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Wild Bill Jones | Interstate 10 | 05/12/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is by far the best way to acquire these two classic early-1970s LPs ("Tune Up" and "Constellation") by Stitt and pianist Barry Harris. Both records are right up at the top of Stitt's discography and feature the great reed man on both alto and tenor, playing tasty standards and bebop classics like "Just Friends," "Ray's Idea," Tadd Dameron's beautiful "Casbah," "Ghost of a Chance," etc. Of the two sessions, "Constellation" is slightly more relaxed, due partly to the sublimely tasteful and intuitive drumming of the undersung Roy Brooks. "Tune Up" has Alan Dawson on drums; Sam Jones handles the bass on both sessions. Barry Harris fans will eat these tracks up. Fantastic, and a nice package with photos and repros of the two original album covers; the tracks are here in their original order, too. If you like the bebop language, this disc delivers the goods. Very inspiring stuff."