This collection is both an acknowledgement and a representation of all that the Dave Brubeck Quartet were to so many people, where I’m sure that no one back in the early 1950’s would have considered the result being some forty-five albums over the years. But Dave had an ear, bringing many into his fold.If an assemblage of greatest hits works for jazz musicians at all, it works here, though that being said, the one flaw in compiling music of this nature is that in reality, these songs do not exist in and of themselves, they were meant to be played and visioned together in their original presentation, remembered as a unit, as they stood in a schematic of that unity, one that’s lost here, where it was the ebb and flow that rose particular numbers to the surface of any album, defining them as a pinnacle. Lost on collections of this nature are the lesser dynamic, less remember songs that supported these works, making the highlights the defining moments they became. When considering a compilation, it’s staggering to realize that the Dave Brubeck Quartet recorded forty-three albums, yet there are thirty-six so-called compilations. With that in mind, it’s also a challenge to even consider the nature of a live recording, as so many of what were called studio productions were actually live recordings, existing in and of the moment, without studio gimmicks or overlays. And, since I’m headed down this path, Brubeck’s show tunes should be considered in and of themselves, as they really weren’t Brubeck albums, merely cross-overs, where Dave reached a larger audience, as show tunes were entirely in vogue during the 50’s and 60’s. With that in mind, it would be easy for me to understand that the man might want to give his interpretation to any particular popular number, yet it was his (though I believe it was that of his management and record label) penchant for visiting entire shows such as Gone With the Wind, Brubeck Digs Disney, Paper Moon and the likes, infusing them with words in the titles like ‘Digs’ in order to imply that these outing or considerations are hip, when they weren’t. I say this from the standpoint I began with, that it might be cool to swing with a couple interpretations of these popular songs, but when there are an endless string of them, that moves Dave from the beatnik culture to that of commercial aspirations and mass market appeal.Dave certainly helped define jazz, and the songs on this album are all first rate, delivered with a sensitivity and vision, though for me, not with a sense of honesty, or for the searching for visions that weren’t part of the norm, part of a pop culture that already existed. Happily, nearly all, or most of those have been dismissed for this collection … yet this still leaves me wondering how a lightweight track such as “My Favorite Things” could even be considered for this collection when compared to the Ray Charles song “Georgia On My Mind.” There are a couple of others that splash in those waters, though perhaps it’s simply my desire for things counterculture, more well considered, defined and visionary that hold my attention. So yes, there are a handful of songs here that do not ride well in my back pocket, where Brubeck and his team moved into the mainstream, nevertheless, disliking Elton John as much as I do, does not mean that I’ll turn my back on Tumbleweed Connection, any more than I’d turn my back on early Brubeck, as his music was simply staggering, hip, and sweepingly cool. While this collection is very good, it completely neglects songs such as “Audrey,” “Jeepers Creepers,” “Everybody’s Jumpin’” along with a number of others. Then, for your consideration, there’s the The Columbia Studio Albums Collection 1955 - 1956 collection, which is simply great, filling in many of the gaps left open here. When all is said and done, Time Signatures: A Career Retrospective is very much worth your time, though without a doubt a very accessible album, one that leaves out nearly all of Brubeck’s more expansive material and has certainly been designed for the background dinner music crowd who’ve never even considered taking a music theory class in their lives.Unless it’s your desire to be surrounded by the most popular of Dave Brubeck’s material, I would suggest you get hold of the albums Brubeck Time, Time Out, and Countdown: Time In Outer Space, where you’ll be headed down a delightful road of sophistication and smooth jazz bliss, where every number is dimensionally and intellectually sound.Review by Jenell Kesler