Ervin is scarcely remembered these days except by fans of Mingus, and possibly of mid-1960s Randy Weston, but those who recall his work on ‘Better Git It In Your Soul’ and a few others could hardly forget the impact. Blessed with an enviably bluesy vocabulary and a blowtorch tone, even at slower tempos, Ervin sounded not only unlike Rollins or Coltrane, but unlike anyone else. This in-depth compilation combines five whole LPs – three under his own name, done within less than a year – plus the relevant tracks from albums led by Teddy Charles (Metronome Presents Jazz in the Garden) and Mal Waldron (The Quest), and the contribution of the other musicians listed above is no small part of its strength. After this period, he went on to record a series of fine albums on Prestige, before ill-health ended his life at 39. Doubtless inspired by the compilation title, Simon Spillett's booklet text is a veritable paperback volume (20,000-plus words) containing both biographical research and musical commentary. Do not purchase unless you want your fingers burned and your soul scorched.