On this Sunnyside release, veteran vocalist
Jay Clayton is joined by a longtime collaborator, drummer
Jerry Granelli, as well as pianist
George Cables, bassist
Anthony Cox, and alto saxophonist
Gary Bartz. The roster makes
Clayton's modernist goals clear. Her voice is conventionally pleasant enough to deliver on chestnuts like "Young and Foolish" and "I Wish I Knew" (the former a duet with Cables). But the creative breadth of her instrument is best heard on Don Thompson's stormy "Lament for John Coltrane," as well as two avant-garde pieces inspired by the poetry of e.e. cummings, "Raga/Let It Go" and "Three Free/Random Mondays." ~ David R. Adler