by Scott Yanow
Other than a set in 1957, this long-out-of-print LP was guitarist Jim Hall's debut as a leader. The 29-year-old Hall was not exactly an unknown name at the time, having played with the Original Chico Hamilton Quintet and the Jimmy Giuffre Three; he was still a year away from joining Sonny Rollins. Subtitled &The Modest Jazz Trio,& the band on this date consists of Hall, bassist Red Kelly, and Red Mitchell quite effectively playing piano (he was usually a bassist). The combination works quite well, performing what was essentially straight-ahead jazz. Originally, the unit was only supposed to record the &Good Friday Blues& for a blues anthology album, but the music felt so strong that the trio cut a full album in one day, performing three standards, two Mitchell originals and Bill Harris' &Bill Not Phil.& Well worth searching for; hopefully Blue Note will get around to reissuing this underrated gem someday.