Originally released in 2017, this collection documents almost a decade of Ella Fitzgerald at the top of her game, recording first for Decca (under Milt Gabler’s stewardship) and then from 1956 for Norman Granz at Verve. In both cases she had the best accompanists possible, and whether this is the minimalist setting of her duos with pianist Ellis Larkins, the hard-swinging orchestra of Benny Carter or the lusher sound of Nelson Riddle, she matches her surroundings and they adapt to her as only musicians at the very highest level can.

The Verve-era singles have seldom been put into a proper context like this, having popped up on a somewhat scattershot release programme since the early 1990s, while the Decca sides here pick up nicely from where the 2006 Properbox Romance and Rhythm left off. So, helpfully, this set organises the material in chronological order, and while sometimes the tracks selected for single release were more commercially orientated than others from the same sessions that only made it to LP, even rather duff songs like ‘Soldier Boy’ are professionally delivered. But the highlights, such as Ella’s features from the film Pete Kelly’s Blues, the aforementioned Larkins duets, the Carter sides and the Marty Paich Dektette from the Ella Swings Lightly sessions (including the shortened single version of ‘Oh What a Night For Love’) are exquisite. There’s no better way to hear the range of Ella’s work from the decade that also produced the Songbooks than this.