Two of a Mind
Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan helped to define the cool school with their light, almost vibratoless tones--Desmond's alto luminous and airy, Mulligan's baritone woolly and quietly gruff. They also shared a fondness for improvised counterpoint, and that's the defining characteristic of these 1962 sessions, from the theme statement of "All the Things You Are" with Mulligan echoing Desmond's lead. Like Mulligan's famous group with trumpeterChet Baker, this is a pianoless quartet, and the open harmonic atmosphere casts the saxophonists' interplay in high relief. Desmond's title tune and Mulligan's "Blight of the Fumble Bee" lead to extended passages of collective improvisation, while Mulligan often supplies Desmond with restrained counterlines. On "The Way You Look Tonight," the theme gradually emerges out of Desmond's part in an almost fuguelike improvisation. The LP-length recording took a surprising three sessions to produce, and there's a revolving door for rhythm sections. Drummer Connie Kay from theModern Jazz Quartetappears on two tracks with bassist Wendell Marshall and one with John Beal. DrummerMel Lewisteams with bassist Joe Benjamin on the other three. Despite that, there's nothing lacking in the quality of the support: the two saxophonists sound consistently--if quietly--inspired.--Stuart Broomer