Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. October In The Railroad Earth - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
2. Deadbelly - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
3. Charlie Parker - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
4. The Sounds Of The Universe Coming In My Window - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
5. One Mother - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
6. Goofing At The Table - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
7. Bowery Blues - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
8. Abraham - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
9. Dave Brubeck - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
10. I Had A Slouch Hat Too One Time - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
11. The Wheel Of The Quivering Meat Conception - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
12. McDougal Street Blues - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
13. The Moon Her Majesty - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
14. I'd Rather Be Thin Than Famous - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen
15. Readings From 'On The Road' and 'Visions Of Cody' - Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen

Disc 2:

1. The Last Hotel & Some Of The Dharma - Jack Kerouac
2. Conclusion Of The Railroad Earth - Jack Kerouac
3. American Haikus - Al Cohn, Jack Kerouac, Zoot Sims, Zoot Sims
4. Hard Hearted Old Farmer - Al Cohn, Jack Kerouac, Zoot Sims, Zoot Sims
5. Last Hotel/Some of Dharma - Al Cohn, Jack Kerouac, Zoot Sims, Zoot Sims
6. Poems From the Unpublished "Book of Blues" - Al Cohn, Jack Kerouac, Zoot Sims, Zoot Sims
7. Old Western Movies [#][*] - Al Cohn, Jack Kerouac, Zoot Sims, Zoot Sims
8. Conclusion of the Railroad Earth [#][*] - Al Cohn, Jack Kerouac, Zoot Sims, Zoot Sims

Disc 3:

1. Beat Generation - Jack Kerouac
2. Poems (Fragments): San Francisco/Street Scene/Money Honey/Westinghouse - Jack Kerouac
3. Lucien Midnight: The Sounds of the Universe in My Window (Pt. 1) - Jack Kerouac
4. Lucien Midnight: The Sounds of the Universe in My Window (Pt. 2) - Jack Kerouac
5. Fantasy: The Early History of Bop - Jack Kerouac
6. Subterraneans [Excerpts] - Jack Kerouac
7. Visions of Neal: Neal and the Three Stooges (Pt. 1) - Jack Kerouac
8. Visions of Neal: Neal and the Three Stooges (Pt. 2) - Jack Kerouac
9. Is There a Beat Generation? [*] - Jack Kerouac

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23813 in Music
• Released on: 1990-06-12
• Number of discs: 3
• Format: Box set
• Dimensions: 1.96 pounds

Amazon.com
As a reader and performer of his own words, Kerouac wasn't as potent as his beat-generation pals. He lacked the greasy charisma of Allen Ginsberg or the razor squawk of William Burroughs. But what Kerouac did have was real joy, a certain innocence (despite his wild experiences), and an Everyman's charm. This last quality infects these historic recordings, making Kerouac's freethinking, beautiful words and images jump out of the past with as much potency as when he laid them down in the late 1950s. The Collection gathers Kerouac's three albums (which feature the author riffing alongside jazzmen Steve Allen, Zoot Sims, and Al Cohn) and a brace of bonus tracks. The performances are coupled with expansive liner notes, photos, and commentary. This set is required beat listening. --Michael Ruby

Customer Reviews

I damn near want to cry when . . .
This set takes me back so far in time, I can hardly consume the oxygen required to revive myself. I bought a copy of this at Cyrano's Book Store in Anchorage, Alaska on tape. I parted with it over the years but it was a mistake.

I re-purchased it the other day, once more; but this time on the crisp delivery of CD. Kerouac's voice to me, is what I imagine the voice of God to sound like. If they would've made track 15 from the first disk available to listen to, you'd buy it too, without hesitation. Hearing Jack read the last paragraphs from On The Road, makes one realize that it stands to be one of the greatest passages ever written in Literature (of any genre).

Jack Kerouac, with voice intact becomes reverent, gracious and invisible all at once. You'll read and hear him say how in his life, he was hated by most he met, even the musicians who play on the disk. Do we have to alienate ourselves so much to really 'see'? I'm just thankful that it took place and was released. I couldn't find a better way to live on.

Hoka hey, Jack.

Melts your mind into the beat mind-set.
If you are familiar with everything Jack Kerouac ever wrote, then this set is a great memory jogger. If you are new to his work it is a superb introduction. Or perhaps you've tried to read him but never got into his "flow of consciousness" style. Then, these recordings teach you how to hear him in your mind- as one long, sweet jazz riff. Just close your eyes and let him transport you to better times and better places. Of course, Kerouac's America is still out there, here and there, in forgotten corners, in special places and special people.

Kerouac was the soul of his age. Who else but Jack could go from commenting on Dostoeveky one minute, then switch to the Three Stooges without missing a beat? Or just as easily go from Sanskrit to scat. And it works. That is because a great soul can encompass entire worlds without contradiction....

joy & sorrow
The first album in this box set, which contains 15 tracks of Kerouac reciting prose while Steve Allen plays beautiful jazz piano, is dazzling. There is something magical and heartbreaking about the record.. Listening to it makes you feel as if you're sitting next to Jack himself at a bar, drinking, as he tells you these stories and talks to you. For any fan of Kerouac's writing, this album is a must. Once you've heard this, you will read his books knowing the sweet voice that is talking emphatically.