The Essential Count Basie, Vol. 2

The second compilation of Basie's Columbia recordings, from 1939 to 1940, shows the band at its peak, at various points including trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry Edison, trombonists Dickie Wells, Benny Morton, and Vic Dickenson, and saxophonists Buddy Tate and Tab Smith among the soloists. Surmounting it all is Lester Young, at the height of his powers and creating an approach that would revolutionize jazz, floating across the band's punching rhythms with consummate ease and rare invention. Six decades after they were recorded, tunes like "Tickle Toe," "Blow Top," and "Super Chief" still define the idea of swing. Two small-group masterpieces by Basie's Kansas City Seven, "Dickie's Dream" and "Lester Leaps In," are also included. --Stuart Broomer