This recording, whose music has been reissued as part of a Mosaic
Jackie McLean box set, has several selections that are quite fascinating.
McLean (along with trumpeter
Charles Tolliver, vibraphonist
Bobby Hutcherson, bassist
Cecil McBee, and drummer
Billy Higgins) plays free hard bop on "Action" (which does not have a specific set of chord changes to follow), a pair of
Tolliver compositions ("Plight" being the most well known) and even the standard "I Hear a Rhapsody" (
McLean's feature). Only the bluesy "Hootnan" is a bit more conventional, although the solos are far from predictable. This album is full of exciting music that has long been overshadowed.