Buddy Rich - Strike It Rich - Deluxe Edition - 4CD (2008)

Center stage drummer Buddy Rich was given a rousing posthumous salute with the premiere release in the Limited Edition Proper Deluxe Series, a promising if pointedly finite project that was inaugurated in 2008. Rather than slim-lining, the producers of the Proper reissue label more or less opted for a return to their earlier hefty four-CD jewel box packaging while boasting of the inclusion of a booklet containing extra photos and documentation. Compositions credited to Rich include subtleties like "Poontang," "The Monster," and "Me and My Jaguar." Extroverted, domineering, and outspoken, Buddy Rich was a flashy technician whose best recordings were made with individuals and ensembles that were willing and able to surrender the spotlight (and some measure of artistic autonomy) to the consuming demands of this highly charged and profoundly skilled percussionist. Not to be confused with his similarly titled Verve LP or the 1972 RCA Victor album Stick It, this avalanche of exciting performances features Rich as the principal propulsive component of Joe Marsala's Chicagoans, the Roy Eldridge Quintet, and orchestras led by Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw, Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, and Buddy Rich. He is heard in extended jamming mode with Jazz at the Philharmonic all-star groups and in other settings that lent themselves to his relentlessly intense and at times explosive pyrotechnics. In keeping with the overall technique and emotional chemistry of Buddy Rich, Proper pulled out all the stops for this outstanding and consistently entertaining compilation.~Strike It, Rich! Review by arwulf arwulf