Jazz in the Charts, Vols. 1-100

Read About This Recording

This box is one of the most unusual jazz sets ever compiled, and not just because it includes 100 CDs! Included are all of the jazz recordings that made the charts during 1917-54, in order of when they debuted on the top 20. Unlike many artist samplers that mix together hits with valuable but little known or un-issued material, all of the music in this giant reissue was popular at least at the time. By listening to this music in order, one can trace the history of jazz and to a certain extent the evolution of popular music during a 37-year period.

Many borderline performances have been purposely left out including straight recordings by dance bands and vocalists, so the music on this huge collection is quite jazz-oriented. The music ranges from the Original Dixieland Jazz Band in 1917 and selections by Bessie Smith, Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong (who is heard on 64 of his hits) to all of the Swing Era favorites of Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller, Artie Shaw, Tommy Dorsey and countless others. The set also includes a few surprising bebop numbers (including by Dizzy Gillespie), ending up in 1954 when jazz was becoming a much less frequent part of the charts.

This unique set is sure to create a stir.

—Scott Yanow

Contents

Imported from Europe!

Remastered!

This 100-CD edition presents all the true hits landed by jazz musicians between 1917 and 1954 for the first time.

All of the 2,211 recordings were in the American Billboard charts and — without exception — managed to climb up to the top positions in the sales charts.

It was these recordings that made their performers famous and laid the foundations for partly astonishing music careers.

The Jazz in the Charts edition documents the golden age of jazz in unprecedented depth. The chronological sequence of the series shows the musical development of jazz over the decades better than any "Best of" compilation could ever hope to do.

Putting together this complete CD edition was difficult due to the nature of the undertaking - and it took over ten years for the compiler to research and collect all the titles. A large number of the works could only be tracked down through time-consuming research and were only made available with the help of international partners as most of the recordings were on rare shellac records to be found in a small number of special collections.

Detailed information about each track, collected in a comprehensive booklet, completes this remarkable edition and emphasizes the significance of the recordings for the development of music during the 20th century.

Jazz in the Charts provides an entirely new insight into the history of jazz.

Buy all 100 CDs in the series and receive a free 244-page book with a complete index of the 100-CD set. Index lists recordings by title, artist and CD for all 2,211 tracks in the series!