Top Picks
Teddy Edwards Quartet:Teddy’s Ready, OJC/Contemporary. Joe Castro, piano; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Billy Higgins, drums
Teddy Edwards-Howard McGhee Quintet: Together Again!, OJC/Contemporary. Phineas Newborn, Jr., piano; Ray Brown, bass; Ed Thigpen, drums
Hampton Hawes All-Stars: Live at Memory Lane, Fresh Sound. Sonny Criss, alto sax; Harry “Sweets” Edison, trumpet; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Bobby Thompson, drums; Big Joe Turner, vocals
Richard “Groove” Holmes Quintet: Get Up and Get It!, OJC/Prestige. Pat Martino, guitar; Paul Chambers, bass; Billy Higgins, drums (on 6 tracks of 11-track CD)
Milt Jackson Quintet featuring Ray Brown
Just the Way It Had to Be, Impulse LP. Monty Alexander, piano; Ray Brown, bass; Dick Berk, drums (Though comparable to That’s the Way It Is, recording may be difficult to obtain.)
That’s the Way It Is, Impulse CD. Monty Alexander, piano; Ray Brown, bass; Dick Berk, drums (Reconfigured for CD, recording is more readily available than Just the Way It Had to Be.)
Superior
Teddy Edwards Quartet: Heart & Soul, OJC/Contemporary. Gerald Wiggins, organ; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Milt Turner, drums
Teddy Edwards Sextet: It’s All Right, OJC/Prestige. Jimmy Owens, trumpet, fluegelhorn; Garnett Brown, trombone; Cedar Walton, piano; Ben Tucker, bass; Lenny McBrowne, drums
Sonny Rollins Trio-Teddy Edwards Quartet: Sonny Rollins at Music Inn/Teddy Edwards at Falcon’s Lair, Metrojazz LP. Joe Castro, piano; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Billy Higgins, drums
Milt Jackson Quintet
At the Kosei Nenkin, OJC/Pablo. Cedar Walton, piano; Ray Brown, bass; Billy Higgins, drums
Centerpiece (also live at the Kosei Nenkin), OJC/Pablo. Cedar Walton, piano; Ray Brown, bass; Billy Higgins, drums
Jimmy Smith Sextet: Bluesmith, Verve. Ray Crawford, guitar; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Donald Dean, drums; Victor Pantoja, conga
Leroy Vinnegar Quintet-Sextet: Leroy Walks Again!, OJC/Contemporary. Freddy Hill, trumpet; Victor Feldman, vibes and piano; Ron Jefferson, drums, or Roy Ayers, vibes; Mike Melvoin, piano; Milt Turner, drums
Leroy Vinnegar Sextet: Leroy Walks!, OJC/Contemporary. Gerald Wilson, trumpet; Victor Feldman, vibes; Carl Perkins, piano; Tony Bazley, drums
Excellent
Teddy Edwards Quartet: Good Gravy, OJC/Contemporary. Phineas Newborn, Jr., or Danny Horton, piano; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Milt Turner, drums
Teddy Edwards Sextet: Feelin’s, Muse. Conte Candoli, trumpet; Dolo Coker, piano; Ray Brown, bass; Frank Butler, drums; Jerry Steinholz, percussion
Teddy Edwards-Les McCann Quartet: It’s About Time, Pacific Jazz. Les McCann, piano; Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Ron Jefferson, drums
Joe Castro Quartet: Groove Funk Soul, Atlantic or Collectables. Leroy Vinnegar, bass; Billy Higgins