PRE-MODERN JAZZ - school me?

This Lionel Hampton set kinda serves as a survey of small group swing in the late '30s--it is Hampton as featured player (on vibes, drums, vocals or piano) with over 20 different all star groups--

http://www.discogs.com/Lionel-Hampton-The-Complete-Lionel-Hampton-Victor-Sessions-1937-1941/release/2951249

And here's a great collection of small group non-commercial jazz from the '40s recorded for a tiny label--features a ton of major & minor players at their best, prime sound quality, and touches on the transition from swing to bop--

http://www.freshsoundrecords.com/the_keynote_jazz_collection_1941-1947_11-cd_box_set-cd-6062.html

I've found the Properbox releases are pretty much always well-selected overviews for swing & early bop (plus have the advantage of drawing from multiple labels) & often trump the more expensive major label releases of the same material.

Stars of The Apollo was a huge part of my education, re early and progressive jazz, also those novelty numbers, ranging from "I Want A Hot Dog For My Roll" tp the original "I Put A Spell On You," by Screamin' Jay Hawkins. Also "Reefer Man," by I forget who, but it's cheerful and absurdist. Also maybe a novelty hit in its time: the very plain-spoken, aggressive androgyny of "Gimme A Pigfoot (also a reefer, and a bottle o' beer) of Bessie Smith, who, come to think of it, sounds oike she might be an inspiration for Howlin' Wolf.
The relationship of swing to bop is v. inneresting, and check Parker's early work with Kansas City bandleaser Jay McShann; also, I'd say, Goodman-Charles-Christian-Krupa, live on the radio, competing with bop, sounds like; kind of a para-bop at times (r is that historical listening only?)
Still got a King Pleaure twofer, The Source, where he croons and wails words over re-recorded bop-associated material, sometimes with the original soloists, I think. His biggest hit was probably "Moody's Mood For Love," based on the excellent (and evern much later, sometimes asskicking) James Moody's version of "I'm In The Mood For Love." Also a wonderful re-set of Parker's "Kansas City" (not the r&b/rock hit), "Redtop" and others: he could be romantic, rough-edged, witty---some say he just ripped off Eddie Jefferson, but the Jefferson I've heard doesn't have nearly as much flair, as much old-time/anytime clever appeal.

And there's Ira Gitler's Swing To Bop, An Oral History of the Transition..., which led to me to a lot of good stuff.

King Pleasure could sing his own new words to melodic lines established, re-composed, you could say, by improvised, previously recorded solos, on shrewdly selected jazz sides, ones that already had a measure of crossover appeal, or potential. Lambert, Hendricks & Ross did it too, but they were modernistic, baby; KP had the old & new school appeal.

these sets were pretty revelatory for me
http://www.allenlowe.com//alpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/devilintune-comp.jpg
in some ways it sort of does away with the "great man" theory of jazz, instead highlighting regional scenes, weird movements, revivals etc. but also just a ton of great music.
http://www.allenlowe.com/for-sale/

One less heralded early jazz players I love is Don Byas. Check out how modern he sounds, but with a mellifluous tone and proximity to the melody that became more rarely heard after bop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsooysJ8KkU

There's a set of his expatriate recordings from Paris that is really marvelous.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ksqQjcxeL._SY355_.jpg

the Allen Lowe book that is the basis for those Devilin' Tune sets looks really interesting, I'm going to grab that from the library

Don't know if there's a better thread for this, but I've really been enjoying revisiting Erroll Garner lately:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMeMxhciMPk

I love that super-draggy phrasing and lush interior harmony over the very spare rhythm section, makes me want to make a film just to use it in the opening credits.

I just got a copy of The Complete Concert By the Sea. It is wonderful music. He plays with so much warmth.

I like Jimmy Lyons's introduction on the second disc: "If you enjoy being fractured, please be now fractured by Erroll Garner."