For those unaware, this simply incredible four CD set brings together eight albums by legendary jazz saxophonist John Handy III, recorded primarily during his acclaimed 1960’s peak.

Showcasing some of his finest compositions and performances, it serves as both an ideal introduction to Handy’s remarkable artistry and an essential collection for long-time admirers already versed in the great man’s work.

Jazz musician John Richard Handy III was born on February 3rd, 1933 in Dallas, Texas to Pauline Elizabeth Conner and John Richard Handy II. He graduated from McClymonds High School in Oakland, California in 1951. He went on to earn his B.A. degree in music from San Francisco State University in 1958.

In 1953, Handy served in the U.S. Armed Forces during the Korean War and was stationed at the Presidio of San Francisco. Handy signed to Roulette Records, based in New York City, and released his first album, In the Vernacular in 1958, where he played the alto saxophone. His second album, No Coast Jazz, was released in 1960 followed by Jazz in 1962.

Handy signed to Columbia Records and his album, Recorded Live at the Monterey Jazz Festival, which featured the songs If Only We Knew and Spanish Lady, was released in 1966. Handy recorded three more albums with Columbia between 1966 and 1968. Then, in 1975, Handy and Indian classical musician, Ali Akbar Khan, recorded their album Karuna Supreme.

The following year, Handy recorded and released the album Hard Work with Impulse! Records; its title track became one of his most popular songs. Handy released two albums with Warner Records Inc. in 1978: Where Go the Boats and Handy Dandy Man. His album Centerpiece, with female vocalist and violinist group CLASS, was released in 1989, and he led the group for over twenty-three years.

Handy performed at various jazz clubs including the Five Spot Café in New York, Bop City in San Francisco, and Yoshi’s in Oakland, California. In 1996, his live album Live at Yoshi’s Nightspot was released by Boulevard Records.

Handy also worked with jazz musician Charles Mingus between 1959 and 1964. He played the alto saxophone on Mingus’s albums Jazz Portraits: Mingus in Wonderland, Mingus Ah Um, Mingus Dynasty, Blues & Roots, and Right Now: Live at the Jazz Workshop. In 1968, Handy joined the faculty of San Francisco State University, and he taught music history. He also held faculty positions with UC Berkeley, Stanford, and City College of San Francisco.

Throughout his career, Handy received numerous awards and honors including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the San Jose Jazz Society in 1995 and a Bill Graham Lifetime Achievement Award from Bay Area Music (BAM) in 1997. He was an artist in residence in the Jazz Studies Program at San Francisco State University in 1998, 1999, and 2002.

He was also honored by then-Mayor Willie Brown with a declaration of August 28th, 1999 as John Handy Day in San Francisco. Handy was nominated for two Grammy Awards, in 1966, for his album Recorded Live at the Monterey Jazz Festival.

As a performer and composer he continues to sweep audiences into ecstasy with his vast range of creative, emotional, and technical inventiveness. With a superb knowledge and practical experience with music of several cultures, he fuses, with each selection, a musical genre that is coherent, provocative, logical, and enjoyable.

As a singer, he brings a kind of storytelling narrative to the blues that is entertaining, educational, and moving; while his up tempo scat vocals could be compared to the best scat singers anywhere. He sings ballads with inventiveness that is rare among singers.

Disc 1:
I’ll Close My Eyes; First Time; Suggested Line; Problem Too; Quote, Unquote; Blues In The Vernacular; Dance To The Lady; I’ll Never Smile Again; To Randy; Tales Of Paradise; Boo’s Ups And Downs; Hi Number; Pretty Side Avenue; No Coast

Disc 2:
From Bird; Blues For M.F.; East Of The Sun (West Of The Moon); No Smiles Please; Strugglin’; Afternoon Outing; Naima (In Memory Of John Coltrane); A Little Quiet; Tears Of Ole Miss (Anatomy Of A Riot)

Disc 3:
Dancy Dancy; Theme X; Blues For A Highstrung Guitar; Dance For Carlo B; Scheme #1; If Only We Knew; Spanish Lady

Disc 4:
Three In One; Projections; A Song Of Uranus; Senora Nancye; Dance To The Lady; Sanpaku; Eros; All The Way To The West, By God, Virginia; Rainbow (Part I); Rainbow (Part II); Rainbow (Part III); Rainbow (Part IV)

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