Although the great bassist
Oscar Pettiford
gets first billing, this CD actually has six selections from his quintet (with tenor saxophonist
Charlie Rouse
,
Julius Watkins
on French horn, pianist
Duke Jordan
, and drummer
Ron Jefferson
) and eight from bassist
Vinnie Burke
's quartet (clarinetist
Ronnie Oldrich
Don Burns
on accordion, and guitarist
Joe Cinderella
). The
Pettiford
half is notable for including three of his compositions (
"Tricrotism"
is best known), utilizing the
Rouse
-
Watkins
front line (which would become
the Jazz Modes
during 1956-1958) and for
doubling on cello. The
Burke
group has the usual instrumentation exploring melodic versions of seven standards, plus the bassist's
"Time Out."
These two unrelated sessions are complementary, displaying the cooler side of 1950s
bebop
. ~ Scott Yanow