In celebration of
Wynton Marsalis' 50th birthday,
Columbia compiled tracks from the trumpeter/bandleader's nine albums released between 1999-2000, better known as the
Swingin' into the 21st series. The single-disc 2011 collection
Selections from Swingin' into the 21st features a mix of large- and small-group sessions from such albums as
The Marciac Suite,
Standard Time, Vol. 4: Marsalis Plays Monk,
Standard Time, Vol. 6: Mr. Jelly Lord,
At the Octoroon Balls: String Quartet No. 1, the box set
Live at the Village Vanguard, and others. Billed as
Marsalis' picks of some of his favorite tracks from each album, also included are highlights from his 2002 orchestral and big-band piece
All Rise. The best cuts from the
Swingin' series were the small-group sessions where
Marsalis and his septet got to stretch out with longer solos and inspired group interplay, as on the rollicking New Orleans second-line number "Juba and a O'Brown Squaw" from
Live at the Village Vanguard and "King Porter Stomp" from his
Jelly Roll Morton album
Mr. Jelly Lord. Also engaging are the slightly more modern tracks, including the two roiling, cubist
Thelonious Monk numbers "Hackensack" and "Green Chimneys," which
Marsalis worked up for
Marsalis Plays Monk. While
Marsalis' extended large ensemble pieces should really be sought out within the context of their full recordings, taken on their own merits, such pieces as the bluesy "Loose Duck" from
The Marciac Suite and the lyrical violin-led ballad "Morning Song" are superb orchestral jazz pieces that showcase the urbane and always swinging mind of
Marsalis. ~ Matt Collar
