Artie Shaw - The Artie Shaw Story

Artie Shaw led some of the classic big bands of the Swing Era and maintained a consistently innovative approach to making music throughout his career. A virtuoso clarinettist whose technique surpassed that of the King of Swing, Benny Goodman, Shaw was self taught in the arts of playing and also arranging. His first big band contained a string quartet, but this lineup did not find commercial success so it was jettisoned in favour of a more conventional setup. Hits such as Frenesi and Begin The Beguine followed along with sides cut by Shaw's band-within-a-band, the Gramercy 5. At the height of the success, Shaw split the band, but was to return with new lineups in subsequent years which included a stellar array of soloists including Roy Eldridge, Hot Lips Page, Zoot Sims and many others. This 4 CD set presents the best across all of Shaw's varied output and contains a booklet telling his colourful story - the story of a musician who never seemed quite satisfied with the uses his vast talent was put to.