Music from two different occasions are combined on this CD reissue. The four songs from 1960 match the great tenor
Gene Ammons with
Frank Wess (doubling on flute and tenor), organist
Johnny "Hammond" Smith, bassist
Doug Watkins, and drummer
Art Taylor.
Wess, one of jazz's great flutists, battles
Ammons on tenor to a draw on "Water Jug," while the leader takes "Angel Eyes" as his memorable feature. In addition,
Ammons is heard in 1962 with pianist
Mal Waldron, bassist
Wendell Marshall, and drummer
Ed Thigpen playing with great warmth on the ballads "You Go to My Head" and "It's the Talk of the Town." The latter set was one of
Ammons' final ones before serving a long prison sentence (drug-related), yet his interpretations are full of optimism. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow