Curtis Fuller - Four on the Outside (1978) [2015 Timeless Jazz Master Collection] CD-Rip

An explosive late 70s moment of brilliance from trombonist Curtis Fuller – and one of his greatest albums of the time! The set's got Fuller working with an unusual group – Pepper Adams on baritone sax, making for a nice "bottom" alongside Fuller's trombone, plus James Williams, borrowed from Art Blakey's group of the time – and really stepping out here with some great soaring piano lines. The rest of the quintet features Dennis Irwin on bass and John Yarling on drums – but the real boss of the set is clearly Fuller, who's contributed some wonderful originals to the session, and is clearly working with a re-kindled spirit at this point in his career. Titles include "Four On The Outside", "Suite Kathy", "Little Dreams", "Ballad For Gabe-Wells", and "Corrida Del Torro".
While Curtis Fuller may have reached his peak in the 1960s, he continued to be an important voice well into the 1970s and beyond. This delightful set features him in a front line with Pepper Adams, and the trombone-baritone saxophone combination was a natural. (Curiously, few others have followed this intriguing coupling.) While there is no new ground broken, Adams and Fuller negotiate tunes mostly written by Fuller, with simple, yet elegant heads. The version of "Hello Young Lovers" is characteristically conservative, yet sharp and well rehearsed. Fuller's nasal tone, machine gun-like spurts, and focus on the middle range on his horn complements Adams' angular, boppish lines. The fine rhythm section of pianist James Williams, bassist Dennis Irwin, and drummer John Yarling never gets in the way, but lets the horns spread their wings.

Tracks:

01 - Four On The Outside
02 - Suite Kathy
03 - Hello Young Lovers
04 - Little Dreams
05 - Ballad For Gabe-Wells
06 - Corrida Del Torro

Personnel:

Curtis Fuller - trombone
Pepper Adams - baritone saxophone
James Williams - piano
Dennis Irwin - bass
John Yarling - drums