On alto saxophonist
Vincent Herring's third Musicmasters release, he is joined by trumpeter
Scott Wendholt, pianist
Cyrus Chestnut, bassist
Jesse Yusef Murphy, and drummer
Carl Allen to perform seven originals (five by the group's members) and one jazz classic,
Duke Pearson's hard-swinging "Big Bertha." Outside of "Big Bertha," this recording has a more relaxed, introspective feel, a departure from
Herring's previous hard bop-oriented releases.
Herring's big, Adderley-influenced sound is intact, but his attack is more restrained, expressing the emotions that help to shape the music, and his unison lines with
Wendholt on the melodies give this recording much of its flavor. Other favorites include the Shorter-ish title track,
Chestnut's Latin-influenced "Into the Midnight" (a feature for
Herring's soprano),
Tex Allen's "Sabrosa," which has a slower, Latin-influenced melody, and
Wendholt's fast waltz, "The Unknown Ideal" (another
Herring soprano feature). This is a welcome addition to the
Herring discography.