In his brief career, Clifford Brown provided a new model for trumpeters, combining crisp articulation, fluent lines, and a beautifully brassy sound. When this material was recorded in 1954, Brown had only recently formed the quintet with drummer Max Roach, but the strengths that would make it a preeminent group were already apparent. Both Brown and Roach delighted in an incendiary precision, fast tempos on complex material played with joyous ease, and tight rhythmic definition. Brown"s inspired invention is apparent everywhere, from the pensive Ellington ballad "What Am I Here For?" to Bud Powell"s sleek "Parisian Thoroughfare," while the more relaxed, boppish tenor of Harold Land is a fine complement. Among Brown"s tunes for the sessions, "Daahoud" and "Joy Spring" would become frequently played anthems of the hard-bop movement. --Stuart Broomer