You Leave Me Breathless (1991)

About this title: Tenor saxophonist Junior Cook's final recording, cut less than two months before his death, finds the veteran hard bop stylist in surprisingly prime form, taking upbeat solos and swinging hard. On this CD, one can really hear the mutual influence that Cook had on Joe Henderson. Trumpeter Valery Ponomarev is also in particularly fine form, and the rhythm section (pianist Mickey Tucker, bassist John Webber and drummer Joe Farnsworth) is somewhat obscure but excellent. Three group originals, Cedar Walton's "Fiesta Espanol" and four standards (including a warm tenor feature on "Warm Valley" and a ... read more

Tracks:

1. Junior's Cook [Cook]
2. Envoy [Ponomarev]
3. Warm Valley [Ellington]
4. Sweet Lotus Lips [Tucker]
5. Vierd Blues [Davis]
6. You Leave Me Breathless [Hollander]
7. Fiesta Espaņol [Walton]
8. Mr. P.C. [Coltrane]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.