Snake pit Delta blues and bottom-heavy funk find their way into one voice via G. Love s strangely effective hybrid of slide guitar, acoustic bass, and wobbly contrapuntal rhythms. Taking a more serious approach than he used to, Love is coming off with more maturity now, at the expense of some of the slap-happy fun. He somehow still manages to cover about seven decades of musical evolution in four minutes without sounding confused. Impulse s entire series of beautifully remastered re-issues is a treasure chest, and one of its finest jewels is Nelson s 1961 masterpiece. The all-star septet included Eric Dolphy and Freddie Hubbard, with a rhythm section featuring Bill Evans, Roy Haynes, and Paul Chambers.
Blues are the predominant motif, while the slightest hints of swing lurk in the shadows.
Dolphy, as usual, spearheads the abstractions, while Nelson takes the truth.