During 1955, trumpeter
Art Farmer had a short-lived quintet with altoist
Gigi Gryce, but because neither of the co-leaders were big names at the time, the band did not last long. Fortunately, they did record two albums of material, of which this CD reissue (originally known as Evening in Casablanca) was the second. In addition to
Farmer and
Gryce, the unit includes pianist
Duke Jordan, bassist
Addison Farmer, and drummer
Philly Joe Jones. With the exception of
Duke Jordan's "Forecast," the cool-toned hard bop date consists entirely of
Gryce compositions, of which "Evening in Casablanca" and "Nice's Tempo" are best known. Excellent music well deserving a close listen. ~ Scott Yanow