Harmony in Jazz surveys material from across the
Hi-Lo's five-year tenure with Columbia, the creative zenith of their distinguished career -- moreover, two-thirds of the tracks pair the group with arranger
Marty Paich, whose jazz credentials and sensibilities perfectly complemented the quartet's own ambitions. While the
Hi-Lo's always resisted attempts to pigeonhole their music, it's clear that their preference for syncopation and penchant for swing brought them closer to jazz than any other idiom, and
Paich enhances the formula, recruiting a series of top-flight West Coast session players to lend the performances additional energy. The
Hi-Lo's responded with the most soulful and sophisticated performances of their career, reinventing chestnuts like "Fascinatin' Rhythm" and "Dancing on the Ceiling" from the inside out. ~ Jason Ankeny