The legendary octogenarian bassist Buster Williams focuses on lyricism and grace (what a surprise) on this latest session of his as a leader. He’s teamed with some of the best and brightest with Lenny White/dr, George Colligan/p, Stefon Harris/vib and Bruce Williams/ss-as with the added allure of the cirrus clouded voice of Jean Baylor.
Williams voice guides and directs, doing some nice swinging solos with the rhythm team on the peppy “Tayamisha” and giving a nice intro to pass off to Colligan and Baylor for a sassy “I’ve Got THE World On A String”. He also does some nice work with Harris’ vibes, creating droplets with Harris as Baylor is dreamlike on “The Wisdom of Silence”. Bruce Williams alto sax is fluffy on “In The Middle Of The Night” while his soprano teams up with the modern soundn gBaylor on a hip back beat take of “42nd Street”. The closing trio of bass,piano and voice on “Here’s To Life” is worth the price of admission, with intimacy and vulnerable support making you want an entire album of the same. Timeless tastes.