THE THIRD QUARTET

Don't expect any Jazz-Rock or other musical fusions here: this is strictly Jazz of the purest kind, from one of its most esteemed players. And if you don't already possess a well-developed palate for the real thing, feel free to skip the rest of this review (or better yet, give the album a fair hearing: it might just surprise and / or enrich you more than expected).

The instrumentation is unusual for an otherwise traditional Jazz combo: drums, upright bass, guitar, and violin, the latter introducing hints of Folk Music richness into the ensemble. Abercrombie's guitar is the only electrified instrument in the group, but his amplification is attractively muted to fit snugly alongside his acoustic cohorts (all ace players, it goes without saying).

The music itself is beyond criticism. Each of the ten entirely instrumental tracks is never less than exquisite, refined, subtle, and intuitive. All of them together form a simple yet sophisticated album, following to the letter the ECM label motto: 'the most beautiful sound next to silence'.

My conservative rating is only a reflection of the sometimes limiting Prog Archives guidelines (the album is hardly essential to a strictly Prog Rock music library). Veteran Jazz aficionados (I'm more of a dedicated tourist myself) can add another star at their discretion.