For me, Dave Brubeck, with all of his various groupings, is one of the real jazz greats. His sound just resonates with me in ways that some jazz artists don’t. He is in my short list of my favorite jazz musicians. This three-CD set collects nearly all the live recordings of Brubeck from 1952 to 1954. I’m not sure why they didn’t include all of them, but even so, this selection from five live albums is great. I enjoy every moment of it, even though some tracks stand taller than others.

Based on the melody you would expect, this piano solo moves in jazz directions and paints some particularly cool sonic pictures. While I said it was a piano solo, and the bulk of it is, some horn comes in later.

A mellow and smooth moving jazz arrangement is on the menu here. While everything about this arrangement works well, the piano really sells it. There are some pretty and rather melancholy moments built into this.

Bouncy and more energized, this little tune is a lot of fun. There is some killer piano jamming built into this thing.

In some ways this isn’t a big change. It has some great grooves and really dances and vibes, though.

The saxophone on this track really brings so much magic and charm to the proceedings. The number is a great piece of jazz that’s among the highlights of the set for me.

There are some intriguing shifts and changes in place here. This is a cool tune with some contrasts and a lot of classy instrumental work.

This is solid, but not really a standout. It’s just the kind of jazz one expects here.

Now this track really elevates things. I love the bass on it, but everything about this arrangement just works so well. It’s another standout of the set. It has a lot of passion and a killer groove built into it.

Energized and really grooving, this cut is another standout. I really love the jamming on this thing so much.

I’ve always loved this song. Of course, the film by the same title brought some different feelings to it. This jazz exploration wanders pretty far from the main melodies. It’s a classy tune that works really well. The frantic piano jamming later is so cool.

A mellower and pretty melodic number, this is classy. It’s another solid number.

This is a fast-paced piano solo.

While not entirely a piano solo, that instrument is the primary focus here.

I really love the energy and groove of this track. It gets pretty driving before it’s done. The drums are on fire here, but so is the piano work. The recording on this isn’t as good as some of the rest, though, feeling a little muddy and distorted at times.

This groove is another classy one. It also features a drum showcase later. They really seems to get into this thing and really pour everything into it. It’s not that the other tunes were lacking passion at all. It’s just that everything seems to get even more intense here.

Another with a lot of focus on the piano work, this track has some great grooves and melodies. It’s also energetic and classy.

I really love everything about this track. It’s not any kind of paradigm shift, but it’s just an effective and captivating live jazz number.

A slower, mellower arrangement gets things underway here. The track explores with a lot of style and charm.

This jazz classic gets a scorching hot live telling with lots of great soloing built into it.

A mellower excursion, this is another effective piece of music.

Horn features prominently on this number. Later on the focus shifts to piano for a while. This cut has an almost freeform vibe a lot of the time, getting into some pretty weird, yet tasty, territory.

This has some smoking hot jamming built into it. It’s energized and grooving, and the crowd is responding. This is another standout tune on the set.

Piano gets us underway here. The track evolves from there to a killer jazz jam that has some playful vibes built into it.

Some great piano and horn work is on display here. The melodies are strong and the whole groove works really well.

I love everything about this tune, but I especially love the piano work on it. The whole tune just grooves with so much style and charm.

Another high energy jazz romp, this features exceptional instrumental work from all the musicians.

The energy and groove here is positively on fire. We have some killer instrumental interplay.

The bass driving this is great. Then again, that same description works for both the piano and horn work. Or maybe I should use the word “marvellous.” The piano does get pretty crazed at times.

There is a real magical sense and vibe to this track. There are some exceptionally cool melodies and passages here.

This jam is so intense. It features a driving, up-tempo arrangement. It also has some of the best instrumental work of the whole box set. This is definitely a stand out that reaches some soaring heights.

I’ve always been a big fan of this piece. While this might not be the quintessential version of the track, it’s so strong. If you’ve only heard one Dave Brubeck song, this is probably it. So, it’s very appropriate that we get a version here. This is a great groove that has plenty of magic packed into it.

Another great jazz groove, I like this one a lot. The bass is exceptional, but so is everything else here.

A slower, rather bluesy jam is on the menu here. This has a great groove and a lot of style.

We don’t get a big change here. Instead we get another effective piece of music. There is some great jamming on the tune, but what else do you expect, really?