The jazz sextet Planet Jazz (no relation to the club/dance band that used the same name) was founded by drummer Johnny Ellis, who contributed several of the compositions heard on this CD but died in 1999, long before the recording session. This strong bop-oriented group is fronted by tenor saxophonist Grant Stewart and trumpeter/flügelhornist Joe Magnarelli, with pianist Spike Wilner, guitarist Peter Bernstein, bassist Neal Miner, and drummer Joe Strasser. Stewart and Magnarelli kick each other into high gear trading fours in Ellis’ lively “Buttermoose.” Another Ellis work, “The Cow Is Now,” is a slightly quirky jazz waltz. Their choice of Charlie Shavers’ neglected “Dawn on the Desert” is inspired, with Wilner giving it a Latin flavor and adding a slightly ominous tinge. He also scored Hampton Hawes’ “Sonora,” which fuels some of the most inspired solos of the date, accompanied by a breezy Latin backbeat. Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn composed “Dual Highway” as a blues vehicle for alto sax great Johnny Hodges, though their recording wasn’t issued until well after the deaths of all three musicians. Planet Jazz do a nice job utilizing this unjust obscurity as a feature for each member in turn. It’s too bad that Johnny Ellis didn’t live long enough to witness this impressive session. – Ken Dryden
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