Legends of Jazz: Showcase (2006)

LEGENDS OF JAZZ with RAMSEY LEWIS "SHOWCASE" is a dynamic 2-DISC CD/DVD collection of 13 riveting performances from the series featuring THE BIGGEST STARS OF JAZZ and presented on one of the most dazzling AUDIO/VISUAL recordings of the year! Featuring SUPERIOR PICTURE AND SOUND all performances on the DVD were encoded from HD masters presented in 16 X 9 WIDESCREEN with DOLBY DIGITAL 5.1 SURROUND SOUND. Additionally, all musical performances are also featured on an accompanying audio CD.

Track Listing:
1. AL JARREAU & KURT ELLING "Take 5"
2. CHRIS BOTTI "My Funny Valentine"
3. MARCUS MILLER, GEORGE DUKE, LEE RITENOUR "The Panther"
4. DAVID SANBORN & PHIL WOODS "Senor Blues"
5. CHICK COREA "Armando’s Rhumba"
6. ROBERT CRAY & KEB MO "12 Year Old Boy"
7. BENNY GOLSON "Killer Joe"
8. IVAN LINS "The Island"
9. CLARK TERRY "Mumbles"
10. JANE MONHEIT & JOHN PIZZARELLI "They Can’t Take That Away From Me"
11. DAVE VALENTIN "Obsession"
12. DAVE BRUBECK & BILLY TAYLOR "Take The ‘A’ Train"
13. RAMSEY LEWIS "Dear Lord"

Love this set!!!!

Great set!!! Video & audio is state of the art!!!!! One more thing, McCain, Palin and the rest of the neo-cons suck big monkey dong!!!! September 30, 2008

Great video

I collect music videos and this is right up there. The quality of the video is good and the music fantastic. Kevin September 27, 2008

Fabulous

If you have a Blu-ray player and enjoy Jazz this is a must have. Each performance is great. The styles of Jazz vary from performer to performer. I like a variety of music so this was not a problem for me. It shouldn't for most either, since, after all, the performers are "Jazz Legends". The most benefit from this disc will be to those who have their Blu-ray hooked up to an audio system and especially if you can take advantage of the Dolby Tru-HD sound track here. There is also a two channel uncompressed sound track. I haven't been one to embrace multi-channel music but this disc is an excellent example of how surround sound music can be done right and with Tru-HD listening becomes quite an experience. The mix is done as if you are in the audience. The instruments are in front of you with just enough to surround speakers to give ambience to the music. The video, of course, being in high definition, is stunning as well. Legends of Jazz on Blu-ray is a real audio video treat and the price is no more than a typical CD. Looking forward to hopefully seeing more of this series come to Blu. September 9, 2008

Excellent concert

This is a must to have for your Jazz collection. Selection of performers, sound and video quality is GREAT. Highly recommend this concert. If you like jazz you can not go wrong with this disk. August 25, 2008

The closest experience to being there live

This is a masterfully produced disc. When you put this in your player and the theme music starts, you know you are in for a great night of jazz.

What truly makes this collection compelling is the well-balanced list of performances. There are artists new and old, well-known and not so well-known, from a surprisingly varied pool of jazz sub-genres: fusion, bebop, swing, latin, and bossa. There is even a blues performance thrown in. The performances themselves are mostly very good, with the occasional eye-opening one mixed in such as Marcus Miller's Panther.

The production value of the disc is fantastic too. I would've loved this even on VHS because it is ultimately about the music; but there is something to be said about the excellent high definition video and sound. This is truly as close as one can get to being there live. The disc is also very well organized. It is easy to switch between sound formats and you can access the performances individually from the main menu too. Even the artist bios are well done. In fact, I found this Blu-ray disc so great that I'm now torn between buying the Legends of Jazz DVD collection or waiting for a Blu-ray release. I will probably buy the DVD set now since the music and the performances are what's important I think.

As far as shortcomings, the only one I found is that the length is on the short side at 55 minutes. Everything else was perfect. If you like jazz, you'll love this disc. June 12, 2008

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