Regrets? I've had a few and high on that list was never catching this iconic aggregation in person. There is an impressive lineage of creative Big Bands throughout Europe and Scandinavia (DRBB, Vienna Art Orchestra, Loose Tubes etc), and on a good night the Clarke-Boland ensemble could give any other band its size a run for its money. Though crammed with A-list players from around the world, surprisingly there was never any noticeable clash of egos. To the leaders' credit, the talents of everyone from Art Farmer, Billy Mitchell, Sahib Shihab (USA), Ronnie Scott, Jimmy Deuchar, Derek Humble (UK) and Europeans Ake Persson, Dusko Goykovich, were sympathetically accommodated in this truly wondrous band to where they contributed to the exhilarating box-fresh sound. Yet it was often Ronnie Scott who proved himself to be the most outstanding (‘Sonor’, ‘Speedy Reeds’). However, it was far from being a one-man show. This really was a team effort with egos kept well in check and the section playing precise and impressive while things couldn't get much better than Jimmy Woode and Kenny Clarke steering this juggernaut. Formed in 1961, the KCFBBB revolved around the rhythm team of Belgian pianist-arranger Boland, former Ellington bassist Woode and the legend that was Klook. It remained thus for the 15 albums it recorded in its 11 year existence. Overall, this is a joyous occasion with all concerned thoroughly enjoying the moment. Recorded to perfection by Wolfgang Hirschmann this band sounded ultra modern in 1963 and a half-century later time has not diminished its impact.