When the
Dave Brubeck Quartet broke up in 1967,
Paul Desmond worked sporadically playing live dates, probably in part due to his substantial royalty income from his hit composition
"Take Five." When
Jim Hall was unavailable to play with
Desmond in Canada, he recommended guitarist
Ed Bickert who, like
Hall, is a brilliant accompanist with the kind of musical E.S.P. that
Desmond had with
Brubeck. Bassist
Don Thompson (who is also a fine pianist and vibraphonist) and drummer
Jerry Fuller round out this solid quartet, which worked off and with
Desmond when he played in Canada during the remainder of his life. These sessions, drawn from several nights at
Bourbon Street in Toronto during the fall of 1975, are intimate performances enjoyed by attentive audiences. The selections include songs that
Desmond had recorded with
Brubeck or
Gerry Mulligan, along with tunes he had played on his own records.
Desmond's cool tone and witty quotes are a treat throughout the album. The toe-tapping blues
"Things Ain't What They Used to Be" showcases
Bickert's lyrical playing, along the subtly swinging work of
Thompson.
Desmond playful interpretation of
"Nancy (With the Laughing Face)" is typical of his recorded work. The most surprising track is the unusual setting of
"Take Five," which takes an exotic route near the beginning of the leader's solo, with a droning vamp underneath him. First released as a two-LP set by
Horizon/A&M in 1976, the album wasn't in print long due to the demise of
Horizon, though frustrated collectors welcomed the 2000
Verve CD edition, which not only fit all of the music onto a single disc, but added a previously unissued take of
Gerry Mulligan's
"Line for Lyons" along with the original liner notes by
Desmond and his good friend, journalist
Doug Ramsey, plus extensive updated notes by
Carl Woideck. This is easily the cream of the crop of
Paul Desmond's post-
Brubeck recordings as a leader and rivals the studio albums he recorded with
Jim Hall; it is unfortunate that
Desmond was diagnosed with lung cancer around the time this recording was first issued in 1976, which cut short a brilliant career far too soon. ~ Ken Dryden
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