My favorite Long Tall Dexter albums to date are ”One Flight Up”, ”Go” and this one. It sounds so good. The cymbals are very bright and the overall detail is superb. The volume is off the charts on this one as well, so I had to turn it down a bit, and that’s a good thing. Cut very hot I can imagine. This kind of sound on a jazz record just makes the whole experience so much sweeter, and you get really engaged when listening. Compared to when an album is poorly recorded or in not so great shape, the difference is staggering.
Great personell on this one with Dexter joined by Sonny Clark, Butch Warren and Billy Higgins.
I love that Billie Holidays ”Don’t Explain” is featured here cause it’s one of my favorite jazz ballads and Dexter was such a master of playing the ballad. His interpretation is so beautiful, sad, bittersweet and it’s probably my favorite tune on the album. Another one I enjoy a lot is the infectious Butch Warren penned ”The Backbone”.
All in all a lovely album which you should check out if you haven’t already.