Cab Calloway and His Orchestra - Volume 1: The Early Years 1930-1934 / 4CD set

As a young singer Cab Calloway was at his most exuberant, and The Early Years: 1930-1934 has plenty of that exuberance on offer. In 1930, just before his recording debut, he took over a powerful band called the Missourians, and their best soloists (R.Q. Dickerson on trumpet and Thornton Blue on clarinet) can be heard on the first of these four CDs, which includes a startling "St. Louis Blues" as well as the original version of the famous "Minnie the Moocher." Calloway, in spite of a rather nasal tone, was a technically gifted singer who approached songs with the improvising skills of a jazz musician. No doubt because of this he ensured that his bands always swung and contained soloists of character. His repertoire here mixes well-known songs such as "Somebody Stole My Gal" and "I've Got the World on a String" with obscure delights like "Black Rhythm" and "Eadie Was a Lady," but Calloway imparted a unique flavor to whatever he sang. The value of this bargain package is enhanced by the audio restoration work of the expert John R.T. Davies, who has extracted more sonic detail from these old recordings than one would have thought possible. --Graham Colombé