Pianist
Monty Alexander had first appeared on a
Milt Jackson record in 1969. Eight years later the great vibraphonist used
Alexander's trio (which included bassist
John Clayton and drummer
Jeff Hamilton, future big-band co-leaders) for this spirited Pablo session that was subsequently reissued on CD through Original Jazz Classics. Much of the material is obscure (including
Jackson's three originals), with
Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" being the only standard. The music, however, is as straight-ahead as one would expect from these fine musicians, and can easily be recommended to their fans. ~ Scott Yanow