Whoever compiled this slipcase of five Reprise albums decided to concentrate on the downmarket side of Ellington in the first half of the 1960s. If intending to highlight the creative aspects of his output at the time, they could have included Afro-Bossa, The Symphonic Ellington, Concert In The Virgin Islands or even the Great Paris Concert, all recorded under the same Reprise contract. Instead, four of the five here are the notorious Mary Poppins adaptation, the Ellington ’65 and ’66 sets covering current pops (‘Stranger On The Shore’, ‘All My Lovin’’ etc) and Will Big Bands Ever Come Back?, which paid tribute to fellow leaders from Stan Kenton and Paul Whiteman to Fred Waring.

This last has some imaginative moments, such as the Strayhorn-arranged takes on ‘Artistry In Rhythm’ and Benny Goodman's ‘Goodbye’ or the Ray Nance interpretation of Armstrong's ‘When It's Sleepy Time’. But, despite minority reports by the late Eddie Lambert and my colleague Frank Griffith, it's hard to disagree with the common verdict that there's not much happening in the remaining big-band items. The slim pickings are almost entirely down to the soloists, Gonsalves on ‘Days Of Wine And Roses’ or ‘Chim Chim Cheree’ (a useful contrast with Coltrane's version) or Hodges, and not in the unambitious charts that might just pass muster at a dance engagement.

One of the only things earning a third star, and a most welcome contrast, is the Paris-recorded small-group session featuring Grappelli and the undervalued Asmussen alongside Duke's regular “string section”, Ray Nance. It's also the only place where Ellington's piano is consistently important to the outcome, whether accompanying Grappelli on In A Sentimental Mood (another Coltrane comparison) or pushing the ensemble on ‘Cotton Tail’. The virtues of simplicity and swing, displayed throughout the box, make rather more musical impact here.