Emily Remler - Transitions (1983)

Guitarist Emily Remler's third Concord recording was a strong step forward, as she started to really get away from her early Wes Montgomery/Herb Ellis influence and find a voice of her own. Rather than a standard piano-bass-drums trio, Remler teams up with trumpeter John D'Earth, bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Bob Moses. Her three originals are challenging, and the quartet also performs Sam Jones' swinging "Del Sasser," Duke Ellington's lesser-known "Searchin'" and Keith Jarrett's "Coral." Throughout, Remler shows that her future lay beyond straight-ahead bebop, although as it turned out, she would not live long enough to be as influential as she would have been. All in all, this is one of the strongest of the six Emily Remler Concord recordings.