Album Reviews

This is delightful. It finds Marsalis's quintet joined by the great French accordion player, Richard Galliano, working contentedly through a concert of songs associated with two great singers. The live setting inspires both Marsalis and Galliano to give of their best, and there is also fine work from pianist Dan Nimmer and saxophonist Walter Blanding. There are splendid solos throughout, with Marsalis's trumpet work often scintillating, but Galliano is the star of the show. AV

Cannonball Adderley: Cannonball's Sharpshooters (American Jazz Classics) 9.99

A fine reissue this, featuring the great Adderley at the head of his own quintet for a typically rumbustious charge through a series of standards and bop staples in 1957/58. Partnered as ever by his brother, Nat, on cornet, Adderley's blues-soaked alto playing on Fuller Bop Man, Our Delight, Stay On It and Straight No Chaser, remains so fresh that it might have been recorded yesterday. This is joyous, unpretentious jazz that sets out to swing hard and succeeds. AV

Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet (excerpts) Naxos 8.572193 (5.99)

Probably the best brass band recording ever made. It comes from Norway and the amateur Eikanger-Bjorsvik Band, three of its members creating the most innovative arrangement to recreate Prokofiev's original sounds. Fourteen tracks of the most familiar parts of the ballet, including the big dramatic scenes, requiring the techniques most bands just don't possess. They have the famous symphonic conductor, Bjarte Engeset, at the helm, never sparing the extremely fast tempos required. Simply staggeringly brilliant and superbly recorded. DD

Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet LSO Live LSO0682 (2CDs) (13.99)

And now for the real thing with the charismatic Russian, Valery Gergiev, directing a punchy, highly charged, and superbly played performance from the London Symphony. His tempos are more akin to the theatre than the concert hall, avoiding the high-speed chase through such moments as the Death of Tybalt, and exploring the many subtle colours. Instrumental solos are of the highest quality, while the brass hammers home the angst of the story. The sound is finely detailed and wide in dynamic range. DD