Bill Evans: The Quiet Passion of Bill Evans – enthralling look at the great pianist’s early years

Subtitled "collaborations, trio and guest sessions 1955 to 1962", this enthralling three-disc set is a survey of the early career of Bill Evans, one of the masters of 20th-century music. Though best known for his groundbreaking trios, the great pianist's early years in New York were spent collaborating with leaders like Charles Mingus, Cannonball Adderly and George Russell, and, over these 45 chronologically arranged gems, we hear a very profound and subtle musical mind emerge. When, in the middle of it all, the plangent opening chords of Blue and Green suddenly appear, one is reminded that Evans was, not least, the harmonic catalyst for the most celebrated recording in the history of jazz, and the heart swells. cherryred.co.uk