Kurt Edelhagen formed his first orchestra immediately after World War II, he had been playing piano in clubs for the allied armies. Personally selecting the musicians for his orchestra enabled a band of the highest quality to be created. Before 1946 had ended Kurt's first band was already in operation. He continued to lead big bands that performed for radio and studio recording purposes until the 1970's. Edelhagen's various orchestras featured a wide range of big band music, but always with a powerful brass ensemble sound. He was one of the first post-war European band leaders to feature foreign Jazz musicians, including Dusko Goykovich, Jimmy Deuchar, Derek Humble and Jiggs Whigham. The recordings on this compact disc feature swinging tracks from 1950 to 1954.