Bill Evans

THIS IS IT. The breakthrough. The pinnacle of spontaneous musical communication. Three men breathing as one on a tiny bandstand. Everything Bill Evans, Scott LaFaro and Paul Motian have been working on for the previous 18 month led to this moment. The intimate, contrapuntal dialogues between Evan's poetic piano and LaFaro's bass, as swift as the wind. Motian's sustained riveted ride cymbal providing a carpet of stars. The ballads, as deep and heartbreaking as any wee-small-hours Sinatra. The starlingly beautiful bass solos, so sensitively recorded. The mobile rhythms and quietly interweaving phrases. There is a fresh discovery here: take 1 of LaFaro's "Gloria's Step", an ever-so-slightly flawed beauty. There is the clear-eyed annotation of Orin Keepnews, producer of all of Evan's Riverside albums. And finally, there is the crowning glory of these performances, the last ever by this singular trio. This is it.
- From the original liner notes.

PERSONNEL:

BILL EVANS, piano
SCOTT LaFARO, bass
PAUL MOTIAN, drums

Recorded at the Village Vanguard, New York, June 25, 1961

DISC ONE:

SIDE A
01. Spoken Introduction
02. Gloria's Step
03. Alice in Wonderland (Take 1)

SIDE B
01. My Foolish Heart
02. All of You (Take 1)
03. Announcement and Intermission

DISC TWO

SIDE A
01. My Romance (Take 1)
02. Some Other Time
03. Solar

SIDE B
01. Gloria's Step (Take 2)
02. My Man's Gone Now
03. All of You (Take 2)

DISC THREE

SIDE A
01. Detour Ahead
02. Discussing Reportoire
03. Waltz for Debby
04. Alice in Wonderland (Take 2)

SIDE B
01. Porgy (I Loves You, Porgy)
02. My Romance (Take 2)
03. Milestones

DISC FOUR

SIDE A
01. Detour Ahead (Take 2)
02. Gloria's Step (Take 3)
03. Waltz for Debby (Take 2)

SIDE B
01. All of You (Take 3)
02. Jade Visions (Take 1)
03. Jade Visions (Take 2)
04. ...a Few Final Bars