Lin Halliday's first album was titled
Delayed Exposure because the big-toned tenor saxophonist was 55 before given a chance to record as a leader. This fine release showed listeners outside of Chicago what Windy City residents had realized for many years -- that he was a passionate, richly expressive hard bopper who never failed to swing. Heartfelt performances of "Woody'N You" and "Serpent's Tooth" leave no doubt that
Sonny Rollins is
Halliday's primary influence, but also demonstrate that he's very much his own man.
Halliday, who tends to be more sentimental than
Rollins, shows just how soulful a ballad player he can be on the time-honored standards "The Man I Love" and "Darn That Dream."
Halliday enjoys a consistently strong rapport with his Chicago support, which includes multi-hornman
Ira Sullivan (who is heard on trumpet, flugelhorn, flute), pianist
Jodie Christian, bassist Dennis Carroll and drummer
George Fludas.