In This Direction

by Scott YanowFor his second album as a leader, pianist Benny Green is showcased in a trio with bassist Buster Wiliams and drummer Lewis Nash. Nearing the end of his two-year stint with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Green had mixed together elements of Bobby Timmons and Oscar Peterson in his own impressive style. He performs two numbers apiece by Buster Williams and Bud Powell (including "I'll Keep Lovin' You"), the standard "What Is There to Say," Thelonious Monk's complex "Trinkle Tinkle," and his own "Dealin' With a Feelin'" on a well-rounded and consistently swinging outing.