Dave Brubeck Quartet - Live in Belgium (1964)

Tracks:
01 St. Louis Blues
02 Koto Song
03 Three To Get Ready
04 In Your Own Sweet Way
05 Take Five

Line-up:
Dave Brubeck - piano
Paul Desmond - alto saxophone
Eugene Wright - bass
Joe Morello - drums

Paul Desmond - Skylark (1973)

Moving over to the CTI label with Creed Taylor, Paul Desmond injects a bit of the 1970s into his sound, obtaining agreeable if not totally simpatico results. Here, the cool altoist is teamed with the progressive-slanted drumming of Jack DeJohnette (who might have been too busy a drummer for his taste), and Bob James' electric and acoustic pianos, with Ron Carter as the bass anchor, Gene Bertoncini on rhythm guitar, and, most interestingly, another individualist, Gabor Szabo, on solo electric guitar. For the first and only time, even taking into account the most inspired moments of Jim Hall, Desmond is not the most interesting soloist on his own record, for it is Szabo who most consistently draws you in with his mesmerizing incantations over vamps from the rhythm section. For those who missed it the first time, Desmond remakes "Take Ten" -- without the Middle Eastern elements -- "Romance de Amor" is eventually dominated by Szabo, and the inclusion of "Was a Sunny Day" proves that Desmond's involvement with the music of Paul Simon in 1970 was not a passing infatuation. Don Sebesky is credited with the "arrangements" but his orchestrating hand is not felt except for a single solo cello (George Ricci) in an adaptation of Purcell ("Music for a While"). It's a cautious change of pace for Desmond, although the fiercer context into which he was placed doesn't really fire his imagination.

by Richard S. Ginell at All Music Guide.

Styles:
Cool
Easy Pop
Ballads
Bossa Nova

Tracks:
01 Take Ten
02 Romance de Amor
03 Was a Sunny Day
04 Music for a While
05 Skylark
06 Indian Summer

Line-up:
Paul Desmond - alto saxophone
Gabor Szabo - guitar (soloist)
Gene Bertoncini - guitar
Ron Carter - bass
Jack DeJohnette - drums
Bob James - piano / electric piano
Hilary James - piano / electric piano
Ralph MacDonald - percussion
George Ricci - cello

The Dave Brubeck Quartet - Time Out (1959)

Dave Brubeck's defining masterpiece, Time Out is one of the most rhythmically innovative albums in jazz history, the first to consciously explore time signatures outside of the standard 4/4 beat or 3/4 waltz time. It was a risky move -- Brubeck's record company wasn't keen on releasing such an arty project, and many critics initially roasted him for tampering with jazz's rhythmic foundation. But for once, public taste was more advanced than that of the critics. Buoyed by a hit single in altoist Paul Desmond's ubiquitous "Take Five," Time Out became an unexpectedly huge success, and still ranks as one of the most popular jazz albums ever. That's a testament to Brubeck and Desmond's abilities as composers, because Time Out is full of challenges both subtle and overt -- it's just that they're not jarring. Brubeck's classic "Blue Rondo à la Turk" blends jazz with classical form and Turkish folk rhythms, while "Take Five," despite its overexposure, really is a masterpiece; listen to how well Desmond's solo phrasing fits the 5/4 meter, and how much Joe Morello's drum solo bends time without getting lost. The other selections are richly melodic as well, and even when the meters are even, the group sets up shifting polyrhythmic counterpoints that nod to African and Eastern musics. Some have come to disdain Time Out as it's become increasingly synonymous with upscale coffeehouse ambience, but as someone once said of Shakespeare, it's really very good in spite of the people who like it. It doesn't just sound sophisticated -- it really is sophisticated music, which lends itself to cerebral appreciation, yet never stops swinging. Countless other musicians built on its pioneering experiments, yet it's amazingly accessible for all its advanced thinking, a rare feat in any art form. This belongs in even the most rudimentary

by Steve Huey at All Music Guide.

Styles:
Cool
West Coast Jazz

Tracks:
01 Blue Rondo à la Turk
02 Strange Meadow Lark
03 Take Five
04 Three to get Ready
05 Kathy's Waltz
06 Everybody's Jumpin'
07 Pick Up Sticks

Line-up:
Dave Brubeck - piano,
Paul Desmond - alto saxophone
Joe Morello - drums
Eugene Wright - bass