Sonny Rollins

Saxophone Colossus

Prestige Records

Oscar Peterson Trio

At the Stratford Shakespearean

Festival

Verve Records

Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers

Moanin'

Blue Note Records

J.J. Johnson

Quintergy

Antilles Records

Grant Green

The Complete Quartets with

Sonny Clark

Blue Note Records

SONNY ROLLINS

Saxophone Colossus

Prestige Records

There are so many great Rollins recordings, it is tempting to recommend a boxed set, but I will go with “Saxophone Colossus” from 1956 because it contains the saxophonist’s great originals “St. Thomas,” “Strode Rode,” and “Blue Seven.” This early example of Rollins at his most imaginative and technically challenging also features Tommy Flanagan on piano, Doug Watkins on bass and Max Roach on drums.    

OSCAR PETERSON TRIO

At the Stratford Shakespearean Festival

Verve Records

I recommend 1956’s “At the Stratford Shakespearean Festival” because it is the pinnacle of the early Peterson trio that also featured guitarist Herb Ellis and bassist Ray Brown. It captures them in thrilling live performances of “Falling in Love with Love,” “Swinging on a Star,” “How High the Moon,” “52^nd Street Theme” and others, plus two bonus tracks on the expanded 75-minute CD. This drummerless threesome was together for about five years, so it documents a significant period in Peterson's career.

ART BLAKEY AND THE JAZZ MESSENGERS

Moanin’

Blue Note Records

The many editions of Blakey’s Jazz Messengers—from the 1950s through the 1980s—produced some of the most memorable and historic hard-bop recordings of all time, but 1958’s classic “Moanin’” must take the prize for both outstanding compositions and exemplary musicianship. The lineup was undoubtedly one of the best, with tenor saxophonist Benny Golson, trumpeter Lee Morgan, pianist Bobby Timmons, and bassist Jymie Merritt.

J.J. JOHNSON

Quintergy

Antilles Records

I offer “Quintergy” as the quintessential live recording of his later years and proof positive that Johnson remained relevant and even revelatory. He was 64 when it was recorded at the Village Vanguard in 1988. Accompanied by saxophonist Ralph Moore, pianist Stanley Cowell, bassist Rufus Reid and drummer Victor Lewis, the 68-minute set represents the traditional bop quintet’s state of the art, with excellent renditions of “Blue Bossa,” “You’ve Changed” and Johnson’s own “Lament.”

GRANT GREEN

The Complete Quartets with Sonny Clark

Blue Note Records

Green’s profusion of ideas is best appreciated on longer tracks, making “The Complete Quartets with Sonny Clark” an easy choice. This two-CD set includes 19 tunes totaling more than two hours of brilliant interplay among Green, pianist Clark, bassist Sam Jones and either Art Blakey or Louis Hayes on drums. Recorded during a five-week period in 1962, the sessions were shelved until 1980, and then released only in abbreviated form in the U.S. and Japan. This 1997 Blue Note package is a feast for longtime Green fans and newcomers alike.