Steve Smith is nothing if not value for money. This recording brings together the essence of Buddy's Buddies, his Buddy Rich alumni project, Jazz Legacy which covers jazz standards by the great drummers and for good measure it ends with two live cuts of his fusion project, Vital Information. Through it all Smith weaves three solo features reflecting his love of Rich and Indian rhythms, plus a brush feature (predictably monickered ‘The Brush Off’). So all things Smith are catered for. The tone is set from the outset with a funk and fusion take on Monk's ‘Bemsha Swing’, and the quality never eases, whether it's on a lithely swinging ‘Take Five’ with Valentino sublimely lissom or Soskin dropping luscious chords behind Fusco on a soulful ‘Chan's Song’. Keeping the legacy alive, without ever being deferential, Smith remains an unsung hero.