This came out in 2002 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Maybe it’s because most of the big-name pop and rock acts are hibernating. Maybe it’s because I spent the last month swinging to the Rat Pack Christmas album. Or maybe it’s just because they both start with the letters J and A. Whatever. All I know is I always seem to listen to a lot of jazz in January. Looks like this year is no exception — thanks mainly to a cornucopia of cool titles that landed in stores before the holidays. At least four respected labels — Blue Note, ECM, Impulse and Verve — have impressive and affordable new retrospectives or reissues on the racks right now. Even if you don’t know be-bop from doo-wop, I suggest you give one or two a try. Here’s a little primer to help you get into the swing on Gary Burton:
WHO: Perhaps the most influential vibraphone player of modern times, fusion pioneer Burton possesses an exceptional four-mallet technique that sounds like two or three players going at once.
WHEN: He put out his debut album as a leader in 1961 at the tender age of 18; decades later, he’s still going strong.
WHAT YOU GET: A nonet of graceful, modern-tinged tracks recorded by Burton’s quartets and quintets (which often included guitarist Pat Metheny) in the ’70s and ’80s — all featuring the crystalline, ringing tone and gentle melodicism that are his trademarks.
WHERE HE FITS IN: As the rightful heir to Lionel Hampton’s throne.
