The Great Session

AMG Review of The Great Session

Ken Dryden
All Music Guide

One of many recordings by Duke Jordan for Steeplechase, this trio session pairs the pianist with bassist David Friesen and drummer Philly Joe Jones. There's a bit of hyperbole in the album's title, as the play list is hardly adventurous and the arrangements are average, in spite of the strong personnel. The date opens with a rather perfunctory rendition of "All the Things You Are" that incorporates Dizzy Gillespie's famous introductory vamp, and a spacious "Moonglow" followed by Duke Ellington's overly recorded "Satin Doll," a piece even many Ellington fans are tired of hearing. Jones sets up "A Night in Tunisia" with an extended fiery solo, with Jordan and Friesen firing on all cylinders in a romp through this bop standard. Friesen's delicious walking bass is the highlight of "Blues in the Closet." The CD edition adds a previously unissued track, Jordan's warm, low-key ballad "Thinking of You."