Steve Davis Steve Davis Meets Hank Jones, Vol. 1 LP

TAS Rated 5/5 Music, 4.5/5 Sonics in the March 2024 Issue of The Absolute Sound!

Steve Davis Meets Hank Jones, Volume 1 was recorded in 2008, a little less than two years before Hank Jones passed away at age 91. This unusual, never-before-released session was intended as a follow-up to Davis' Eloquence recorded a year earlier but is only now being made available. It features the unusual and sparse trio instrumentation of trombone, piano and bass. This minimalist ensemble was intended to evoke the sound of the storied and now-closed Manhattan club Bradley's, where Jones worked often. Critic Ted Panken - who wrote the liner notes for this album, was well versed in Jones' recordings and was working with Jones on his unfinished memoir - calls this music "some of the finest, if not the finest, late career recordings of Hank Jones." Volume 1 features the slower ballads from this session and some of its very best moments.

"Isn't It Romantic," the beloved Rodgers and Hart standard, is the kickoff single from the album Steve Davis Meets Hank Jones, Volume 1. Jones begins this memorable version with a brief piano introduction before Davis renders the familiar melody on trombone with bucket mute. Jones solos first followed by a clearly inspired trombone on chorus by Davis. It's straightforward, unaffected perfection.

Throughout this superb album, Jones' exquisite and organic unpredictability is the very essence of effortless mastery.