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Woody Herman is best known as the leader of several big bands, three of which were called "The Herds." This box set, The Thundering Herds 1945-1947, contains almost fifty of Herman's popular tunes, including his first hit, "Woodchopper's Ball."

James P. Johnson was sometimes called the "perfecter" of stride piano, the difficult piano form where the left hand "strides" up and down between bass notes and chords, while the right hand plays the melody. This album captures his agility with the technique.

Dexter Gordon, considered by some to be the first great bebop stylist on tenor saxophone, recorded most of the songs on Settin' the Pace when he was in his mid-twenties. Gordon was already a pro by this time, having played with Lionel Hampton's band and Nat "King" Cole while still a teenager.

Guitarist Jim Hall's career spanned five decades. A founding member of the Chico Hamilton Quintet (1955-1956), Hall later toured with Ella Fitzgerald and performed duos with Lee Konitz. In 1963, Hall joined with Bill Evans to record a classic piano/guitar duo session, Undercurrent.

After years of being ignored by critics, Thelonious Monk finally became a star in 1957 while playing in a quartet with John Coltrane. The same year, Monk recorded the jazz classic, Thelonious Himself. This innovative album contains a 21-minute version of his most recognizable song, "Round Midnight."

While working in Miles Davis' first classic quintet, Red Garland made several exemplary recordings as part of a trio. On A Garland of Red, Garland made his first appearance as a trio leader, revealing his own improvisational style.

Cubist Music is the new recording by Puerto Rican pianist Edsel Gomez. It's on the Zoho label.

The jazz trio headed by Sam Rivers has a new CD out, Violet Violets (Stunt label). Rivers' horn work is complemented by bassist Ben Street and Danish drummer Kresten Osgood.

The new CD from the Mary Lou Williams Collective is Zodiac Suite: Revisited. The trio, created by pianist Geri Allen, plays the tunes of Mary Lou Williams.

Last week, legendary jazz keyboardist Chick Corea released a new album titled The Ultimate Adventure. It features a blend of Corea's signature style from the 1970s with some modern twists. The album was inspired in part by the writings of Scientologist L. Ron Hubbard.