A man of quiet charm, dignity and subtle skill (both as pianist and as shaper of a happy and spontaneous band of men), Bill Basie was not one for discussing the niceties of the jazz art. The closest he came and it's worth finding, was in 'Good Morning Blues' described as his autobiography as told to Albert Murray, published in Britain by Heinemann. Usually he'd sooner talk about anything else but his music, which is what he did to make a good living and which was guided by one principle to entertain, to communicate the joy of having a ball. Basie had many gifted brass soloists and a special affection for tenor sax players. Many greats passed through the band, none greater than Lester Young, who was initially unappreciated by his colleagues because he was light and airy with an almost hollow, vibratoless sound. But the bandsmen had little choice but to come around since Lester, the President Of The Tenor Saxophone, is now recognised as one of the few geniuses of jazz, as can be plainly heard from our opener - 'Jive At Five'.
