Joe Henderson’s position in the tenor sax canon is summed up by the title of his 1986 Blue Note recording The State of the Tenor. That landmark album, recorded at the Village Vanguard, captured Henderson at the peak of his powers with only bass and drum support. The architectural grandeur of those Henderson improvisations demanded a follow-up be made, Red Records stepped up, and the results, recorded at the Genova Festival the following year, are heard in full here.

Both sessions had Al Foster on drums, but with Charlie Haden replacing Ron Carter on bass; there is less interaction but more space on the Genova set. The difference is audible on the two compositions that are common to both recordings. Carter follows Henderson’s melodic flow on Monk’s ‘Ask Me Now’ and supports the melody of Sam Rivers’ elegiac ‘Beatrice’ with slurs and strums. In contrast, the unflappable Haden is harmonically devious but rhythmically more straight ahead, meaning this release focusses more on the leader’s soloing art.

The album opens with Henderson first unaccompanied, then swaggering through ‘Ask Me Now’ with bass and drum support. ‘Serenity’, an original, and ‘Beatrice’ are both taken at an unusually brisk pace whereas ‘Invitation’ is low- key. Henderson, in command throughout, trills, swoops and slurs from high end to low, spinning melody and exploring the nooks and crannies of the harmonies that lie below. Haden’s approach to bass is equally singular, and there’s ample space for him to solo here.

The album ends with three songs that date from the early days of modern jazz that were unreleased at the time. ‘All The Things You Are’ is slightly rushed, but ‘Royal Roost’ and the Parker blues ‘Visa’ maintain the high standards set.