Although the nine songs on this new
Cannonball Adderley reissue were originally done live at concerts in Japan and San Francisco in 1963, they nevertheless make a nice tribute to departed jazz giant
Dizzy Gillespie. The assembled group was among the finest
Adderley ever led, with
Yusef Lateef providing a dynamic, unpredictable third solo voice on flute, tenor sax, and oboe, contrasting with
Cannonball's pungent alto sax and
Nat Adderley's pithy cornet solos. Bassist
Sam Jones and drummer
Louis Hayes were a top-flight tandem, while
Joe Zawinul was then playing bluesy, funky piano in his pre-synthesizer,
Miles Davis/
Weather Report phase. Everything is illustrative of a prime band enjoying some great nights. ~ Ron Wynn