Jazz journalist Mike Hennessey was responsible for putting together the Paris Reunion Band, a group of jazz all-stars who spent at least part of their careers based in Paris. Their debut album, French Cooking, was a studio date recorded in the summer of 1985, around the time of their first European tour. The band includes saxophonists Johnny Griffin and Nathan Davis, trumpeters Woody Shaw and Dizzy Reece, trombonist Slide Hampton, pianist Kenny Drew, bassist Jimmy Woode, and drummer Billy Brooks. Most of the musicians made names for themselves while living in their U.S. homeland (except for Reece, a Jamaica native). Nathan Davis is probably the least familiar name in the front line, because he spent a long period in Paris (1962-1969) following his discharge from the U.S. Army, and eventually returned to his homeland to become a jazz educator. He is a triple threat on tenor and soprano saxes as well as flute. Each member of the brass and reed sections contributed a cooking original to the date, while the solos and ensemble work are consistently inspired. Though the personnel changed somewhat after this initial recording, the Paris Reunion Band would continue to work off and on until 1989. ~ Ken Dryden, Rovi

1		Klook's Theme
2		Sweet Love of Mine
3		The Burner
4		Waltz
5		Callitwhachawanna

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