This disc joins the final two studio albums of Bobby Timmons (1935-1974), recorded for Milestone in 1967 and 1968, respectively. A major figure in the soul-jazz movement of the late-1950s/early-'60s, the pianist-composer was a fine, funky soloist whose work as featured sideman and leader infused the bebop orthodoxy with large helpings of blues and gospel. Timmons's best- known originals, strong blues and gospel-inspired melodies like "Dis Here," "Dat Dere," and especially "Moanin'," remain widely performed modern jazz standards. The music herein surely displays the hallmarks of Timmons's style, but he's also heard in a wider range of settings, both compositional and orchestral. Backed by either a Tom McIntosh-arranged all-star octet, sometimes with voices added, or two different quartets (both featuring the much-underrated guitarist Joe Beck), Timmons artfully ranges from two generations of tuneful pop to jazz classics by Ellington, Strayhorn, and Monk, plus five of his own pieces.

with Jimmy Owens, Hubert Laws, James Moody, Joe Farrell, George Barrow, Eric Gale, Ron Carter, Billy Higgins, Howard Collins, Jimmy Cobb, Joe Beck, Bob Cranshaw, Jack DeJohnette