This 3-CD box set (part of ECM's specially-priced Old and New Masters series) gathers together for the first time on CD the ‘lost trilogy’ of albums recorded by the Norwegian bassist Arild Andersen Quartet, a pivotal figure in European jazz, between 1975 and 1978. Expertly remastered, it starts with his debut Clouds in My Head with a lineup including two 19 year olds: pianist Jon Balke and drummer Pal Thowsen. Andersen had just done six years in Garbarek's group and his first shot as leader stands up very well today. The collective urgency of the sound owes much to the inspired contributions from the fired-up teenage members. Revealing an allegiance to Keith Jarret's European quartet of the time, Outhouse, a tune revisited on Andersen's newest CD Live At Belleville, also has faint echoes of Weather Report and ‘Cycles’, of transition period electric Miles. The second CD Shimri from 1976 finds Andersen in a more meditative space with the classical-orientated pianist Lars Jansson. It offers a different mood to the debut, less penetrating but still far from unlistenable. The third CD is Green Shading into Blue, the least compelling of the three with its cosy, lightly funky feel. Finnish multi-reedist Junani Aaltonen's though stands out with his fluid, expressive, rasping Barbieri-like tone. Andersen exemplifies the focus on team spirit on all three of these recordings: he plays big while appearing small and perfectly supports the band sound with his wide, haunting, springy sound. The debut Clouds in my Head is the jewel in the crown here, but all three are certainly more than just a footnote in Andersen's career.