Michael Fremer’s 100 Recommended All-Analog LP Reissues Worth Owning – Rated 29/100!

The Absolute Sound Top Ten Vinyl Reissue of 2016!

180 Gram Vinyl! Re-mastered by Ray Staff at Air Mastering Studio!

Pressed at Pallas in Germany!

“It’s impossible to listen to 19-year-old Wilen’s playing here without marveling at his poise and ability to improvise melodically. And close to impossible to stop listening to this timeless record once you have it on the turntable. Production values are through the rood for this release.” – Duck Baker, The Absolute Sound Buyer’s Guide 2016, 4/5 Music, 4.5/5 Sonics Read The Full Review Here!

It was in Paris that John Lewis co-led this 1956 date with Sacha Distel, a French guitarist who never became well known in the U.S. but commanded a lot of respect in French jazz circles. The same can be said about the other French players employed on “Afternoon In Paris” — neither tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen nor bassist Pierre Michelot were huge names in the U.S., although both were well known in European jazz circles. With Lewis on piano, Distel on guitar, Wilen on tenor, Michelot or Percy Heath on bass, and Kenny Clarke or Connie Kay on drums, the part-American, part-French group of improvisers provides an above-average bop album that ranges from “Willow Weep For Me”, “All The Things You Are”, and “I Cover The Waterfront” to Milt Jackson’s “Bags’ Groove” and Lewis’ title song. The big-toned Wilen was only 19 when “Afternoon In Paris” was recorded, but as his lyrical yet hard-swinging solos demonstrate, he matured quickly as a sax man. A mythic LP and one of the best recorded in France!!!

“The pace is relaxed, thoughtful, ultra-refined and deliberate as it must be with Lewis leading. It also swings unfailingly. Fans will hear familiar, comfortable Lewis motifs and a sublime blending of piano and Distel’s cleanly articulated hollow bodied guitar lines.” – analogplanet, 9/11 Music, 8/11 Sound

Features:

• 180g Vinyl

• Remastered by Ray Staff at Air Mastering Studio from a Copy of Master Tapes

• Pressed at Pallas in Germany

• Double Insert with Photo

Musicians:

John Lewis, piano

Sacha Distel, guitar

Barney Wilen, tenor saxophone

Pierre Michelot, bass

Percy Heath, bass

Connie Kay, drums

Kenny Clarke, drums