European Radio has done us all a great service by recording the Basie band at various stages of the evolution of the ‘New Testament’ band. So within the last year or two we've had the 1956 Basel concert from Swiss Radio on TCB, and the excellent 1957-62 Fremeaux collection of Parisian concerts, and now the story moves on a year with WDR's Berlin 1963 recording at the Sportspalast in Berlin. The piano could do with a tune, and the band slightly lacks the precision and swing of bassist Eddie Jones, though Buddy Catlett tries manfully to keep up. But the benefit here is a reunion with 1930s vocalist Jimmy Rushing, with a powerhouse version of ‘I'm Coming Virginia’, a stomping ‘Little Girl’ and his signature ‘Mr Five By Five’. He recorded the same repertoire at around the same time with Humph and Buck Clayton, but the visceral drive of Basie in full cry is unmatchable. And what's also good about this set is the numbers that creep almost unnoticed into the standard Hefti/Wilkins repertoire. A sensitive Quincy arrangement of ‘Moon River’ stands out as does ‘Swinging Shepherd Blues’ with Wess and Foster on flutes, showing Bert Kampfert how this sound ought to work. There's a beautiful Marshal Royal solo on ‘Midnight Sun’ and though the rest of the material is the usual Basie fare, it's all played with a sense of excitement and verve that overcomes the dodgy piano and catches you in a swirl of adrenaline that only subsides as the final applause dies away. A great live set from a band not just showing what it did on the road, but at the top – or very nearly at the top – of its game.