This very welcome blast from the past is well- recorded, and had it been released by the EMI Lansdowne Jazz Series or the Argo label back in 1975, it would most definitely be a collector's item today of the sort that notches up four figures. Here, at more modest cost, is a gem of British jazz from its most collectable period, capturing Taylor's sextet – an ‘A’ list of British jazz musicians – on a creative high. Taylor's influence among aspiring pianists was already considerable during his lifetime, but even he would be amazed how it has grown since his passing, not just in the UK, but in Europe, and especially in Germany, where he was Professor of Jazz Piano at the University of Cologne.

This album gives eloquent testimony why. Taylor has rightly been praised for the quality of his writing, and here all tracks are composed by him, and other than the two acoustic piano episodes, are arranged by him as well. While Taylor acknowledges jazz-rock, the contemporary disposition of the remaining tracks prompts memorable solos from Sulzmann and Pyne, while Kenny Wheeler soars, his seemingly effortless originality an album highlight alongside Taylor, who really is enjoying himself on this session.