Paul Chambers
Quintet

What matters, for Paul Chambers, becomes clear after the first moments of the first track, "Minor Run-Down." More than speed, more than virtuosity (which is obviously present), what matters is the feeling. An album like "Quintet" is all about the feeling. There is virtuosity, of course, but with a sense behind it, they're not random notes, it's not a show of skill. Because there is another way to show you're the best, and that's by playing music that makes sense, that communicates something.

Paul Chambers surrounds himself here with great musicians (Elvin Jones, Tommy Flanagan, Donald Byrd, and Clifford Jordan), musicians who know their craft, but above all, know when to stop, they know there's a boundary not to cross, and they stay within it, and that's where they have fun, where they create their art. This is what it means to be a musician, more than being hyper-technical and hyper-talented, what matters is to convey, it's the feeling. How you play, as well as what you play. Take Clifford Jordan, for example, and his solo on "The Hand Of Love" (one of the two pieces, along with the concluding "Beauteous", written by Chambers). A simple solo, but there's awareness, there are ideas, there are the right notes and only those. Nothing else is needed. It takes little, just stop at the right moment to give meaning to what was said before. It takes little, just a theme like that of "Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise" played as it should be, say, by Mr. P.C.'s double bass, and magic is made. And in that very piece, Jordan and Byrd don't even play, because sometimes it's necessary to give more space to the others, to the rhythm section, and a trio piece gives breath to the music, to the musicians, to the listeners.

What makes jazz great? There are many factors, one of the main ones is certainly the interplay, truly playing together. This album is a great example of how to play together, listen, just to give an example, to the drum and bass work on the theme of "The Hand Of Love": Elvin and Paul don't do anything technically impossible, but it's a beautiful figure they draw. In short, this album is a bit like that, from Paul Chambers' stunning solo on "Minor Run-Down" (something incredible, believe me) to the contrast between Clifford Jordan's (simplicity and taste) and Donald Byrd's solo (which recalls bebop), up to Flanagan's original phrasing and counterpoints, everything is aimed at swing, everything makes sense. "Quintet" didn't revolutionize jazz music, it wasn't the protagonists' intent to do so, but it's without a doubt among the must-have masterpieces, without overthinking.

1. Minor Run-Down (Benny Golson)

2. The Hand Of Love (Paul Chambers)

3. Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise (S. Romberg, O. Hammerstein)

4. Four Strings (Benny Golson)

5. What's New (B. Haggart, J. Burke)

6. Beauteous (Paul Chambers)