By 1962,
Gary Burton
was known as a talented young vibraphonist, one who had already proven himself as a sideman and was breaking new ground as a master technician on his instrument, utilizing four mallets simultaneously with seemingly little effort. Joining him on this sophomore outing is a septet that includes
Clark Terry
,
Phil Woods
, and
Joe Morello
. The playlist is anything but predictable, with two exciting originals by drummer and trombonium player
Chris Swansen
(a fellow Berklee alum), a well-crafted arrangement of
George Shearing
's "Conception," an elegant take of "My Funny Valentine" with a gorgeous fluegelhorn solo by
Terry
, and an obscure but high-energy work by
Jaki Byard
, "One Note." Although
Burton
is obviously a very confident soloist, he feels no need to hog the spotlight (a common mistake by young jazz musicians in later decades), as he is happy to step back and let the veterans take center stage. ~ Ken Dryden