Ralph Sutton is generally recognized as a giant of stride piano, though he was equally at home playing swing tunes. This compilation draws from two earlier Storyville albums recorded over a span of three days in May 1977, while the pianist was touring Europe. The first 13 tracks represent the master takes from Trio and Quartet, featuring
Sutton with a full rhythm section, playing duo settings or solo.
Sutton had lost none of his fire at the age of 54, offering delightful interpretations of old favorites like “Thou Swell," “Undecided," and “St. Louis Blues," though he is at his most lyrical with his impressionist solo settings of “In the Dark" and his own miniature ballad “Worrying the Life Out of Me." The last five songs come from taking part in a quintet led by cornetist
Wild Bill Davison and multi-reed player
Jesper Thilo, all of which appeared on the Storyville CD
Together Again. Even though the band is a pickup group, the bandmembers mesh well in a lively “Blue Room" and a raucous “Running Wild," the latter in which
Thilo (on soprano sax) gives the two veterans a run for their money in the solo department. While most
Ralph Sutton fans will want to seek the two complete CDs, this compilation is an excellent alternative investment.