Heartening that Sony Music are delving into their huge archives for material other than that by Miles Davis. This CD has a facsimile of the original album sleeve, front and back, with a brief explanatory note by Carla Bley who composed the music and conducted the recording session. Since there are no liner notes per se, it’s worth noting that this is Bley’s first full-scale project on record. It was inspired by a French film on American TV of a funeral procession passing through the streets of Hong Kong. It was recorded in 1967, a time when Burton, a precociously talented vibist, was reflecting jazz’s move towards embracing the tone colours and rhythms of rock. This album is quite different in conception and execution, however, and is much more than a collection of individual themes, succeeding in its conceptual sweep as a musical and dramatic suite. Although sadly overlooked when released, this ‘opera without words’ is in fact the first substantial work from one of jazz’s great composing talents. A work of contrasts, passages for horns alternate with passages for the Burton Quartet, and on the first version of ‘The Survivors’ we hear a dialogue between vibes and tuba and vibes and bass. Bley also gives the orchestra members a chance to shine – Steve Lacy’s soprano on ‘Opening’ and ‘Fanfare’, Gato Barbieri on ‘Silent Spring’, Jimmy Knepper on ‘Some Dirge’ and Mike Mantler’s trumpet on ‘The New Funeral March’. Partially scored and highly structured, A Genuine Tong Funeral signposted the way for Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra, Escalator Over the Hill, Tropic Appetites, 3/4 for Piano and Orchestra and Dinner Music.