There is a far-reaching history of tributes to players by other players in black music, and this epic three-CD set stands proudly within it.

Trombonist Steve Swell has been a notable presence on the New York scene since the mid-1990s and worked with a number of forward thinkers, including Chicagoan alto saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc, who sadly passed away in 2021. For Jemeel: Fire From The Road is a collection of live performances that feature the two horn players joined by the seasoned drums/bass axis of Hamid Drake and William Parker. Four strong characters with a wealth of experience and empathy thus come together in a band that can become smaller than a quartet and sound bigger. In any case it moves seamlessly between schools and eras, passing through swing, bop and avant-garde to emphasise both group cohesion and individual ability, as the gripping hour-long opus ‘Improvised Music At The El Dorado’ makes clear. As a writer Swell has a talent for slow, hovering, mostly modal themes, with lots of punchy, hefty lines, in which the weight of his tone anchors the music as much as the rhythm section, which moves readily from nailed down to freed up. A fitting act of remembrance for an artist who is gone, but should not be forgotten.