help me find quality classic jazz?

Bomarc I am sure you are right and I just do not know the artists well enough.

Hifive, I should have mentioned Charlie Byrd as he is one of my favorites and so is Stan Getz, Jazz Samba sounds like a winner! I will carefully consider your list as I think you have your finger on some nice choices.

come to think of it...
maybe I should have named this thread something like 'your favorite slow jazz choices' so more people would be interested in contributing (not that I am ungrateful, quite the contrary) it is just that it would then be about music and not me.

thanks to everyone, I look forward to some quality music, btw if you have not discovered deepdiscountcd.com do yourself a favor and save some money as they have good prices and do not charge shipping, though somewhat of a limited selection I have bought much there.

all the best

Phil

I ordered these CDs and will report back...

BYRD,CHARLIE: JAZZ N' SAMBA
BYRD,CHARLIE: MOMENTS LIKE THIS
ELLINGTON/COLTRANE: ELLINGTON & COLTRANE
AMMONS, GENE: BOSS TENOR
GORDON,DEXTER: BALLADS
WEBSTER,BEN: SOULMATES
WEBSTER,BEN: SOULVILLE

I love Charlie Byrd even though he does not especially fit into this thread..

BTW Bomarc I will look into Benny Goodman too. I recently bought a Time/Life sampler CD set (100 songs for $12 a pretty good collection too) and there was some swing and I agree it can be very nice.

Regiolanthe, a very thoughtful reply, I will look into 'Two of a Mind' as well.

all the best

Phil

Lester Young, Ben Webster, and Coleman Hawkins seem to be what you're looking for. All old, mellow, breathy and intimate. I'm actually listening as I type to a Lester Young recording with the Oscar Peterson Trio. Any one, actually all three, are well worth looking into. The sound quality of the recordings for Webster and Hawkins are quite good. If you can find re-issues for Young's, the sound is cleaned up considerably. Some of his older recordings are scratchy and as good as he is, tough for me to listen through. Have fun.

Miles Davis - "Kind of Blue" it maybe a little too new (early 60's I think) alto sax - Julian "Canonball" Adderley, tenor sax - John Coltrane with Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, James Cobb and Paul Chambers - GOOD STUFF! Before Miles got crazy with things like Witches Brew ;-)

I heartily recommend:
Kenny Burrell's "Soul Call"
(McCoy)"Tyner Plays Ellington"
Newborn/Haynes/Chambers "We Three"
Getz with Guest Artist Laurindo Almeida
"Idle Moments" by Grant Green or
"Scott Hamilton is a good wind who is blowing us no ill."
(*according to Leonard Feather)