The Crusaders - Gold

For listeners willing to overlook the fact that this Crusaders retrospective begins the story in 1970 -- nine years after the combo began recording excellent hard bop and soul-jazz -- the two-disc set Gold is just as good and nearly as thorough as the 1996 four-disc box Way Back Home. (Since the running time is only 17 seconds shy of 160 minutes, it's truly jam-packed.) Focusing on the '70s allows the set to dwell considerably on each record the group released during the decade that produced its most popular (although not most rewarding) music. Read More