This CD has the very complete output of
Jonah Jones and his nonet during a session for World Transcription. This 1944 set features trumpeter
Jones,
Tyree Glenn (on trombone and vibes), altoist
Hilton Jefferson, tenor saxophonist
Ike Quebec, the obscure clarinetist and baritonist
Al Gibson, pianist
Buster Harding, guitarist
Danny Barker, bassist
Milt Hinton, and drummer
J.C. Heard. At the time, all of these musicians (except
Harding, who was
Calloway's staff arranger) were members of
the Cab Calloway Orchestra. If the eight master takes of this music had been reissued along with some other date, this CD would actually be much more listenable. For, in addition to the eight accepted performances, there are also 16 partial takes and eight full-length alternate versions. The partial takes certainly did not need to be released, for they add nothing to the music and make listening to this CD a bit of a jarring experience. That is a pity, for
Jones and
Quebec play particularly well on this hot swing music, and
Glenn (normally a trombonist) is heard on some of his best vibes solos.