Elvin Jones - Midnight Walk (Atlantic, 1967)

After Trane's passing, and after the previous couple years of being a blistering powerhouse of polyrhythms, it seems as though Elvin Jones needed something fun to play. He got with his brother, trumpeter Thad Jones, and they recording some good time, funky, soulful r & B numbers. The title Midnight Walk basically explains the vibe of this record. Not much avant-garde here, just lots of simple yet lovely and catchy numbers.

With the great Hank Mobley on tenor sax, solid Donald Moore on bass and the legendary Dollar Brand on piano, this is a classic crew of heavy hitters. The chemistry between these players is outstanding. Of course, as bandleader and as the greatest drummer of all time (says I), Elvin can't help but still knock our socks off at several points on the record. You have to listen closely. The brilliance is in the subtlety of Elvin's playing. Check the busy undercurrents, the explosive drum fills, notice how Tintiyana begins, tension created by imposing a 4/4 line on his 3/4 drumming.

And if this line-up wasn't heavy enough, the record was engineered by Tom Dowd. Wow, this one gets me every time...