A tribute to American jazz pianist/composer/arranger Geoffrey Keezer by British drummer Wellard and a choice selection of hard-bop orientated musicians playing pieces composed and arranged by Keezer as well as numbers by Wayne Shorter, Idrees Sulieman, Clifford Jordan and Cedar Walton along with a couple of standards by Sacha Distel and Cole Porter. The latter two arranged by Steve Fishwick.
Keezer, who came through the ranks of Art Blakey's Jazz Messangers, is very much ensconced in the idiom and he must surely have been delighted to hear these interpretations of his music. Indeed track 3 is in fact a brief spoken message from Keezer to Wellard.
Scannell blows tenor on all ten instrumental tracks as well as arranging Cedar Walton's Bolivia.
The musicians are split into two basic line-ups and both ensembles have that classic Blue Note feel to them with all of the musicians going for it in their solos.
Blakey (and beyond) lives! Lance
Proclamation (a); Accra (a); A message (b); Eternal Messenger (a); Accidentally Yours (a); Ping-Pong (c); Doublemint (d); Third Avenue (e); Bolivia (f); The Good Life (g); From This Moment on (h)
(a): Comp. Keezer
(b): Keezer speaking
(c): Comp. Shorter, arr. Keezer
(d): Comp. Sulieman arr. Don Sickler
(e): Comp. Clifford Jordan
(f): Comp. Walton arr. Scannell
(g): Comp. Distel arr. Fishwick
(h): Comp. Porter arr. Fishwick
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