Standard Time, Vol.2: Intimacy Calling
As the title implies, this is a relaxed and intimate date much in the manner of those ages-old "for lovers only" discs that celebrated the romance and melody of jazz expression. The tempos are generally in the slow to medium range, and the moods are lovingly rendered. Wynton Marsalis's songbook here is strictly standard and classic, ranging from "You Don't Know What Love Is" to Thelonious Monk's "Crepuscule with Nellie" and "When Its Sleepy Time Down South," to a closing nod to Crescent City-street classicism, "Bourbon Street Parade." Employing a variety of mutes and expressive effects, Marsalis renders this program with simple piano, bass, and drum accompaniment for the most part, though tenor saxman Todd Williams and alto saxophonist Wessell Anderson join him for two selections.--Willard Jenkins