Dave Catney - Jade Visions (1991)

The late pianist Dave Catney's second release for Justice was one of his finest recordings. One can hear touches of McCoy Tyner, Bill Evans, and Herbie Hancock in his style, but Catney had already largely gained a sound of his own. He interprets with great sensitivity (and with close attention to mood variations) a set of music dominated by obscurities, including Jerome Kern's "Up With the Lark" and Scott LaFaro's "Jade Visions." Working closely in the trio with bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Peter Erskine, Dave Catney (who takes a surprise vocal on "Lost in the Stars") shows himself to have been a strong and underrated improviser.