Best Of Eddie Harris, The

Part of a massive Atlantic Jazz Anthology series in 1970, this LP-turned-CD was skimpy in its day, and now serves as the sketchiest of introductions to this bewilderingly eclectic saxophonist/inventor/pianist/bopper/balladeer/funkmeister. Even assuming the limited time frame, why were three of Eddie Harris' seven Atlantic albums up to that point (Mean Greens, The Tender Storm, Silver Cycles) not even represented, and where is that galvanic swinger "Sham Time"? That said, there is still an awful lot of great '60s jazz on this Best of Eddie Harris anyway: the funky-funky hit version of "Listen Here," two of its soulful successors, "Live Right Now" and "Movin' on Out"; the enduring pretzel-like "Freedom Jazz Dance"; a nice cover of "The Shadow of Your Smile"; and the lush, perhaps even tongue-in-cheek "Theme in Search of a Movie." Buy this only if you cannot afford the far-more-comprehensive two-CD box, Artist's Choice. ~ Richard S. Ginell