Two Cool Voices, One Lyons Tribute
Getz and Baker, decades past their last session together, still fit like a glove on a brief Lyons duet.
Critics noticed this one, though it never became a major commercial event. Scott Yanow of AllMusic singled out the brief duet on Gerry Mulligan's "Line for Lyons" and wrote that the two players' cool-toned personalities fit together perfectly, even though Getz and Baker reportedly did not get along well personally. That tension is part of why the record is interesting: the music sounds more relaxed than the relationship behind it.
The title comes from Mulligan's tune, a tribute to Jimmy Lyons, which Baker had played so often with Mulligan's group that it became part of his standard repertoire. Here it appears as a short duet, and then the set moves on to six standards from the 1950s. Yanow's review ends on a note of regret that it had been 25 years since the pair last recorded together, which tells you how much the reunion appealed to listeners.
If you want to hear Getz in a looser setting, this is worth your time. It is a live document from Sweden, with George Mraz on double bass, Jim McNeely on piano, and Victor Lewis on drums, and it works best if you enjoy hearing two soft-spoken soloists trade ideas without fuss. It is not a major statement, but it is a pleasant and well-played reunion.
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