For those unaware, Craft Recordings proudly celebrates the legacy of Savoy Records with an all-new collection that chronicles the groundbreaking era of bebop (or bop) music.

An essential introduction to this vital period in jazz music, The Birth of Bop: The Savoy 10-Inch LP Collection features 30 choice cuts from many of the genre’s pioneers, including Charlie Parker, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Milt Jackson, Allen Eager, Fats Navarro and more.

Spanning 1944 to 1949, these landmark recordings were instrumental in the development of modern jazz and found young artists exploring the boundaries of the genre at a time when swing music was the dominant sound and big bands ruled the airwaves.

Disc One:
The Birth Of Bop, Volume 1
1. Charlie Parker: Romance Without Finance (3:04)
2. Dexter Gordon: Dexter’s Minor Mad (2:42)
3. J. J. Johnson: Jay Bird (2:59)
4. Milt Jackson: Hearing Bells (2:53)
5. Leo Parker: Chase ’N’ Lion (Chase’n The Lion) (2:48)
6. Stan Getz: Stan’s Mood (2:42)

The Birth Of Bop, Volume 2
7. Fats Navarro: Hollerin’ And Screamin’ (Fatso) (2:40)
8. Allen Eager: Church Mouse (2:46)
9. Kai Winding: Always (3:24)
10. Don Byas: Byas A Drink (2:45)
11. J. J. Johnson: Jay Jay (3:06)
12. Dexter Gordon: Long Tall Dexter (3:01)

The Birth Of Bop, Volume 3
13. Budd Johnson: Little Benny (King Kong) (2:38)
14. J. J. Johnson: Mad Be Bop (2:41)
15. Milt Jackson: Bubu (2:34)

This lovingly-curated, soulfully heartfelt, and righteously-sculptured new collection opens its first volume on the magnificently dulcet swing of Charlie Parker’s Romance Without Finance and the low slung swing of Dexter Gordon’s Dexter’s Minor Mad and they are followed by J. J. Johnson’s soaring Jay Bird, Milt Jackson’s veritably shimmering Hearing Bells, and then the deeply-noted Chase ’N’ Lion (Chase’n The Lion) from Leo Parker, and the languishing beauty within Stan Getz’s Stan’s Mood.

The second volume opens on the upbeat and fervent Hollerin’ And Screamin’ (Fatso) from Fats Navarro and Allen Eager’s equally joyous Church Mouse, which are in turn followed by the rhythmically deep-seated Always from Kai Winding, the perky and playful Byas A Drink by Don Byas: Byas A Drink, and then we get J. J. Johnson’s impassioned Jay Jay and Dexter Gordon’s melodically-free wheeling Long Tall Dexter.

This first disc then rounds out on a section of the third volume, and Budd Johnson’s furiously-rhythmic turn on Little Benny (King Kong), J. J. Johnson’s finger-snapping Mad Be Bop and then the softly Latin-hued Bubu from Milt Jackson.

Disc Two:
The Birth Of Bop, Volume 3 (Continued)
1. Leo Parker: Solitude (2:53)
2. Stan Getz: Don’t Worry ’Bout Me (2:38)
3. Fats Navarro: Maternity (Lard Pot) (3:01)

The Birth Of Bop, Volume 4
4. Allen Eager: Donald Jay (2:31)
5. Kai Winding: Saxon (2:45)
6. Budd Johnson: Dee Dee’s Dance (2:57)
7. J. J. Johnson: Coppin’ The Bop (2:59)
8. Milt Jackson: Junior (2:34)
9. Dexter Gordon: Dexter Digs In (2:57)

The Birth Of Bop, Volume 5
10. Allen Eager: Unmeditated (3:08)
11. Leo Parker: The Lion’s Roar (Lion Roars) (2:59)
12. Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis: Stealin’ Trash (2:47)
13. Roy Porter: Pete’s Beat (2:36)
14. Serge Chaloff: Pumpernickel (2:31)
15. Morris Lane: Blowin’ For Kicks (2:31)

The second disc continues the fine musical wares of the third collection with the yearning ache found within Leo Parker’s aptly-named Solitude, but then the mood is turned on its heard with the spirited Stan Getz cut Don’t Worry ’Bout Me and the ardent foot-tapper Maternity (Lard Pot) by Fats Navarro.

The fourth volume opens on the jubilantly merry Donald Jay from Allen Eager and the emphatic stance within Kai Winding’s Saxon and they are backed by the frenetically-charged, yet at all times controlled trumpet mastery shown within Budd Johnson’s Dee Dee’s Dance, the delightful dancefloor swing of J. J. Johnson’s Coppin’ The Bop, and then come the stirring Milt Jackson cut Junior and the heated Dexter Gordon track Dexter Digs In.

The second disc rounds out on the fifth selection, and in particular the full blown swing jazz of Allen Eager’s Unmeditated and the chirpy Leo Parker cut The Lion’s Roar (Lion Roars), then we get the uproarious Stealin’ Trash from Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, the entire box-set coming to a close on the cinematically-charged Pete’s Beat from Roy Porter, the actively buzzing Serge Chaloff’s Pumpernickel, and finally, and after a laid back balladry opening, a most fervently ecstatic Blowin’ For Kicks from Morris Lane.

As the decade turned and swing began to fall out of style, bebop would continue to develop, attracting younger artists along the way and ultimately giving way to further sonic exploration in the ’60s. Setting these changes in motion, however, were the revolutionary artists featured in The Birth of Bop.

While many of their names endure in the canons of musical history, the impact of Savoy Records (and its fearless ambassador, Teddy Reig) cannot be understated. As GRAMMY®-winning writer and broadcaster Neil Tesser says in his extensive liner notes, “Looking through the personnel that fill the discs on The Birth of Bop, and seeing how many of them belong on the short list of those who brought bop into the world, it truly reveals the vitality and prescience of the Savoy artists roster.”

Available to order below, The Birth of Bop is available in several formats, including a vinyl box set, featuring five 10-inch LPs, a 2-CD format and digital editions. Each track in the collection has been freshly restored and remastered by Joe Tarantino at Joe Tarantino Mastering, while physical formats include new in-depth liner notes by the aforementioned GRAMMY®-winning writer and broadcaster Neil Tesser, plus vintage photos from the era.

Official Purchase Links