Chanders

Fantastic. Can't wait. Do any European buyers know how Mosaic in Europe is working these days? I've not pre-ordered a set since I left the US and I have seen nearly all the new releases eventually show up at TYQ or JazzMessengers ... is that to be expected with all new sets?

Apologies Allen, there was no intent to slight your work or the work of the many others you mentioned, all of whom are field defining. I was just trying to mention some of the names that have come up recently in the threads about these boxes.

For a long time, most of the Armstrong material released on Mosaic- his work with Decca and RCA primarily- was sen as lesser or inferior Armstrong (certainly compared to his revolutionary work as a younger man. That view has been challenged recently, led by folks like Ricky Riccardi who has written a 3-part biography of Armstrong and has contributed to a lot of the Mosaic liner notes. The argument is that critique of the later Armstrong rests in part on the uncertain boundary between jazz and popular entertainment, particularly jazz as it exists post-bop. Nevertheless, you wouldn't be alone in seeing Armstrong's Mosaic material as somewhat peripheral to mainstream jazz. If you don't like *any* Louis ... well, what to say, tastes differ. 😉 I would just finish by saying that early jazz often takes more "work" to enjoy as a listener, in part because of recording quality and in part because it is musically a step removed from the musical world we live in in the 21st century. In my experience you have to get past its inherent oddness to appreciate it on its' own terms. Nonetheless, as I said before, tastes differ.

So looks like those who speculated that early Duke was coming (at some point) fron Mosaic were right. And more! Really great news. From the Jazz Gazette Future Sets: 1920s Jazz In addition to inquiries about the upcoming Louis Armstrong release we also have received inquiries on other early jazz sets we may be considering. While these 2 sets won’t be released for a couple of years we are in the process of sourcing the material: Jelly Roll Morton: The Complete Early Recordings 1923–1927 Duke Ellington: The Complete Brunswick, Columbia, Victor & OKeh Recordings 1924–1929

I mean yes, this would obviously be fantastic if someone was willing to do it.

Let’s hear it for the public domain 😃. This raises a lot of questions about what Mosaic might be able to do as more and more jazz passes the century mark.

Ah well! At least a refund was issued. I will raise it with them when it gets over here. Wonder what discs I got ...lol

Grabbed it! 45 EUR total with shipping costs. I'm curious to see how it arrives. Is the box there? The booklet? There was no description at all, but for that little it was worth taking a shot. It has been on my list for a while ...

Thanks so much for the post on this. To be honest I’ve always been intrigued by this series but it has seemed like a LOT to wrap ones head around especially after it is all out (and presumably more expensive than it was when it all came out). I am curious about the box sets all of which are supposed to be very nice. This is one of those moments when discogs seems to fail as a database - from what I can tell there are mega boxes with all the discs (a 75 and 25 disc set) but there also also compilation box sets? That is what I can’t figure out. What are these sets? It seems like a nice way to start but I have a hard time tracking them down.

Many thanks to everyone who weighed in. In the end, price made a decision for me. I managed to find a copy of the Big Band Decca set for $19 a disc but also from a seller in Italy, which is where I live and often help me pull the trigger on bigger purchases. Looking forward to listen in tandem with the 2020 Ricky Riccardi book :-).

Hi all, I am more or less a lurker on this board but have found it very valuable especially as it offers a different take on a lot of aspects of recorded jazz than my usual forums (Reddit and the one that shall not be named but if inder the banner of a well-known engineer). I’ve been building up my Mosaic collection the last year or so and it’s time to combine that with the goal of broadening my Louis Armstrong holdings past 1934. I have the complete Hot Fives and Sevens of course and the Portrait of the Artist sampler box. If you were going to pick your first of the four main Mosaic boxes which would you start with? Let’s assume for the sake of argument you might not ever have the money or room to get another. Finally, all of the boxes are OOP and expensive but let’s just ignore that for now. Whar would you buy first?