Jazz pianist David Hazeltine, like many baby-boomer musicians, is influenced by Wes, Buddy, and Monk Montgomery and Cedar Walton. For what he calls his most personally driven recording date, he pays tribute to them by composing a four-part suite inspired by their sounds. Hazeltine and his quintet -- which includes the formidable vibraphonist Joe Locke and longtime collaborator tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander -- give alms with some well-conceived and executed modern mainstream jazz. The suite begins as a neo-bop cadence buoys a splattering of several Cedar-flavored motifs, two-note accents, and piano-bass unison lines for Motivation. Reverence has Locke's vibes shimmering on a low and slow Latin-shaded piece, followed by another bright neo-bop melody, Insight, and the finale is a 6/8 composition, Gratitude, that could have easily fit into the repertoire of Walton and Bobby Hutcherson's Timeless All Stars book. Of the five stand-alone tracks, two are covers left until the end of the CD -- Walton's much lesser-known Shoulders is as straight-ahead as jazz gets, while Buddy Montgomery's Personage of Wes is a kinetic, uppity sizzler. A newly arranged complex and arresting intro is tacked onto the standard I Should Care, and Hazeltine's original Don't Walk Away is treated in a Latin fashion, occasional percussionist Daniel Sadownick adding the spice, but again settles in the modern mainstream. Hazeltine has not put out the full-force blockbuster breakthrough recording his clear talent indicates, but this one ranks with his many best efforts. ~ Michael G. Nastos, Rovi

1		I Should Care
2		Dont' Walk Away
3		Motivation
4		Reverence
5		Insight
6		Gratitude
7		My Ideal
8		Shoulders
9		Personage of Wes

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