The inclusion of the long deceased Melba Liston in the credits is not a minor detail. The trombonist penned the arrangements for Weston's landmark 1960 work Uhuru Afrika, and it is fitting that her score is used on one of the outstanding pieces on this two-disc set, a live recording that is as much a celebration of Weston's socio-cultural and political ethos as it is a gathering of great musicians. Memory and knowledge in the widest possible sense are the themes that underpin a performance in which spoken word, by way of Wayne Chandler's stately narration that posits Africa as the cradle of modern civilization and Jayne Cortez's energetically subversive poetry, features prominently amid the workings of both solo piano and ensemble. The musical signature that Weston has developed over more than six decades, one in which blues, swing, latin, Oriental and Maghrebin rhythms form a coherent synthesis, is enriched here by the integration of traditional Chinese instruments such as the pipa, whose timbres blend superbly with Weston's commanding presence at the keyboard. Acknowledging a debt to Monk and Ellington, Weston has refined a very personal vocabulary in which there is a rich contrast of dynamic, jaunty improvisations and full-bodied chords that often linger authoritatively over the bar. Weston's decision to assemble an all-star line-up that includes treasured collaborators past and present, from percussion legend Candido Camero to tenor titan Billy Harper, could have led to a somewhat unwieldy summit meeting, but the richness of the programme and the high standard of musicianship preclude that.