By 1961, flutist Herbie Mann was really starting to catch on with the general public. This release, a follow-up to his hit At the Village Gate (two songs are from the same gig while three others actually date from seven months earlier), features Mann in an ideal group with either Hagood Hardy or Dave Pike on vibes, Ahmed Abdul-Malik or Nabil Totah on bass, drummer Rudy Collins and two percussionists. Mann really cooks on four of his own originals, plus "Bags' Groove," blending in the influence of African, Afro-Cuban and even Brazilian jazz.

What you see is what you get, an excellent little compilation of the various faces of soul-jazz as presented by the Verve label with their amazing array of artists from Hugh Masekela to Willie Bobo and Herbie Mann on the one hand, and Dizzy Gillespie, Jon Hendricks (in an outstanding reading of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man") the Heath Brothers, and Teddy Edwards on the other. The track list is wonderfully varied, too: there's a smoking version of Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island" by Masekela, a pair by Jimmy Smith, and a big band – a new entry by the acid jazz group the James Taylor Quartet, but they get it deep; and Wynton Kelly goes deep into soul and blues with "Escapade." Anyway you cut it, it comes out great.

Rather than play a watered-down version of bossa nova in New York studios (which was becoming quite common as the bossa nova fad hit its peak in 1962), flutist Herbie Mann went down to Brazil and recorded with some of the top players of the style. Guitarist Baden Powell and the group of then-unknown pianist Sergio Mendes, which included drummer Dom Um Romao, formed the nucleus for this generally delightful album. Antonio Carlos Jobim himself dropped by to sing two of his compositions, including "One Note Samba," and even on the token jazz standard "Blues Walk," the music is as much Brazilian as it is jazz.

In 1978, Herbie Mann came out with two very different LPs. The more improvisatory Brazil: Once Again fulfilled his need to record a serious Brazilian jazz-pop album, while Super Mann is a commercial disco effort that finds Patrick Adams doing most of the producing. The two LPs aren't anything alike – while the instrumental Brazil: Once Again makes extensive use of the flutist's jazz chops, Mann doesn't do any improvising on Super Mann. This album isn't about his virtuosity as a soloist – it's all about the beat and the groove. So naturally, Super Mann was trashed in the jazz press by critics who made the mistake of judging it by jazz standards and wouldn't have known a good disco record from a bad one. Judging Super Mann by disco standards, one hears an LP that is uneven and isn't in a class with Chic, Gloria Gaynor, Donna Summer, or Sister Sledge but has its moments. While "Jisco Dazz" and "Rock Freak" are mechanical, stiff, and forgettable, Mann gets into a nice samba/disco groove on "Etagui" and demands attention with a speeded-up version of the haunting "Body Oil" (which he had previously recorded for 1975's Waterbed).

During the 1960s and '70s, Herbie Mann continually searched for new playing contexts in which to place his flute. In December 1973, he traveled to London for five days of recording with a group of British rock musicians. The result was London Underground, an album tilted much more in a rock direction than the soul and R&B-drenched recordings he had been making for the previous five years. Highlights on this album include the Rolling Stones' "Bitch" (then-Stone Mick Taylor played guitar on this album), Thunderclap Newman's "Something in the Air," and "Paper Sun," from the Traffic canon. The real highlight, however, came about with the addition of Stephane Grappelli on the Donovan pop hit "Mellow Yellow."

Nice, more light than emphatic Afro-Latin and jazz mixture by flutist Herbie Mann and composer/vocalist Joao Gilberto from 1965. The two make an effective team, with Gilberto's sometimes sentimental, sometimes impressionistic works effectively supported by Mann's lithe flute solos.

It's a surprise this session is so obscure, since it features Herbie Mann with the Bill Evans Trio - making its first recordings following the sudden death of bassist Scott LaFaro just a short time after the trio's landmark gig at the Village Vanguard. Mann, who has changed his style numerous times throughout his long career, is heard exclusively in a straight-ahead and bop context on this pair of studio dates. Evans, who studied flute through his college years, rarely recorded with a flutist (Jeremy Steig joined him on a later record for Verve), though he was fond of the instrument; the capable Chuck Israels on bass and drummer Paul Motian round out the trio. The low-key "Willow Weep for Me" and impressionist composer Erik Satie's Gymnopedie bring out the lyricism of Mann's playing, though the trio's backing is very understated…

At the Village Gate is the album that first brought Herbie Mann to widespread popular attention, thanks to the inclusion of "Comin' Home Baby," which soon became one of the flautist's signature songs. By the time of the record's release in 1962, however, Mann had already been a bandleader for years, honing his pioneering blend of Afro-Cuban and Brazilian music with hard bop's funky structures just under the public radar. As a result, At the Village Gate sounds more like a summation than a beginning. The nearly 40-minute album is a mere three tracks long, with an epic 20-minute version of "It Ain't Necessarily So" taking up the entirety of the second side of the original vinyl. The highlight, however, is a stunning take on the standard "Summertime," one that turns the Gershwin tune into an easy swinging, proto-bossa nova song that features a glorious extended solo by Mann over a conga beat…

The Atlantic Jazz series continues with this slice of mostly '60s jazz-soul treats. Fittingly, the 11-track disc includes a side by one of the prime progenitors of soul, Ray Charles: He and MJQ vibraphonist, Milt Jackson, stretch out on the canonized "How Long Blues." Further expounding on the soul-jazz trajectory, the collection spotlights work by organist Shirley Scott (the Aretha Franklin hit "Think"), Les McCann and Eddie Harris (their classic Montreux Festival cut "Compared to What"), Yusef Lateef ("Russell and Elliot"), and Hank Crawford ("You're the One"). And there's even a bit of boogaloo-enhanced bossa, compliments of trumpeter Nat Adderley ("Jive Samba"). The soundtrack to your next retro-cool shindig.

In the 1950s, Herbie Mann frequently shared the spotlight on record dates with other flutists. This V.S.O.P. LP, a reissue of a set originally for Mode and also out for awhile on Premier, matches Mann (who here also plays piccolo, clarinet and tenor) with Buddy Collette (switching between flute, clarinet, tenor and alto) in a quintet with pianist Jimmy Rowles, bassist Buddy Clark and drummer Mel Lewis. The results are generally pleasing, if somewhat lightweight, with such obscure tunes as "Here's Buddy," Rowles' "Pop Melody," "Here's Pete" and Mann's "Theme from 'Theme From'" alternating with three standards and Chico Hamilton's "Morning After." The most interesting aspect to this lightly swinging music is the constant switching around of the lead voices on their various horns.

Flutist Herbie Mann's first recording as a leader (seven selections from 1954 originally on a 10" LP plus four others cut in 1956) has been reissued on CD with three alternate takes added on. Even back in 1954, Mann (who doubles here on flute and alto flute) had his own sound. The music (featuring either Benny Weeks or Joe Puma on guitar in a piano-less quartet) is essentially straight-ahead bop and finds Mann playing quite melodically and with swing. This set is a good example of Herbie Mann's early style before he started exploring various types of world musics.

This recording emphasizes (although does not stick exclusively to) the blues. The sextet has impressive players (flutist Herbie Mann, Charlie Rouse on tenor, guitarist Kenny Burrell, pianist Mal Waldron, bassist George Joyner and drummer Art Taylor) and the material (originals by Waldron, Burrell and Calvin Massey in addition to a brief "Jumpin' With Symphony Sid") is reasonably challenging but the musicians never really come together as a group. The straightahead jam session has its strong moments and, as long as one keeps their expectations low, the music will be enjoyable despite the lack of major sparks.

America/Brasil is a rollicking, celebratory album that keeps Herbie Mann on the winning streak he started with the release of Peace Pieces in 1995. Recorded during a week of concerts to mark his 65th birthday in April 1995, this disc is much stronger than its immediate predecessor, Celebration, also taken from the same week of live concert performances at New York's Blue Note jazz club. The material here is superb, and the playing top-notch. As the title implies, the emphasis here is on Mann's Brazilian side, but there are touches of the non-Brazilian with Bill Evans' "Peri's Scope" and Miles Davis' "All Blues." "Summertime" is recast in an Afro-Cuban mode with Paquito D'Rivera sharing the solo space on alto sax. However, lengthy Brazilian showstoppers are placed at the beginning, middle, and end of this wonderful disc. The opening "Keep the Spirits Singing" is propelled by the polyrhythmic pulse of percussionists Cyro Baptista and "Café," and the 17-minute title track finale features trumpeters Randy Brecker and Claudio Roditi, trombonist Jim Pugh, and guitarist Romero Lubambo.

This Bethlehem LP matches together flutists Herbie Mann and Sam Most in a fine bop program with guitarist Joe Puma, bassist Jimmy Gannon and drummer Lee Kleinman. The music consistently swings lightly and, other than an original apiece from Puma and Most, the selections are all standards; highlights include "Fascinating Rhythm," "Let's Get Away from It All" and "Seven Come Eleven." Most often takes honors, but Mann is also in fine form on these Russ Garcia arrangements.