The liner notes, the originals of which are included with this reissue, reflect that "this is not experimental jazz." It isn't. It is finely performed mainstream jazz of the era in which it was made. While this recording does not equal the quality of the sessions to be recorded by
Shorter later in the decade for Blue Note, it is pleasantly played bop.
Shorter's tenor saxophone shows a conservative side, to be sure, and a young
Freddie Hubbard hardly takes any chances. Still, the rhythm section anchored by pianist
Eddie Higgins and including bassist
Jymie Merritt and drummer
Marshall Thompson, keeps a solid beat and the results are pleasant enough. Double takes of all but one of the eight charts is included, though there are really not any important substantive differences from the originals. The short recording times of each track limits the solos, but there is nonetheless an attractive simplicity infusing the set. Overall, this does not represent the best work of either
Shorter or
Hubbard, but it is still an interesting, if non-essential part of the discography of each of them. ~ Steven Loewy