Jimmy Smith was one of the first musicians to use the Hammond organ in jazz and popular music, taking it up in 1951 and establishing a formidable reputation in Philadelphia, before coming to prominence with his 1956 appearances at New York's Café Bohemia, followed by dates and Birdland and the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival, cementing his place as the pioneer of the Hammond in jazz and R&B. After occasional recordings early in the 50s, he recorded regularly with his own trio from 1956, and this collection chronicles that first decade of his career as he effectively established a sub-genre within popular music, recording prolifically for Blue Note while touring regularly, becoming a favourite with club audiences, who enjoyed the crossover feel of his music, incorporating contemporary rhythm and blues styles with sophisticated bop influences, as he used the organ to create a group sound in what became a familiar trio line-up with guitar and drums. This great value 4-CD set includes tracks from most of his significant sessions and albums along with some live recordings, and it provides an excellent overview of both the best-known and perhaps less familiar work from the formative decade of a career that lasted half a century, and is a great introduction to one of the influential and innovative figures in jazz and R&B in the post-war era.

CD1
1    Sonotone Bounce    (Don Gardner Trio)
2    The High And The Mighty    
3    Joy    
4    Moonlight In Vermont    
5    The Champ    
6    Bayou    
7    My Funny Valentine    
8    Judo Mambo    
9    The Preacher    
10    Falling In Love With Love    
11    Summertime    
12    Yardbird Suite    

CD2
1    Plum Nellie    
2    All The Things You Are    
3    I Can't Get Started    
4    Round Midnight    
5    Soft Winds    
6    Blues After All    
7    Imagination    
8    After Hours    
9    Slightly Monkish    
10   Confirmation    

CD3
1    The Sermon    
2    It Could Happen To You    
3    Cool Blues    
4    Motoring Along    
5    Since I Fell For You    
6    The Swingin' Shepherd Blues    
7    See See Rider    
8    Gracie    
9    A Night In Tunisia    
10   What's New    

CD4
1    Sister Rebecca    
2    Back At The Chicken Shack    
3    Midnight Special    
4    Jumpin' The Blues    
5    Lonesome Road    
6    Honeysuckle Rose    
7    Walk On The Wild Side    
8    Step Right Up    
9    Ol' Man River    
10   Bashin'