Like his opposite East Coast number Art Blakey, Our Manne Shelly chose his sidemen wisely. This is Shelly's post-Blackhawk line-up (captured on the bandstand of his own club) and in its own way was just as exciting. How could it be any less with a pair of such underrated horn players like Conte Candoli and Frank Strozier, the latter stealing the honours. An assured improviser with a full-blooded tone and an abundance of ideas it's not surprising that Miles used Strozier briefly in 1963 between the involvement of first Hank Mobley and then George Coleman. Here, he also contributes two strong originals ‘Idle One’ and ‘Frank's Tune’ while Russ Freeman adds his own, ‘You Name It’. Henry Mancini composed so much music for the pioneering US TV/movie series Peter Gunn that Shelly Manne – who was involved in the project – was able to record at least three albums worth of music. As to be expected, the themes are strong and suitably atmospheric (‘A Bluish Bag’, ‘Sweet’, ‘Theme For Sam’) – especially the main theme, here expertly reworked so as not to bare comparisons with Duane Eddy's famous twangy jukebox hit version.