To celebrate his 65th birthday, the influential flutist
Herbie Mann played for a week at the Blue Note in New York, along with some of his favorite musicians. Among the many guests on this CD are such notables as trumpeters
Claudio Roditi and
Randy Brecker, altoists
David "Fathead" Newman,
Paquito D'Rivera and
Bobby Watson, fellow flutist
Dave Valentin,
Tito Puente on timbales and several rhythm sections. Alternating between Brazilian music, vintage funk jazz (such as "Memphis Underground"), a catchy boogaloo blues ("Dippermouth") and a few straight-ahead tracks ("Au Privave" and "Jeep's Blues"), the flutist sounds as if he had a great time. The diverse music is consistently infectious and joyful, with all eight selections well worth hearing. Highly recommended. ~ Scott Yanow