian and "Classic Jazz" , Jazz history online

Individual evidence

1. ^ Ratliff, Jazz - a critic's guide to the 100 most import recordings , Times Books, 2002, p. XIX
2. ↑ Eric Hendry, Jazz: The Smithsonian Collection: 111 Tracks of Music History , Smithsonian Magazine, March 29, 2011
3. ↑ Only the following recordings were taken from the old compilation: King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band: Dipper Mouth Blues King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, Fletcher Henderson Orchestra: The Stampede, Jelly Roll Morton and his Red Hot Peppers: Black Bottom Stomp, Frankie Trumbauer Orchestra : Singin 'The Blues (Till My Daddy Comes Home), Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five: West End Blues, Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines: Weather Bird, Bennie Moten and His Kansas City Orchestra: Moten Swing, Meade Lux Lewis: Honky Tonk Train Blues, Lionel Hampton: When Lights Are Low, Coleman Hawkins and Orchestra: Body and Soul, Duke Ellington Orchestra: Ko-Ko, The Chocolate Dandies (Roy Eldridge, Benny Carter): I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me, Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Quintets: Shaw 'Nuff, Charlie Parker Quintet: Embraceable You, Thelonious Monk Quartet: Misterioso, Tadd Dameron Sextet: Lady Bird, Miles Davis Nonet: Boplicity, The Modern Jazz Quartet: Django, Miles Davis / Gil Evans Summertime 'Miles Davis Sextet So What, World Saxophone Quartet: Steppin'.
4. ^ Folkways: Jazz - The Smithsonian Anthology