When pianist
Marc Copland formally joined the
John Abercrombie Quartet for 2013's wonderful
39 Steps, he brought with him the fruit of the musical relationship between himself and the guitarist that had been established some four decades earlier with
Chico Hamilton, and in the fusion band
Dreams. Their evolution continued the guitarist's participation on several of the pianist's albums, and as sidemen playing in the same bands with
Kenny Wheeler and
David Liebman. Bassist
Drew Gress, who has worked with both men separately over the years, is a further link in the chain, while drummer
Joey Baron has played with the guitarist often enough to be intimately familiar with his compositional and improvisational processes.