Released for the first time on this 1999 Challenge CD, this live set features the unusual duo of guitarist
Jim Hall and valve trombonist
Bob Brookmeyer, two-thirds of the 1957
Jimmy Giuffre Three. Although there are occasions when one of the musicians accompanies the other one, much of the time
Hall and
Brookmeyer function as equals, improvising together on a set of standards plus an ad-lib blues called "Sweet Basil." Their ability to improvise while thinking of the whole picture and their knack for spontaneously harmonizing really come in handy during this intriguing and frequently exciting outing. Among the selections reborn in the playing of
Hall and
Brookmeyer are
John Lewis' "Skating in Central Park," "Body and Soul," "Darn That Dream," and "St. Thomas." A successful effort that should not have taken 20 years to release. ~ Scott Yanow