Great Jazz Albums (IMO) #32

Benny Carter with Ben Webster and Barney Bigard.  BBB & Company (1962).  The three "B's" were all remarkable musicians.  Ben Webster was one of the most revered of tenor saxophone players.  Barney Bigard was one of the great clarinetists in Duke Ellington's orchestra (Webster also played a key role in one of Ellington's most important periods.)  And Benny Carter, who I actually saw play once, was a legendary composer and arranger, equally adept at saxophone and trumpet.  The album has only four tunes, including Carter's "When The Lights Are Low" and "Lula."  This is a classic meeting of jazz giants of the Swing Era.  They are each superb soloists and each get their turn to shine.  They complement each other wonderfully and have the help of a solid rhythm section that features Jimmy Rowles on piano and Mel Lewis on drums.  BBB & Company is really just a fun album from a group of true all-stars.

[Related posts:  Great Jazz Albums  #1 (Hank Mobley), #2 (Horace Silver), #3 (Sonny Rollins), #4 (Sonny Clark), #5 (Dexter Gordon), #6 (Cannonball Adderley), #7 (Bill Evans), #8 (McCoy Tyner), #9 (Clifford Brown), #10 (Sinatra), #11 (Monk), #12 (Kenny Dorham), #13 (Coltrane), #14 (Duke Ellington), #15 (Miles Davis), #16 (Wayne Shorter), #17 (Dinah Washington); #18 (Sarah Vaughan); #19 (Stan Getz); #20 (Blue Mitchell); #21 (Gene Ammons); #22 (Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers); #23 (Red Garland); #24 (Ella Fitzgerald); #25 (Charlie Parker); #26 (Art Pepper); #27 (Bud Powell); #28 (John Hicks); #29 (Kenny Barron); #30 (Coleman Hawkins); #31 (Count Basie)]