Timmons was of the generation, born in the 1930s, who emulated the bad habits of some beboppers, but what did for him at the early age of 38 was alcoholism. Perhaps it's appropriate, then, that his fundamental stylistic influence was that of Bud Powell, which was then beneficially overlaid with a hint of Red Garland/Ahmad Jamal and with the sounds of gospel-blues piano. The acclaim and the royalties earned from his evergreen compositions ‘Moanin’’ and ‘Dat Dere’ (and the briefly fashionable but less perennial ‘This Here’) initially insulated him from the limited shelf-life of so-called ‘soul jazz’, which was still viable at the time of the four sessions included here. Following on from his first albums on Riverside, this collection has his last two Riversides and two for Prestige (omitting the one which had him playing organ and vibes as well as piano). These later dates have some interesting ideas about how far you can push cross-rhythmic repetition of funky figures, but they may also smack of desperation. The many standards, often in rather Powellish arrangements, tend to stand the test of time better.