Bobby was just 23 when the first of these recordings were made and was still leading his own band (which he'd been doing since he was 16). These 52 tracks comprise all his As and Bs for Bobby,... more

This Jay McShann/Duke Ellington vocalist forged a solo career as the '50s arrived, and that's what's covered here: 75 tracks including most of his A- and B-sides for Aladdin, Sunrise/Miracle, Chess,... more

Before she scored a streak of pop hits on both sides of the Atlantic during the second half of the '50s, Jane Morgan studied at Juilliard and trained to be an opera singer before supporting herself... more

It's a cold, hard fact that some groups are crucial to their genre but aren't a big part of its chart history. Such was true for the Harptones, one of the greatest doo-wop groups but the owners of... more

The calypso king rode to fame on that wave that he started, but it quickly became clear that Belafonte could positively own a blues classic, jazz standard, folk tune, gospel song…anything he took on.... more

This brilliant piano virtuoso made his first records for RCA in his native Canada, then got the attention of Norman Granz and started recording for Clef/Mercury in NY. That's the breakthrough period... more

That price should have you singing with glee, as one of the all-time great crooners gets an anthology that's as comprehensive as he was prolific. These 126 tracks include every 1943–62 Perry Como hit... more

Erroll Garner was one of the most distinctive jazz piano stylists of the post-war era, his approach transcending the emerging sub-genres of modern jazz, although his music was rooted in swing and he... more

Leo Reisman was a violinist and bandleader whose orchestra initially came to popularity in the 1920s as a society orchestra performing at New York's Central Park Casino, becoming one of the first... more

Guitarist, singer and songwriter Lightnin' Slim (real name Otis Hicks) was born in Louisiana in 1913 and was a pioneer and first prominent exponent of the "Swamp Blues" style, coming relatively late... more

Tex Williams was one of the leading figures in the distinctive sub-genre of country known as Western Swing, beginning his career as the vocalist in the highly successful band of Spade Cooley during... more

This cherished jazz/big-band singer was active into the '80s, but these 3 CDs zero in on her '30s/'40s early prime. You'll hear 75 career-making performances with Claude Thornhill, Charlie Shavers,... more

James Darren was an actor who got his first movie contract with Columbia when he was twenty years old in 1956, appearing in several films and TV series until making his first record in 1958, and... more

These live '55 performances were later released by Blue Note, and this new 2-CD set adds three studio tracks that this lineup recorded at their first session together in November 1954 (those were... more

This continues the strand of R&B and country collections associated with Acrobat's highly popular "America's Greatest Hits" series, this one focusing on the top R&B records in the US Billboard charts... more

Along with Bessie Smith, Gertrude "Ma" Rainey has come to be recognised as one of the towering figures of early blues, pioneering the recording of blues by female artists during the earliest years of... more

The Chordettes were one of the female vocal groups who epitomised the style and atmosphere of early '50s popular music but who continued to have pop hits through into the rock 'n' roll era following... more

Country singer and guitarist Stonewall Jackson has enjoyed a career spanning six decades since making a huge impact in 1958 with his No. 1 country single "Waterloo", and was still performing at the... more

He might have been a honky-tonker, but this country singer from Tennessee could croon like a Como or Crosby. George burst out of the box in '49, collecting eight hits in the first year of his career.... more

Did you know that this teen idol and beach-movie icon started out as a very talented trumpeter? Here are those early recordings plus all of Frankie's '50s and '60s hits (you'll hear how surprisingly... more

"The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement" is usually filed under folk, but Odetta could tingle the spine with gospel and jazz, too. This is an amazing value for 122 tracks from her prime: her nine LPs... more

Despite the fact that his career was so tragically curtailed when he died in the fateful plane crash on 3rd February 1959, in which The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens also perished, Buddy Holly... more

From the most exquisite ballads to the most effervescent novelties, Teresa Brewer could sing 'em all. Here are 57 of her best A- and B-sides including the biggest, most enduring hits (and what a... more

Jo Stafford was one of the most popular and successful female vocalists of the post-war era, epitomising the style and mood which nostalgia buffs often refer to as "the golden age of popular music"... more

Bobby Vee was a prolific hitmaker during the immediate post rock 'n' roll era, bridging the gap between rock 'n' roll and teen pop, with a distinctive style that brought him success on both sides of... more