Art Farmer

Coming of age at the dawn of the bebop era, Art Farmer rejected the mechanical playing much of bebop seemed to encourage. Instead, Farmer became known for his warm, fluid tone, and his ability to make the trumpet sing like a tender yet stately baritone voice. On Modern Art (United Artists Records UAS-5007), his last small group collaboration with Bill Evans –with whom he had first recorded in 1956–, Farmer emphasizes style over technique. The group swings with both authority and subtlety on all eight tracks, making this album one of the best records of this period. A series of dates recorded that same year, which feature both Farmer and Evans with alto saxophonist Hal McKusick, have been added here as a bonus.