Details are murky but the Internet seems to suggest unspecified ‘legal reasons’ for why this classic of 1960s Brit-jazz has slipped through the cracks. It’s certainly not on grounds of quality. Neil Ardley guides top-flight UK players through a series of lush, orchestral arrangements including the Elllingtonian sweep of the title track, the Mingus-like quirkiness of ‘Angle’, a brash, growling lope through the Rendell/Carr classic ‘Dusk Fire’, and a soporiphic reading of Coltrane’s ‘Naima.’ Jack Bruce, here confined to acoustic bass, had only the year before survived the break-up of Cream; and there were two members of jazz-rockers Colosseum on hand: Jon Hiseman and Dick Heckstall-Smith (whose unmistakable Roland Kirk-influenced bray rises up throughout). Yet it’s a tribute to Ardley’s vision and artistry that all egos seem to be entirely subsumed in the service of his arrangements. The whole album shines with an urbane grace and grandeur. Seek it out.

Vinyl sold in 2011 for £161 at ebay.com