1986 · Album
New Wine in Old Bottles
Recorded 1978 · East Wind · Produced by Not specified in verified sources
Fast Thinking in a Working Trio
McLean's alto cuts sharper here than it did on his European records, pushed by a rhythm section that won't let him coast.
In 1978, Jackie McLean walked into a studio with three musicians who already knew each other cold: Hank Jones on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums. The Great Jazz Trio was a working band, not a pickup group assembled for the session. That matters. There's a tightness that comes from players who have been in the room together regularly, who understand each other's moves without negotiation. McLean's alto benefited from that stability. Robert Christgau heard it clearly when he reviewed the album: McLean's work here surpassed his European SteepleChase recordings because Jones, Carter, and Williams pushed him to think as fast as he could play. That's the whole thing right there. You can hear it in the ease of the interplay, the way the rhythm section anticipates without constraining. This isn't McLean at his absolute peak—that was years behind him—but it's a genuinely strong record where an older player still had sharp ideas and found the right setting for them. AllMusic gave it 4½ stars and noted that pairing McLean with an already-cohesive unit was an inspired move. The album landed well enough that it mattered to people who cared about modern jazz in the late 70s, but it's not a household name even among jazz listeners. If you know McLean's work and want to hear him engaged and swinging without any sense of coasting, this is worth hearing.
Who's playing
Where next?
More by Jackie McLean
All 46 albums →
The musicians on this record
Where? 1961
Ron Carter
plays double bass here
plays double bass here
Civilization 1987
Tony Williams
plays drums (drum set) here
plays drums (drum set) here
Carnaval 1983
Hank Jones
plays piano here
plays piano here
