Bob Weinstock and the Prestige All-Star Sessions ( Jazz Profiles) By Steve Siegel

[Elmo]

 

From August 3, 1956 to April 29, 1959, Prestige Records owner Bob Weinstock produced 21 sessions with an ever-changing group of 65 total musicians. The sessions were thematic and the iterations of musicians in their various groupings at the sessions were referred to as “The Prestige All Stars.” The albums were released under various titles...

https://jazzprofiles.blogspot.com/2026/04/bob-weinstock-and-prestige-all-star.html

Edited 9 hours ago by Elmo
added material

[Kevin Bresnahan]

We had a good thread going on these a while back: 

 

[Chuck Nessa]

should we compare these with 

[Big Beat Steve]

3 hours ago, Chuck Nessa said:

should we compare these with 

IMO - no. Weren't the Norman Granz sessions rather different and more swing-mainstreamish in their concept and therefore intentions? At any rate Prestige involved a wider range of musicians (and styles), didn't they? 

I am not sure if it is totally fair to blame Bob Weinstock that much for lack of preparation, etc., as it happens in that Jazzprofiles text.  But who knows - maybe some of those Prestige sessions are part of why those "blowing sessions" were dismissed (and sometimes even made fun of) by some jazz scribes and reviewers when the releases were all new in the 50s? (Though in fact Down Beat reviewers tended to fault some Blue Note releases for an all too loose "blowing session" setup too)

Edited 1 hour ago by Big Beat Steve