George Masso has been a solid swing/Dixieland trombonist for many years, and is currently playing in peak form. On this CD, in addition to his warm trombone solos (playing the melody with a lot of feeling on "But Beautiful") and a few short spots on piano,
Masso contributed all of the arrangements for an unusual tentet consisting of four trombones, trumpeter
Lou Colombo; Mark Phaneuf on baritone, flute, and clarient; Dick Johnson on clarinet and tenor, guitar, bass, and drums. The emphasis is on ballads and easy listening meldoies (even when the tempos are a little faster), making one wish that this date (which has some wonderful playing along the way) generated a great deal more heat. It is quite tasteful with some good spots from
Lou Colombo, but does not have all that much excitement. ~ Scott Yanow