This 4CD set is one of the most comprehensive surveys of the evolution of jazz music in the UK, as played by visiting luminaries from the USA as well as those who were inspired by the Americans but born and bred on home turf. Tracing the story from 1919 and the first visits to London by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, this set takes in visits to the UK by the likes of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman during the Swing era and then illustrates the influence these musicians had on the likes of homegrown talent such as Harry Parry, George Shearing and Nat Gonella. As the waves from the bebop revolution reached the UK in the '40s, musicians such as Ronnie Scott and John Dankworth took up the baton with their early performances included here. This set was compiled by Jim Godbolt, one of the UK's leading authorities on jazz as it has been performed in the UK, who has also written a companion book on the subject as well as the liners to this set. It includes many rare recordings that have never been issued on CD, or indeed LP, having only surfaced previously on 78s.
101 Tracks.