It's difficult to pinpoint the most phenomenal detail of the Mills Brothers' five-CD 1930s Recordings. Is it the audio? The unbelievable genius of the Mills family from Piqua, Ohio? The tune selection? Rest assured that you get gobs of genius from this set--in performance, in audio quality, in scope of music. In terms of sound, John R.T. Davies, whose work on the Louis Armstrong Hot Fives and Sevens JSP 4-CD set makes that set the premier Satchmo set, remastered these 116 tracks meticulously. In terms of music, the package's scope comprises virtually all the Mills Brothers' great early hits, from 1931's "Tiger Rag" and "Dinah" (a duet with Bing Crosby) to 1932's "Bugle Call Rag" and Duke Ellington's "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)," and more than 100 other cuts recorded between 1931 and 1937.

The Mills Brothers were originally billed as "Four Boys and a Guitar," and their utterly unique sound shines under Davies's light, with the bass thump of oldest brother John resonating deeply beneath Harry (baritone), Herbert (tenor), and Donald (lead). They mimic horns beautifully, so much so that when real orchestras back them, it sounds richer but also more tricky--where does Cab Calloway's band kick in on 1932's "Doin' the New Low Down" and where do the mock horns end? Ditto for the mesmerizing mix of Louis Armstrong and the brothers on 1938's "My Walking Stick," where Herbert's trumpet squares up beautifully with Satchmo's. They were still unassailable even in the late 1930s, and the last volume here catches the Mills Brothers as their popularity was waning. Perhaps it was the advancing power of swing big bands as the Depression eased, or perhaps their material was becoming tiresome. Whatever the cause, the Millses' approach begins to sound more like standard pop-cultural fare on "My Little Grass Shack in Kealakekua, Hawaii," but they hadn't even come close to the height of their enormous fame--that would come with 1943's "Paper Doll," 1952's "Glow Worm," and an overall impression that the Mills Brothers were an institution. Here you get what came before, sometimes simple exuberant talent taking on silly little ditties, and sometimes inspired brilliance adorned only by a nice ditty and flabbergasting vocal chops. --Andrew Bartlett