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Here is a little gem of an album originally out on Mercury in 1960 and capturing Max Roach at his peak with a piano-less quartet including the Turrentine brothers and Julian Priester on trombone. This line up departs slightly from the hard bop format, opening up space and seemingly influenced by the then fresh modal discoveries of one Miles Davis. The Kenny Dorham composition ‘Lotus Blossum’ has seldom been covered, originally on the ‘Afro Cuban’ LP, but here receives a straight ahead version that emphasizes the beautiful melody. More blues inflected is ‘To lady’ while the title track is a Bill Lee (jazz bassist and father of Spike)piece with Tommy Turrentine excelling on trumpet. Sadly ill health greatly restricted the recordings of this musician and these were limited to sideman duties. This is a very welcome re-issue with lengthy tracks and excellent ensemble and individual performances. It stands favourable comparison with Roach’s towering achievements of the era, most notably ‘Percussion Bitter Sweet’ and ‘Freedom Suite Now’.  Tim Stenhouse

This light hearted original take on composer Henry Mancini’s television and film scores revealed the early sings of Jones’ eclectic and highly inventive orchestrations. While the compositions have become all too familiar over the years, the stellar cast of musicians including Roland Kirk, Gary Burton and even Toots Thielmans do their best to infuse some jazzier rhythms onto proceedings. Of course no Mancini tribute would be complete without a take on the ‘Pink Panther’ and the flute of Roland Kirk works well here with even the double bass engaging in a voiced solo. Some pieces border on the easy listening while others are given the (then new) bosa nova treatment as on ‘(I love you)and don’t you forget it’. More substantial jazz orchestrations find their way onto the big band ‘Charade’ and the Basie influenced swing of ‘Mr lucky’. Only the annoyingly twee rock guitar of Vincent Bell on a couple of numbers slightly diminshes the joyful atmosphere overall.
Quincy Jones would go on to bigger and better things, but if the ‘Big Band Bossa Nova’ album from the same period whetted your appetite, then this may prove to be a very enjoyable re-issue.  Tim Stenhouse

Impulse Records 4/5

Long unavailable and hard to find, this re-issue will appeal to two distinct if mutually bound audiences: fans of Oliver Nelson; collectors of JFK memorablia. The album was released four years after the death of Kennedy and as such is a reflective musical portrayal of the Kennedy presidency that includes a depiction of both the day he passed away and a memorial. Excerpts of key Kennedy speeches introduce the majority of compositions on offer which are relatively short in length and cover jazz and classical orchestrations. These facts make this album quite a unique experience and there are precious few jazz depictions of the Kennedy presidency available even if the civil rights struggle is alluded to on many jazz compositions of the time. By far the longest and jazziest piece is ‘Let the word go forth’ with excellent big band ensemble work and the use of vibes. Possessing a film soundtrack quality is the piece ‘The rights of all’ featuring soprano sax and a lovely alto solo (possibly by Nelson himself, or Phil Woods). Equally impressive is ‘The artists rightful place’ with furthering soloing from the brass. In general there is great ambition on a project of this scope and Nelson manages to pull it off even if ideally one would have liked longer solos and lengthier pieces. Nevertheless ‘The Kennedy Dream’ represents a fascinating one-off in Nelson’s career. As with Impulse re-issues the CD comes in a facsimile gatefold sleeve with original and informative notes, though the original back liner notes (here formning the centre part of the CD gatefold) are so small that they are quite difficult to read. Otherwise a long overdue re-issue that re-emphasizes what a fine composer and orchestrator Oliver Nelson was.  Tim Stenhouse

This proved to be the final release from the late great tenor and was a fitting epitaphe to a career that reached its zenith during the 1990s. By this stage Joe Henderson had become interested in a variety of line-ups from big bands to smaller combos. The jazz tribute to Gershwin’s musical featured an amazing array of musicians that included the supreme pianist Tommy Flanagan (present on ‘Saxophone Colossus’ and ‘Giant Steps’ among many others), Dave Holland, Jack de Johnette and John Scofield with Chaka Khan and Sting guesting on vocals. While others of the stature of Miles Davis and Oscar Peterson have successfully attempted the same repertoire, Henderson stands favourable comparison with all and sundry being both a gifted arranger and a fine soloist, and one who provides plenty of space for the other titans present to shine. Highlights include a joyous ‘I got plenty o’ nuttin’ and the intimate treatment of ‘Here come de honeyman’ . It was an interesting choice of Chaka Khan as vocalist on ‘Summertime’ and Khan is ideally suited to the jazz idiom, and indeed she offers a very contemporary sounding version of the classic song. Even Sting impresses on ‘It ain’t necessarily so’ and the Englishman in New York has long been a devotee of jazz in addition to pop duties. In the ten years since this album was recorded, it has not dated one iota and that is testimony not only to the evergreen genius compositional genius of George Gershwin, but equally to the loving musical representation of Gershwin’s art by Joe Henderson and company.  Tim Stenhouse

This album dates from relatively early in Roy Ayres’ glittering career (1973) and came just three years after the leader had formed Ubiquity. It finds him in the process of perfecting what would come to be known as jazz-funk, or perhaps more accurately funk/r’n’b with a minimal jazz content. Helping him in proceedings is arranger Bert de Coteaux, better known in the mid-late 1970s for his production of the Crown Heights Affair group among various other artists. The lengthier instrumentals stand out here with ‘I am your mind’ allowing band mebers to stretch out including Harry Whitaker on keyboards and Ayres himself on vibes. There is a lovely version of ‘Brother Louie’ while the title track is classic vocal funk with a jazzy flavour, and ‘Des nude soul’ is uptempo Latin funk. A young Dee Dee Bridgewater contributes backing vocals and her then husband Cecil and Jimmy Owens back the band on trumpet. Not quite or yet Roy Ayres’ greatest moment, but clearly he was about to reach a creative peak in the near future. The laid back ‘The morning after’ and the instrumental version of the soul standard ‘Love from the sun’ attest to a growing maturity in Ayres work.  Tim Stenhouse

Tying in nicely with the recent series of concerts by the specially reformed Odemba OK Jazz to commemorate twenty years since Franco passed away, volume two is, if anything, even more essential than the first instalment. This second double CD focuses on the 1980s when Franco’s sound was fully formed and it is crammed full of elongated versions of the sweetest and most harmonious musical grooves known to mankind.  It is no exageration to call Franco the most influential African musician of the modern era (on the African continent at least, and vying for top spot with Fela Kuti internationally) since Conglese rumba as perfected by ‘le grand maitre’ as he was respectfully and affactionately known spread throughout eastern as well as central Africa. All the classics from 1980 through 1989 are contained within and these include the anthemic ‘Co-operation’ from 1982 on an album that witnessed the re-uniting of Franco with former lead singer Sam Mangwana after a period of the latter joining Franco’s rival Tabu Ley Rochereau. From the opening verbal jousting, this song typifies the joyous sound that Franco and TPOK Jazz could generate. Factor in the sweet harmonies of the vocalists collectively as demonstrated on ‘Tokoma ba camarade pamba’ and the exquisite guitar soloing and harmony vocals on ‘Nostalgie’, and you simply have some of the greatest music ever recorded on the planet. Of course Franco’s greatest commercial success, the social chronicle ‘Mario’ (with lead vocals courtesy of Madilu and Papa Noel featuring on lead guitar - the fifteen minute song even spawned a follow up response) is not forgotten. The only signs of a 1980s influence on the band are the use of discofied syndrums in the background on 1984’s ‘Pesa position na yo’ when Franco was still in top form. As always with Sterns historical releases the highest possible standards of presentation are maintained and this includes a deluxe inner sleeve with bi-lingual notes, original photos and album covers, details on the ever changing personnel, and informative writing on Franco by musicologist Ken Braun.  Tim Stenhouse

Spanish born singer Jairo Zavaca is perhaps best known outside his native country as a member and guitarist of US alt.country group Calexico. With a Peruvian father, yet born and raised in Madrid, he has been exposed to all sorts of musical influences that take in Spanish, Latin American, African and 1970s and 1980s rock music into the bargain. For his first solo project recorded in Arizona, Zavaca has maintained the folk-rock influence, but placed it within a Spanish language context and the result is one of the year’s most intruiging and uniquely sounding recordings. What impresses is that he has not reverted to formulaic stereotype and the downright rootsy music consequently defies all conventional categorisation and is a joy for the listener if a minor headache for the music journalist to describe. While nine tenth of the album is sung in Spanish, this should not put off fans of Americana in the least. Javaca is part of a new generation of musicians who are equally at ease in either the Spanish or English idiom and it is simply up to the rest of the world to come to terms with this new reality. The lovely brass sound of ‘Don’t leave me now’ which is sung mainly in Spanish but with the chorus in English typifies this new attitude as does the catchy ‘La memoria’. Highlights include the superb ‘Llorona’ with Amparo Sanchez guesting on vocals, the 1950s swing of ‘Te sigo sonando’ with accordion (though not of the Tex-Mex variety) and a gorgeous and highly inventive re-working of all things a Jorge Ben classic ‘Comanche’ with rhythm guitar and brass completing the conversion from Portugese to Spanish. One question remains: Is there a market for Spanish language Americana? Given demographic changes, the sheer number of Latinos in the United States should indicate there is, but this music is definitely not restricted to Spanish language aficionados and will appeal to a much wider audience that simply appreciates quality music with a rootsy feel.  Tim Stenhouse

This is the follow up to the well received first volume that introduced a wider public to the classic 1970s sounds of a band from a country that is virtually unknown music-wise in Africa as a whole, let alone the rest of the world. As with volume 1, the release was inspired by a trip by music aficionado Samy Ben Redjeb to the country to unearth vinyl gems. Some four years were spent searching not only in Benin, but also in neighbouring Togo and Niger. The result is an extremely well presented and selected choice of fifteen songs on the classiest label in Benin at the time, Albarika. In fact the recordings were made at the EMI studios in Lagos, Nigeria, and thus the quality is as good as it gets in Africa, and simply excellent by any standards. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo soaked up a variety of disparate influences, but nonetheless forged a distinctive sound with tight arrangements, and the compilation showcases original compositions that hint at afro-beat,
southern American soul, early funk and jazz alongside modernised versions of traditional Benin rhythms. The geographical location of the small nation bordering Nigeria to its right, Togo to its left, and above Burkina Faso and Niger lends itself to an external musical input and the capital itself, Contonou, looks out to the Atlantic ocean. Little wonder, then, that there should be some Stax-inspired soul on the extremely melodic and percussive ‘Noude ma gnin Tche de me’ while James Brown guitar and drum licks permeate ‘Malin kpon O’. One of the most impressive features of the band is the extent to which instrmuentalists are given free reign to stretch out and this is best illustrated on the electric keyboard genius of ‘Agnon Dekpe’ and on the brass heavy instrumental ‘Mede ma Gnin Messe O’ with a fine saxoxphone solo. Virtuoso guitar solos abound on ‘Ahouli vou yelli’. Possibly the key track for funk fans is the heavy afro-beat groove of ‘Mi ve wa se’, but even this is far from derivative and Orchetre Poly-Rythmo are certainly not a poor copy of Fela Kuti’s sound. Given the overall excellent quality of the music, a key question is why the group and indeed music in Benin in general from the period were not more popular outside the country? The answer appears to lie in the attitude of the political regime in power at the time who decreed curfews that significantly limited the development of an urban music scene, and other artists such as Gnossas Pedro would only be discovered by an international audience retrospectively at a much later date. Before Angelique Kidjo came onto the scene via Paris in the 1990s, keyboardist Wally Badarou was probably the best known musician from the country working with both Level 42 and Herbie Hancock among others.  A de-luxe booklet accompanies the CD release with original photos and extensive notes.  Tim Stenhouse

The debut solo album from Cuban pianist Harold Lopez-Nussa surfaced earlier this summer after the twenty something musician won a prize at the Montreux jazz festival. Now comes the fully-fledged debut with his trio and this marks the coming of age of potentially major new artist on the world stage and one following in the illustrious footsteps of Bebo and Chucho Valdes, and more recently of Roberto Fonseca. Lopez-Nussa is very ably served by compatriot Felipe Cabrera on bass (having played with another piano maestro Gonzalo Rubalcaba and percussionist Anga Diaz) and on drums by brother Ruy Adrian Lopez-Nussa. The album has the same freshness to this writer’s ears as when Jacky Terrasson broke through with his mid-1990s trio outings on Blue Note and ‘Herencia’ certainly rates as one of the strongest and most enjoyable piano trio debuts in recent years. Compositions vary from the reflective piece ‘Saudade’ with its lovely use of understated percussion and guest trumpet courtesy of Mayquel Gonzalez to the mid-tempo groove of ‘En la isla’, an Afro-Cuban percussive number that hints at Michel Petrucciani in influence while the excellent title track conjurs up the early Brad Mehldau. Indeed it is the latter who springs to mind in the choice of an unconventional standard, Eric Clapton’s ‘Tears in heaven’ which is very much transformed into Lopez-Nussa’s own. Lopez-Nussa does not revert to stereotype in his use of Cuban influences and on ‘Timbeando’ demonstrates his knowledge of new emerging styles with a fusion in the title that mixes son, funk and even modern salsa (itself originally derived from Cuban son). Make a note of this pianist. Bigger things will be expected and on this evidence Lopez-Nussa sounds fully capable of delivering. The dancefloor track ‘La jungla’ is already on the latest Gilles Peterson compilation, devoted to new Cuban music and the trio are expected to tour in the summer of 2010. Tim Stenhouse

Here is an interesting duet between two legendary jazz figures who come from different musical perspectives (Roach grounded in be-bop, Shepp in the freer sounds of the avant-garde)and slightly different eras (Roach being the elder of the two and coming to prominence during the late 1940s and throughout the 1950s whereas Shepp became from the mid-1960s onwards. Roach in particular has covered a wide number of styles over an extensive career. After embracing be-bop and then hard bop, the early 1960s witnessed a marked interest in depicting the civil rights movement in musical form and of course this manifested itself in the seminal album ‘We insist. Freedom now suite’. The drummer became less visible from the mid-1960s onwards with sporadic recordings. In 1970 he formed the percussion ensemble M’Boom before declaring an interest in the avant-garde and recording on independent labels with Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor and here Archie Shepp and then experimenting with a string quartet. Shepp on the other hand has almost gone in the opposite direction from the free sounds of his Impulse albums (though often with a blues and even rhythm and blues element from the early 1970s as on ‘Attica Blues’ to a more traditional tenor sound in the lineage of Coleman Hawkins). However, both share an open-mindedness to explore new territory beyond their normal comfort zone as well as similar political beliefs and this live 1970s recording from a Swiss festival amply illustrates these commonalities. The Shepp composition ‘’U-Jaa-Ma’ harks back to the 1960s era with a twelve and a half minute exploration of the tenor while the epic twenty-six minute ‘The long march’, the CDs title piece, is a lengthy meandering duet that celebrates the epic march of one Mao Zedong and his eventual death. A couple of standards feature, the Ellington ballad ‘Sophisticated lady’ and Coltrane’s ‘Giant steps’, on both of which Shepp performs admirably. Max Roach’s Impulse album title track ‘It’s time’ is revisited and a tribute to drummer Philly Joe Jones come in the shape of ‘J.C. Moses’. Excellent re-mastering provides a crystal-clear sound quality. It has to be said that an entire album of either drum and saxophone duets or solo pieces is by no means easy listening and is best appreciated in small parts. Nonetheless is it is rewarding listening and one that fans of the two titans will derive great pleasure from.  Tim Stenhouse

Vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Richard Bona has made a virtue of his eclectical musical tastes having recorded with jazz greats such as Pat Metheny and Joe Zawinul and this latest album is both his strongest and most varied to date, demonstrating an awareness of a whole host of different musical environments. Largely recorded in New York, with one track cut in Mumbai, this is world fusion in the truest and best sense of the word. Pared down instrumentation ideally suits Bona’s idiosyncratic vocal style and the album is full of gorgeous intimate songs, sometimes with the Cameroonian musician playing most or all of the instruments. This is exemplified by the catchy ‘Souleymane’ with chord changes that sound very similar to Michael Jackson’s ‘Human nature’ while the jazzy ‘Mbema mama’ features French collaborators Sylvian Luc on guitar and Jean-Michel Pilc on piano. Soulful grooves are in evidence on ‘Good times’ (not the Chic disco classic) with lead vocals courtesy of Frank McComb and guitar licks and harmonica from Bona, and on the bluesy hammond organ driven ‘Yara’s blues’ . The open-minded approach to his craft is demonstrated on ‘Shiva mantra’ with a light Indian classical influence where the wordless vocals blend together effortlessly with the Indian musicians. It is a pity that only one song in this vein is contained on the album and a full recording of Bona in an Indian context is surely a future project in the making. Infectous rhythms are in abundance on the solo multi-instrumental ‘Sona moyo’ while ‘Kurumalate’ hints at the Pat Metheny group in the vocal department with its fusion of North American jazz and African instrumentation. It is left to a lilting duet on ‘Esukudu’ featuring beautiful harmonies and the fula flute of Bailo Baa to round off proceedings. There is even a fascinating fusion of rootsy American country and Afro-beat drums on ‘African cowboy’. Richard Bona’s residency in the US is clearly rubbing off in all sorts of unexpected ways musically. Tim Stenhouse

The Spanish-Cuban musical connection reached its zenith with the previous ‘Lagrimas negras’, a stunning collaboration between Diego el Cigala and Bebo Valdes that sold a million copies and was rightly hailed by the critics as a modern day masterpiece. Some time has passed since, but finally we now have the follow up which this time is a collaboration between el Cigala and another Cuban elderly statesman in pianist Guillermo Rubalacaba (father of keyboard wizard Gonzalo). The result is only marginally less enthralling than its precedessor and a prime candidate for the most enjoyable listening album of the year. For those not yet fully aware of the musical treat on offer, this is a fusion of Spanish flamenco and Cuban son reworking some of the classics of the Spanish and Latin American songbook. If anything ‘Dos lagrimas’ features a more eclectic range of styles taking in salsa and tango along the way and a fuller instrumentation than previously heard. A key song destined for heavy airwave and dancefloor use is ‘Dos gardenias’ on which Cuban veteran percussion masters Changuito and Tata Guines feature heavily alongside Jose Luis Quintana. In a similar uptempo vein is ‘El dia que naci yo’ (’The day I was born’ ) with the Cuban flavour emphasized by the trumpet of Manuel Machado taking a leaf out of the great Chocolate Armenteros book. As one would expect with a Cuban pianist, mambo vamps are much in evidence as on the delicious mid-tempo ‘Dos cruces’ while the more delicate side to Rubalcaba’s playing is sampled on the gorgeous ballad ‘Historia de un amor’. Flamenco is often argued to be the Spanish man’s (or woman’s) blues and if so the decision to fuse its passionate vocals with Argentine tango, another national take on the blues, has proven to be an inspired choice on ‘Caruso’ with ace French bandoneon player Richard Galliano excelling. This must surely form the basis of a lengthier future musical collaboration. Tempos shift effortlessly on the enchanting ‘Bravo’ , and in general flamenco and Cuban son in these masterful musicians safe hands are ideally suited to one another. This is part of a more general trend in modern flamenco to take on external influences from Latin America (known in Spanish as ‘iba y vuelta’ or ‘coming and going’) that are then internalised and become part of a newer flamenco sound.  ‘Dos lagrimas’ is a truly outstanding album and only marginally short of a maximum five star rating. It is a very worthy successor to the seminal ‘Lagrimas negras’, one of the decade’s greatest albums of any genre and in the same league as Ry Cooder and Ali Farka Toure’sa ‘Talkin’ Timbuktu’. If there is to be just one album of Latin music to relax to on your Christmas stocking list, ‘Dos lagrimas’ is definitely it.  Tim Stenhouse

German revival compilation specialists Moll-Selekta have returned with a homage to rocksteady, a musical sub-genre that directly precedes what we now refer to more generally as reggae. The mid-1960s in Jamaica was a time of great change after independence and it was a blisteringly hot summer that persuaded musicians to turn down the tempo a notch from the uptempo ska beat to a more relaxed swinging sound. Rocksteady was thus born with a greater emphasis on the vocals and sweet harmonies and with instrumentalists playing a largely supportive role. This set the blueprint for the later emergence of reggae which would decrease the tempo a tad more. This excellent compilation revisits some of the classic songs with the majority of the singers and musicians still living. However, to mix up things a little some of the singers interpret songs other than their own. Recordings were made at the legendary Tuff Gong studios of Kingston with all the major session musicians on board including Sly Dunbar, Skully and Sticky on various percussion and even Ernie Ranglin surfacing on rhythm guitar. Hopeton Lewis is in fine form on the epic ‘Sounds and pressure’ and on the Melodians’ ‘Rivers of Babylon’ while Leroy Sibbles (former lead singer of the Heptones) sounds better than ever on the fabulous ‘Equal Rights’ that the Heptones made their own, but that Dennis Brown covered as a roots classic for Joe Gibbs a decade later. Ken Boothe revisits his own ‘Freedom St.’ and covers the Desmond Dekker tune’ Shanty town (007)’. Meanwhile veteran Derek Morgan reworks his singature tune, ‘Conquering ruler’. The ladies are not forgotten and Judy Mowatt (then a member of the Gaylettes before becoming an integral part of the I-Threes) contributes ‘Silent river runs deep’ while fellow I-Three Marcia Griffiths delivers an excellent cover of ‘Tide is high’ which was one of rocksteady’s most enduring songs from the Paragons and lead vocalist John Holt. Veteran DJ U-Roy was one of the pioneers of the DJ style and here covers ‘Stop that train’, originally itself a cover of a Derek Harriott favourite by Keith and Tex, and later by Scotty. Only Stranger Cole sounds a little worse for wear on ‘Love me today’. An obvious question arises: how do the reworked cover versions compare with the originals? The answer is surprisingly well and since not all the singers cover their own you are not comparing like for like anyway and several bring out new aspects to an otherwise evergreen song. The whole project is the brainchild of a Swiss postgraduate student who wrote his thesis on the emergence of rocksteady and there is in fact an accompanying film documentary chronicling the musicians of the era and featuring those on the compilation about to be released in cinemas. Make a point of seeing it.  Tim Stenhouse

(Soundway) CD/2LP 5/5

Following on from the excellent compilations devoted to Columbia and Panama respectively (with a third instalment of the latter due out soon), Soundway have now turned their attention to a region of the world hitherto largely unknown outside the francophone world, the French West Indies. Martinique and Guadeloupe have a long musical tradition and have been influenced by many of the regional neighbours from Cuba and Haiti to Columbia and the music on the airwaves in these other countries. Quite simply this is an amazing discovery of new artists. Unlike the English-speaking West Indies, a single musical form such as reggae in Jamaica and calypso in Trinidad has not been as dominant. Rather the biguine and tumbele rhythms have incorporated neighbouring traditional music such as Puerto Rican bomba and plena, Dominican meringue and Haitian compas styles. Herein lies the fascination of the melting pot of music that is conjured up. While almost all of the musicians will be new to audiences in Europe, a few have been heard occasionally. Le Ry-Co Jazz are a group that have a passion for Afro-Cuban music and on ‘Dima bolane’ perform a heavy mini descarga. Singer Francisco is one of the key figures in modern Martiniquan music, creating a a hybrid sub-genre knbown as biguine lele. With heavy Afro-Cuban percussion on a song recorded outdoors his song ‘Fileo’ impresses. Fans of 1980/1990s group favourites Malavoi may have heard him guest on their albums. Some of the songs are reworkings of classic compositions heard on albums bought via Puerto Rico. One example is ‘Chonga’ by l’ensemble Abricot, a hot and spicy guaguanco that was originally on Latin jazz pianist Vladimir’s seminal ‘New Sounds in Latin Jazz’ for the Alegre label. Another breathes in Dominican merengue and Haitian compas on ‘Chombo’ by les Aiglons de Basse Terre with a delicious sounding clarinet. Cumbia sounds are also heard on Jojo’ by Ensemble La Perfecta (named after Eddie Palmieri’s band no less). Big band exuberance is the only way to describe ‘La vie critique’ by l’Orchestre de Paul-Emile Hauar while Puerto Rican bomba has inspired the sublime ‘Manze mona’ which is played in the spirit of Puerto Rican legendary sonero Ismael Rivera. Female vocals are not forgotten and arrive in the shape of Lola Martin on the breakneck speed ‘Edamise oh’. As ever with Soundway, the accompanying notes and graphics are first class with original vinyl sleeve covers and photos that greatly illuminate the artists on offer. Another oustanding release and one that goes some way to plugging a gaping hole in our knowledge of music in the Lesser Antilles.  Tim Stenhouse

Pianist McCoy Tyner was already an established member of the John Coltrane classic quartet by the time he recorded this album as leader in 1963. It finds him alternating betwen a larger ensemble and trio, and was an early example of his later foray into big band arranging from the 1970s onwards. Elvin Jones joins him in proceedings with tenorists John Gilmore and Frank Strozier providing the perfect foil to Tyner’s modal magic. The compositional genius of Tyner was beginning to emerge and is exemplified on the lilting modal piece ‘Cintemporary Focus’ with fine brass ernsemble work. Interesting here is the inclusion of some fiery trumpet work courtesy of Thad Jones. During the 1960s Tyner seldom recorded as a leader with trumpeters, the notable exception being that of Lee Morgan. Gilmore takes centre stage on the blues-inflected ‘T’ n’ A Blues and with a soulful solo and was an ideal accompanist to Tyner, having being a close teacher to Coltrane while resident in the Sun Ra Arkesta. Of the trio numbers, ‘Autumn Leaves’ is taken at a lively mid-tempo and very different from the classic Cannonball Adderley version while ‘Night in Tunisia’ is generally a straight ahead rendition with Latinizations on the drums from Tootie Heath. The delicate ballad ‘When Sonny gets blue’ rounds off an excellent early example of McCoy Tyner’s gift as both pianist and composer.  Tim Stenhouse