Afro Blues Quintet Plus 1 - New Directions In Sound

8.5 - USA - 2004

They say you can’t judge a book by its cover (and by extension, a record by its sleeve), but they – whosoever they may be – are wrong.  I’ll be honest, I bought this record just because of its sleeve-design.  Sure, the blurb on the back of this fine anthology of the Quintet’s late 60s and early 70s oeuvre made it clear that it would be something I’d like: “Los Angeles’ finest Latin jazz combo. Sophisticated, slick and ready to get down.”, but it’s the retro design of the cover with its oh-so-60s abstract minimalism and pointillist portraits of the Quintet (Plus 1) that really sold it.

Just as well, too, because the tunes contained therein are uniformly excellent.  “Monkey Time”, in particular is a highlight – I love how the band-members themselves provide a celebratory chorus in the background of this instrumental.