Dedicated to Lee

AMG Review of Dedicated to Lee

Scott Yanow
All Music Guide

Despite its title (a name of a song from 1953), this set from the Swedish Dragon label is actually a tribute to the music of the late baritonist Lars Gullin rather than to Lee Konitz. Most of the selections (all Gullin compositions) feature altoist Konitz with an octet comprised of talented but fairly obscure Swedish players. Best known among the sidemen is trumpeter Jan Allan, who is featured on "Peter of April" in a quintet including Konitz; the altoist has "Happy Again" as his feature. Considering that all of the music is obscure outside of Sweden ("Danny's Dream" is the best-known song) and that the quality is quite high, this set is easily recommended to musicians looking for a fresher bop-based repertoire and to listeners who enjoy discovering "new" material.