Leading off with the not-yet-standard ‘Mambo Inn’, this early LP (originally a 10-inch, then bumped up to a 32-minute 12-inch, the version heard here) was probably the first occasion on which Candido received star billing. (Interestingly, his next few were for ABC-Paramount, as were Billy T's, both produced by Creed T.) To say the least, he earns his keep and demonstrates a keen affinity with jazz musicians by doing far more than just plonking on the off-beats, in fact commenting and supplementing the melody instruments much like the best bebop kit-drummers. Taylor's own work always made more impact in the US during his long career than it did here, but a strong case can be made for him being at least as influential as, say, Ahmad Jamal. Though Taylor passed on in late-2010 aged 89, Candido was still going strong at his 90th birthday celebration this month last year.