Let's Do It

This is a remarkably fine double-CD set featuring Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald, with the late Oscar Peterson accompanying on piano. Of course they are all gone now, and I saw them all perform when they were alive, which is one of the sad things about jazz. The greats are gone. You would not think that Louis and Ella would mesh so well together, but they do. Ain't Necessarily So is a favorite of mine, especially the saucy last verse.

Louis, of course, is one of the seminal figures in jazz having practically invented the instrumental solo himself. Here he is still playing strongly, though by this time the days of his incredibly virtuosity in the twenties and thirties were gone. This one is a keeper.

Click here to hear samples of the music. And for more information click on the link here Let's Do It: Best of the Verve Years