Paul Desmond

• 180 GRAM VINYL PRESSING FROM PALLAS/GERMANY

• PURE ANALOGUE, AUDIPHILE MASTERING

• 4 1/2 STARS ALL MUSIC GUIDE

Why should you buy this LP? 1. Because of its super sound? Of course! 2. Because Paul Desmond and Jim Hall are playing? Naturally! 3. For "Easy Living"? Surely one of the best numbers in one of the most multifaceted versions! 4. Because you missed out on the first release in 1966? Well, don’t make the same mistake this year

Not everyone wants to purchase all Victor recordings by Paul Desmond and Jim Hall with umpteen alternate takes in a voluminous CD Box, to listen to it all, and to find it just wonderful to show off on the record shelf. The eight numbers on "Easy Living" constitute the height of Desmond’s career anyway after he had at last managed to take his leave from Dave Brubeck’s group. And the change from purely chordal playing and single notes from Jim Hall is more airy and more inspiring than the meaty piano clusters of his former boss. And don’t forget either that half of the Modern Jazz Quartet, namely the bassist Percy Heath and the drummer Connie Kay, deliver an exquisite skeletal structure over which the musicians can improvise brilliantly.

LPs are, and remain, unbeatable, both as regards sound and feel. And happily they are also a safe investment – maybe not all, but "Easy Living" with Paul Desmond and Jim Hall most definitely

PERSONNEL:

• Paul Desmond - (alto saxophone)
• Jim Hall - (guitar)
• Eugene Wright - (bass)
• Gene Cherico - (bass)
• Percy Heath - (bass)
• Connie Kay - (drums)

Recorded June 1963, July & September 1964, June 1965 at RCA Studio, New York City

TRACKS:

• SIDE A
• A1. When Joanna Loved Me
• A2. That Old Feeling
• A3. Polka Dots and Moonbeams
• A4. Here's That Rainy Day

• SIDE B
• B1. Easy Living
• B2. I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face
• B3. Bewitched
• B4. Blues For Fun