Red Norvo: In a Mist

Few jazz musicians have mastered a wider range of the music's history than the now unfairly forgotten Red Norvo. His resume reveals him working with Paul Whiteman in the 1920s, Benny Goodman in the 1930s, Charles Mingus in the 1940s and Frank Sinatra in the 1950s. But the recordings Norvo made under his own name in the 1930s are the best place to begin in coming to grips with this multi-faceted musician. Bix Beiderbecke had passed away only two years before this session, but the force of his personality continued to exert an influence over a generation of jazz players, with artists as diverse as Bing Crosby and Norvo learning from the cornetist's example. Here Norvo resurrects Bix's "In a Mist" in an ethereal performance that rivals Beiderbecke's own memorable piano rendition. "In a Mist" is a stellar example of chamber jazz, with an experimental flavor that has hardly been diminished with the passing years.