When pianist
Pete Jolly
passed away in 2004, he was one of the last major survivors of the
West Coast jazz
scene of the 1950s. A powerful two-handed pianist influenced by
Bud Powell
but having his own style within straight-ahead
jazz
,
Jolly
worked in Los Angeles for decades, which led to him being underrated and often overlooked by the rest of the
world.
had a trio with bassist
Chuck Berghofer
and drummer
Nick Martinis
that lasted over 40 years. However just prior to the formation of that group,
often worked in a duo with bassist
Ralph Pena
. The music on this CD, of which originally only a dozen LPs were pressed, is rare in the extreme. It is taken from a 1960 tour of New Zealand and features
and
Pena
digging into a variety of
standards
and originals. Most unusual are the fairly early covers of
's
"Celia,"
George Wallington
's obscure
"Variations,"
Thelonious Monk
"Friday the Thirteenth."
and straight-ahead
piano collectors will definitely want this rare item. ~ Scott Yanow