Rather than release all of
Count Basie's studio recordings (as Decca recently has or as French Columbia did in two large LP sets over a decade ago), CBS has put together three samplers that contain some (but not all) of the essential
Basie recordings from the 1939-41 period. This first volume has
Lester Young's great solo on 1936's "Lady Be Good," and the classics "Rock-A-Bye Basie" and "Taxi War Dance, " and fine examples of the
Basie orchestra throughout 1939. ~ Scott Yanow