You Must Believe In Spring

Dutchman Jan Verwey, like Belgian great Toots Thielemans, is a virtuoso harmonica player, though he isn't widely known outside of Europe. Unlike Thielemans, who has had numerous opportunities to record as a leader, Verwey has done so only sporadically. He's joined for this 1992 studio session by pianist Jack van Poll, flugelhornist Angelo Verploegen (who appears on just two songs), drummer John Engels Jr., and bassist Hein van de Geijn, all of whom play at a high level. Verwey invites comparison to Thielemans by covering a number of standards and jazz compositions previously recorded by the Belgian. His lyrical takes of Herbie Hancock's "Dolphin Dance" and Michel Legrand's "You Must Believe in Spring" are impressive. The unaccompanied introduction to "Nardis," which utilizes the fiendishly difficult octave technique, is stunning; his delicious exchanges with Verploegen in a brisk take of "Bouncin' With Bud" are also a delight. His original "Theme for Joke" is a reworking of the chord changes to the standard "You Stepped Out of a Dream." While jazz greats such as Phil Woods have long been aware of Verwey's abilities, he merits more attention from the jazz press and jazz radio, though one of his greatest hurdles is the poor distribution of labels like Timeless in the United States. Highly recommended.