Deftly handling the alto, tenor, and baritone saxophone, bebop giant Sonny Stitt is heard to perfection here on a variety of early-'50s dates.
Stitt not only shows off his patented speed throughout, but he goes a long way in dispelling criticisms of him being all fire and no grace.
The 16-track disc kicks off with four tight, Latin-tinged swingers featuring an octet that includes trumpeter Joe Newman and timbales player Humberto Morales.
Switching to piano quartet mode for the bulk of the disc, Stitt ranges effortlessly from frenetic blasts ("Cherokee") to golden-hued ballads ("Imagination").
Capping off the set with four bonus cuts featuring the likes of Gene Ammons and Junior Mance, Stitt delivers one of the top sets of performances from the late bebop era.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stitt's ItCal Massey, Sonny Stitt | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:35 | 5 MB | 8 MB |
| 2 | Cool MamboCal Massey, Sonny Stitt | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:38 | 6 MB | 8 MB |
| 3 | Blue MamboCal Massey, Sonny Stitt | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:25 | 5 MB | 7 MB |
| 4 | Sonny SoundsCal Massey, Sonny Stitt | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:28 | 5 MB | 8 MB |
| 5 | Ain't Misbehavin'Harry Brooks, Andy Razaf, Fats Waller | Sonny Stitt | Play | 03:03 | 6 MB | 7 MB |
| 6 | LaterSonny Stitt | Sonny Stitt | Play | 03:01 | 6 MB | 8 MB |
| 7 | P. S. I Love YouGordon Jenkins, Johnny Mercer | Sonny Stitt | Play | 03:01 | 6 MB | 7 MB |
| 8 | This Can't Be LoveLorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:48 | 6 MB | 7 MB |
| 9 | ImaginationJohnny Burke, James Van Heusen | Sonny Stitt | Play | 03:26 | 7 MB | 8 MB |
| 10 | CherokeeRay Noble | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:33 | 5 MB | 7 MB |
| 11 | Can't We Be FriendsPaul James, Kay Swift | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:41 | 6 MB | 7 MB |
| 12 | To Think You've Chosen MeBennie Benjamin, George David Weiss, Frank Wess | Sonny Stitt | Play | 03:00 | 6 MB | 8 MB |
| 13 | After You've GoneHenry Creamer, Turner Layton | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:29 | 5 MB | 6 MB |
| 14 | Our Very OwnJack Elliott, Victor Young | Sonny Stitt | Play | 03:09 | 7 MB | 8 MB |
| 15 | S'WonderfulGeorge Gershwin, Ira Gershwin | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:26 | 5 MB | 13 MB |
| 16 | Liza | Sonny Stitt | Play | 02:47 | 6 MB | 8 MB |
| 44 mins | 102 MB | |||||
| 44 mins | 132 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gene Ammons | Sax (Baritone) |
| 2 | Charles Bateman | Piano |
| 3 | Bennie Benjamin | Composer |
| 4 | Art Blakey | Drums |
| 5 | Harry Brooks | Composer |
| 6 | Johnny Burke | Composer |
| 7 | Henry Creamer | Composer |
| 8 | Kenny Drew | Guest Artist, Piano |
| 9 | Jack Elliott | Composer |
| 10 | Kirk Felton | Remastering |
| 11 | Matthew Gee | Trombone |
| 12 | George Gershwin | Composer |
| 13 | Ira Gershwin | Composer |
| 14 | Ira Gitler | Liner Notes |
| 15 | Lorenz Hart | Composer |
| 16 | James Van Heusen | Composer |
| 17 | John Houston | Piano |
| 18 | John Hunt | Trumpet |
| 19 | Paul James | Composer |
| 20 | Gordon Jenkins | Composer |
| 21 | Gus Kahn | Composer |
| 22 | Wesley Landers | Drums |
| 23 | Turner Layton | Composer |
| 24 | Junior Mance | Guest Artist, Piano |
| 25 | Bill Massey | Trumpet |
| 26 | Cal Massey | Composer |
| 27 | Johnny Mercer | Composer |
| 28 | Humberto Morales | Timbales |
| 29 | Joe Newman | Trumpet |
| 30 | Ray Noble | Composer |
| 31 | Tommy Potter | Bass |
| 32 | Andy Razaf | Composer |
| 33 | Richard Rodgers | Composer |
| 34 | Ernie Shepherd | Bass |
| 35 | Ernie Sheppard | Bass |
| 36 | Teddy Stewart | Drums |
| 37 | Sonny Stitt | Composer, Primary Artist, Sax (Alto), Sax (Baritone), Sax (Tenor) |
| 38 | Kay Swift | Composer |
| 39 | Larry Townsend | Vocals |
| 40 | Rudy Van Gelder | Engineer |
| 41 | Fats Waller | Composer |
| 42 | George David Weiss | Composer |
| 43 | Frank Wess | Composer |
| 44 | Shadow Wilson | Drums |
| 45 | Gene Wright | Bass |
| 46 | Victor Young | Composer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |