The Modern Jazz Quartet - Versailles [from 1956 album Fontessa]

The Modern Jazz Quartet - Fontessa
Year: 1956
Label: Atlantic

Piano: John Lewis
Vibes: Milt Jackson
Bass: Ray Brown
Drums: Kenny Clarke

This LP has a particularly strong all-around set by the Modern Jazz Quartet. While John Lewis' "Versailles" and an 11-minute "Fontessa" show the seriousness of the group (and the influence of Western classical music), other pieces (such as "Bluesology," "Woody 'N You" and a pair of ballads) look toward the group's roots in bop and permit the band to swing hard.