two minutes into this double cd, and you will remember why you love jazz in the first place--it's flat out fun! occasionally, jazz artists, critics, fans, et al, get lost in their own rhetoric defending the art of jazz and forget that jazz, like all music, is supposed to be fun. jazz is a wonderful art form, giving voice to the purely improvisational, the free spirit within us that compels us to create, to respond to our environment, and reveal the depth and breadth of feeling carried within us. mr. redman is more than proficient. he is an artist and an improviser of high order. but he also remembers to swing, to dance, and play. right from the get-go this album captures your heart and soul and for the next couple of hours holds you there. when you're done, you don't feel exhausted, but refreshed, like you would have been had you been in the vanguard the night this went down. this is a great live set by an artist who keeps right on enjoying what he's doing. enjoy!