YES!!!  At last it has come to pass:  Fats Waller gets the Proper treatment.  More than any insurance policy, the music of Fats Waller will keep you sleeping safe and sound, knowing that you have bullet-proof protection from the blues.  It's simply impossible to be down when Fats is on:  He'll turn your frown upside-down.  Of all the great personalities of jazz, Fats is -- aside from Louis Armstrong -- probably the greatest.

Fats would be a legend just for his mastery of the keyboard with which he launched his career,  but he has so much more to offer.  He crafted a true persona which he then donned for each and every performance.  And what performances!  Fats was the very embodiment of entertainment.  And finally, there's the songs themselves.  While Fats could take practically any tin-pan alley tune -- like, for example, My Very Good Friend the Milkman -- and transform it into a timeless classic, he also happened to be one of the greatest song writers of all times.  He brought a jazz sensibility to show tunes and a show tune sensibility to jazz.  Some, like Ain't Misbehavin',  have become standards, interpreted over and over again by cats of all colors, able to be made fresh each time. Others, like Squeeze Me, belong to Fats alone.  The people of Proper Records really had their work cut out for them with this one:  how do you bring the whole of Fats when you have a mere four CDs?  It's painful to leave out even one timeless classic!  Handful of Keys proves once again why Proper Records is the reigning champion of classic jazz packages:  On 100 big tracks, Fats is here in all his glory, from his early days as keyboard prodigy to his final blazing days of songmanship.  This is a set that will bring a lifetime of enjoyment.  If Fats isn't part of your life, then, man, you ain't livin'! 

As with all Proper Box sets, this one contains five hours of music mastered with the jazz EQ in mind by people who know what they're doing, and comes complete with a 48 page career overview and appreciation by the Mr. Know-It-All of classic jazz, Joop Visser, and, to top it all off, a complete track by track breakdown of who played what on each and every song as well as when and where it was recorded.  It's a proper deal!  And, as an added bonus, here's the discography.

Handful Of Keys - Waller, Fats  

Disc 1

1. Muscle Shoals Blues 3:13
2. Birmingham Blues 2:59
3. Henderson Stomp 2:30
4. Rusty Pail 2:58
5. Blue Back Bottom 2:52
6. Fats Waller Stomp 3:26
7. Savannah Blues 2:58
8. Geechee 3:04
9. Thou Swell 2:58
10. Handful Of Keys 2:45
11. The Minor Drag 2:38
12. Harlem Fuss 3:22
13. Numb Fumblin' 2:50
14. Gladyse 3:02
15. Valentine Stomp 3:20
16. Smashing Thirds 3:06
17. Lookin' Good But Feelin' Bad 2:31
18. Won't You Get Off It Please ? 2:57
19. I'm Crazy 'Bout My Baby 3:19
20. A Porter's Love Song To A Chambermaid 3:19
21. I Wish I Were Twins 2:38
22. Do Me A Favor 3:08
23. Then I'll Be Tired Of You 3:07
24. Don't Let It Bother You 2:50
25. Have A Little Dream On Me 2:46

Disc 2

1. Serenade For A Wealthy Widow 2:35
2. How Can You Face Me? 2:50
3. Sweetie Pie 3:02
4. Believe It, Beloved 2:42
5. Dream Man 2:57
6. Breakin' The Ice 3:18
7. African Ripples 3:08
8. Alligator Crawl 2:40
9. Viper's Drag 2:50
10. I'm A Hundred Per Cent For You 3:05
11. Night Wind 3:16
12. I Believe In Miracles 2:54
13. I Ain't Got Nobody 2:53
14. Clothes Line Ballet 2:36
15. Lulu's Back In Town 2:32
16. I'm Going To Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter 3:30
17. You'Re The Cutest One 3:08
18. Dinah 3:03
19. My Very Good Friend The Milkman 3:30
20. Twelfth Street Rag 2:47
21. There'll Be Some Changes Made 3:05
22. Sweet Sue 2:54
23. Truckin' 3:19
24. Sugar Blues 2:47
25. Rhythm And Romance 3:15

Disc 3

1. I'm On A See-Saw 3:00
2. When Somebody Thinks You'Re W0Nderful 3:40
3. I've Got My Fingers Crossed 2:38
4. A Little Bit Independent 2:55
5. Fat And Greasy 3:10
6. I Got Rhythm 3:08
7. All My Life 2:45
8. Christopher Columbus 2:52
9. It's A Sin To Tell A Lie 2:52
10. Black Raspberry Jam 2:35
11. Fractious Fingering 2:39
12. Paswonky 2:37
13. Until The Real Thing Comes Along 3:22
14. The Curse Of An Aching Heart 2:38
15. S'Posin 2:49
16. I'm Sorry I Made You Cry 2:46
17. Nero 2:40
18. Spring Cleaning 2:37
19. Honeysuckle Rose 4:35
20. Smarty 2:38
21. Blue Turning Grey Over You 4:22
22. Keepin' Out Of Mischief Now 3:03
23. The Joint Is Jumping 2:47
24. Everyday's A Holiday 3:17
25. Two Sleepy People 3:00

Disc 4

1. Yacht Club Swing 3:00
2. The Spider And The Fly 3:05
3. A Good Man Is Hard To Find 2:55
4. Hold Tight 2:13
5. 'Tain't What You Do (It's The Way That Cha Do It) 2:50
6. London Suite :
7. 1:Picadilly 1:46
8. 2:Chelsea 3:03
9. 3:Soho 2:58
10. 4:Bond Street 2:53
11. 5:Limehouse 3:15
12. 6:Whitechapel 3:17
13. Squeeze Me 3:07
14. Your Feet's Too Big 3:07
15. Darktown Strutter's Ball 2:44
16. I Cant Give You Anything But Love 2:55
17. Fats Waller's Original E Flat Blues 3:18
18. Pantin' In The Panther Room 3:02
19. Carolina Shout 2:15
20. Chant Of The Groove 3:03
21. Buck Jumpin' 2:36
22. Your Socks Don't Match 3:06
23. The Jitterbug Waltz 3:20
24. Swing Out To Victory 2:32
25. Ain't Misbehavin' 3:56
26. Waller Jive/Hallelujah 2:42