The young Swedish pianist
Jan Lundgren (28 at the time) teams up with two veterans (bassist
Jesper Lundgaard and drummer
Alex Riel) for some moody originals and hard-swinging standards on his debut CD.
Lundgren does not have an identifiable sound of his own but he does have control over the bop vocabulary and is able to interpret music in styles ranging from bop ("Oleo" and "There Is No Greater Love") and
Bobby Timmons-flavored hard bop ("Olivia") to a close imitation of
McCoy Tyner ("Conclusion").
Lundgren also has an appealing touch, shows maturity on the ballads (his restraint on "I See Your Face Before Me" is impressive) and with his trio the young pianist constructs a well-paced set. ~ Scott Yanow