Volumes One and Two were reviewed in Jazzwise 251 and 269. Rather than re-visit those texts, let's look again at what Digby is up to here. Prompted by Acrobat, he has trawled through his recordings, picked out the plums from his personal pie and reflected upon the many and varied ways he's earned his living as both jazz activist and player.

The difference this time is that these varied sessions are all ‘live’ and in Digby's view, probably the better for it, this double-CD's 26 selections a vital guide to the best local Chicago-style jazz from the 1970s onwards.

The brisk Ron Russell band opens with ‘Rehearsing for a Nervous Breakdown’, this tricky Shavers opus from the John Kirby repertoire, the zest and mobility of Digby himself, and the ripe-toned ‘Strange’ prompting a strong audience reaction – rightly so. His Fairweather Friends, with the late John Barnes’ peachy alto reminding us of a lost hero, more so when considering pianist Lemon too.

Having opted for Condon-esque jazz early on, cornetist Digby has refined and built on that original impetus, while seeking to challenge himself in duos with Barker or in Inghams’ quartet and the quintet with Moss. ‘On The Alamo’, a 1984 festival jam session pits him alongside Lyttelton, Turner, Colville, Williams and Pyne, Digby at ease among these giants, all gone now. His booklet details time and place for everything and includes elegiac tributes to the many local greats who are no longer around. At 76, he still is and raring to play. Good news.