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Jazz pianist and composer Wynton Charles Kelly, famed for his "crisp, leaping rhythmic blues" playing style, and expert sight reading abilities, was known too as being one of the finest accompanists in the business. Drummer Philly Joe Jones was one of many musicians to sing his praises, stating that Kelly "puts down flowers behind a soloist. He never wanted to steal in. He just put together the right things." Miles Davis called Kelly "the light for a cigarette. He lights the fire and he keeps it going," whilst Cannonball Adderley dubbed him "the world's greatest accompanist for a soloist." Kelly performed with a vast array of jazz greats over the years, including Charles Mingus, Benny Golson, Art Blakey and Lee Morgan, as well as repeated spells with the bands of Washington and Gillespie, and even playing bass on a track from vocalist Abbey Lincoln's That's Him!, after regular bassist Paul Chambers reportedly fell asleep in the studio following an extended drinking session. In January 1959, Kelly joined the band of Miles Davis, famously getting the gig after sitting in when previous pianist Red Garland was late for a club date. His work with Davis would eventually go on to be his best known, and included his exceptional performance on the song 'Freddy Freeloader' on Kind Of Blue, the best-selling jazz record of all time. This 4 CD collection, presented in digitally remastered format, contains undoubtedly the finest recordings of a criminally underrated musician. Tragically losing his life before he had the chance to develop himself as a solo force, he still single-handedly managed to change what it meant to be a sideman, expertly holding together the bands of every leader he worked with. This compilation, featuring almost five hours of music in total, is a fitting testament to one of the unsung heroes of jazz and will hopefully assist in keeping Wynton Kelly's name alive and to reach new generations of fans for years to come.

Track Listing