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Personnel: Don Fagerquist (trumpet); Vernon Polk, Howard Roberts , Al Viola (guitar); Rickey Marino (violin); Stanley Harris (viola); Fred Katz (cello); Heine Beau (clarinet); Ralph LaPolla, Herb Geller, Matt Utal (alto saxophone); Billy Usselton, Dave Pell, Alexandra Aaron, Bill Holman, Buddy Collette (tenor saxophone); Bill Ulyate, Ronnie Lang, Butch Stone (baritone saxophone); Dick Collins, Clinton McMahan, Wes Hensel, Jerry Kadowitz, Cappy Lewis, Al Porcino, Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Childers (trumpet); John Graas (French horn); Dick Kenney, Jay Hill, Harry Betts, Clyde Brown , Roy Main, Murray McEachern, Lloyd Ulyate (trombone); Bob Enevoldsen (valve trombone); Donn Trenner, Terry Pollard, Marty Paich (piano); Frank Emilio Flynn (xylophone); Frank DeVito , Jack Sperling, Bill Richmond, Don Heath, Mel Lewis, Alvin Stoller (drums). Liner Note Author: J. Frank P. Recording information: Hollywood, CA (1955-1959); Radio Recorders, Hollywood, CA (1955-1959). Arrangers: Wes Hensel; Marty Paich; Russell Garcia ; Bill Holman. Marginalized as a result of his limited recorded output -- just one LP as a leader, the excellent Music to Fill a Void -- trumpeter Don Fagerquist remains ripe for rediscovery: a surefooted and expressive trumpeter, his cool, nuanced tones capture the essence of West Coast jazz. Portrait of a Great Jazz Artist is an exemplary introduction to Fagerquist's music, cherry-picking his finest solos from a series of dates spanning from 1955 to 1959 in support of Les Brown, Russ Garcia, and others. Aided and abetted by sidemen including Herb Geller and Zoot Sims, Fagerquist exhibits a stunningly imaginative melodic ability, creating a seemingly contradictory sound that's soft and mellow but boasts diamond-sharp edges. ~ Jason Ankeny