The second of three volumes recorded in 1975 featuring tenorist
Clifford Jordan with
Cedar Walton,
Sam Jones, and
Billy Higgins finds the quartet in top form.
Walton's "Midnight Waltz" is the first of three extended performances, the upbeat midtempo waltz featuring a rollicking solo by its composer, while
Jordan's suave playing is buoyed by
Higgins' driving rhythm.
Walton's "Bleecker Street Theme" sounds more like a set closer due to its barely one-minute length; then the focus turns to standards, including a spacious treatment of "I Should Care" that has
Jordan taking quite a few liberties with the melody from the very beginning, followed by a glistening interpretation of "Stella by Starlight." The CD reissue adds
Higgins' tribute "Alias Buster Williams," which opens with a drum solo and then transforms into an uptempo post-bop setting with a Latin undercurrent as the band is added. ~ Ken Dryden