Here's a game of two halves if ever there was one. What the Dickens! is a themed, programmatic suite in 13 parts, each evoking a Dickensian moment or character while Off Duty might best be described as the popular Dankworth. Interspersed among its 11 tracks are single originals by JD himself and pianist Laurie Holloway. Otherwise, they represent the Dankworth band's take on a series of popular swing classics (‘Skyliner’, ‘Song of India’, ‘Jada’ et al), the bright, zippy sound of these cuts recalling such orchestral popularisers as Herb Alpert and his Tijuana Brass or the Button Down Brass. The one sure-fire winner among them is Galt McDermot's ‘African Waltz’, which enjoyed six months in the charts when released as a single. Call Off Duty a potboiler if you want: skilfully done but lightweight. Speaking of What the Dickens!, Dankworth said, “I wanted to make this album a milestone in the band's history. To draw attention to it I decided to use a number of guest soloists,” this explaining the presence of Hayes, Scott, Wellins and the rest. Attention gained, it earned him an Ivor Novello Award, then as now a rare accolade for a jazz album. Listening today, it's the range of orchestral devices used, the clever voicings and the skilful deployment of soloists that impress. Any reviewer's ability to judge the efficacy of a composer's intention is necessarily subjective but suffice it to say that to hear Ross and Wellins evoking ‘Sam Weller’s good-natured Cockney personality' is pleasure personified, the orchestral writing as jaunty as you could wish for. JD's yearning alto does it for ‘Little Nell’ while the late Eddie Harvey explores the ribald lines of ‘The Infant Phenomenon’ with fellow-trombonist Russell, Snyder's grumbling tuba in counterpoint before Snell, Wheeler and Hayes share the waltz-time theme of ‘Demndest Little Fascinator’ ahead of the contrasting voices of Scott, Wellins, Coe, Morrissey and King on the rousing ‘Dotheboys Hall’. How we miss Morrissey's crunching urgency! Space precludes a more detailed consideration of the remaining tracks – there's engaging music on them all. Good to have.