Ain't Misbehavin'

When this set (reissued on CD) was recorded, Hank Jones was the pianist in the Broadway show Ain’t Misbehavin’, a revue that celebrated Fats Waller’s music. Jones never sounded like Waller, being a swing-to-bop transition player rather than a stride pianist, and he makes no effort to copy Fats during this brief program. Instead he plays five Waller compositions and the swing standard “Mean to Me” in his own style, hinting at Waller slightly in spots but essentially playing mainstream bop. Jones is joined by bassist Richard Davis, drummer Roy Haynes, and (on three of the six numbers) trumpeter Bob Ojeda, tenor-saxophonist Teddy Edwards, and guitarist Kenny Burrell. Swinging if not particularly memorable music. – Scott Yanow