Live At the 1972 Monterey Jazz Festival

The Giants of Jazz was not only an impressive all-star ensemble; the group brought together artists with nicely contrasting sensibilities. (It’s not often that you get to hear Thelonious Monk play with the Danish-born trombonist Kai Winding.) The Giants of Jazz were only around for about a year, and on this recording the original trumpeter, Dizzy Gillespie, is absent. But two other excellent players fill in: the swing master Roy Eldridge (who influenced Gillespie) and hard-bopper Clark Terry, who also plays flugelhorn. This live set is divided between three extended jazz pieces, and a number of standards. It’s great to hear these musicians jam out on the longer tracks, but the ballads are something to behold. Roy Eldridge’s solo on George Gershwin’s “The Man I Love” is charged, and check out Clark Terry’s delicious flugelhorn on Hoagy Carmichael’s “Stardust.” Another gem is Monk’s “Round Midnight,” where the pianist displays his inimitable touch and Sonny Stitt’s brief alto sax solo shines. The closer, “Night in Tunisia,” opens with an intro by drummer Art Blakey, who later lets loose a solo that breathes fire