Over the years more attention has been focused on the conflicting circumstances that resulted in Gray being found with his neck snapped on the outskirts of Las Vegas than on his prowess as an imaginative and influential Lester Young-inspired tenor player. At the time of these recordings, Gray was at the top of his game due to partnering Dexter Gordon in numerous head-to-head jousts. These vibrant tracks come from the ‘Just Jazz’ concerts presented by Gene Norman in Los Angeles as a rival to Norman Granz's Jazz At The Philharmonic bonanza. This produced a jazz hit of sorts when ‘Blue Lou’, which paired Wardell with Erroll Garner, Gray dominated the local jukeboxes and airwaves. Even the less-than-pristine recording quality can't distract from the sheer exuberance of a time when, on Central Avenue, swing was morphing into bebop.