Any chance for OLD jazz to be reissued? I wouldn't expect much from the days when it was spelled jass, but Louis Armstrong cut a lot of good stuff in the 20s.
Both Bechet & Armstrong have been remastered by Mosaic Records. Theye are a fine reissue company and every CD is worth it's weight in gold... Mosaic Records Of course, both of these sets are OOP but they show up from time to time on eBay. The Complete Hot Fives & Sevens boxed set from Columbia/Legacy sounds like what you're looking for in the Armstrong department. This is seminal jass and the set is wonderfully reissued. Can't go wrong with this one.
The Hot 5 & 7 recordings are indeed great stuff, but you'd be better off getting the JSP box instead of the Columbia set. The JSP set has superior sound and is much cheaper -- roughly $25 for the 4 CD set.
If they are remastered by JRT Davies I'd fully agree. I have not heard the JSP Hot 5s set but other Davies remasters are superior than their 'big label' counterparts. If you are really into the liners, pics and essays (packaging) again I'd go with the Columbia/Legacy set. Quite a nice history book in that one. Otherwise pick up the JSP...
Yeah, the JSP was remastered by Davies. I agree, though, that Columbia wins easily in the liner notes/essay department -- the JSP is only adequate in that regard.
