Cannonball Adderley gave up his own band in 1957 when he had the opportunity to become a sideman in
Miles Davis' epic ensemble with
John Coltrane, eventually resulting in some of the greatest jazz recordings of all time (including Milestones and
Kind of Blue).
Davis returned the favor in March of 1958, appearing as a sideman on
Adderley's all-star quintet date for Blue Note, and the resulting session is indeed
Somethin' Else. Both horn players are at their peak of lyrical invention, crafting gorgeous, flowing blues lines on the title tune and "One for Daddy-O," as the rhythm team (
Hank Jones,
Sam Jones,
Art Blakey) creates a taut, focused groove (pianist
Hank Jones' sly, intuitive orchestrations are studies of harmonic understatement).
Adderley's lush, romantic improvisation on "Dancing in the Dark" is worthy of
Charlie Parker or
Johnny Hodges, while the band refurbishes "Autumn Leaves" and "Love for Sale" into cliché-free swingers. And "Alison's Uncle" puts a boppish coda on
Somethin' Else, one of the most gloriously laid-back blowing sessions of the hard bop era.