Waldron, Mal Sextet: Mal/2 (Original Jazz Classics) LP

Pianist Mal Waldron was a prolific composer, arranger and musician, who released more than 100 albums as a leader (including numerous film scores) during his five-decade-long career. Revered for his versatility and blues-forward, innovative stylings, Waldron also served as the house pianist at Prestige Records and was an in-demand accompanist who played for Billie Holiday and Abbey Lincoln and served as a sideman for Charles Mingus, John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy, among others. In 1957, Waldron was ready to break out on his own with Mal/1 and, several months later, Mal/2. While his debut was well received, Mal/2 found the pianist taking his work to the next level – and recruiting some of the era's most exciting musicians. In addition to trumpeter Idrees Sulieman and bassist Julian Euell (who both appeared on Mal/1), Waldron was joined by rising star John Coltrane (tenor saxophone), who had recently recorded his own debut as a leader. Also splitting duties on horns were Sahib Shihab (alto/baritone sax), Jackie McLean (alto sax) and Bill Hardman (trumpet), while drums were handled by Ed Thigpen and Art Taylor. In a variety of sextet settings, the musicians nimbly perform Waldron originals (the moody "One by One," the energetic "Potpourri" and "J.M.'s Dream Doll," named for McLean, who delivers a standout solo) and standards, including Cole Porter's joyful classic "From This Moment On" and Fields/Kern's "The Way You Look Tonight." A bluesy, hard-bop gem in Waldron's extensive catalog, this long out-of-print classic was hailed as "a cut above" its contemporaries by AllMusic, which also praised its "engaging and original...arrangements."