This dynamic quartet, strongly influential during the cool jazz period, performed as a group from 1951 to 1967. Since the 1930s, leader
Dave Brubeck received high praise and critical acclaim for his role as bandleader and for his stirring arrangements. At the piano,
Brubeck plays along with the accompaniment of
Paul Desmond, another timeless jazz legend in his own right.
Joe Morello drives the rhythm of the group on drums and percussion with the help of
Gene Wright, who shares his talent and pulsating beats on standup bass.
Desmond is featured on this collection of standards, jamming along on the alto sax to tunes such as "Swanee River," "That Lonesome Road," and "Basin Street Blues."
Brubeck shimmers with radiance and phenomenal craftiness in his piano improvisation at the end of "Georgia on My Mind." Morello gives it his creative all with a rich flair for rhythm during his strong solo performance on the tune "Short'nin' Bread." It is here that a superb call-and-response exchange between Morello's drums and
Brubeck's piano is rendered. The song "Camptown Races" is featured here in two takes. Its mood and rhythmic power is intense and uplifting, pulling the listener into its dreamy percussive web. One can almost feel the crowd of thousands cheering a group of racehorses making their way around the turn to a photo finish.