This hot & jazzy lil' CD starts off with a "sneaky" kinda' "low-crawl" bass riff (Doug Weiss) that I just DUG on... puts you right in th' mood for pub-crawlin', to be sure.  You know, late-night, cruisin' thru each & ev'ry one o' those smoky  joints to find that "Mecca" (of jazz) you always look for at 1:30 or 2:30 in the a.m.  Steve's vibes help to create that aura, too, & Annie Sellick's vocals are sweet & low!  It's not just the great recording/production on the album that will make it a (real) KEEPER, it's also the fact that all the players understand how important it is to have "the groove" together!  Track 2, "End Of The Road", was my personal favorite on the album, prob'ly 'coz it keeps that "alleycat" thang goin'... this is just th' kinda' thing those ol' "hep-cats" listened to in th' speak-easies, I've no doubt!  The best word I can think of to describe the music on "Low Standards" is "slinky"... another impression that "End Of The Road" created was that this cut would have served ever so well as the theme for "Twin Peaks"!  A really GREAT jazz album that gets a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED from us, particularly for those who love vibraphone!

— Dick Metcalf, aka Rotcod Zzaj
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