The Dave Brubeck Quartet: Jazz: Red Hot And Cool

The "red hot" in the title comes from this album's cover photograph. A lovely model with bright red attire worked with Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond to provide the visual nightclub perspective. The "cool," of course, comes from the quartet's music. Recorded at Basin Street in New York at three dates in 1954 and '55, The Dave Brubeck Quartet works through several programs that offered happy-go-lucky fare. It's the kind that had already led Brubeck and Desmond to success. This version of the quartet features Bob Bates and Joe Dodge. San Franciscans all, the foursome provides cohesive interplay with mellow refrains. "Love Walked In," for example, offers both smooth group counterpoint and fluid soloing, typical of the work from Brubeck and Desmond. Two previously unreleased tracks, "Taking a Chance on Love" and Brubeck's "Closing Time Blues," offer up-tempo adventures that should have been issued long ago. Brubeck solos on the former with spirits soaring, while the latter drives with a pleasant bounce, featuring piano. Wire brushes and walking bass characterize all the sessions, while these last two add a little more. With its great sound reproduction, Jazz: Red Hot And Cool offers an accurate glimpse of the quartet's attractiveness and adds several unexpected surprises.

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