The Moon Is Blue

Herman's bands were always characterized by their rhythmic drive and intensity and by the enthusiasm of the players. In Herman's autobiography, jazz critic Gene Lees is quoted as saying that "Woody had an astonishing capacity to spot talent before it was particularly obvious to anybody else... The list of careers that he either made or advanced is staggering." Herman's personnel lineup over the years reads like an index to jazz, including such notables as sax players Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, and Flip Phillips; trumpeters Shorty Rogers, Pete and Conte Candoli, and Sonny Berman; trombonists Bill Watrous, Jim Pugh, and Bill Harris; pianists Ralph Burns and Jimmy Rowles and the quality of the artists on this CD is very representative of his approach to picking top flight musicians. Woody Herman died of congestive heart failure, emphysema, and pneumonia, on October the 29th 1987, in Los Angeles, CA.