Johnny Hodges - Not So Dukish / 2CD set

Includes a 16-page booklet with recording details, extensive notes and rare photos.

Press reviews

"As Duke Ellington's altoist during 1928-51 and 1955-70, Johnny Hodges became world famous and beloved by jazz fans. His luscious tone and melodic style on ballads, blues and swing tunes was highly influential, making him the top altoist (along with Benny Carter) before the rise of Charlie Parker. Hodges led quite a few sessions of his own along the way,. During 1951-55 broke away from Ellington to lead his own combo, before returning for another 15 years.

While Mosaic previously released Hodges' solo recordings of the 1950s on two box sets, those are long out of print. Fresh Sound has come out with four reissues dating from that era. Not So Dukish (FSRCD 574) from 1958 is also a two-CD set and is a high-quality grab-bag. The first CD (taken from Blues A Plenty and Side By Side) has Hodges playing in an all-star septet with trumpeter Roy Eldridge, trombonist Lawrence Brown and tenor-saxophonist Ben Webster; plenty of fireworks take place. The second disc has eight songs from a similar group (with both Eldridge and Ray Nance on trumpets) plus 11 numbers from 1952-54 that team together Hodges and Webster."

Scott Yanow -Los Angeles Jazz Scene (May, 2010)