I once read a description of Dave Frishberg that claimed he was Hoagy Carmichael meets Woody Allen. While there is a degree of truth in that, I don't think it does justice to range of musical talents and wit that Dave possesses. Who else could weave baseball, Zoot Sims, legal shysters, Multiplication Rock, social commentary, and incidentally some tickling of the ivories into a memorable and fun filled time? And in concert, its generally just him and a piano.

Frank Morgan's take on Wayne Shorter's Footprints is an interesting take on hard bop classic with a slightly more modern feel. John Schofield follows up with electric-tinged journey into hinterlands of the avant-garde almost like a journey in the post twilight hours without the benefit of a flash light or full-moon. Hank and Jimmy remind us once again of the simple but endearing drive that a swinging organ combo can deliver.

The third set continues the late night groove on into the wee hours. Kitty's twist on the The Night Has Thousand Eyes leads into the post-midnight hours and lands us squarely in front of a 2:00 o'clock prankster as orated by Ken Nordine followed by the sounds that could easily be an early morning caravan moving through the night. The transition into Woody Herman is easy, as Woody just puts the caravan into high gear.

In a one of the kind pairing, Duke and Trane went into Rudy VanGelder's studio in 1962 and laid down the tracks for this classic old school meets new school outing that is essentially Trane's early 60s quartet but with Duke Ellington as opposed to McCoy Tyner on piano. The ease in which Duke and Trane step into each other's stylistic home turf is a testimony of the depth of their musicianship. Similarly, Wynton Marsalis delivers a modern take on Big Butter and Egg Man but with all of the historic sincerity and sensibility afforded.

Closing out we hear Dave Frishberg in a small group setting. When first recorded around 1930, Ship Without a Sail a bright up tempo piece, but here Dave takes it on a slow saunter with remarkable success. It's usually a simple task to take a ballad up tempo, but the converse is not always so easy.