David Murray and Mal Waldron

This is a meeting that surprises but not for the obvious reasons. It’s a well played and recorded jazz CD by two of the senior practitioners of the form, with decades of great art behind them. The fun begins in the juxtapositions of two very distinct yet dissimilar musical personalities. Murray’s brawling virtuosity bursts at the seams with his trademark huge sound on tenor sax and bass clarinet, and his awe-inspiring command of harmonic facility. He simply is all over the horn in every way imaginable. Mal Waldron is the consummate accompanist, producing thoughtful and complete blocks of harmony for Murray to dance over. When he is alone on the track, his measured and understated extrapolations are joys to hear. Sometimes, however, the juxtaposition brings smiles, as Waldron’s reserve sounds almost ironic in the face of Murray’s assertiveness and provides a charm that reduces neither.