about the author

Ted Nash probably is the most in-demand studio recording saxophonist throughout the world today. A consummate professional, he came up through the entire Big Band era, playing with no less than 35 different bands and culminating with the Les Brown orchestra. On record sessions, he has played for the best of leaders, composers and arrangers: Henry Mancini, Nelson Riddle, Billy May, John Williams, Lalo Schifrin , Elmer Bernstein, David Rose and Earl Hagen.

Nash was one of the first saxophonists to work out a practical system for playing high harmonics above the normal range of the instrument, and has published a book to help other sax players accomplish this feat.

Ted Nash today can be heard on numerous television productions (including Kojak, I Spy, Sonny & Cher, Carol Burnett, Merv Griffin) and the Academy Awards presentions. Ted has recorded for Columbia Records with his own orchestra, as well as on Liberty Records with his brother Dick.

Foreword

The players represented in the World's Greatest Jazz So/Os songbook comprise some of the greatest artists the United States has produced in the 2ath Century. The contributions of, for example, Charlie Parker or John Coltrane, are invaluable, and the jazz musicians have created an American tradition in the arts on par with, say, film director Orson Welles and composer Charles Ives. Unfortunately, though, jazz music has never received the recognition and support it deserves, and this is especially sad in light of the fact that jazz may be the only exclusive art form the U.S. has given birth to in the last two hundred years.

Greatest Solos pays homage to these artists, and the evidence for their importance lies in th~ charts. For the musician who is approaching these styles for the first time, it won't be hard to discern the individual personalities in each arrangement. It is instructive to trace the growth of this music, from a Coleman Hawkins who first defined the saxophone as a solo instrument; to Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie who established a completely new vocabulary for the jazz in the post-War "bop" revolution; to John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins who forecast the maturity that jazz was developing; to Miles Davis and Charlie Mingus who drew on a spectrum of elements and fused them to jazz to create new, exciting hybrid forms that define contemporary music.

Musicians will note the difficulty scale that has been set up for their convenience. The ratings run from 1 for the easiest to 4 for the most difficult. These rankings are subjective, but they are helpful for the less advanced players and will keep them from tackling Coltrane's "Giant Steps" before spending some time with Gene Ammons' "Miss Lucy."

The arrangements serve as an introduction to the variety of tunes here, but in all cases it would be wise to search out the original recordings and listen for the nuances and embellishments that are impossible to commit to paper. Jazz music has always depended to a great extent on spontaneous inspiration, and it is necessary to hear this music played by these masters to appreciate artistic intuition at its peak.

Beyond these introductory remarks the music speaks for itself, and the range of material here is as enjoyable as it is educational and important. This compilation only scratches the proverbial surface of the talents of these musicians; and this writer is already looking forward to the World's Greatest Jazz Solos songbook sequel.