Verve Records: The Sound of America

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Various Artists

Verve Records: The Sound of America

Verve

UMG-1000245721

4LP Black

$107

SHIPS BY 2026-08-21

4LP Box Set including vocal tracks, jam sessions, poetry, and stand up comedy
Includes booklet and printed inner sleeves
Celebrates the fascinating spectrum of recordings made during the Norman Granz era of Verve Records

Description

As an independent record producer going back to the early 1940s, Norman Granz started building a personal network of record companies, disc by disc, artist by artist, innovation by innovation that grew into a tsunami by the time he sold Verve Records at the end of 1960. It remains a feat unmatched to this day.

This 4-LP box set celebrates the fascinating spectrum of recordings made during the Norman Granz era of Verve Records. It includes vocal tracks by Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday; Charlie Parker with strings; a raucous live jam session; Beatnik poetry by Jack Kerouac and stand-up comedy.

Preview Tracklist

1 Jazz at the Philharmonic — Blues
2 Coleman Hawkins — Picasso
3 Oscar Peterson — Tenderly
4 Bud Powell — Like Someone in Love
5 Count Basie and His Orchestra — New Basie Blues
6 Johnny Hodges — Castle Rock
7 Andre’s All Stars — Con Poco Coco
8 Lionel Hampton and Stan Getz — Louise
9 Lester Young and Teddy Wilson — Taking a Chance on Love
10 JATP Quintet — Easy Living
11 Benny Carter — Flamingo
12 Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong — You Won’t Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)
13 Art Tatum — I’ll Never Be the Same
14 Roy Eldridge — Dale’s Wail
15 Dizzy Gillespie and Sonny Rollins and Sonny Stitt — On the Sunny Side of the Street
16 Lionel Hampton — That Old Black Magic Part 1
17 The Modern Jazz Quartet — D & E Blues
18 Charlie Parker — Laura 3:00
19 Jam Session #1 — Ballad Medley: All the Things You Are/Dearly Beloved/The Nearness of You/I’ll Get By/Everything Happens to Me/The Man I Love/What’s New?/Someone to Watch Over Me/Isn’t It Romantic
20 Jack Kerouac — The Subterraneans
21 Mort Sahl — The Future Lies Ahead — excerpt
22 Jonathan Winters — Football Game
23 Shelley Berman — Department Store
24 Count Basie and Joe Williams — Thou Swell
25 Spike Jones and His City Slickers — Cocktails for Two
26 Rose Murphy — You Were Meant for Me
27 Buddy Rich — Can’t We Be Friends?
28 Woody Herman — I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plan
29 Margaret Whiting — Why Was I Born?
30 Mel Tormé — On the Street Where You Live
31 Anita O’Day — Lullaby of the Leaves
32 Bing Crosby and Buddy Bregman — Blue Room
33 Billie Holiday — I Thought About You
34 Ella Fitzgerald — Chelsea Bridge — rehearsal
35 Fred Astaire — No Strings (I’m Fancy Free)

Various Artists

Verve Records: The Sound of America

Preview Tracklist

1 Jazz at the Philharmonic — Blues

2 Coleman Hawkins — Picasso

3 Oscar Peterson — Tenderly

4 Bud Powell — Like Someone in Love

5 Count Basie and His Orchestra — New Basie Blues

6 Johnny Hodges — Castle Rock

7 Andre’s All Stars — Con Poco Coco

8 Lionel Hampton and Stan Getz — Louise

9 Lester Young and Teddy Wilson — Taking a Chance on Love

10 JATP Quintet — Easy Living

11 Benny Carter — Flamingo

12 Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong — You Won’t Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)

13 Art Tatum — I’ll Never Be the Same

14 Roy Eldridge — Dale’s Wail

15 Dizzy Gillespie and Sonny Rollins and Sonny Stitt — On the Sunny Side of the Street

16 Lionel Hampton — That Old Black Magic Part 1

17 The Modern Jazz Quartet — D & E Blues

18 Charlie Parker — Laura 3:00

19 Jam Session #1 — Ballad Medley: All the Things You Are/Dearly Beloved/The Nearness of You/I’ll Get By/Everything Happens to Me/The Man I Love/What’s New?/Someone to Watch Over Me/Isn’t It Romantic

20 Jack Kerouac — The Subterraneans

21 Mort Sahl — The Future Lies Ahead — excerpt

22 Jonathan Winters — Football Game

23 Shelley Berman — Department Store

24 Count Basie and Joe Williams — Thou Swell

25 Spike Jones and His City Slickers — Cocktails for Two

26 Rose Murphy — You Were Meant for Me

27 Buddy Rich — Can’t We Be Friends?

28 Woody Herman — I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plan

29 Margaret Whiting — Why Was I Born?

30 Mel Tormé — On the Street Where You Live

31 Anita O’Day — Lullaby of the Leaves

32 Bing Crosby and Buddy Bregman — Blue Room

33 Billie Holiday — I Thought About You

34 Ella Fitzgerald — Chelsea Bridge — rehearsal

35 Fred Astaire — No Strings (I’m Fancy Free)