Elvin Jones Dear John C. on Hybrid SACD

Elvin Jones was nearing the end of his long stay with John Coltrane when he led these sessions in 1965, and while the style is small-group post-bop, the music is very different from the thick textures of the Coltrane quartet. The core band is a trio with the Charlie Parker-influenced alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano and the brilliant bassist Richard Davis. Mariano soars overhead on a series of lyrical standards, including "Everything Happens to Me" and "This Love of Mine." Roland Hanna joins the group for the first three selections, and Elvin's brother, Hank for the last four. Of the Hanna tracks, Charles Mingus's "Love Bird" stands out, while Hank Jones' crisp and inventive lines shine on the classic bop of "Anthropology" and Ellington's "Fantazm."