If you're anywhere near as much of a jazz fan as I am, you'll jump right on this!  Rich Thompson's drums are subtle, but fully present in th' mix, Jeff Campbell's bass reminds me of David Friesen's (in spots), & Clay Jenkins trumpet is about as punctual as you'll ever hear.  In fact, that's what's most striking about the music they play on here... it's right ON TIME.  This round isn't all originals… they've featured tunes from John Coltrane, Lee Morgan & Mal Waldron, too.  Thompson is the "leader" of this group, but it's almost like they're all in "lead" positions.  In no way do any of the players "step" on each other - this is a precision team that are "wound" right into each others' psyches (I think).  This is th' kinda' jazz that has "meat" on it's bones, with somethin' for each & ev'ry listener to groove to.  It's just th' kind of material I was fortunate enough to "grow up" on, during my first tour to Germany (1965-1968).  It's not easy to pull off jazz that sounds so great, either, when there's only a horn out front... no guitar or keyboard to "refer" to… means th' players have to be right "in synch" with where th' tune is heading.  If you've never really listened to much jazz before, this is one of the best places for you to start… I mean, it's ALL here!  I give this one a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

— Dick Metcalf, aka Rotcod Zzaj
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