1923-1925 presents
Sidney Bechet at his earliest, and these are historically important recordings made by one of the giants of jazz. Even on his earliest tracks such as "Wild Cat Blues" and "Blind Man Blues,"
Bechet's style is already mature and distinctive, and these sessions laid the bedrock for the artist's performing career for the decades following. Despite the excellent remastering on this release, fidelity is still rather poor, although the brilliance of
Bechet's playing, like
Armstrong's (who joins
Bechet on nine of the tracks here), transcends these technical limitations. A wonderful release, both historically important and a wonderful listening experience. ~ Thomas Ward